Before committing to the bike, make sure that the flat bar front shifter can handle a triple crankset. I don't think there are "double" versions of the flat bar shifters but I may be wrong. You may also need to change the rear derailler to take up the chain slack when using the little ring.
Don't feel bad about using a triple at age 50. I'm 28 and have triples on both of my road bikes (and my commuter and mountain bikes as well).