How much better can I get?
01-02-14 | 07:58 PM
#26
Plays in traffic
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 6,971
Likes: 15
From: Rochester, NY
Bikes: 1996 Litespeed Classic, 2006 Trek Portland, 2013 Ribble Winter/Audax, 2016 Giant Talon 4
Ah! So you're a young un, like me.
We've got at least 20 years before we have to worry about old age.
We've got at least 20 years before we have to worry about old age.
01-02-14 | 08:29 PM
#27
OMC
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 6,973
Likes: 142
From: South Louisiana
Bikes: Specialized Allez Sprint, Look 585, Specialized Crux E5 Sport, Trek Domane SL6
Ratzelfrazzin' kid. 
I'm 62 and started racing last year, and there are several of us in the same boat over in the Master's Racing subforum. I'm not beating the kids, but I keep up with them on the fast team training rides which are usually 70-100 miles. I'm not a stud by any stretch of the imagination, I just work hard at it.
To add my voice to the chorus: you CAN build muscle. You CAN get faster. You've got the main ingredient already - desire. The fact that you've completed two centuries at a 15 mph average shows you've got the raw material, too. Don't let negative stereotypes of guys our age dissuade you from trying.
You already know that you can't get away with the dumb stuff we did when we were young. Chris Carmichael's The Time-Crunched Cyclist, already mentioned above, is probably the simplest, most straightforward training plan available. I recommend you get it and read it through, then choose whichever plan of the four in the book you feel meets your needs and follow it.
Best of luck!
I'm 62 and started racing last year, and there are several of us in the same boat over in the Master's Racing subforum. I'm not beating the kids, but I keep up with them on the fast team training rides which are usually 70-100 miles. I'm not a stud by any stretch of the imagination, I just work hard at it. To add my voice to the chorus: you CAN build muscle. You CAN get faster. You've got the main ingredient already - desire. The fact that you've completed two centuries at a 15 mph average shows you've got the raw material, too. Don't let negative stereotypes of guys our age dissuade you from trying.
You already know that you can't get away with the dumb stuff we did when we were young. Chris Carmichael's The Time-Crunched Cyclist, already mentioned above, is probably the simplest, most straightforward training plan available. I recommend you get it and read it through, then choose whichever plan of the four in the book you feel meets your needs and follow it.
Best of luck!
__________________
Regards,
Chuck
Demain, on roule!
Regards,
Chuck
Demain, on roule!
01-03-14 | 07:25 AM
#29
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 12,940
Likes: 363
Ed,
Welcome to 50+, you might want to add Joe Friel's books, Cycling Past 50, and The Cyclist Training Bible, to your reading list. They are comprehensive and complement the TCC book. Best of luck with your training and riding, cycling has made a big difference in my life and enjoyment.
Bill
Welcome to 50+, you might want to add Joe Friel's books, Cycling Past 50, and The Cyclist Training Bible, to your reading list. They are comprehensive and complement the TCC book. Best of luck with your training and riding, cycling has made a big difference in my life and enjoyment.
Bill
