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9 min read<\/p>\n9 min read<\/p>\n
Intervals can be the first thing a masters cyclist<\/a> will abandon in their training. That\u2019s because intervals are hard, and for many, high-intensity interval training (HIIT)<\/a> simply isn\u2019t as fun as heading out for a long ride on the bike. But HIIT is the secret sauce to maintaining and even improving fitness (and a lot of other longevity<\/a> metrics) as you age, and there is good news for masters cyclists: A little goes a long way.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udeb4\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2640\ufe0f Take your cycling performance to the next level with Bicycling\u2019s Guide to Interval Training<\/a>, featuring four follow-along workouts you can do almost anywhere.<\/p>\n Here, coaches and exercise scientists are dissecting what HIIT should look like for over-50 cyclists, and the simple ways to tweak your current program so intervals<\/a> don\u2019t feel like a chore.<\/p>\n Get to Know the Benefits of HIIT<\/p>\n Most of the research on HIIT isn\u2019t about improving your on-bike power<\/a>. Sure, it\u2019s good for that, but Nathalie Boisseau<\/a>, professor in exercise physiology at the Sport Sciences Faculty at the University of Clermont Auvergne, argues it has more important longevity benefits.<\/p>\n Even if you\u2019re not stressed about your FTP<\/a> or VO2 max<\/a> or other power numbers on the bike, adding interval training to your cycling on a regular basis supports your metabolic and cardiovascular health in a way that easy riding doesn\u2019t. And Boisseau notes cycling in particular is a great way to access interval training because it combines high metabolic intensity with lower mechanical constraints\u2014meaning almost anyone can get on the bike and ride hard, compared to trying to do intervals on the run or in the pool.<\/p>\n Recently, Boisseau\u2019s research<\/a> looked at how HIIT impacts postmenopausal women, and one of her primary findings was that across the board, HIIT has been shown to lower visceral fat<\/a>. This isn\u2019t just about a number on the scale, though. \u201cHigher visceral adiposity is linked with increased low-grade inflammation, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, hypertension, type 2 diabetes risk, and cardiovascular risk,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n We also know from the research that HIIT can improve several important health markers like cardiorespiratory fitness, insulin sensitivity, lipid profile, inflammation, vascular health, and the ability to perform daily activities with more ease. \u201cHIIT should be seen as a tool to preserve metabolic and functional health with aging,\u201d Boisseau explains.<\/p>\n Plus, HIIT makes you faster<\/a>.<\/p>\n How to Shift Your Intervals as You Age<\/p>\n There is no one secret interval that\u2019s the \u201cright\u201d interval for a 55-year-old cyclist, or a 72-year-old cyclist. Rather, the key to successful intervals and maintaining progress on the bike is a mindset shift to your approach. It\u2019s all about how you\u2019re adjusting your interval sets as well as your power and heart rate zones<\/a> for your current fitness level.<\/p>\n Wisdom and Patience<\/p>\n Joe Friel<\/a> has been coaching cyclists for five decades and is the author of books including The Cyclist\u2019s Training Bible<\/a> and Fast After 50<\/a>. As a cyclist himself, Friel has not only coached and advised thousands of masters cyclists on how to stay fast as they get older, he\u2019s also had to come to terms with it for himself.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I work with aging athletes, I always explain to them that it takes wisdom and patience,\u201d Friel says. \u201cIf they\u2019ve got wisdom and patience, it becomes much easier for them to then follow what their body is telling them to do.\u201d<\/p>\n As you age, you need to be more conservative in your training, he explains. This doesn\u2019t mean taking it easy or skipping HIIT, but it does mean knowing when to back off, cut a workout short<\/a>, or add some extra recovery<\/a>\u2026 and above all else, Friel really doesn\u2019t want masters riders out there doing extra sets in their workouts.<\/p>\n Consistency > Everything<\/p>\n \u201cConsistency<\/a> matters more than anything else when it comes to training,\u201d says longtime coach Frank Overton of FasCat<\/a>. If you only do one killer HIIT workout once a month, you won\u2019t see any gains. But if you regularly ride four to five times a week with one or two HIIT workouts<\/a> sprinkled in, no matter what age or riding level you\u2019re at, you\u2019ll see improvements.<\/p>\n The research is clear on one key point: A single workout doesn\u2019t move the needle, but regular, consistent training does. \u201cIn studies using three sessions per week, interventions lasting at least eight weeks were more effective for reducing body weight and fat mass, and only programs of eight weeks or more significantly reduced abdominal fat mass,\u201d Boisseau says. \u201cThe best HIIT protocol is likely the one that allows sufficient intensity, good adherence, and progressive training<\/a> over time.