Originally Posted by
MoAlpha
I have seen those data on old athletes too and the point was made that their VO2max was relatively low due to age, but that their aerobic capacity remained high. This is certainly welcome news for us crumbling dotards.
Let's hear it for the crumbling dotards!
As one myself, I have noticed an increasing ability to go longer at a higher intensity. I'm guessing that's due to the reported boost in old guy endurance/shift upwards in lactate threshold. I'll take it.
I've also noticed that doing zone 2 rides this year (yes, I've fallen for the "zone 2" hype) is really quite easy, so maybe my top of zone 2 has also shifted upwards. Garmin says my respiration rate at upper zone 2 is ~30 bpm. Seems pretty low. The lower half of zone 3 feels pretty easy, too.
I can't tell if these zone 2 rides are having an effect. Does it make sense to raise the top end of my zone 2?
Yesterday's ride (shorter than I wanted because trainingpeaks said to dial back the volume):
Time: 1:13:00
Heart rate: 82% of LT (zone 2.7)
Respiration rate: 30 brpm
Power: 2.26 W/kg (low zone 3??)
RPE: Easy