5 mph

I’m in my late 50’s. I was a runner until a year ago. Then I saw everyone getting knee implants and I needed a metal shoulder implant. That’s when I became a biker. I’m addicted to biking now and ride everyday. I love the feeling of the bike being a part of your body and just flying along so quietly.

Unfortunately lately I am always feeling worn out. My wife said I might be overdoing it so put a GPS Timer app on my phone and it showed the last few days I was averaging everyday 17 miles in less than an hour and with 1000’ elevation gain( and drop)over trails and country roads

I am not an egomaniac. I am 59 and don’t really care how fast I go. I want to be around for a while... and not @“”&&@ ... am I overdoing it? I would like to compare notes with others in my age group. I am using a 30 pound mountain bike with. 2 “ tires.

GlennR

Your body needs time to recover.

I'm riding more this year than others... almost 2x more. I have to remember not to ride more than 3 days in a row and have at least 2 days off a week. I find myself looking at the weather forecasts to plan my off days.

If you push too much and don't rest your body... your body will breakdown and recovery will be longer.

Random11

If you're feeling fatigued, you should take a day off, but you're not necessarily overdoing it. You may just need to build up. Like you, I used to be a runner, and kept at it even though I had increasingly frequent knee injuries and constant knee pain. So I bought a bike about 2 1/2 years ago, gave up running, and have been riding consistently since. My knee pain has gone away (even though x-rays show I have advanced arthritis in my knees). The bike seems to be doing my knees some good.

I'm riding 15-20 miles a day, every day at about a 16mph pace, so by my experience, you can ride that much if you're in shape for it. My bike is a carbon frame gravel bike with 700x38c tires (Specialized Diverge) which is going to be easier to ride than a mountain bike. I'm 70 years old, so I have a few years on you. I'm not sure how much that offsets the advantage my bike gives me.

You can ride that much at your age (or at my age!), so in that sense you're not overdoing it. But if you're fatigued, that is a sign you should take some days off and build up to longer and more frequent rides. Isn't that what you did when you were running?

Hondo Gravel

I’m hiking and lifting some weights due to bike burnout. Happens over the years of cycling. But I know soon the bike will feel new again. No worries just take a few days off and as already posted let yourself recovery. I’m the worse when it comes to over doing it You will be OK.

5 mph

Everyone ages differently.... I've seen some 70 year olders who seem to be in their 40's and some who have really slowed ...I will say that being 59 is much more stressful than 49...you are working along kids in their 30's..you have kids in school.. Bills to pay... its the final stretch before .. I remember my blood pressure was 145 / 95 last year...after 130 days of biking daily it was 111/ 64 yesterday at my physical... very tired worn out ..but RELAXED..

big john

Rest days. I take 3 rest days per week. I do 13-15 hours per week on the bike, a lot of it at high (for me) intensity. I'm 66 and 200 pounds.

Carbonfiberboy 

If you find you are going slower rather than faster, you're overdoing it. Otherwise, you're not. My guess is that if you keep at it like this, you will find you're going slower after a while. Which is not a reason to ease off now.

Wildwood 

Sounds like you already have your answer from the physical.

6 days X 17 mi/day = 102 miles per week. Switch to a road bike, 700c wheels, quality 28mm tires at a relatively high pressure and it's a good aerobic regimen unless something specific begins to hurt or:

1. It's boring
2. You are too frequently exhausted.
3. Elevated resting heart rate just before getting out of bed.

Otherwise, the old man approves.


Roll On!

Wildwood 

....you just need more bikes to mix it up.

canklecat

Try an HRV app, like Wattson Blue or HRV Elite. I use 'em as guidelines for my fitness routines. I'd guesstimate the readings are about a 90% match for how I actually felt and performed that day. There's a bunch of stuff to read online about HRV -- heart rate variability -- so I won't try to summarize it here.

And I don't try to compare myself to others. I have a bunch of health issues and injuries, so I'll never be at the upper range even of my own age group. I'm surprised I do as well as I do on good days. That's enough.

5 mph

Its never boring. I tried power walking for 8 months. That was terrible! I dont like walking...

5 mph

I think that's a smart thing and shows good judgment and that's where I want to be. At 59 I've pushed myself a lot....I want to be around active for a while..not on the couch napping..

nomadmax 

E road bike on "off days" and regular road bike the other days. I'm currently shopping them now so I don't miss any good riding days and I'm not worn out.

OldTryGuy

Some good advice and examples given on how we are all different and unique. r.e. - quote by Dr. George Sheehan a renown cardiologist and Record Holder runner >>>

​“We are each an experiment of one.
A unique, never-to-be repeated event.”

interesting bio -- https://www.georgesheehan.com/bio

72yo friend rode 100 mile+/day for 100 days @ 18mph+ just 3 years ago and totaled 24,000+ miles for the year here in flat but hot-humid-windy SW FL.

