# Starting at Age 60



## Billrush

Bought a decent Road bike on April 1 of this year after a 45 year absence from biking. I have just lost 60 pounds, walking 10,000-20,000 steps a day and wanting more exercise.

I have ridden about 800 miles in the last 10 weeks. Halfway through June I have ridden 280 miles. I am 5'9", weight 147 with a body fat of 8.5% (down from 30%) as measured by BodPod at U of Minnesota.

I road with a local group Sunday. It was at the upper level of my endurance. 40 miles averaging 16mph (per bike computer). Felt good but my thighs ached after. These guys are hot dogs and they say they ride 22+ MPH when they aren't on no drop rides like the one I was one. They pushed me and I'm glad.

I have only so many hours per week to ride. Lets say 10. 

1.At my age, what should my realistic expectations be for progress? I am competitive and would like to go on faster rides. Do beginner 60 year old men progress to ride in the low 20"s?

2. Thoughts on training?

3. Read a book or hire a coach?

4. Frank input would be appreciated.

Thanks

Bill


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## MR_GRUMPY

"Do beginner 60 year old men progress to ride in the low 20"s?"

Sure....Why not...?

You mention a 22+ mph average. That's not too tough if you are in a group where there aren't attacks, and it's not too hilly.

If you can ride 16 mph by yourself, you can ride in a group at 20 mph (if you know what you are doing)
You have to learn how to draft without crashing.


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## Alex_Simmons/RST

Billrush said:


> Bought a decent Road bike on April 1 of this year after a 45 year absence from biking. I have just lost 60 pounds, walking 10,000-20,000 steps a day and wanting more exercise.
> 
> I have ridden about 800 miles in the last 10 weeks. Halfway through June I have ridden 280 miles. I am 5'9", weight 147 with a body fat of 8.5% (down from 30%) as measured by BodPod at U of Minnesota.
> 
> I road with a local group Sunday. It was at the upper level of my endurance. 40 miles averaging 16mph (per bike computer). Felt good but my thighs ached after. These guys are hot dogs and they say they ride 22+ MPH when they aren't on no drop rides like the one I was one. They pushed me and I'm glad.
> 
> I have only so many hours per week to ride. Lets say 10.
> 
> 1.At my age, what should my realistic expectations be for progress? I am competitive and would like to go on faster rides. Do beginner 60 year old men progress to ride in the low 20"s?
> 
> 2. Thoughts on training?
> 
> 3. Read a book or hire a coach?
> 
> 4. Frank input would be appreciated.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Bill


1. Set no limits. Follow good process and the performance outcome will take care of itself. I came back after a lower leg amputation to exceed my pre-amputation power outputs and still win bike races (even set a national record in able bodied team pursuit).

2. Need to know goals / what you are training for
Primarily though, keep it fun, a little variety, employ sound principles if training for performance outcomes (sustainable progressive overload, recovery as needed, specificity)

3. Both / either / or consider using a good training plan suitable for you. 10 hours a week can result in tremendous fitness gains if used well.

4. We have coached several riders 60+ who took up the sport fairly late in life. One won his State Championship TT and went on to win medals at World Masters track championships. Another is now a regular on podium at national and continental championships. Indeed I just got photo from one today with him on the podium. 

Nevertheless, riders with a long history in the sport do have many advantages at competition level.


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## Local Hero

Check your bone density often. Cyclists are not known for having particularly dense bones. So continue with the weight-bearing exercise. Weight training could be a worthwhile preventative measure. 

And kudos to you for getting out there and doing it. Kick ass.


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## Mike T.

Bill, welcome to the ol' geezers' club. As a 64 year old I can relate but I've been riding for 50 years. If you have 10 hours a week to ride and lots of enthusiasm, as you seem to have, one of your major concerns will be doing too much and not being able to recover.

Recovery is the big thing that hit me after the age of about 50. Three decent training rides per week is all I can recover from and I'd rather take time off the bike than ride around at a sub training pace. Training two days in a row is not a good idea for me and I found that the absolute best plan is to take two whole days off between sessions - but that gets modified often due to weather and commitments. Being retired helps me there.

