“Every race I do, whether it’s a success or a fail, I learn something.” Jenny Hitchings

 

Running Strong and with Joy at Any Age

 

 

 

After having listened to Jenny Hitchings podcast on Rambling Runner during one of my mid-week long runs, I was totally inspired by her success story, her down to earth approach to running, her humbling attitude, but most of all by the fact that Jenny Hitchings seriously started running when she was 40 (I myself have started to run when I was 42 just three years ago, so that totally gave me hope that I have more to give and loftier goals to pursue) and that at 55, she has won Mountains 2 Beach Marathon and has set two American age group records in the Susan B Anthony 5K and Buffalo Stampede 10-mile races. Jenny Hitchings’ astounding success comes with hard work and a strong passion for running. To me, she embodies all the strong women runners out there who are willing to put in the work and not use the fact that they are 40 or 50 years old as an excuse.

 

Additionally, I believe that Jenny Hitchings’ American records show all runners young, older, male and female the following:

1. Passion is the number one ingredient in life, running, and our careers.
2. Dedication and determination are not just two words starting with the letter “d”; they represent a mental aspect of running that can propel other women runners of all ages towards greatness and satisfaction with their strong performances.
3. Hard work is our way of reaping the rewards after being consistent in our training and daily commitment to achieving our highest goals.
4. Joy comes from many sweaty runs – a sprinkle of satisfaction, inner peace and harmony that we runners learn to find when pounding the roads and the trails.
5. Satisfaction is the frosting on the cake after all the hard work and follow through, which will show and make us shine when we hit that personal best, win our age group, or just win the race.
6. Victory is the cherry on top, so to speak, when the running Gods place that symbolic victory wreath on our heads.

 

Running as Identity

 

To Jenny Hitchings, running is part of her identity.  Married to Andy, who runs a bit, but mainly loves to swim, Jenny is also a mother of two grown girls, Molly and Maggie. Jenny has lived in Sacramento for over 20 years, after moving here from Mill Valley. A running coach helping runners of all abilities, Jenny also coaches middle school cross country team and an elementary youth running program. Although busy with work and her family, Jenny usually runs six days a week, unless circumstances prevent her from doing this. A key ingredient to Jenny’s tremendous success is the fact that she always takes a FULL rest day. Her coach, Jenny Spangler, from Chicago gives Jenny her workouts, which tend to be one to two speedier workouts and a longer run during the week. Right now, Jenny’s weekly mileage is low 60s, but she will reach mid to high 70s as she approaches a marathon training cycle. Jenny has never been an extremely high mileage person, which is probably a quintessential element to staying injury free and running super strong in her 50s.

 

 

Running as a Passion, Joy, and Rival

 

Jenny Hitchings believes that running is a passion, a joy, an escape, a challenge, her own personal rival, and she is good at it. This multi-faceted aspect of running has translated into many successful races for Jenny.  “I always take away something from a race, which is probably why I continue to race, as I want to put the lessons learned from a previous race into action…or at least try, ” said Hitchings.

With that being said, Jenny Hitchings’ most impressive races have been:

1. Eugene Marathon, 2011. She was 47 (soon to be 48) and ran a personal best of 2:46:10. A bittersweet race, as she wanted to qualify for the 2012 Marathon Olympic Trials (a big dream). She ran her best race that day, but missed the OQT by 10 seconds. It was a very long 10 sec!! She is proud of this effort, as there were nay sayers and doubters out there, and she really wanted to prove some people wrong. She also wanted to prove to herself that she could do it, or at least try.

 

 

2. CIM (California International Marathon), 2015 – Jenny Hitching was 52 and ran a 2:49, breaking a standing 30 year age group course record of 2:51. She tried for a couple of years to do this, as she wanted this bad!! This was a race where mental toughness took over, or really helped.

 

 

3. Boston, 2015 – Jenny won her age group at the Boston Marathon in 2:52 – What a thrill! All the press she received following this race was more amplified due to the fact that so many people know and care about Boston.

4. Susan B Anthony 5k, 2018 – Jenny Hitching ran a PR of 27 sec to win the race and get an American Age Group Record in 18:05.

5. Buffalo Stampede 10-mile race, 2018 – Jenny Hitchings set another American Age Group Record and a PR, finishing in 1:01:20.

 

Advice for Women 40 years and Older to be the Strong and Passionate Runners that They Can Be

 

According to Jenny Hitchings, the most important word of advice for women 40 and older is consistency. Jenny pointed out that as we get older and our lives get busier or more full, it’s so easy for us to put our own needs and goals aside and focus on others, such as our families, friends, careers, our homes, pets, etc. However, as runners, women should have specific goals – small or big, which means that they need to fit the runs and training into their schedule and make it a priority. There can’t be excuses! “Have a sniffle? Get over it!” said Hitchings. To her, having a goal and working consistently towards that goal is paramount. Running here and there won’t work.

For women in their 50s, running is crucial, as it regenerates bone density, according to an article published by Washington Post.

Another specific advice Jenny Hitchings has for women 50 and older is to have their hormonal issues checked out. For instance, if women 50 and older are having sleep (the worst), mood, recovery, and motivation issues due to perimenopause or menopause, Jenny recommends that women talk to their doctor about how to get back on track and feeling more like themselves. Taking supplements that are good for your joints, bones, skin, etc., is also good. In addition, stretching, rolling, doing strength training, as well as getting deep tissue massages to keep things loose are quite beneficial and good for runners.

Injury prevention is key, since  most runners and athletes do get hurt at one time or another, which is why Jenny Hitchings advices runners to pay attention to the warning signs. Feel a niggle in your achilles? Should you stop your run? You know the difference between something minor or something that really doesn’t feel right. These little niggles can turn into full blown nightmares!

When it comes to nutrition, Jenny eats many things in moderation throughout the day. Although, she loves sweets, Jenny doesn’t eat large amounts in one sitting. She tends to eat things that make her feel good, but not creamy, fried, heavy foods that don’t sit well in her stomach. Jenny LOVES french fries, so this is an exception.

Strength and cross training are not high on Jenny’s priority list, as she generally just runs unless she is in a recovery mode or injured. She does like to cross train by cycling on her Peloton bike.  Jenny also likes to see Tony Mikla at KIME Performance, for he helps her with stretching and strength work.

 

Jenny Hitchings’ Final Words of Wisdom for New and Experienced Runners

 

 

New Runners:

 

1. Enjoy running, or you will never stick with it.
2. Be patient, as it takes time to build fitness and feel comfortable.
3. Consistency, motivation, and following a training program will bring you results.

 

Experienced Runners:

 

1. Keep up the running.
2. Make new goals.
3. Challenge yourself.
4. Follow your dreams.
5. Mix it up and stay healthy.
6. And to all runners – think about hiring a coach. Sometimes we all need a supplemental brain.

 

Hope you all enjoyed this blog and that you got at least one good lesson to apply to your running. For me, running with consistency, purpose, and joy is what will continue to help me improve as a runner. I will also choose not to worry about my age group and instead just run strong and reap the rewards. How about you, my runner and non-runner friends? What is one lesson you took away from this blog? What other lessons do you want to add for all runners of all ages and abilities? Do you have any specific running or coaching questions for Jenny?

 

For more info on running and real estate, whether buying or selling, please e-mail me at carmenmicsa@yahoo.com, or call me at 916-342-2446. Running for real estate with joy!