fastcarbon

At my age I need a 14 lb. bike an LS6 S Works Tarmac. It doesn't hurt to have a light bike when you are hammering with 50 year olds.

caloso

My Garmin says the same thing ("fitness age is 20"). I really have no idea what that's supposed to mean. That we're as fit as the average 20 year old? Honestly, looking at the average American 20 year old, I'm not sure that's saying much.

fastcarbon

Yes but isn't it great for the ego?

5 mph

So you mean the lady is ahead of you? By what distance? I always wait for ra hill to catch the competition...
Just kidding. NIice story.Have a good day.

Mmassey338

Yes, it definitely helps. I rode my birthday ride last Friday, 60 miles for 60 years. Then Saturday rode 32 miles with family and at the turnaround a gentleman approached me and said his group had bailed due to the chilly weather, so of course I invited him to join us. We chatted as we rode and I learned he was 79. Just the inspiration I needed.

OldsCOOL

Young, yeah I think so. Best part is in the numbers every March and watching my young doctor comment and remark on things like “Yeah I know...you aren’t in the study groups”. He also says “you do a stress test a couple times a week”. Being 63 and Type 1 Diabetic since ‘86, riding aggressively has helped.

Koyote

I ride a lot, and people will tell me, "Gosh, you're so healthy!" And I try to disabuse them of that notion. I'm fit, and that does impact health - makes me less likely to have a heart attack or high cholesterol. But health includes a lot of things that are not easily observed, such as cancers and heart defects, and fitness is not necessarily a good defense against such things. This is why, at my age, I pay doctors to shove things in various unpleasant parts of my body to look around -- at the colon, the prostrate, etc. Yeah, you know you're getting older when you voluntarily have a camera shoved several feet up your ass.

To answer the question: No, cycling doesn't make me younger. Age is a quantifiable fact.

Rolla

I'll be 61 in two weeks. I hang out and ride with a big group of 40-50 year olds, and no one can tell the difference. Evidently, the "fountain of youth" is a couple of pilsners, a little weed, and 100 miles a week.

10 Wheels

Looken Good at 70

Deal4Fuji

tru dat, he's partial to BMX



life long music learning....I try to avoid the "back in my day" mindset

work4bike

I feel like a very young 56, but not only because of my cycling, which I've been doing since my mid-20's as my primary form of transportation to and from work; at one point I had nearly a 50-mile round trip when I was stationed in Virginia Beach, Va and had to ride every day to Norfolk naval base. And I've also have done several loaded bike tours up and down the east coast and thru the Appalachian mountains.

However, I also credit my feeling very young to other aspects of physical exercise, i.e. Hiking the Appalachian trail, Running, Swimming and weightlifting with heavy weights.

I do believe it's very important to work your entire musculoskeletal system, not just the same muscles, repeatedly. And also not to just ride slow all the time, going anaerobic is good for your cardio.

I think Nick Symmonds (Professional Track Runner -- retired) explains it best in many of his videos. While he can't run as fast as he did when he was an Olympian, he feels healthier today, which to some is kind of counter-intuitive. You'd think if one ran a 47-second 400-meter, they'd be healthier than someone that could only run it just under a minute. Being a specialist at a given sport doesn't mean you're healthier than everyone else that can't perform at that level. In short, that's why I don't just simply ride a bike for health. There's a lot more to having a healthy body than just doing one exercise, even if you excel at that activity.

Nick talks about this in several of his videos, but here's just one example.

5 mph

When you see a picture of yourself, does it surprise you? I was checking my Surveillance Camera to see what time I got back from my ride.
I didn't realize it , I must have a new neighbor!
A stranger with a bald spot, a bad limp, and a tired painful face hobbled very slowly with a bicycle just like mine and came into view on my very own driveway.
I sure hope I dont look like that guy when I get old!
Definitely not the fierce, young warrior I am.

BCAC

If the camera is far enough away, I still look pretty good.

jsilvia

Your only old if you think you are old!!!!

DeadGrandpa

I would like someone to clarify, please. Are we talking about youthful appearance or maturity level? Manny assume that the two are related, but I don't think so.

AlmostTrick

I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now.

rydabent

Absolutely.

And I would continue that to acting old. At 82 I would be deluding myself if I didnt admit that I have a few aches and pains of old age. OTOH I try to ignore them the best that I can and keep on doing what I want to do. And that includes riding anywhere from 20 to 35 miles every other day. If you cave in to a few pains, you will stop doing nearly everything. Then you will set and rust out, and they will carry you feet first out the front door!!!!

BTW my goal is to live to be at least 102, and that they will find me pulled off to the side of the trail on my trike cooling out with a smile on my face.!!!

Senior Ryder 00 

Ours is: “You can mature, but you don’t have to grow up”. 😉
Cheers,

Senior Ryder 00 

Oh, yeah! When I ride my 66 Holdsworth. Typhoon that is set up as a single speed path racer, I feel like I‘m 13 and riding my Elgin three speed. I’m still doing 50 miles per week.
My doctor says that I’m his healthiest patient in my age group, mid 70s. I have low blood pressure, I only weigh 10 lbs more than when I graduated from HS and was in excellent condition. Of course, it’s shifted a bit and have the wrinkles of the age group.

As Einstein said, “ Life is like riding a bicycle, you have to keep moving to stay upright.”

Cheers,
Van

caloso

“Learn how to track stand, Al.” — Niels Bohr

surveyor6

Younger in a cardiovascular sense. Older in an orthopedic sense. Too many mountain bike falls. It was well worth it.

rydabent

I dont have any problem at all doing a track stand on my trike.

OldTryGuy

More like a "Track Sit"

gkeep

I'll be 63 in a few weeks and get inspired by a couple of neighbors all the time. My neighbor Rod is 75, his wife, well I don't ask... They regularly ride 15-30 miles 4 or 5 times a week. Sometimes on their roadbikes, sometimes antique bikes and sometimes new gravel bikes. They are both master woodworkers, metal workers and even have made their own split bamboo fly rods for special conditions. They'll hop in the camper and drive 500 miles for a few days of great fly fishing and bike riding.

Another neighbor is 82, partially paralyzed by a stroke years ago. Ken has about 20% use of his right arm and hand. He's a vintage bike and British motorcycle guys from way back. To accommodate his stroke a friend set up a 1930s Columbia ladies step through bike with coaster brake, SA 3 speed and hand brake on the left side. He rides all over our town and I often run into him on his rides around Bay Farm Island. It's about a 12 mile loop he regularly does. Some time back he switched out the Sturmey Archer 3 speed hub for a newer 7 speed internal gear hub. Last year he passed me on a long straight, I was on my 1916 Pierce Roadster. He's my hero.

I know another antique bike rider in Southern California in his mid 50s. He regularly rides 1930s ballooners 30-50 miles a couple times a week. He's done many 100 mile days and a couple 120 mile days. What an animal.

trainchaser

I've been riding for years, there were only a few times when I didn't have a bike. I still ride every day to and from work and really miss is if the weather prevents the ride. I am often told that I look 10 years younger than I am - my daughter tells me that I'm just a 16 year old in an old guys body LOL.