Along with recovery, strength is the other thing to go so I do one workout per week that stresses that - high gear intervals on gentle hills, grinding perfect foot circles with dead rigid core (no bobbing, cheating movements). Things like leg speed and endurance have not reduced for me at all.

So monitor your recovery Bill and ride wisely. The story of the "young bull and the old bull" fits perfectly here.


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## looigi

A good book: "Cycling past 50" by Joe Friel. Another good one is "The Time Crunched Cyclist" by Carmichael. Nutrition is very important, especially if you're restricting calories to lose/control weight. Suggest "Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes", Ryan. At 5'9" and 147 you're already pretty skinny. Eating the right amount of the right stuff at the right time is very important. Older athletes also need more protein to stave off muscle loss...something like 0.6gm/lb/day. You should track your protein intake and supplement if necessary (nonfat milk and yogurt, tuna, skinless chicken breast are all good sources). 

Yes. In all probability you will be able to get to the point where you'll be able hang in the low 20s but it will probably take a couple of years of diligent training to work up to that.


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## Schneiderguy

I'm 66. I switched from running to riding in the mid 80s and raced for 10 years. I was better than average but not a "good" racer. Then I was off the bike -a couch potato for 8-9 years and then took up cycling again. I was well over weight and it took several years to get the weight off and build a base to begin "training". After 5 years I was going pretty well and hanging with most of the Cat 4/5 racers on the Thursday Night Worlds-a one hr flat course. Two years ago I had to have two major surgerys and I was off the bike 5 months. I have been rebuilding since. It has been really hard and just now getting reasonable fitness. It has been like starting all over so to some extent I know what you experiencing. I ride 9-10 hrs a week with daylight saving time. I set forth my history to provide some context for comments:

1. Keep it fun and don't burn yourself out. You have accomplished a lot in very little time. But be careful not to over do and don't expect to keep progressing at the same rate. Initally you will see big gains and as you get more fit the gains become more difficult to obtain.
2. I recommend most of your focus being just build a good base and let fitness come. Ride with a group once a week better than you but not so much better they drop you in the parking lot-that's not fun.
3. Once you have a good base do intervals once or twice a week.
4. I have to have at least 2 days between hard workouts and in reality I need 3. If I go over the cliff I have to have 4 and I know I way over did it. Point being you will need adequate recovery and generally speaking the older you are the more recovery you need. At least that is my experience. The 40 year olds recovery quicker. Not fair but reality for most of us.
5. Long rides are "hard" and fast rides are "hard" and intervals are "hard". Don't do too many "hard" rides. Endurance and speed are at the opposite ends of the scale. You can build one but not both at the same time.
6. Heat may or may not impact you worst than the younger riders. With high humidity it is bothering me on 55-65 mile rides on Saturday after 2-2.5 hours averaging around 21 through rollers. 
7. There are some older racers like Grumpy who are fit and very competitive. The ones I know have been racing/training for a long number of years and have maintained a high level of fitness and riding ability. It is a lot easier to keep it than try to get it back years later! And then there are the genetic freaks who take up the sport late in life and blow the kids away-not fair!

yes you can get fit enough to ride with a group in the low 20 mph or maybe significantly higher but it will take time. You will have to learn the balance of the training effect between stress and recovery while avoiding burn out. Good luck and keep it fun.


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## [email protected]

*congratulations*

A senior rider myself, I have volunteered to chaperone a junior bike league's training rides. The post adults at the intersections so that the riders have eyes and can anticipate traffic.

Also, you are my first of five mandatory posts b/f I can inquire about an 8 speed shifter replacement for Dura ace set up.


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## [email protected]

#2 of 5.

Also, if you are so consistent with training, you might consider getting into the pool. We all wind up there anyway, right?

I separated my shoulder when I went over the bars and the pool has been my rehab.


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## [email protected]

*total immersion*

#3 of 5:

Total Immersion is the website to watch if you are trying to streamline your freestyle in the pool. Enjoy!


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## [email protected]

#4 or 5:

Have you tried a spin class at your neighborhood health club? Great for endurance since you keep spinning the entire 45 minutes. Great of for measuring output if you are on the new spin bike series.


