We had the pleasure of interviewing Sarah Livingstone about her running career and recently completing the Abbott World Majors at the age of 70! What’s so incredible about her story is that she ran the Boston Marathon this year JUST SIX WEEKS after completing the Tokyo Marathon. She attributes her ability to do this by doing most of her runs in between the two marathons in the water.
Jennifer Conroyd – Founder, Fluid Running
When did you start running and why?
I started running casually in 1996 when my mother was diagnosed with lymphoma. Running kept me sane. I only ran a few miles at a time — I would go out every day after work and run. My mother ended up passing away in 1999. In 2003, my husband and I were out to dinner just before the Chicago Marathon. Someone next to us was having a pre-race dinner, and I decided that the next fall, when I turned 50, I would run the Chicago Marathon. The next spring, I signed up for the Chicago Area Runners Association (CARA) and started training with them. At the Chicago Marathon Expo, I saw a booth for the Paris Marathon. Before I had even run my first marathon, I had already signed up to run Paris in the spring of 2005.
Can you tell us about your “running career” since you started?
I’ve run 24 marathons and probably 50 half marathons. I’ve done a few shorter races, but I really don’t enjoy the shorter distances. I’ve even placed in the top three in my age group in many races. My husband, Jim, and I have used racing as a way to travel and experience different cities. It’s certainly a unique way to see the world — and we have lots of stories! I’ve run Vancouver, New York, Berlin, Paris (twice), Big Sur, London, and various races in the U.S. Both Jim and I have been key volunteers with the Chicago Marathon since 2008. Most of my closest friends I’ve met through running. It’s become a way of life — and I think a very positive one.
Tell us a little about yourself.
I just turned 71. I worked downtown until I retired in March 2020. I was a paralegal at various law firms and later worked as a lease negotiator for shopping center landlords. I lived in the city on my own and then in Evanston with Jim from 1975 until 1994, when we moved to Clarendon Hills. I actually grew up in Hinsdale and went to Hinsdale Central High School, so the area has always felt like home.
When did you discover Fluid Running, and what were your thoughts Before and After trying it?
From almost the beginning of my running career, I struggled with IT band issues and other overuse injuries. In 2016, when Fluid Running classes came to Superior Training in Willowbrook, IL, I joined and have been doing it at least once — sometimes twice or more — per week, depending on the weather. Getting into the pool really saved me from the pounding of the pavement. In 2018, after being injured by a cyclist, I spent six months doing Fluid Running exclusively. I also use the Fluid Running System and do all my speed training in the pool. It has been a lifesaver.
We understand you incorporated Fluid Running quite a bit into your training. Can you tell us more about that?
Before I started Fluid Running, my IT band issues had forced me to cut back from running four days a week to three. When I began using Fluid Running, I replaced one of those runs with a pool workout and added another day in the pool for cross-training, usually the Sunday class. So essentially, I was running in the pool twice a week and on land twice a week — and that routine lasted for years.
During my training for Tokyo and Boston, I consistently did two runs in the pool (one of which was my speed work) and two or three runs on land, depending on the weather. Some weeks last winter, apart from my Saturday long run, I did all my training in the pool. For years now, I’ve done all my speed training in the pool. Between Tokyo and Boston, about 70% of my running was in the water. After Tokyo, for two solid weeks, I ran only in the pool — no land running at all.
Since 2016, I’ve consistently replaced at least a third of my weekly land runs with Fluid Running. For Tokyo and Boston, CARA even created a specific training plan for me that included two Fluid Running workouts per week. Between those races, I spent more time in the pool than on land. I also used a walk/run approach on land, which really helped preserve my legs.
You recently received the coveted Abbott 6th Star—congratulations! Can you tell us more about that?
I’m not sure when they officially started calling Chicago, Boston, New York, Berlin, and London the “Major Marathons,” but by the time I heard about it, I had already run Chicago and New York. I thought it would be fun to do all of them. In 2016, I ran Berlin and then London in 2018.
Last year, I decided to go for Tokyo through Marathon Tours and Boston through a charity. I had tried to qualify for Boston my entire running career, missing it by just minutes — and when I got close, they’d lower the qualifying times again. I finally got into Tokyo and secured a charity spot for Boston and earned my 6th star there.
What would you say to other runners who have yet to try Fluid Running?
I’ve been a CARA pace group leader since 2008. Once I started Fluid Running, I began promoting it to anyone who would listen. It has saved my legs and absolutely increased my core strength. Fluid Running has gotten me from age 50 to 71 and still running. I’ve averaged over 1,000 miles per year running on land since I started. I might have logged more if I hadn’t found Fluid Running — but I’m not sure I’d still be running at all without it.