adeen, I'm very new to any kind of running.  I started C25K at the end of October and I have had a lot of the same questions as you.  Here's my opinion.

I also got a fancy gps watch with a heart rate monitor for Christmas.  I have a good idea what my max HR is since I had a stress test last year, and it's pretty close to what some of the formulas say.  I've read online and in some books that the formulas aren't really accurate, but I guess I lucked out.  My doctor said my max was around 180 and the highest I've ever gotten it is 177 when I was running like an idiot.  Regarding zones, this seemed like a really appealing idea but I'm unable to use it yet.  Maybe when I get more fit it'll work but for now it's useless.  My resting HR is usually kind of high, like 90 or so, sometimes less, but it goes up to 140 or so really quick even without much exertion and I'm supposed to be below 128 for my easy run, according to one plan I saw.  Bottom line is I use my HR to see how hard I'm working and how well I'm cooling off.  I have noticed in the month I've had it my HR doesn't jump up as fast as it used to and it comes back down quicker than it used to so maybe someday the zones will work for me.  Since you have already lowered your resting rate (that's what I want to do!) it would make sense that your zones would change but I haven't seen anything yet that takes that into account.  The zones I've seen are all a percentage of the max.

I found an online plan that has me running easy on Monday, both easy and fast on Wednesday and easy and long on Saturday.  I really like it so far.  The Wednesday run will be a mile at the easy pace, a mile or two at a fast pace, then another easy mile.  The Saturday run is all easy and a mile or two longer than the Monday run.  Every 4 weeks or so the distances decrease for a week and then ramp back up.  Supposedly by the end of April I'll have a Saturday run of 10 miles.  My goal is to finish somewhere other than DFL in a 10K in the first week of May.  The good news on HR is now I don't get up really high like 90% of my max until I go about 3 easy miles, so I think I'm getting more fit.  I'm also not gasping for breath even after running 3 or 4 miles at the easy pace.  Feels good, just need stronger legs and I could go all day.  I really hope the fast running on Wednesday will increase my speed.  I was overjoyed when I ran a 5K at less than 40 minutes but I want to do it at less than 30 minutes at some point.  I also want to run a 10K in less than an hour one day, but for my first one I just want to beat somebody and finish.  Maybe I shouldn't have waited till I was past 50 to start running.

Looking at my plan a little closer it has some Thursday runs popping in there too toward the end of February.  My main goal at the moment is to get stronger.  I hope the speed will come too but distance is my main goal right now with no huffing and puffing.

If your interested the plan I'm using is the Smart Coach plan from the Runners World website.  There's and ipod app for it but it's kind of flaky.

Lady

There were 8 of us. I beat 6 of the other 7.   Its kind of wierd in that I have known these guys for a couple of years and I can't understand their reaction.  Three of the guys didn't say a thing.  One just asked about my watch and couldn't believe that it was a tracking GPS unit.  I told him it was the cheapest model and the others even had training partners. That started a few jokes.  They are good guys, but I still don't understand.

Good Running

Dave:  I also used the Runners' World Smart Coach training plan.  I think it's a good combination of long, easy and tempo runs.  It was also easy to customize for the target distance and the number of weeks of training.  Like yours, it built up the distances gradually and allowed for a decrease every four weeks.

Going easy for the first few miles allows a thorough warmup and makes the rest easier.  The fact that you're not puffing as much during a run means that 1) you are getting fitter and 2) you're learning to pace yourself.  I drink a fair amount of water with Gatorade G2 before I leave and I carry a water bottle fanny pack and Power Gels.

There's nothing wrong with starting running at age 50 or beyond.  There's another thread on this forum called "Over 50, 5K and Beyond-What Are Your Challenges".  No requirements for distance or speed, just be at least 50.

Welcome tkitzy. Great start and race result.

Lots of good folk here, stick around!

Good Running

Jack

Welcome - sounds like you're doing good to me!

Cathy,
This may not apply to you, but last year I started having knee pain and couldn't figure out why.  I read somewhere about shoes possibly being the culprit, so I went and got fitted at my local running store.  They not only watched the way I walked, but they also had a computer that made recommendations, too.  They picked out a different style than I had been wearing.  Also one interesting thing, although I don't think it had anything to do with the knee pain, but they put me in a size and 1/2 bigger then I had been wearing.  After running on the new shoes for a few days, my knee pain started getting better and went away completely after a few weeks.   I'd definitely suggest getting fitted at least once by a running store. 

Hi, Cathy -- I started running around the same time you did, am 61, and started with a good bit of extra weight but getting much better now.  I had trouble with my knees, too, and echo the suggestion re the shoes.  It's very important to get good shoes that are properly fitted by experts -- it makes a huge difference.  Also exercises and stretching are important to prevent knee pain -- if you google "runner's knee" you will turn up the exercises and stretches.  Soft knee braces have helped me -- they are neoprene or similar rubbery stuff, are not stiffened with braces, and have a hole cut out for your knee cap.  They keep your knee cap tracking properly -- improper tracking can cause pain in the tops of your knees.  Also, there is a thigh exercise you can do on a treadmill or really on any steep hill -- I call it the crab walk.  You walk up the treadmill with the incline set on the highest setting and the speed set VERY slow (I started with 0.5 mph, the minimum) and you turn to the side and walk sideways uphill for several minutes.  You can hold on to the side rail for stability if you need to.  You do that on both sides.  As you get better at it you can go faster and longer.  That strengthens your thigh muscles.  But be careful, it is easy to lose concentration and get perilously close the the end of the treadmill!  I saw that one on a website called livestrong.com, I think.  After all this, my knees still ache after a long run, but they're better than they were.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Good evening, friends -- I had a nice run this morning.  Drizzly and soft weather -- not too cold.  My goal was to run 4 miles so I decided to run down on Sacramento's American River Bike Trail, which has a nice running surface and plenty of entertaining wildlife to look at.  It is also nice if you want a run of a certain distance because it has markers every half mile and you can do an "out and back".  I wanted to have a good long run (for me, anyway) so I could try out that Gu to see if it made any difference. I ran a couple of miles late last week, but was forbidden to run by my chiropractor for two weeks before that, so I was definitely looking forward to running.

I was running along enjoying the day and apparently missed a half-mile marker -- I started at marker 8.5 and the first mile and a half went well but the half mile from 10 to 10.5 (my turnaround point) seemed to go on forever!  I was surprised when the next marker I saw was 11!  No wonder it seemed so far.  So I did five miles -- nice run.  However, I had some trouble on the way back in the last mile or so with my quads starting to cramp up.  Has anyone else ever experienced that?  I had to stop and stretch several times to keep them on the job -- after all, I needed to get home!  They are tired now but otherwise OK.  What can you do to prevent that -- other than stretching, of course.

By the way -- I thought the Gu was yummy.  I eat very very few refined carbs so it was a real treat to legally eat something that tasted like cold hot fudge sauce.  My trainer just told me to squirt the entire packet in my mouth at once but I had to eat it in two bites because there was too much for one gulp.  Unfortunately, I had to count the carbs in my daily intake limits which meant no carb side dish for dinner and I still came in a little over my calorie limit, but oh well -- I'm willing suffer with something that tastes like cold hot fudge sauce.  It does give you more energy I think.

Hope you all had a great day!