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## [email protected]

final post, thanks.

I assume you have clipless pedals.

I assume you have a heart rate monitor.

I assume you have measured your VO2.

You may also enjoy documentary on Tour de France.

good luck. and thank you for letting me fulfill my 5 mandatory posts here.


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## Billrush

*VO2Max*

I have not measured it but know where I can. How will it help?


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## Schneiderguy

knowing your max vo2 isn't going to make you faster or fitter. It will let you know if you are one those "freaks of nature", or it might depress you.  You aren't going to significantly increase your max vo2, but you can train your body to use what it has to its potential. If you are really serious about training and maxing the limited amount of time, I recommend a good power meter like Power Tap. I don't have one but I'm not that serious. I have a Garmin and follow HR and cadence. Not as good as a power meter but a lot cheaper.


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## Local Hero

I don't know if VO2 max is particularly useful, especially if you're really just starting out.


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## BostonG

I'm not quite 40 yet (but close) so am not in the same age situation but I can tell you this, going from a 16mph avg group ride to a 22 is a difficult thing to do. Was this a hilly ride, rolling, flat? Did you draft well? Did the fellas notice you were struggling and encourage you, or better yet - let you be closer to the front (the work is easier if you are closer to the front)? Were you hydrated and take in food? All rhetorical questions but things that can help with your performance.

I don't know, I want to be positive but I kind of think unless you have great genes working for you, it's going to be really tough to build up to keeping up with a 22 mph avg no drop group - tough even if the genes are working for ya. That's race pace and when the attacks come they can be hard to manage. One's level of fitness really needs to be up there to ride strong, survive an attack, and then keep riding strong through a recovery...unless another attack comes.

Sorry, I don't want to be the downer at the party and go against everyone's glass half full posts but it's a tall order and I personally think it's a rare person who is in your situation (60, re-enering after a long layoff, not coming from another aerobic sport that you exceled at) to get to the level that you're after. Just want you to be realistic but I can easily be wrong so pursue it with all you got. 10 hrs is a fine amt of time if you use it well. See how this season goes. A sharp gain at the beginning is not unusual so if you can get to 18 or so at the end of this season, know that it’ll be twice as hard to get to 19 or 20 the next. Training is great but your best friend will be knowledge – learning how to work with the group, how to draft better, where to conserve, how to recover, and how to eat will give you the most benefit. 

Best of luck, don’t hate me.


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## Mike T.

BostonG said:


> Best of luck, don’t hate me.


It's called "shooting the messenger". Bad tasting medicine is always hard to swallow.


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## megmarc

Bill, I will be 61 next week. Started at 50, gave up golf, lost 30 pounds and fell in love with the the bicycle. I now ride about 125 miles per week from April thru October. I'm 5-7 and weigh about 175. My average speed on a relatively flat course (about 6 rolling hills over a 26 mile course) is about 18 mph when the wind is light. My maximum average has been 19. All of this is by myself. I also got hooked on time trialing. My best effort there (with all the speed I could buy) was 23.7 mph on a 40 K. First TT of this year averaged 23.3 with about a 8 mph wind. Still trying to break that 1 hour mark. Sounds like you are in better shape than me so I see no reason you should hold back. I use a heart rate monitor when I race but not daily rides. I keep a log and subscirbe to a couple of magazines, but this forum is much more informative than any magazine. The mags are good for nutrition and keeping up with the new stuff. As for advice I would just say ride, ride and ride. You will find your own pace and improve as you do. Welcome back.


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## BostonG

Oy vey! Can’t help but to respond - No, you should not “just ride” if you have a challenging goal to achieve and not much time to achieve it before your body says, stop this effing craziness! When I hit my mid 30’s, I realized that our bodies are built simply to thwart what our minds want and our bodies become better at it as we age. Sucks, plain and simple.

You need structured training, and is has to be very focused and very dedicated. The thing I see getting in the way is motivation. An uber structured training plan can be fun at first and for a little while thereafter but then it gets to be drudgery. If you “just ride” you’ll see hardly any improvements (but likely have more fun). If you incorporate structure, you’ll improve a little. Brutal honesty time - at times it takes way too much pain, suffering, and effort to eek out a meager improvement, you have to really want it to keep it up. It can become much less fun. Happy honesty time - you can get pretty darn fit without killing yourself by mixing a sensible training plan with some “just ride” rides. Matter of fact, I would argue that it’s better to not kill yourself so much, your immune system will thank you.


