As a user off Sufferfest Since the days of CD’s, I have going from age 45 (if I remember correct, Don’t say anything of agerelated memory 
) to now 65. And yes, I have noticed, that my recovery takes longer.
Strenghttraining have been mentioned as a possibilty to recovery easier, but maybe this is for younger athletes. Maybe some adviced for older aged users could be a possibility. Strength training level maybe.
I Think yoga too, is one of the Great advantage at the new app, it makes my smoothnes and balance so much better, så applaus for that.
At The cycling videos, I have noticed, when I’m getting Older, is much harder in the warmup. I need some longer and not so High ramping up.
A solution for that is much appreciated.
3 Likes
I am 69. Using Sufferfest successfully for 2 plus years. It’s done ok, though had a fatigued period recently and fear a slight drop in figures. I was wondering if as age progresses I might need more recovery. The 2 weeks harder, to one recovery week suits me though
1 Like
I also have a feeling that longer warmups would suit me. I am 56 on last week of metric century plan. I am loving the yoga, it has done wonders for my upper body. I am really not interested in strength training, but I do try to make sure I get enough rest. At end of plan I’m going to have a few weeks off the high intense stuff and do some riding on a different app where you can do group rides then workout what plan I should do in the new year. In the hope of there being some sportive’s I can take part in from the spring and ahead.
Onwards and Upwards.
As a “vintage” rider myself, I find rest is increasingly important. But I find if I take a true recovery week, the next week’s workouts don’t go well. I have found, for me at least, that every fourth week or so I continue with the same HITT/SIT/sweetspot/distance workouts, but back off on the intensity and reps a bit. I usually come back stronger the next week. Anyone else have the same experience?
Given the opinions that people have expressed in this thread, does Sufferfest have any plans to alter the training plans for older athletes in regard to hard and easy days within a week?
Some of the plans do have options for 2/1 or 3/1 hard to easy weeks, but it is also clear that within the week there needs to be a different pacing for older athletes between hard or easy sessions.
Or should we assume that all rides, unless modified by the coaches, are hard rides and rearrange our weeks accordingly? Or do we need a specialized plan?
3 Likes
Thank your for adding your questions @Heretic . That made me think of some things, as well.
As I get older I feel i need more intensity to improve, but also feel I need more recovery, and as other riders have noted, I often feel worse after a true recovery week which can take a couple days to recover from. Odd that I need harder efforts to recover from my recovery… but anyway.
I’m currently at odds with the training plans because of this. I feel like I want to be somewhere in between the Intermediate and the Advanced All-Purpose Road plans. I like the increased volume and the workouts in the Advanced Plan, but I feel like I still need the 2/1 ratio of ON to Recovery weeks. Or maybe closer to 2.5/1.
I’ve been an endurance runner for quite some time, so high volume is not a problem. I just completed the Metric Century plan and then the KOS plan. The first SUF plan I did even before those was the Intermediate All-Purpose Road plan which consistently left me feeling like I needed more volume. However, some times I really needed that recovery week while sometimes I didn’t.
I definitely don’t need the 3-4 hour days from the Metric Century plan, but I would like more 2/2.5 hour weekend rides. So I like the increased volume of the advanced All-Purpose plan. However, I can tell my body needs more rest than the 3/1 ratio. Without first scouring and analyzing the rest of the plans, is there another training plan that would work better for me now that I’m getting older and need more recovery? Is there plans to modify the existing training plans to keep the volume of the advanced plans, but allow for more recovery for older riders? I know I can always add volume or recovery when I need it, but I like the mindlessness of trusting and following an existing plan that was created by someone with more experience than me - which is one of the biggest reasons I’m using SUF. 
Wow, that question ended up being way longer than I planned. Sorry!
2 Likes
That was one of your shorter posts 
1 Like
I appreciate the information about age and its impact upon performance. I"m 82 +, looking to improve my conditioning. I’m an avid, 20 year experienced, HIT strength training addict, and it’s clear to me that the recovery interval between HIT workouts, requiring for me 8 to 12 days, has left me time to recover enough to begin adding conditioning work. I’ve bitten the $$$$ bullet and bought a Wahoo Kickr smart bike to train with indoors. So I’m glad to be here to learn from all of you all, demographic variables notwithstanding. :slight_smile. Anthony
5 Likes
@emacdoug this is one of the biggest issues I have as a new citizen of Sufferlandria. My first training plan (technically the second because the first one was the Full Frontal Prep Plan) is the 10 week Fitness Kickstarter. I chose it for several reasons, one of which was the low density of training. As someone in their late 60s I was unsure how intense a workout would be. I threw in Mental Training and Strength Training in as well.
Since I am now on the 5th week of the plan I have a much better idea. I have had no problem following the plan, but I can see that some of the other plans are problematic given the recommendations I keep on reading about recovery days and weeks for older athletes.
In addition, there is little guidance as to what is a “hard” or an “easy” workout in a plan. Just because the coaches reduce the workout level does not mean it is an “easy” workout. It just might mean that given your current level of training you are not yet ready for the full workout yet.
