Yeah, when I get up in the morning I'm stiff. A different kind of stiff if I've been exercising, but always stiff...
Yah, for me, I haven't really noticed any difference in muscle stiffness, but my joints seem more prone to niggles and strains, and it's taken a while to accept this fact. Now I'm trying to figure out what reasonable expectations are for me at this point. For the ST, I have a pretty good feel for what my limits are, and how much I can push on any given day, but for running I'm still finding my way. I've never previously run more than five miles at a time, so I don't have a younger self to compare myself to in my current attempt to run longer distances. And I have friends who've already had knee-replacement surgeries (skiing and football), so I don't want to overdo it and have to go that route.
Now that my period of minor niggledom seems to be passing, I'm trying to use relative joint stiffness or soreness as a gauge as to whether I've overdone things or not, but it's not always easy to tell routine recovery soreness from nascent niggle. This morning I'm feeling my left knee cap just a bit, so I guess that means I overdid my faster paced run yesterday. I hadn't run at that pace since my calf cramp over a month ago. Probably needed to call it a day at five miles when I really began to slow down, but on the other hand, perhaps running that extra mile will contribute to my overall conditioning. I dunno. On the other other hand, my MCL, which has felt sore after the longer runs, ever since I reinjured it last month, has been getting progressively less sore after each run, and I haven't felt it at all all this week, so perhaps the running is therapeutic, or at the very least didn't prolong the healing process by too much.
As my Dad says, aging stinks, but it's better than the alternative.
"You're so cute when you pretend to not be competitive."
I'm kind of the opposite, and starting to regret signing up for races this year. I don't think it's going to be my thing, but I guess it can't hurt to try it out. Who knows?, maybe it will become my hobby.
Perhaps more than anything, I just don't like the idea of training. I'm really enjoying just going out and seeing what each run brings, ready to bail on the day's plan at the first sign of trouble, but having signed up for a half-marathon in August makes me feel a certain pressure to keep improving every week, rather than just taking the improvements in their own time, as I do with strength training. I guess if I already knew I could run a half-marathon, I could just take it as it comes too, but right now I have to do my best not to amp up the distances prematurely. I admire the relaxed attitude a lot of people at BRS take towards races, but I'm afraid of awakening my long-dormant ex-jock competitiveness and getting myself in trouble.