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## megmarc

BostonG, I'm sure you're right if you expectations are to be a very competitive bicyclist. I took the OP's comment #1to be a question about what his expectations could be riding 10 hours a week. Since that is exactly what I ride, and we are almost the exaxt same age, I thought a comparison of what I have experienced would be helpful to BillRush. I have no question that you are correct from a competitve standpoint,but for a 60 or 61 year old, at least for me my goals are different than a younger man like yourself. By "just ride" i meant that you will learn to ride faster as you become a better bicyclist. It was apparent to me that BillRush wants to improve and I was trying to make the point that he will improve by just riding. If he chooses to reach the level of competition you describe then i am sure your description of how to get there is very accurate.


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## Billrush

Thought I would add a quick update. In year two of cycling (age62) I finally got the courage to go on my bike clubs Saturday "up tempo" ride. Crap I was nervous. I'm afraid I was seeing myself slowly being dropped with my head hung low. Guess what, their big ride wasn't as bad as I had been lead to believe. My Garmin doesn't lie. The ride always averages about 19mph. Sure they go faster on the flats, but 19 is the average. And while there are rolling hills, there are not too many. We do about 55 miles on these rides and I've now done about half a dozen and considered part of the group. I am loving it. The ride is a challenge for me. I am sometimes wondering if I can make it. I fell off once and the group slowed to let me catch up. I found out later that many were thrilled I gave them the excuse to reduce the pace a bit. Many were hurting at that point. 

I'm riding about 5 days a week averaging about 150 miles in total. I upgraded from my titanium 22 pound road bike to a 16 pound carbon frame. Got a very good fitting and better shoes. Of course there are faster riders but I am now realizing that most group rides have a very fast group and then a second not as fast group. I have been able to hang with at leaste the second group and that's been just fine. Having a blast still. Yea!


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## Mike T.

Thanks for coming back and giving us an update Bill. It's nice to know you're still kickin' (and riding).


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## Beau9

Glad to know that you have the courage to do that thing in this age,and i appreciate you for that.
What you have decided in terms of your routine that makes sense and it will surely help you to achieve your goal.Keep sharing your experiences with us.


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## hobkirk

I'm 67 and have been riding 3 years. I rode a lot at the start (4700 miles in my first 7 months, ending on 12/31). My first two centuries were in my 4th month, a week apart, on two different bikes on two different courses, and both averaged 15.3 MPH. My best short ride (17 miles) was 17 MPH. I did a lot of group rides (two rides in most weeks). 

I learned a lot and I expected to improve, but it didn't happen. My obsession diminished (I stopped riding at 16 degrees F) and I didn't hammer as hard on most rides. My weight stayed high (235#, 6'2"), much to my surprise. My average speed ebbed. Then life interfered - prostate cancer, removal 11/2011. In 2012 I finally managed to lose some weight (5 months of dieting, down to 197#). Wham, it all seemed to be coming together. I had a high water mark - 17.3 MPH for 51 miles. 

Then breast cancer, mastectomy, chemo, radiation, and putting weight back on to 225#. So it's been a roller coaster for me, but I have formed some opinions about improvement that may be correct and might be relevant to your question.

My older body continues to take longer to recover, both during a ride and in-between rides. I am dieting again (215# today) but I doubt I will improve much. In group rides I lose contact on the climbs (as expected) but I notice that it takes me longer to get back to the normal pace once the road levels out. I.e., riding at 17 MPH on level road, climb 1/2 mile at 10 MPH (others going 12 MPH), then it takes several minutes after the road levels to get back to 17 (while others - mostly younger - do it quite quickly. 

That said, I am incredibly glad I get to go out riding (my knees said no more running ten years ago) and if I my speed doesn't improve, c'est la vie! 

And, FWIW, I attended a racing clinic (4 Saturdays, 2-3 hours each, plus some class time) last year and found it very useful.


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