Long term improvement

Great post JK.

As I like to say... I'm not getting older, I'm getting faster!

Kudos to your sister. And, I'm glad she's not racing Harriman. Finishing behind both of you gets old in a hurry  

Some of us BT'ers got to cheer her on at the Kinetic Half-Iron on Saturday - was lots of fun!

Her story above makes me feel a little more hopeful about my suckiness - I didn't get into sports until about a year ago, and I am also in my mid-20's

Great post, JK.  Congrats to your sister.  Just want to chime in with my own experience, although I'm nowhere as talented as your sister.  I never ran until my mid thirties.  First ever 10K in 1996 - F35-39 - 56:15.  Most recent 10K in 2008 (12yrs later) - F45 - 49 - 50:19.  This is a 10K time that McMillan calculator actually projects to a BQ marathon time! 

Consistency and staying injury free are keys to LONG term improvement, can’t do one w/o the other.  People that keep getting injured and training through it are asking for trouble in the long run.  In your sister’s case, if she didn’t reduce her running when she was injured (even though I’m sure that must be totally frustrating) and resolve her injury issues, she’d probably not be running today, let alone setting PR’s.   This is where HTFU can kill you in the long run.

Great impovements patricia!

And great point on staying healthy.  Actually, I wonder if my sister couldn't be even faster today if she had been willing to forgo more running earlier when her injuries first cropped up (and possibly allowed a quicker resolution of the problems).  Her running essentially 'stagnated' for a few years and has just recently started to hit new peaks again.  Fortunately, tri training 'forced' her to run a little less than normal--and even that killed her sometimes.

Hah!  Missed that somehow the first time.  I'm glad that it means one more race that she won't beat me at.  Her day is coming, but I'm not looking forward to it! 

Great post.  Consistency and a long-term perspective are the key.

Prior to starting tri training about 18 months ago, I had been running on and off (ok, there was a lot of off time in there) for 20 years.  Tri training has helped me become consistent, and at 42, I expect to set PR's this year at every distance from 5K to the half mary, all with virtually no speed work. 

Great post John!

Improvement like this couldn't have happened to a nicer person (she is my friend too)

Hope to see her in Kona someday

I would bet on it. 

And (reluctantly) admit that it'll likely be before I manage to get there myself. 

Well, she might still be a freak , but at least now we know she's not a genetic freak but rather a mere mortal like the rest of us (I don't mean that to be derogatory).

Great story, thanks for sharing. I actually thought she had only started her endurance adventure in 2004; it's good to know she's been working at it for a while. It gives us all hope .

The funny thing is that it does take years to build endurance (and, ultimately/consequently, speed); but it also takes a lot of people years to accept that .

Shelly introduced me to her this weekend at Kinetic, and not only is she fast, she seemed like one of the more unassuming people I've met.  A humble fastie... bonus!! 

This one needs to stay on page 1 for a while.  Will be good for all to read, newbies and veterans alike. 

Wonderful story.  And an inspiration to not only stick it out for the year, but to make it a lifetime commitment. 

Just thought I'd update this thread as a a way of continuing to brag about my sister. 

Yesterday, she finished 2nd in her AG at IMWI.  She executed near flawlessly, moving from 22nd (AG) on the swim to 8th off the bike and then closing with the fastest marathon in her AG--a 3:38--and closing fast on 1st place (~:20 ahead).

Frankly, her result does not particularly suprise me as I believed she would inevitably qualify for Kona.  But that 'inevitability' has come about only through steady, consistent work on her part.  If anyone had asked me if my sister was a good athlete when we were growing up, I would have scoffed at the thought.

Congrats Tina!   

this makes me feel tons better about my suckiness. 12 years from now I should be peaking in my running right around 40.

 awesomeness.

 My 30's should be fabulous.