Running Past Fifty: Advice and Inspiration for Senior Runners

by Gail Waesche Kislevitz

Running brings joy and health benefits to all participants, especially those of the baby boomer generation. But when legs get sore, joints feel achy, and old age creeps up, sometimes senior runners need a little extra motivation to get out of the door and on the road. In Running Past Fifty, lifelong runner Gail Waesche Kislevitz provides helpful tips and motivation from thirty-six runners aged fifty or older.
Presenting time-tested recommendations, Kislevitz interviews some of the nation’s greatest senior runners. Included here are exclusive interviews with greats such as Ed Whitlock, who, at the age of eighty-five, set an age-division world record of 3:56 in the marathon; Bill Rodgers, winner of four Boston Marathons and four New York City Marathons; George Hirsch, chairman of New York Road Runners; Olympian and author Jeff Galloway; world record holder Sid Howard; and runner and women’s pioneer runner and advocate Kathrine Switzer
And legendary runners aren’t the only ones running well into seniority. Kislevitz also offers motivational stories from average runners who hit the pavement frequently and refuse to let their age stop them from competing regularly.
Baby boomer runners may be slower than they once were, but they show no signs of slowing down. Inspiring and insightful, Running Past Fifty is the perfect read for every one of them.

Genres: Sports, Nonfiction

347 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 9, 2018

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

I (really) thought I was the target audience, but I misunderstood the nature of the enterprise. It's a (very) nice project and, apparently, a labor of love, but alas, not, to my mind, a great book.

I can see why some folks really enjoyed this; it just wasn't what I was looking for or expecting.

The photos were big plus. Conversely, the easily avoidable repetition was maddening.

[Mark O'mara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspirational reading the stories, habits and attitudes of runners 57 plus - one over 100 many in their 80s. Worked for me.

[David Duncan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Both inspirational AND Educational

Here you will find the unfiltered stories of several masters runners. Some are fast and some are slow, but all share the same desire to run for the rest of their lives.

The author (also a older athlete)stays in the background and let’s the runners, who are in their 50’s to 90’s, simply tell their stories. Many of them share nuggets of wisdom about training, racing, and staying motivated. However, running for the LOVE of it—the feelings it brings—is what struck me with almost every story.

The book closes with expert advice from a physical therapist, veteran running coach, and a podiatrist who each work with senior runners.

Overall, this is an excellent book. As mentioned, the author doesn’t preach her points of view, as many running authors do, but lets the heroes do the talking.

Highly recommended.

[Mark Partridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book and found many of the profiles of senior runners to be quite inspiring. Especially enjoyed reading
about idiosyncrasies of world-class runners who never stretch, or have no interest in diet and nutrition, or have other unconventional approaches to running. Some the profiles, however, were dry and formulaic, and almost seemed to be there to pad the book length. Also noticed that even though the profiles were only a few pages each, facts (and sometimes almost entire paragraphs) would be repeated. Seemed like the editor should have caught those.

[Dari Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take away: anyone can run and run until they are 90+!

[JSem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice and inspirational but could have used more editing.

[Jim Becker · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought it was a book about how to stay healthy and competitive as I age. It was a collection of small bios of older runners.

[Kitty Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspiring!

This is a very encouraging book for people who want to keep running and improve their running through their lives

[Angie Carter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the book I was looking for. Stories about dedicated runners.