QUESTION: I keep hearing that high-intensity intervals are the best bang for your buck when training time is tight. But I’m in my 50s now, and every time I try to go all-out, I worry I’m flirting with injury or worse. Is HIIT still a smart strategy for older riders, or should I be focusing on something a little more forgiving? —Ray H.
RBR’S STAN PURDUM REPLIES: Assuming you are in overall good health — a likely benefit of the cycling you’ve already been doing up to this point — there’s no reason to avoid HIIT in your 50s.
It’s true, of course, that muscle mass, aerobic capacity and the amount of blood pumped per heartbeat diminishes somewhat as we age, but for athletes, these declines aren’t usually as dramatic as they are for inactive people. (Witness the number of cyclists still pedaling significant distances at respectable speeds in their late 70s and 80s.) So even if you haven’t already been doing HIIT, your 50s is not too late to begin. Your body can still respond and improve with training.
If you haven’t been doing the HIIT lately, you need to ramp up and not attempt to do too much too soon, and you need to allow sufficient recovery time between high-intensity sessions, but most active athletes in their 50s and 60s need not avoid HIIT.
Riders in their 70s and 80s may be able to do some HIIT as well, but they may find it useful to redefine what high-intensity training means in those age brackets. Being in that senior group myself and riding with others of similar age, the more common goal I hear mentioned is to “keep moving,” and there is wide agreement as to the benefits — and the joy — of that.
Stan Purdum has ridden several long-distance bike trips, including an across-America ride recounted in his book Roll Around Heaven All Day, and a trek on U.S. 62, from Niagara Falls, New York, to El Paso, Texas, the subject of his book Playing in Traffic. Stan, a freelance writer and editor, lives in Ohio. See more at www.StanPurdum.com.
I’m closing in on my 79th birthday in July and I’m still including HIIT in my sessions. I ride in 4-6 ‘ability related’ road races and the occasional TT throughout the season and prepare for them with some specific training sessions.
In ten days time I’ve a road race which includes a four minute climb. I’ve used my Turbo and a cycling app to replicate the race distance, duration, laps and climb. One hill climb at max, two laps (inc the climb) at Sweetspot (race pace).
A month ago I rode a 10 mile TT in 30.59, so yes I’m still including HIIT.
HITT Sessions hurt but in a good way. I have found that I can maintain and even improve my Lactate Threshold and VO 2 max by incorporating HITT sessions in my training routines. After a lifetime of just riding by feel I have over the past 2 years added weight training with a coach and a training plan with a coach I have had good results. VO2 top 1% of my age group and a 40 watt improvement. For reference I am 72
At 75 and with some 50+ years of cycling experience, and what I consider a time trialist temperament, I still enjoy higher intensity efforts. Usually that means the sprinkled hills on my routes, but I don’t know if that qualifies as HITT or not. It’s never so deep, that I’m wobbling around for a minute to catch my breath, as I prefer to accelerate at the top of a climb at a more moderate effort. More to the point, I prefer returning home after my typical 1-2 hour daily rides feeling as though I’m well exercised, but not overly tired. Managing fatigue is maybe one of the best decisions you can make as an older rider. A day off when you feel it beneficial, beats a slow “recovery ride”. Go and do something else you enjoy, and your next ride will be more energized for it. I’m certainly not of the mindset – I have to get out there every day rain or shine. Life has more opportunities than that. Don’t be OCD about your cycling.
Thanks for the encouragement from the older crowd. I just read a book by a professor and researcher on the benefits of ultra-low volume HIITs. The One Minute Workout by Martin Gibala. Sometimes the HIIT sets tire me out too much; he has research showing how instead of 4x4s, even one of them gives most of the benefit.
At 80 I’ve been doing HIIT or interval training most of my adult life. I had a quintuple bypass surgery eight years ago and after rehab I was a little reluctant to resume high intensity training. About three years ago I had a long talk with my cardiologist who gave me the go ahead to begin again. Since then I incorporate one to two HIIT workouts into my training schedule every week. I usually do them on the elliptical but find that they really help when I’m on those long hills on my road bike. At 80 there’s not a lot of ego to worry about so I just grind along on the steep hills at 4 mph with my heart rate at 135-140 and I’m happy..
I was in my mid-50s when I first heard of such a thing. I’m 73 now, and still at it. There are tons of ways to do them. I especially like 30-30s: 30 seconds up a hill going all out, 30 seconds down to recover, then do it again. I can tolerate just about anything for 30 seconds! And I usually start out a season doing 4 reps, then add a couple each week. I live surrounded by hills. They definitely get more manageable with some HIIT work.
Thanks for all the comments.