Fitness consultation for ageing bikers: Fit in old age thanks to expert tips
Jan Timmermann
· 10.03.2025
Time cannot be stopped. First you are 20, then 30, then 40, at some point 50 and finally 60-plus. The body changes over the years; biology is relentless. Fitness, performance, health and physical needs change with age. What seems like an iron law of nature naturally also affects mountain bikers. On average, BIKE readers are just under 50 years old. This means that they have different expectations of their sport than perhaps 20 years ago. We wanted to know what exactly the ageing process actually does to the body and how it can affect the training of athletes. We sought out a real expert to answer our questions.
Dr Wilhelm Bloch teaches and researches as a university professor at the German Sport University Cologne, primarily on medical-biological mechanisms. At the Institute for Circulatory Research, he is an internationally renowned scientist for molecular and cellular aspects of sport. In this short interview, he reveals how physical fitness is linked to ageing. Bloch also belongs to the 60-plus generation.
Every athlete is affected
BIKE: From a sports science and biology perspective, what happens to our bodies as we get older?
UNIV. PROF. DR. WILHELM BLOCH: The human prototype is not designed to last forever, because cells cannot divide indefinitely. The natural ageing process begins at birth and is irreversible. It can be slowed down but not stopped. Of course, this biological change also has physiological consequences. The body loses efficiency with age.
Which parts of the body are particularly affected?
No system is excluded from the reduction in performance. The cardiovascular system, cognitive system, connective tissue and muscles are all affected. The latter increasingly comprises endurance-oriented type-one fibres in old age. The constant remodelling of the musculature slows down and the tissue cannot remain in optimum condition. This also applies to our bones. Their density reaches its maximum at 30-35 years of age. After that, the curve can be kept relatively evenly high for a while, but from the age of 50 onwards, it clearly points downwards. Ligaments change due to oxidation and glycation processes, among other things. The material is less durable and the risk of injury increases. Fortunately, muscle strength also decreases, which means that tendons are also subjected to less strain. All sport-relevant tissues interact in a complex way and change over time.
Fewer services, more injuries
BIKE: As an athlete, how do I recognise increasing age?
Prof Bloch: Age is noticeable both in training and in competition. A six-hour marathon means great oxidative stress for the organism. It leads to micro-damage in various systems. This is less serious at a young age, as the body adapts with a protective mechanism. In older athletes, however, protection against radicals, for example, decreases. If you want to run your very first marathon at the age of 50, your body can hardly adapt to the demands. Age and extreme endurance sports do not go together. Many people find it increasingly difficult to run for half an hour as they get older. Theoretically, they could keep going for 30 minutes, but they don't manage to reduce their pace sufficiently when jogging. Cycling is easier to control, but peak performance decreases.
As you get older, the amount of time you train decreases all by itself. Master athletes simply can no longer train as much as an active top athlete in their prime and may only manage seven training hours per week instead of 15. It is simply no longer possible to train more, as athletes no longer regenerate quickly enough in old age. Muscles are plastic tissue and remodel relatively quickly. The protein turnover determines how quickly rebuilding is possible and therefore influences the regeneration potential. It is normally around one per cent per day. Through eccentric training, young athletes can increase the turnover to three per cent for a short time. Older people may still reach 1.5 per cent and are therefore no longer able to compensate for minor damage to the tissue as quickly.
Combating ageing with complex training
BIKE: What can I do to slow down the ageing process?
Prof. Bloch: It can be driven in a certain direction through specific training and optimised nutrition, for example. Tissue ageing is always dependent on exercise behaviour. Older people usually adapt increasingly in the direction of endurance training. Even if they keep the volume the same, they reduce the intensity of the exercise. Ideally, however, they should challenge their muscles from time to time. High eccentric loads, for example when walking steeply downhill, can increase protein turnover in the muscles. The next day, sore muscles indicate that something is happening in the body. Targeted eccentric strength training can not only promote muscle remodelling, it also retains more fast fibres. However, if you are 60 and have not done anything for 20 years, this is not advisable. It could backfire, as the risk of injury increases.
So the best way is to adapt your training early on?
Yes, you have to train your body to adapt. Athletes must therefore try to adapt to ageing throughout their lives. Even in middle age, you should take care not to train too one-sidedly, supplement endurance training with strength training and include a variety of exercises. Not everyone is able to do complex training over long periods of time. However, you can also work on your fitness in small parts, for example in the interval range, to improve the plasticity of your muscles. Depending on your ability, this can be highly intensive. Many athletes do not pay attention to sufficient complexity in their training in middle age and pay the bill for it in old age. Once the switch has been flipped, it is almost impossible to reverse this.
Many BIKE readers are exactly at this middle age. What training do you advise them to do?
If you're in the middle of a job and don't have much time, your inner bastard often puts the brakes on you. However, simply getting on your bike for three or four hours at the weekend and mainly training your endurance is not the right way to go. In any case, regular strength training to build muscle is advisable - even during the week. You should also do something for coordination, speed and flexibility. Going to the gym is great because there are lots of training options there. However, small units can also be incorporated into everyday life, especially for the lower extremities. Twice a week for 20-30 minutes will help.
If you adapt your training to your life, you don't need to be put off by high demands. For example, jumping strength training is a great addition and can be done quickly anywhere. All I need is a flight of stairs. The impacts can also be beneficial stimuli for the bones. Skipping, hop runs, sprints - it's important to stimulate the body with variety. Many people have already done complex training earlier in their lives. It can help to remember old sporting experiences and exercises. Cardiovascularly demanding training can also be helpful. To do this, you shouldn't do the tour at a heart rate of 120 all the way, but rather incorporate a few more hills.
Jan Timmermann
Editor
