The Midlife Cyclist: The Road Map for the +40 Rider Who Wants to Train Hard, Ride Fast and Stay Healthy

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Remember that we’re genetically almost identical to our modern human ancestors from tens of thousands of years ago. It’s true that the process of evolution is continual, but it’s also true that there has been simply too little time and too few generations for substantive changes to the human genome.

But as we age our tolerance for error or injury inevitably reduces – throwing youth at any physical problem is normally the most successful strategy. But when you no longer have access to the elixir of youth, the next best strategy is being well informed about every aspect of your riding practice. In Chapter Two, It Is About the Bike, the author lays out a brilliant argument for how the UCI thwarted the evolution of the bicycle and credited it with its present state of suspended animation in Victorian design. The not-so-modern bicycle design, which Mr. Cavell contends, is a function of the ‘butterfly effect,’ much like the QWERTY keyboard. The conscious part of me wants to exercise because it’s good for me – the benefits are proven, uncontroversial and listed in various forms in nearly every chapter of this book. I’m also fairly sure that I’m compelled to exercise unrestrainedly and push myself physically as an unconscious death-avoidance strategy. I’m trying to pedal or run away from the inexorable pull of an unyielding rope that’s attached to all of us and extends an unknown distance across into the horizon. Getting old and dying is as much a part of our psychological DNA as it is our physical DNA – kids are aware of dying from a young age and talk about it openly. Their natural inquisitiveness is ameliorated by the fact that it tends to happen around them to fragile animals and elderly relatives. No. Cycling will probably help you to push out that date. I think cycling and exercise is the best drug that the pharmaceutical industry has never invented, and it will preserve your lifespan almost certainly, yes. But it can't make you immortal, or me, sadly. I think the answer is counterintuitive. The better cyclist you want to be past 50, the more you probably have to drop cycling sessions out and put something else in to compensate. So you probably need to drop a cycling session now and put in a gym session, or a running session, or some other sport to work on bone density and muscle fibre loss. So it's a counterintuitive thing. The more you cycle and the more you seek cycling performance, the more you probably need to cast your net a bit wider in terms of activity base.There is nothing like competing with your support system within inches. In addition, with technological advances in the virtual cycling game, I communicate with my teammates via Discord. Much the same applies. It drives us to develop skills and coping strategies. It is intrinsically a dynamic model. Outside we are also coping with ever-changing weather, road, trail conditions, and topography. The ‘butterfly effect,’ known as ‘path dependence,’ is when decisions are made for social or political reasons and have long-term effects upon subsequent generations.

Aerobic, as we know, is a cipher for functioning within an oxidative state — using fatty acids and glucose as fuel with oxygen, which is metabolised in our muscle’s mitochondria to produce energy. It’s our long-burn, sustainable state. Our most important goal as endurance athletes surely has to be to increase our oxidative or aerobic performance window, to become better at producing more power but at the same time staying oxidative/aerobic. Very useful article for people of any age. Unfortunately the images were mostly decorative and an opportunity was missed to match and interplay more usefully with the text content. Judging by the book and the comments in this thread the difference between an amatuer and a professional is that a professional will have a coach who will have the time and incentive to produce training plans that are relevant for the the rider at that particular time of their fitness/season/life, whilst the rest of us mostly have to use trial and error to find what works or settle for suboptimal. These concepts taken together are not something written about much. We have a lot of books on training plans, some designed for older athletes, and the author does not stray into this area at all. But Cavell’s views, both from his past as an amateur racer as well as his profession, are food for thought. He gently ridicules our attachment to numbers, pointing out that V02 max is nothing really useful and even FTP, the measure of functional threshold power, should not be our focus. As someone with biomechanical expertise, he feels that some drills, such as one-legged pedalling, are useless or injurious. He is not impressed with our pursuit of high cadences, or even smooth pedalling, noting that the people who stomp on the pedals tend to be the ones winning the races. I was reminded of watching a Giro d’Italia stage years ago where a Russian and a French rider had escaped and Phil Liggett pointed out how awkward and gawky the Russian looked compared to the elegant spinning of the Frenchman but Paul Sherwen interrupted, pointing out that they were both going the same speed so what did it matter? As someone who has spent years building souplesse, that effortless and beautiful fusion of man and machine, well, I was a bit disappointed but sometimes looking good is better than being fast, yes?The Midlife Cyclist is my attempt to square the holy triumvate of age, speed and good-health, using the very latest clinical and academic research. Phil's book can help you be as good today as you always said you were ― Carlton Kirby, Eurosport commentator I have had more crashes and injuries than I would have liked in my life. One of them very seriously. I really don’t want anymore either. So I totally understand the sentiments and motivations behind the statement. I ride more defensively and take less risks now. I have a young daughter, wife, and dog that need me. I know many midlife cyclists who do, and I hope you find out, Mr. Cavell. I feel bad that there are things you don’t know about virtual cycling and are missing out on something great. Mr. Cavell asks himself and the reader as he lays the groundwork for the cerebral cornucopia to come,