Discussion: Amazing indeed. Congrats.

Amazing indeed. Congrats.

Thanks! But I wish I could avoid going out so fast, and fading in the mid-section before a frantic burst at the end. How do you pace yourself?

Sounds like a familiar pattern. I think it is natural to be strong at the beginning when one is not tired. But if I go out slower, it sometimes feels like pacing has just falling asleep. So I compromise, the first 20 seconds are courtesy of anaerobic reserves, when that is up I try to settle down into a pace I recognize w relaxing and breathing into the effort to make sure I don't squander my reserves, trying to fall into a pace appropriate to the length of the race. Also, I think the mid section slowdown is somewhat mental, and I try to assure myself to keep pushing by remembering all the times I did find surprising reserves later on. Better that in my mind than going too slow. So maybe experiment, for instance, pretend the length is say 3/4 of the actual and then keep going?

Thanks Rudy. But you're a lot younger than I. And you haven't been confronted by a heart doc who wants you to take all kinds of heart meds, as I have, that are sure to degrade your performance. And you haven't ignored his advice, as I have, believing that the doc just doesn't know your body as well as you do...or has many other old guys as patients, who work out aerobically every day as I do.

But nevertheless, I'm somewhat hesitant of going 'all out' as I used to do. I like your suggestion to rein it in after 20 seconds and try to settle into a reasonable pace with good form. Form being another unknown I need to experiment with: shorter, faster cadence? Or longer, slower, firmer stroking?

well, my 'all out' is really just enough to wake me up, no danger there lol. I'll be following your experiments w interest.