Av. Speed/Cadence by age

[Mustang]

Something I would like to see as a sticky? thread would be "Senior Cycling" where we, as seniors, could compare most of the stuff you young guys talk about & where we older folks can barley remember. At the moment I do'nt have contact with other cyclists so I would like info on the following:
As a 58yo I'am struggling with an average speed of 25kph & a cadence of 84, av heart rate 134bpm I have just changed from a flat bar roadie to a small frame 2008 Giant OCR ,Shim 105.
I have been riding for a few months & seemed to have plateaued at this level, any info appreciated
Cheers Brent

[nickobec]

From my experience, you will keep improving over time, hit the odd plateau, improve, plateau, slow improvement, etc.

The problem with us older riders is it just takes longer to improve, but you get there in the end.

Example of improvement, last year's 60km freeway bike hike I completed in just under 2 hours on a geared bike, this year 1:46 on a singlespeed.

Me 49 years old, been riding for 4 years or so, average speed 29kph solo, cadence 75 (single speed), 95 (geared), heart rate on beta blockers after heart attack so it not for comparing, plus varies on morning vs afternoon rides.

[ireland57]

Basically as Nicobec says.......we get better but sometimes we have plateaus. When they happen forget about performance for a little bit and just keep riding. As long as you're not overdoing it you'll improve. We do take longer than the young ones to gain fitness and recover properly as well.
I try to have a day between hard rides, mostly for knee recovery.

I'm 53. My ave mtn bike speed has gone up 6 kmh this year.
It’ll come up a lot more yet if I can sort this knee stuff out.

If I recall right my average speed on chino rides is about 25 kmh. That includes traffic lights, concertina effect, etc.
Ave speed in a recent 2hr mtn bike race was 21 kmh; ave hr was 154; ave cad was 87.

Your ave hr means nothing when compared to anyone else. It’s your own measure and can only be used to help assess your improvements.

The easy part is enjoying the riding. The hard part is finding how to get the training level, method, type, rest and recovery bits worked out.

[Alex Simmons/RST]

Something I would like to see as a sticky? thread would be "Senior Cycling" where we, as seniors, could compare most of the stuff you young guys talk about & where we older folks can barley remember. At the moment I do'nt have contact with other cyclists so I would like info on the following:
As a 58yo I'am struggling with an average speed of 25kph & a cadence of 84, av heart rate 134bpm I have just changed from a flat bar roadie to a small frame 2008 Giant OCR ,Shim 105.
I have been riding for a few months & seemed to have plateaued at this level, any info appreciated
Cheers Brent

Forget about comparing to others and focus instead on your own enjoyment and improvement. Not everyone on here is young.

There are two ages we consider for cycling:
- years of life
- years of bike training

You are not even a 1 year old.

[NotFlyingScot]

I started cycling for the first time when nearly 58 and I think the factor which has helped me improve my performance over the last couple of years has been the fact I get to ride regularly with small groups of riders who are quite a bit younger and stronger than me. Plus I do try and put in the kms required to see a real improvement.
I would recommend finding a local group to ride with who can put you under some pressure to improve without demoralizing you! You also have to be prepared for the "ageist" slanging that comes with the territory! I'm pretty sure it's good natured
And if you had not already noticed, sometimes it hurts
And once you get to a reasonable level of performance I fully recommend graded club racing. That will bring you to a level you would probably not have believed possible.

NFS

[Mustang]

Thats the next step, but I want to get to a fair state of fitness first.

[trailgumby]

You have a few years on me but not many.

One thing I've found has helped me to maintain an upward path despite being well north of 40 is to allow a recovery week every third week where I drop the volume a bit. I might ride two days instead of three, or ride the mountain bike down to Manly and catch the ferry for two days, or I might work in the CBD instead of SOP.

I'm then refreshed and ready to hit it a bit harder again the week after. As we get older we don't recover quite as well, so it's important we allow adequate recovery and don't bury ourselves into overtraining. FWIW, this "periodization" thing isn;t my idea: I picked it up from Joe Friel, who then prompted me to look at Tudor Bompa. If under 40, you can keep it at one week recovery in every 4.

Riding with others helps a bit too. You push yourself a bit harder. If they're fitter, you're looking to keep up. If you're fitter, you're looking to make them hurt a bit. Last group ride my mates dubbed me "Captain Slow". I'm on a mission (and on target) to make them regret it!

[ft_critical]

Forget about comparing to others and focus instead on your own enjoyment and improvement. Not everyone on here is young.

There are two ages we consider for cycling:
- years of life
- years of bike training

You are not even a 1 year old.

And you won't peak on the bike till you are 12.

And, IMO, you shouldn't be able to offer advice on ACF until you are at least 3 in bike years You can be on the question only programme.

(just a general comment not directed at the OP and not 'that' serious either)