I have been reading Joel Friel’s book “Fast After 5: How to Race Strong for the Rest of Your Life”. Friel who has been known in the triathlon and bicycling scene for his books explores fitness from the perspective of an aged athlete.
It made me think. So much of our motivation can be closely tight in with PR’s, etc. I remember a friend of mine who was very active in Shotokan Karate. She decided to completely quit after becoming European Champion. Her reasoning was that she was at the pinnacle of her athletic career and she would not advance beyond that.
As much as I understand the shifting of priorities, I think life can be more fulfilling when the things we do have more meaning than numbers, PRs, etc.
Some decline after the age of 50 and even more so after around 70 is inevitable. Regardless of that, most of what we experience nowadays is decline due to the lifestyle choices we have made in the past.
Research seems to indicate more and more that high volume training over high intensity is not the way to go. The most successful older athletes (60,70,80s) always incorporate high intensity training in their regimen.
This does not come without risks, like injury, and other age related factors like coronary heart disease, etc.
You will have to be careful managing recovery times with your training. Moderate intensity training needs to be alternated with carefully designed high intensity training while integrating sufficient recovery time into your routine
It pays off though: Older athletes seem to have markers that correlate strongly with people who should be younger and if you look at performance you will see numbers (i.e. race times, lifted weights) that are respectable for someone in their 20s or 30s.
The fountain of youth does exist, just not in pill form. It exists in form of high intensity exercise, coupled with good nutrition & healthy lifestyle.
Let’s reclaim our youth,
Michael
Head Trainer at Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting
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