LITHE FOREVER

By subtly adjusting your lifestyle, training and diet, you could keep cycling through your 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and beyond.

- Mark Bailey

We reveal how to pedal through the decades so you can enjoy all the benefits of cycling for many years to come

From your first dash around the garden as a toddler, to relaxing post-retirement rides in your 70s, cycling is a gloriously age-defying sport. The road to older age is full of potholes, however, from declining muscle mass to slowing metabolism. But if you adapt your lifestyle, training and diet as you age, you can buffer these effects and reach the finish line in good shape.

At Cycle Fit (cyclefit.co.uk) in London, Phil Cavell - author of The Midlife Cyclist - and Nichola Roberts - owner of Velophysio - have been helping ambitious cyclists navigate the ageing process for years. "You can still perform at a very high level as you get older," insists Cavell. "You just need to compensate for any deficiencies."

Riders who pedal into older age will enjoy a raft of benefits, from improved cardiovascular fitness to enhanced mental health. "For many cyclists, age is this threatening big cloud, so even clients in their 40s get an ache and think: am I on the scrap heap?" says Roberts. "But I push back on that. It's about changing your mindset. Yes, my body is changing, but I can do things to ameliorate that. And if I can keep cycling as I age, it will be so good for my health."

So embrace the ageing process and see is as a chance to learn more about your body so that you can make small changes that will benefit your health for years to come. Here Cavell and Roberts share their timely tips for pedalling through the ages.

HOW IS MY BODY CHANGING?