Keep the smiles with the increasing miles and you can't go wrong.

fujidon

59 years old
average over 17 mph
on trails
1,000 ft of climbing
on a mountain bike

Dude, you're approaching world class performance levels. Maybe take it down a notch, but before you do, look into "over training". It's a real physiological condition and if you descend into it, recovery takes a lot longer than a few days.

deacon mark

Like the OP I am 59 and a runner all my life last 42 years. I have always done some cycling but in the last 12 years gotten much more into cycling. Good thing because I developed runners dystonia and I cannot run very good or at least fast. This not a pain or usual injury it is neurological and brain won't turn on running. I still do run-walk about 10-30 miles a week at times but been riding now 250-300 mile weeks. Just came in for a 56 mile ride. On the bike I have no issues can ride like a madman.

As runner you probably are aware of overtraining, On the bike I think it is much trickier because fatigue is different than runner. Runner generally will be fatigue but also some pain in joints or back, ect... The fatigue in cycling is a build up since you do in longer but it is not as intense as running. My heart rate never as I high cycling as running. I find on the bike you can kind of just get on a go through the tiredness but running if really tired we just stop in our tracks. Many times injury set in before this.

For the bike my suggestion is to go by feel and if tired take a day for sure. Fresh legs will bring increase speed just like running less to get ready for race. Another aspect is depending out your lifestyle it may or may not matter. I am retired to I don't have to directly work. I can end a ride and take a nap or just zone out. Working will not allow that.

My other suggestion is to get a real road bike that is light and nimble. Based on your past and current commitment I would not be worried about spending money for a good road bike. That will change everything..........

motorthings

You could also start using Strava with the Elevate plugin for your web browser.
This will allow you to upload your rides and track your "fitness" and "freshness" - it will clearly indicate when you are in "overload" condition, and can help you manage your efforts better.
Strava's power readings are not super accurate, but using these tools can be very helpful to understand why your body feels the way it does.

gear64

I've been riding all my life and you're blowing me out of the water. I just ride to ride. Most days I'm around 14 mph. Some days I only do 11. I've only hit 16 as a full ride average once. I get a gold star every physical. I believe it's consistency as much as effort. I ride at a frequency/intensity that keeps me in the game. Typically that's 3 to 4, 1 to 1.5 hr rides a week DST. Weekends only plus strength training not DST.

rydabent

As I have stated before, at 81, I find that riding every other day prevents what you are saying.

Iride01 

I'm not certain I understand how long and hard you are riding per week. If you are riding for more than an hour and a half at a time at a high effort, then both heat and hydration can be a factor. And what you hydrate with and what you do after the ride can play a part too.

If you are riding that mountain bike mainly on paved roads, then you need to get a bike for the intended use. You might be just using all your energy trying to keep that high average speed and not getting good cardio workout because you aren't riding as long. Short rides at max HR aren't as good as longer rides at a high HR.

There is also the issue of sometimes it takes a while to get used to something.

fujidon

Good for you and excellent strategy. I'm 15 years younger than you and I find that if I ride hard, I need at 2 days between rides to avoid a performance drop.

bruce19

I'm 74 as of this past June. I ride with my club on Saturdays....at least until COVID came to town. In the past 15 yrs I've always ridden about 50 miles with the club and maybe 2 more weekday rides for a total of 100 mi./wk This year, thanks to COVID, I am not riding with the club. I've also been riding more days a week but shorter distances. My rides an be 10-35 miles depending on what I'm trying to accomplish. Usually, I'm riding a lot of HIIT and also concentrating on making efforts on climbs. As a result I'm on the bike about 5 days a week for 70 miles, or thereabouts. I, too, check the weather and schedule rest days for bad weather. The result is that I am considerably faster, climbing better than ever and enjoying rides more than before. I'm also 10 lbs lighter than usual. Best of all everything on the bike feels unstressed and I find myself wanting to ride more. Most importantly, rest days are critical. If you don't take them you run the risk of burn out and/or injury.

bruce19

I found this interesting.....https://www.verywellfit.com/is-hiit-...better-4126506

Iride01 

I don't disagree with the article. Notice I was comparing max HR and High HR. Both are in the realm of HIIT.

NewATBikeComute

I overdid it yesterday; started an openended bike ride; option to turn around at any point, but felt good, so kept going. When I hit the ocean at Bristol, RI (Independence park), still felt good. Less than halfway home, thighs started to hurt. Slowed way done, had energy bars, alternated plain water, and water with electrolyte tabs.

Each journey IS different. I am taking today and tomorrow off, more due to work schedule, and I need to study up on strategies for longer rides. This was only my third 50+ ride in my life, and all three have been in the last 6 weeks. Tacked on a home neighborhood, very flat, very slow, 2 mile loop just so I could say I made both a 'metric century' and a 'ride your age+1'.

Over did it? Yes. Pleased with myself? Also yes. Learned my lesson? To be determined.