I like running on trails especially, though I do the occasional road marathon as well. I'm not very good at it and am getting worse. When I started in my late 40s, I was satisfied with a run over 20k with hills that took me just under 2 hours. These days I'd be happy with doing that in 3 hours and not being forced to walk by cramps and possibly DNF-ed as a result.
Don' wanna DNF
The dreaded Did Not Finish... not that I have ever 'not finished' but you also get a DNF if you fail to meet a cutoff time and unfortunately that happened once on Two Bays 56K run. I staggered into the check point and shouted 'DNF me baby' to the race-director (Rohan Day) because I was happy at that point to be able to stop trying to force the pace and just walk from there and I got into Cape Schank just as they were packing everything up. Rohan thoughtfully came over and gave me my medal anyway. Nice touch. I'll have another go another day if I can get things sorted and see if I can finish it properly.
Slow and steady wins, well, finishes, the race...
Was a time when I'd try for an average pace of 5 minutes per kilometer, on the flat at least. But I was finding that over an extended run of 30 or 60 km, that my average would be lucky to be 9 mins per km, because I was being forced to walk quite a lot of it, either to avoid cramps or on the longer runs because I'd just run out of steam. So, I'm now more focused on learning how to run slowly and efficiently, at about 6 mins 30 secs per km, with a major goal of not triggering cramps.
I have a running buddy who once complained that it messed her up if she tried to run so slowly, and I do understand that. "Hurts my mo to go so slow". There is an art to going slower than your natural pace, especially if you are full of energy. Shorter stride, lower cadence, less 'push off' on each stride, listen to the sounds you make and try to keep your footfalls as quite as possible. If I am getting a 'tshh, tshh, tshh' sound as my feet hit, I think I am wasting energy braking on each step. I try for a 'pad, pad, pad' sound, as quite as I can make it.
Sometimes I am lucky when out on a run, to find another runner who is going along steadily at a slower rate. I slot myself in behind them, not too close -don't want to be creepy about it - and try to match their pace. It teaches me to slow down.
Anybody who has run hills over any real distance is familiar with the mantra "walk when you should, run when you can" meaning that on an uphill, you walk and on the flat and downhill you run. And later in the race when things are getting dicey with cramps and energy, even on the flats you might 'walk 100 run 200' paces or whatever works for you.
My Achilles' heel
I've had some major blow-outs in my calf muscles over the last year or so. I put it down to the shoes because I suspected it was happening when I used things like Hokas or Altras too much (both of which have a low heel-to-toe drop) and figured it was stressing my calves too much. I'd start to get a niggle in the calf and if I ignored it it turned into a major pain, like a muscle tear and it took me months to recover from. Sometimes on leg, bit in one monumental cock-up I did it to both at once.
I've since managed to avoid it, mostly just by actually listening to my body and stopping the run if the niggle comes back. Changing back to Asics shoes with 10mm toe drop probably helped too. More attention to pace and what my legs are doing when I'm out on a run. Bah, gone are the days when I could just enjoy getting out and pushing my body to its limit and not have to pay for it too much later.
Then there's the ache in my Achilles' tendons to monitor as well. They get a bit sore after a run, probably a slight inflammation. Maybe auto-immune stuff happening there. Wouldn't surprise me. Actually I guess I'm lucky it isn't worse as I've had inflammation issues with thumb tendons that get extremely painful at times. Really glad the Achilles aren't that bad. (oops, spoke too soon...)
Rubber bandages
I'd have to confess that I've always thought kinesio tape was a completely over-hyped waste of spandex and glue. I'd tried it once or twice and apart from using it to protect my cheeks when in a blizzard, I couldn't really say I thought it was any good. However, as I sit here suffering from tendonitis exacerbated by a lovely run through the bush that I did a coupla days ago, I am wearing some k-tape over my Achilles. It actually seems to be making a difference. Is it placebo? Is it warming? Is it the increased bloodflow supposedly caused by the tape? Is it extra support? Dunno, but I'll take it for a win. I'll try running with it in place next time. Maybe re-inforce it for more support.
Run with yer arse, not yer toesies!
One of the other things I have been focusing on when running is to use the appropriate muscles in the legs. For whatever reason, it is apparent I use my calves way too much and need to use my glutes and hammies more. Calves should be very secondary in the propulsion system. More for stability. Also, concentrate on the footfall. Not too much on the toes, as that uses the calf muscles and the Achilles. Not too far back on the heels though, as that shocks the vertebra and knees and I don't need to make them worse!