I just got back from the SPMS meet and I am in a funk. I have talked to several of my contemporaries who share my dysphoria at getting slower. From age 50-62 I slowed down very little. Ages 63 and 64 were one injury or illness after another, but at least there was a cause and I felt I would do better. Age 65 I aged up and for most of the year was healthy. That was a great year,but my times were all significantly slower than at 62. Since then it is very unusual to have one swim that is faster than I did the previous year.At 67(almost 68) I am notably slower than at 65. I have seen the graphs of how times slow with age, intellectually, if I am staying at the same rate of decline as my peers I should accept it, but I don't like it. I know most forumites are much younger and what I am saying may seem like something natural that I should just acknowledge and go on, that is what I thought until I was 63. I know that our having age groups every 5 years is a partial solution to the problem, but there is more difference between a 65 year old and a 68 year old than between a 40 year old and a 50 year old, in my experience. How do the other older swimmers out there cope and have a good attitude? The common saying in Masters Swimming is that "you are only competing against yourself",but my slightly younger self is kicking my butt and I am tired of it.
This is such an interesting conversation. When I began swimming Masters in 2005 at the age of 60, after a 41 year break from competitive swimming, someone told me I'd get 7 good years of improvement. As it turned out, I pretty much had a new best time in every event for about 8 years. Then not so often. My last best time was in 2012 at the age of 67.
At first, the decline was very subtle, but at 69, I felt as if I were falling off a cliff. At 69 I had major spinal reconstruction and as expected, I took more backward steps. When I aged up at 70, I had a great year, with times close to my best. But at 71, I'm frustrated by really slow comparative times. I honestly believe that everyone ages in their own way, and we can go from a gradual slope to a precipitous cliff in spite of our training. Also, I've noticed more impediments to training due to physical issues, travel, family dedications, and a more thoughtful approach to life, savoring more moments outside of swimming.
Allen Stark will always be awesome, always be on the leading edge of the age group, and always at the top of the rankings. Time is relative!
This is such an interesting conversation. When I began swimming Masters in 2005 at the age of 60, after a 41 year break from competitive swimming, someone told me I'd get 7 good years of improvement. As it turned out, I pretty much had a new best time in every event for about 8 years. Then not so often. My last best time was in 2012 at the age of 67.
At first, the decline was very subtle, but at 69, I felt as if I were falling off a cliff. At 69 I had major spinal reconstruction and as expected, I took more backward steps. When I aged up at 70, I had a great year, with times close to my best. But at 71, I'm frustrated by really slow comparative times. I honestly believe that everyone ages in their own way, and we can go from a gradual slope to a precipitous cliff in spite of our training. Also, I've noticed more impediments to training due to physical issues, travel, family dedications, and a more thoughtful approach to life, savoring more moments outside of swimming.
Allen Stark will always be awesome, always be on the leading edge of the age group, and always at the top of the rankings. Time is relative!
