In January I shared my blog, ‘My resolution, my way’, & that I was in training for the Cambridge Half Marathon. So a few weeks back I pulled on my trainers, pinned on my race number and ‘sprinted off’ determined to beat my previous times.
I ran my first Cambridge Half, aged 47, in 2014, finishing in 2:11. The following year I ran a 2:09. After a two year break I had ‘a blinder’ of a last five miles in 2018 & managed a 2.01. So my goal was simple, finish in under 2 hours…
This year, GARMIN on wrist, I achieved a respectable 1:52. ‘On the ground’ that’s over 2 miles ahead of my 2014 time. Delighted.
Post race analysis confirmed I finished 257 out of 491 males aged 50-54 & that Jon Anderson posted a staggering 1.20, so plenty of room for improvement!
An excellent recent BBC article Can Exercise Reverse the Aging Process? www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-47331544 suggests that ‘active older people’ are exactly as they should be & that ‘if an active 80 year old has a similar physiology to an inactive 50 year old it is the younger person who appears older than they should be, not the other way round,’
Utmost respect to John Starbrook, aged 87, who was the oldest person to complete the 2018 London Marathon.
Grateful thanks to colleagues and family who cheered me on and helped raise £320 for Cancer Research.
It seems I can’t wait another 12 months… I’ve just entered the Flaming June Half Marathon on 2 June to see where my next run takes me.