Have you reached your full potential?

Beasty

Interesting article in Cycling Weekly:

If you are new to cycling .... even with the same training you will improve as a cyclist for at least five years

But the really good news is for cyclists who start regular riding and training later in life. They will get younger in cycling terms for at least the next five years while, their cohorts grow older

It's apparently down to efficiency gains in chemical and neuromuscular processes and improved economy of movement (pedalling), which take at least 5 years to fully mature. There is a debate over whether it is driven by time, or distance, although the equivalent distance quoted is 36,000 miles (58,000km) which in most cases would probably take well over 5 years anyway.

All this is on top of any improvements from better training regimes.

So given I've only been cycling seriously for a couple of years or so, this tells me I have the potential to improve further for at least another 3 years without training harder, meaning I should eventually be able to crash at even faster speeds:)

Lumen

Yes, the Joe Friel has stuff about this.

He says it takes something like 7 years to reach your full physical potential, then you get another three years of further improvement as you learn how to use it.

...then steady physical decline until your give yourself up to the loving embrace of the Reaper.

Chips Lovell

Lumen wrote: »

...then steady physical decline until your give yourself up to the loving embrace of the Reaper.

Once the decline starts you can start living through your children. Become the cycling equivalent of the tennis Dad.

ROK ON

This is great news. The only thing thus far I have ever reached my full potential in was gluttony.
Once I peak at cycling I might go back to the gluttony to see can I do it again. Training to be a glutton takes dedication but is immeasurably more fun than training to cycle.

Beasty

Lumen wrote: »

Yes, the Joe Friel has stuff about this.

I picked up his book "Cycling past 50" yesterday.

The first chapter has the inspirational title "Riding Over the Hill", and the first paragraph is:

Fifty. The Big Five-O. Did you ever think you'd be that old? Back in the 1960's you were told not to trust anyone over 30. What about 50? Fifty-year-olds were the establishment. Fifty was your parents. Fifty was over the hill and one foot in the grave. People in their 50s were ancient, they were old geezers. They might as well have been from another planet.

Of course, I just bought it for future reference, as I have some way to go before I reach this age;)

Supercell

What about ex cyclists that take it up again due to mid life crises midriff paunch developing? 5 years to improve or is there a muscle memory?
A "friend" i know used to be fit as a fiddle in his teens and early 20's then it all went to hell in a handbasket once he got a motorbike in his mid 20's...:D

levitronix

Last tuesday i meet a guy on a spin going up the gap,i sat with him for a while chatting he told me he was 65 !! Im thinking 65 years old off on your own out for spin over the gap, thats the way i wana be weither i reach my full protential or not

Beasty

Supercell wrote: »

What about ex cyclists that take it up again due to mid life crises midriff paunch developing? 5 years to improve or is there a muscle memory?
A "friend" i know used to be fit as a fiddle in his teens and early 20's then it all went to hell in a handbasket once he got a motorbike in his mid 20's...:D

The article only covers those who are new to cycling as a sport. I would guess there is a significantly shorter period for those returning to the sport, because of muscle and pedalling technique "memory".

blorg

levitronix wrote: »

Last tuesday i meet a guy on a spin going up the gap,i sat with him for a while chatting he told me he was 65 !! Im thinking 65 years old off on your own out for spin over the gap, thats the way i wana be weither i reach my full protential or not

I was racing against guys older than that last weekend. And they were fecking good too!