After 50, Avid Athletes Find That to Stay Healthy, They Must Let Go of the Need to Win

I'm 56, and did my first triathlon at 50 after having heart valve replacement surgery at age 47.  Similar to the what was discussed in the article, my cardiologist encourages me to stay fit, but has me limit my HR during both training and racing.   

As a late starter, my overall performance is still improving as my technique and overall fitness get better, but I know it's a game of diminishing returns.   

One effect of age I have noticed is that my recovery time is definitely longer.  I also now take naps - something I never did until fairly recently.

My "real" life also takes priority over my training:  family, church, work &  my community volunteer activities take precedence over training or racing.   I enjoy triathlons as a hobby, but I don't think that's the main reason God put me on this planet.  I certainly don't lose any sleep over the fact that I'm going to be a career BOPer or am never going to win my age group.

Mark 

Quite an interesting article for me, thanks for posting it.  I did my first tri last year at 51.  In addition, it was the first endurance oriented athletic event I had ever done.  I don't mind saying that I have doubted my decision to pursue triathlon as a 'hobby' a lot.  It has been challenging to convert an over 50 body for endurance sports when you've had no endurance background whatsoever.  Every time I race and end up in the bottom third, I get discouraged and I can only regain any sense of enthusiasm by telling myself I am competing against a majority that have a much, much more significant background in endurance sports and I should be proud to have finished in whatever time I ended up with.  That's a tough sell if you are a somewhat competitive person by nature.

That being said, I feel like I am in far superior condition to most of the 'same aged' people I know and a lot of the much younger ones.  Last weekend, we were at a small social event with some 50ish year old friends that mentioned their recent physicals and that their docs got onto them for having such low base metabolic rates and being overweight.   They both had BMRs of around 1,000.  We have a Tanita scale at home that provides an approximation of BMR based on your body fat % and it tells me my BMR is 1,800.  Now, I know a home scale provides only a rough approximation of BMR, but still.

Anyway, I think about why I got into triathlon in the first place and I never planned to do it so I could stand on the podium.  I did it because I thought it would be a great way to get back into shape.  So now, I just pick and choose my events and try to have fun on course.  Recently, I decided to run a marathon in December.  I bought Hal Higdon's 18 week plan and I am following it pretty closely with no expectations of setting any records.  I only know that for this first one I am guaranteed a PR.  I haven't even told my wife or anyone else I know because I don't want the pressure.  I am just going to do it at a comfortable pace and be one of the 2,000 or 3,000 people that participated for a reason OTHER than standing on the podium.  MY reason will be to prove to myself that I can do it and to show my 7 & 10 year old kids that, many times, unbelievable accomplishments come from quietly going about preparing for them on a daily basis while others are wasting time on worthless activities.

Greg

Everything you do today affects all of your tomorrows.

My experience is similar.  In spite of my cardiac history, I'm in far better shape than the vast majority of my same-aged friends.  The most strenuous thing most of them do is drive golf carts.  Besides being physically inactive, a lot of them are on multiple meds for a variety of things: high BP, cholesterol, etc. 

My triglycerides have been high in the past, but I'm able to control them by maintaining my weight and exercise.  My cardiologist is actually one of the biggest supporters of my triathlon training.

I recently got "carded" at our local county pool.  It costs $4 to swim or $2 if you're over 55.  The person at the check-in desk made me show my ID to prove how old I was.  I felt pretty good about that. 

Mark

I'm 52 and still getting faster at all 3 disciplines.  I switched from an avid golfer and sometimes runner to an avid triathlete and sometimes golfer when I was 49.  I can always go back and play more golf if I have some kind of injury that prevents me from s/b/r.  For now I plan to keep getting faster as I build my endurance base.  Many non-tri people I work and socialize with are having all kinds of health and weight issues.  I'm loving my new lifestyle.  I'm from MN and can attest to the above post about the level of competition in the 50+ AG.  Very tough. 

    3    21 DOUG ROBINSON           40 INDIANAPOLIS IN       11:11:41.75    3 1:04:47   28  8:17    2 5:34:29  20.1    5 6:47:32   27  7:40    6 4:16:32  9:48 
    4    22 TODD SHELLENBERGER      40 INDIANAPOLIS IN       11:11:41.85    4 1:04:47   19  6:50    4 5:35:50  20.0    4 6:47:26   28  7:44    7 4:16:33  9:48 

Becoming a Master means that the competition is just beginning to heat-up. Atleast when you are younger, you don't have to compete against the Pros. Once you turn Master (atleast here in Southern California), you get thrown in with everyone! Ex-Pros, Former Olympians, etc...

My wife was competing in a HM two years ago... she usually finishes top ten, so I generally watch and count places at the finish. She lost a spot in her AG to Paula Newby Fraser!

My local Masters Cycling Team have the following collective resume amongst their 19 team members: 7 World Championships, 180 State Titles, 93 National Championships, 4 World Records, 13 National Records, 1500 Victories, and 4 former Olympians! When you show up to a race, you can choose to line-up with the young guns and chance the Cat 3 or 4 race or you can try to hang with the likes of these guys in the Masters race.

It certainly doesn't get any easier with age.

Mark Allen practically invented overtraining, so its funny to see him as the spokesman for moderation.