\u201d<\/p>\n And part of what makes consistency even more important for older athletes is the simple fact that as you age, your fitness naturally will decline unless you\u2019re focused on it. \u201cIf you have a setback, if you get injured doing a workout because you push yourself too hard, what\u2019s going to happen is going to take a long time to get back to training again when you\u2019re older,\u201d Friel says. \u201cYou\u2019re going to lose a lot of fitness<\/a>. So as you get older, consistency becomes much more important for the aging athlete.\u201d<\/p>\n Get Smarter About Your Numbers<\/p>\n Your power zones<\/a> used to require math equations and a calculator and a 20- or 60-minute on-bike test in order to calibrate them. Now, you can just set your watch or cycling computer to auto-upload your ride data to an app like TrainingPeaks, and your power and heart rate zones are automatically calculated for you. This means you\u2019re able to train more accurately, and you aren\u2019t constantly forced to spend one of your workouts doing the dreaded 20-minute FTP test<\/a>, which, as Cody Stephenson, the education program manager at TrainingPeaks, notes, can take away from you doing workouts that would actually be more suited to your current goals<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cTesting well can really eat up a lot of available training time\u2014a day or two of easier prep riding before, the test day itself, and a day or two of recovery after\u2014as well as motivation,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Using TrainingPeaks to set your zones also means that it will regularly be recalibrating your power targets based on your current fitness level, not the peak power number that you set back in 2006. But of course, this only works if you are consistently uploading all of your rides, not just the rides where you felt the best. \u201cRecord things consistently and pay attention to patterns,\u201d says Stephenson. \u201cEven as things start to change as you age, you\u2019ll have a good baseline<\/a> to recognize things are changing.\u201d<\/p>\n Overton adds that often riders hang onto old zones long after the zones stop serving the rider. \u201cIf you\u2019re having trouble hitting your threshold<\/a> or your VO2 max zones, you could have your zone set too high,\u201d he says. He adds that it\u2019s better to change the zones based on where you are now, and adjust regularly, rather than struggle to keep an old number. (He also notes that there is an upside to decreasing your FTP in an app like TrainingPeaks, as the app will calculate your overall training stress score higher when your FTP is lower and you\u2019re actually hitting your workout targets.)<\/p>\n How to Edit Your Intervals<\/p>\n Once you have your zones set for you, the rider you are now, you may still want to shift how you approach intervals<\/a>. Specifically, it might be time to focus on quality over quantity.<\/p>\n For example, a typical VO2 max interval workout<\/a> may look like two sets of three by three minutes at VO2 max, with two minutes of recovery between each rep and a 10-minute easy recovery ride between the sets. But as a 60-year-old, how should you approach this workout?<\/p>\n Lower the amount of total work that you\u2019re doing.<\/p>\n Under 40 years old: Do the workout as written, for two sets of three by three minutes for 18 minutes of total work. Between 40 and 60 years old: Drop that to two sets of two reps, for four intervals with 12 minutes of total work. Over 60 years old: Reduce down to three reps, for nine minutes of total work. <\/p>\n But that doesn\u2019t mean lowering your effort level. Quite the opposite, actually. By lowering the number of sets that you have to do, Overton says that the goal is to focus on having quality intervals where you stay in that VO2 max zone for the full interval duration. \u201cBy reducing the repetitions, it\u2019s easier to focus on having high-quality intervals,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Friel agrees, and adds that he will also increase the recovery between each interval because masters athletes recover slower than their younger counterparts. \u201cShorter work intervals with longer recovery intervals is a great starting point for athletes over 50,\u201d he says. And if you have plenty left in the tank at the end of the session, you can always consider upping your power goal for next time, increasing by a few watts. You\u2019ll get stronger<\/a>\u2014with less work.<\/p>\n How to Think About Your Range<\/p>\n As an older cyclist<\/a>, it\u2019s important to remember that power zones and heart rate zones have ranges. For example, if a rider\u2019s threshold range is 172 to 199 watts, that means during a threshold interval, he can ride anywhere in that range and still be doing the interval \u201cright.\u201d Overton notes that often, athletes try to stay at the top of the range, especially early in the workout, but find that by the last interval, they can barely hold the bottom of the range.<\/p>\n Remember, doing your threshold interval at 172 is still completing your threshold interval. It doesn\u2019t need to be at the high end of the range to count as \u201cdone.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat you want to do instead is think about artful pacing<\/a>,\u201d Overton says. Don\u2019t try to hit the top of the range right away; instead, try to stay somewhere in the middle but allow yourself to go lower if needed. If you still have gas in the tank on the last interval, feel free to go to the top of the range, but your last interval should be the best one because you haven\u2019t exhausted your reserves.