Still Haven't Quite Lost It

There are certain advantages to turning the decade including moving up an age group in half marathons. I was reasonably pleased with my result as I was still under 1:50. If the race had been held a month earlier, though, I would have been in a younger group and finished 50th. But since I was older, I finished 20th in my age group, or top 10%. I was about a minute slower than #19 and two minutes faster than #21, so stopping to tie my shoe didn't really affect my finish. I think I am running about as fast as I ever will, unless I decide that I want to hire a trainer. There are certainly good and not so good ways to run a race, which a trainer would no doubt help with.  I just usually run at a comfortable pace and don't pay attention to my watch. Anytime I race, I see runners glancing at their wrists during races to see how they are doing . I prefer the "enjoyment" of just running. I also never turn it on at the end, since I read about a New England Journal of Medicine study on runners. It found that most heart attacks after races occur in men, (and it's usually men,) who over exert themselves at the end of a race. I figure that I am not setting any records or trying for a prize so the extra few seconds I take off my time are not worth the risk.