Year 51, and the 50K That Didn’t Happen

Last week I turned 51. A year ago, I told myself I’d train for a 50K during my 50th year. I didn’t. I started a training plan, but it only lasted a week or two. I never signed up for a race, and the year ran out.

I used to be the person who did this kind of thing. In the fall of 2018, I ran my first marathon, and I wrote about it as it happened: the training tips, the pre-race jitters, and what I learned after the finish line. In 2019, I was still running my own race and ran two half marathons in a single trip. In 2023, I tried to start again and wrote Back to the Start Line. I signed up for a half and ended up running the 5K.

What I said I’d do

• Train for a 50K during my 50th year. Didn’t happen.
• Run a few races in 2026. Haven’t signed up for any.
• Run at least twice a week. I did that for about two weeks in January, and then it faded.

What I actually did

In January, I got out four times in about two weeks, all on the treadmill, and then the habit slipped away. In June, I managed a couple more short ones.

My last actual race was the Rock the Parkway 5K in April 2023, which I wrote about in Back to the Start Line.

The last time I covered 10K was in July 2025. It wasn’t a race; I just went out and ran 6.2 miles on my own in 1 hour and 42 minutes. It was slow, but I finished.

What I’ve noticed

I’m good at big goals. I’m less good at the Tuesday morning when I’d rather not. Running takes effort, and it takes making room for it. Lately it’s a to-do I keep ignoring, and when life gets busy, it’s one of the first things to slide. Sometimes I just don’t feel like doing it.

Starting again

The day after my birthday, I ran 3.6 miles, my first run in a long time. Two days later, I had to force myself out the door, and it was more of a walk than a run: 1.54 miles. Today was a 1-mile walk, 20 minutes of run/walk intervals, and a 7-minute cool down. That’s 2.75 miles in 46:05, a 16:45 pace.

Three runs. Week one is in the books.

I’ve started over more times than I can count. Usually, I make it a couple of weeks, then life happens, motivation fades, and running gets pushed aside again. And honestly, it’s harder now. There was a time when 5 to 10 miles was something I did regularly. Now I’m working through run/walk intervals and wondering how something that used to feel so natural can feel so hard.

Those aren’t exactly the numbers I used to be proud of. But maybe that’s not the point anymore. Maybe I don’t need to become the runner I used to be. Maybe I just need to keep becoming the woman I’m trying to be now.

So there’s no new goal today. I’m 51, I’m not behind, and the start line is still the start line.