<\/p>\n Know When to Fold \u2019Em<\/p>\n Intervals are important, but if you\u2019re not able to complete them as prescribed, it may be time to take a bonus recovery day instead of powering through the way you would have when you were 20.<\/p>\n \u201cAthletes should pull the plug on their workout when they stop being able to perform<\/a> as planned,\u201d says Friel. \u201cIf you feel like you\u2019re pedaling squares [where you\u2019re unable to keep your pedal stroke smooth and it feels jerky] or your heart rate<\/a> is going higher than the zone that your power is in, that\u2019s a problem, and we need to make sure you dial it back a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n A bad day as a young athlete is relatively easy to recover from, but Friel says as you get older, you\u2019re more susceptible to things like illness and injury<\/a>. Your workout may be feeling particularly crappy because you\u2019re about to come down with a cold\u2014and pushing through it could leave you on the couch for two weeks.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve got to be prepared to say, \u2018Okay, this is not the right day for me to do this workout<\/a> based on what I just felt on this first interval or second interval,\u2019\u201d he says. \u201cWe need to have the wisdom to know when to back off: Pushing yourself to your limit too often is no longer going to work in your favor.\u201d<\/p>\n Skip Zone 1 in Favor of HIIT<\/p>\n Overton knows this is going to upset a lot of masters riders\u2014and it bums him out as well\u2014but he firmly believes most riders over 60 need to cool it with the recovery\/easy rides.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019re over 60, that zone 1 coffee shop ride is actually probably adding stress<\/a> to your system as opposed to helping you recover,\u201d he says. He advocates for extra rest days instead, so that when it is time for an interval workout, you\u2019re ready to hit it fully recovered.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t Expect Gains Like You Had in Your 20s<\/p>\n Friel and Boisseau are quick to point out that as you age, the gains from HIIT<\/a> may be harder to see. Maintaining those power numbers rather than raising them can be a good goal to target. It can be frustrating to put in the work and not see your power numbers going up, but while results from intervals may not be dramatic, you are making progress and doing something good for your cycling and your body simply by completing these hard efforts<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cHIIT remains a very relevant exercise strategy, but expectations may need to be realistic,\u201d says Boisseau. \u201cThe benefits may not be as rapid or as visible on the scale as in younger women, but HIIT can still contribute to improving body composition<\/a>, limiting abdominal fat accumulation, supporting cardiometabolic health, and maintaining functional capacity.\u201d<\/p>\n Make HIIT Part of a Sustainable Routine<\/p>\n And finally, remember that yes, you do need to do intervals\u2014but not every day, and not as your only form of exercise. Boisseau notes that while HIIT is extremely effective, it\u2019s only as good as the rest of your lifestyle. Nutrition, recovery, strength training<\/a>, and enough endurance<\/a> training (those zone 2 miles) are all part of the longevity and health puzzle.<\/p>\n \u201cHIIT can be a useful and time-efficient tool, but it should be integrated into a balanced training and lifestyle<\/a> program rather than used as the only strategy,\u201d she says. \u201cThe goal should not be simply to \u2018add intervals,\u2019 but to build a sustainable program that supports fat mass reduction, muscle preservation, cardiometabolic health, and long-term adherence.\u201d<\/p>\n Molly writes about cycling, nutrition and training with an emphasis on bringing more women into sport. She’s the author of nine books including the Shred Girls series and is the founder of Strong Girl Publishing<\/a>. She co-hosts The Consummate Athlete Podcast<\/a> and spends most of her free time biking and running on trails, occasionally joined by her mini-dachshund.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"9 min read Intervals can be the first thing a masters cyclist will abandon in their training. That\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":835633,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[49,48,407,84,237864],"class_list":["post-835632","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-marquee-adjacent"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/835632","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=835632"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/835632\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/835633"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=835632"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=835632"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=835632"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Lettermark\"](\"https:\/\/www.bicycling.com\/_assets\/design-tokens\/bicycling\/static\/images\/logos\/lettermark.9b40ef4.svg?primary=%2523000\")
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