Laura Clark reviews Running Past 50: Your Guide to Running Longevity and Success, by Caolan MacMahon. Human Kinetics, 2025. Laura is a trail runner, snowshoer and children’s librarian based in Saratoga Springs, NY.
Is 50 the new 30? One could only wish. When I was younger, I figured that if I just kept running, I would qualify for Boston once I turned 50 – a belief that Coach Caolan MacMahon echoes in her preface. But alas! Not only did the qualifying requirements get tougher as there were more of us around, but mentally and physically age has a disconcerting way of making its presence known. I was one of the lucky ones. I could pretty much hold my own, even winning an age group award at Snowshoe Nationals in the 70’s division, but after that, things changed. I got old.
Book cover: Running Past 50.
If this sounds like you, MacMahon will provide comfort, vindication and motivation to guide and refresh your journey. At first, the solution seems obvious: start fresh by tackling longer or shorter events, combo competitions, trading roads for trails or spikes for snowshoes. This works for a while but according to MacMahon, a major paradigm shift is the key to lasting contentment. This involves tossing out societal expectations and what you feel you “should be” doing and choosing goals that are significant to you. For example, if you still enjoy the communal racing experience, but worry you will be too slow, approach races as a training run and just enjoy the experience. Nowadays, worried that I will keep volunteers out there too long, it the event is a smaller one and I am familiar with the route, I ask for permission to start early. Most race directors will be grateful for your consideration. At the finish, I find I have so much more time to socialize!
Laura Clark on the trails. Photo: Mike Scott.
I am amazed at how my goals have naturally shifted from outcome to process. I distinguish between achieving a good clock time and having a fun time training and participating. At MacMahon’s suggestion, I can pause on the trail, or even sit down on a log just to observe the nature around me. The most difficult step for me is to accept that recovery time counts as training time. Stringing together several consecutive challenging days is tempting, but no longer works.
For those of you who are dead set on serious training, and perhaps on the lighter side of 50, MacMahon provides detailed training tables for all distances, as well as suggestions on how to adapt them to an older body. She also details the changes you can expect as your body normally encounters the ageing process, making it seem that it is not all your fault, but rather something to redefine.
Now, at age 77, I am hoping for a sequel, something along the lines of “Running Past 70!”
Editor’s note: Read more book reviews and articles by Laura Clark here.