I do not want to design my own plan because I am not sure of the considerations that the coaches’ algorithm uses in designing a plan.
If Sufferfest is going to be really useful for the older demographic, either better plans or more information should be provided.
4 Likes
I have listened to this podcast, and the one on hydration. They were both excellent. I plan on listening to several others.
@Fast,
I think that Yoga and strength training are both valuable additions to a “mature athlete’s” training program. Obviously, you already have the ability to choose the level you think is appropriate for you, but if you find that it’s too much, then I’d stop it and choose a different level. If you feel that the strength training starts at the right level but progresses too quickly, then I’d recommend repeating the level you feel is appropriate before continuing on.
As for the longer warmup, I sometimes like a longer warmup too, and I’m not even 40 yet!
What I do is ride Open :15 or Recovery spin (and sometimes even turn the intensity down initially and gradually increase it as I get warmed up. Or play the workout you have on tap and just rewind back to the beginning to repeat the low intensity time before the ramp-ups start. If you don’t want to ramp up as high in the warmup, then use your settings to reduce the intensity. Are you familiar with the keyboard shortcut? Just press the down arrow key!
1 Like
@Robert_Bynon, Happy to hear that you’ve found a method that works for you. Everyone is different, but it IS very normal to feel flat after a recovery week and to take a few workouts to feel good again. If you’ve found a way to modify and it doesn’t hinder your long term recovery, then kudos and keep it up! If you find over time though, that fatigue accumulates after a few of those cycles, you may want to consider taking a true recovery week after the 2nd or 3rd cycle so you don’t dig a hole too deep you can’t get out of. Just food for thought!
@emacdoug, While I think there are some masters riders who feel the same way as you, I suspect you might not be the norm. So no, we don’t have plans for a plan of that nature. I would recommend a SUF Customised plan to have a coach make some modifications to fit your needs better!
@Heretic, I hope you will try another plan or try a Customised plan. While we have some general rules of thumb to follow when writing plans, everyone will respond to the plans differently which makes it very difficult to suit everyone. There are various reasons why we use the reduced intensity workouts (although those are going away very soon) but most often, it’s to give you a lower intensity workout and we just don’t have enough low-intensity videos to suit all of our needs (although this is changing VERY soon, so stay tuned!)
3 Likes
One thing I might do is to take a plan that fits a goal of mine, and just stretch out the time the plan takes, inserting recovery days or rides as necessary. As others have noted, the need for recovery can be unpredictable.
I suspect one reason that older riders find it hard to restart after a recovery week is because fitness is lost faster the older you get.
1 Like
I’ve been using the Kinetic App to check the calibration on my trainer before every Suf workout. 10 minute warm up and then cal check. Switch to Suf workout so the warmup time is additive. At 68 I find that I need at least 20 minutes either indoors our outdoors before the legs stop complaining.
1 Like
I’ve done something similar - picked a plan, given it a start date in the new year then gone in and changed the work out dates to fit my current schedule - right now I’m lucky to get on the trainer twice a week and trying to ride 50-100 K outside on Sundays. I’m sure it’s suboptimal to say the least but life events are throwing a lot of curves right now.
2 Likes
Thx for the answer. It had made me thinking
whats a proper warmup? How long is a longer warmup?
The standard is maybe 8 min ramp up, little recovery, 20 sec 150 % FTP and some minuts recovery before main set.
But as an older man, something longer is needed and when I begin to be sweaty I think I’am warmed up.
But is there some evidens which can tell me when I’am warmed up?
Maybe when I’am reaching a Heartrate ex. 10 beat under LTHR or something like that. I do not think watt is a good indicator for that.
@emacdoug You’re not alone! I’m soon to turn 66, have done numerous plans, and am now coming to the close of the 12-week advanced all-around plan with strength (Int. 4-6). For the first time I’m not able to complete some workouts without pauses (OK - I could never complete the 9th Hammer) and feel soreness after strength training. I had previously been on an intermediate 5a/5b/6a/6b/Ra/Rb strength training rotation to go along with other plans that didn’t include strength training, so I know I can handle the full range of strength training. My conclusion is that I simply need more recovery: a plan with the advanced level but a 2:1 recovery ratio instead of the 3:1. @Coach.Suzie.S I’m not sure what the “norm” is but I do think it would be great if there was an option in the plans to choose between a 2:1 and 3:1 ratio. Also, I’m looking forward to having strength training incorporated into more (all?) plans. I remember it was mentioned that was in the works for being released soon.
2 Likes
Yes, I think that would be the perfect solution. I love long rides, but I need to work on my all-around skills as well. So being able to select the advanced plan, but still choose between 2:1 and 3:1 recovery would be great.
Last couple years I’ve been doing triathlon training with a 3:1 ratio. But the swimming really helps provide recovery without actually being recovery.
Anyway, being able to choose your recovery period would definitely be helpful, IMO.
3 Likes