Older women riders?

[Awsmile]

Any thoughts/comments on women seniors who ride? Special problems, solutions?

[Raindrop]

What ages are you talking about? I know women that are "old" when they're in their 20's, and women that are young in their late 70's. It's more a matter of fitness and lifestyle, I think. (I'm 61 and as strong and have as much or more endurance than I had when I was in my thirties and raising a child, working and taking care of a home on my own).

[rebeccaC]

(I'm 61 and as strong and have as much or more endurance than I had when I was in my thirties and raising a child, working and taking care of a home on my own).

I hope i can say that in 30+ years when I'm your age....:)

and +1 on keeping fit and having a positive attitude/healthy lifestyle

[ny biker]

I have friends (men and women) who are over 70 and they ride several days a week, and faster than me.

[PamNY]

+1 to what Raindrop said.

I'm 63 and don't have any special needs related to age. The only thing that might be different is a slightly greater need for recovery time. Other than that, nothing. How strong I am is related to how hard I work on fitness, same as it's always been.

[lauraelmore1033]

I will echo what others have said. At 51, I am stronger and have more stamina than I did in my twenties, and I frequently ride with older, stronger women as well. It does seem that my sitting bits are more delicate as my hormone levels change with age, however, and I have become more paranoid about stray aches and pains, having had first hand experience with referred pain from a herniated disc( seriously wish I'd known that pain in my hip meant a disc was about to blow...).

[Crankin]

I'm almost 61 and I don't consider myself old. I am in great shape, strong, weigh the same as I did at 25. I do need more stretching and recovery, and speed is not as important to me.
I've dealt with the 2 issues Laurelmore mentions, but, I keep going.
I am younger than most of the people in my riding group, who do little things like run the Boston Marathon, ride 200 miles a week, Gran Fondos, gravel grinders, on and on and on. I'm a slouch compared to some of them.

[shootingstar]

I wish I could retire early...anyway. I celebrated 55 this past winter....bike riding http://cyclewriteblog.wordpress.com/2014/01/21/the-lightness-of-becoming-55/

I seem to have to eat a slightly bigger breakfast nowadays. I seem to need to simply eat abit more frequently during 4-5 hr. long ride. Other than that...I would say I'm tougher now just to cycle down to -24 degrees C in winter which I never did 20 years ago.:)

Introduce yourself smile... this question has been asked and answered here over the past..um 8 yrs. At least once a year in some iteration.

[Awsmile]

Thanks for the info! I started riding at 61 and have been riding about a year. I ride with my husband and have never ridden with any other women - we live in a rural area of PA and it seems that I only see guys riding. I am averaging 40-50 miles a week on a hybrid with flat pedals. I don't ride clipped in as both hips are artificial as well as one knee - I started riding to try to get the knee back in shape - and will stick with flat pedals as a fall for me would be much more serious than for those with their own parts. I'm on a Cite-X saddle from Terry and wondered if my delicates were going numb from age - estrogen is LONG gone - or if all women experience the problem. Thanks, Laurelmore. Would love to hear any other comments!

[lph]

The saddle problem is exacerbated by age, but also younger women can have a lot of trouble finding a saddle that doesn't chafe or numb. There's lots of info here on saddle testing, check it out. And you'll notice many of us have our bikes and saddles in our signatures, that will at least give you a certain idea of which saddles are popular. Personally I swear by a huge cutout.

[Crankin]

Awsmile, besides finding a saddle that is right for you (I love the Terry Falcon), I went to my gyn about 10 years ago, when the issue got unbearable. She prescribed an E-string, which is basically a ring that you insert vaginally and keep in for 3 months. It emits .2mg of estrogen, just enough to fix the issue locally, not enough to cause the problems that other meds have caused. You get it refilled every 3 months and change it. Since I've been using it so long, I think any side effects would have come up by now. Not only did it fix the riding issue, it also fixed other "intimate" issues that arise from thinning tissues/lack of estrogen.

[lauraelmore1033]

Crankin, I recently went to my Doctor, and asked for something similar, and she looked at me like I was crazy! Anyway, switching to a recumbent bike has fully taken care of that problem...

[PamNY]

Having the right saddle is very important. Check this section of the forum for saddle info:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/forumdisplay.php?f=72

[Crankin]

Laurelmore, find a new doctor.
One that understands the needs of active, older women. Unfortunately, my doc got a divorce and moved to PA. Not sure where I will go in the fall.

[Awsmile]

Thanks, lph! The Lady Gel Flow looks like it would be great. Thank you for the tip - I am so new to this sport that I'm not familiar with all the brands. Thanks!

[Awsmile]

Thanks, Crankin. Unfortunately, after breast cancer, even the localized estrogen is out of the question. I love being a woman but wow, there are a few obstacles that come with the gender! I SO miss my estrogen! Thanks for the tip, though!

[Catrin]

What ages are you talking about? I know women that are "old" when they're in their 20's, and women that are young in their late 70's. It's more a matter of fitness and lifestyle, I think. (I'm 61 and as strong and have as much or more endurance than I had when I was in my thirties and raising a child, working and taking care of a home on my own).

Agreed! I know an AWESOME 67 year old woman, TINY, who rocks at kettlebell sport competitions. She leaves many of the younger ones in the dust! It is indeed a matter of fitness, lifestyle, proper diet AND mindset.

[Crankin]

Just fyi, my doc told me that the E string is approved by oncologists who treat women who have had breast cancer. At least the ones she worked with!
But, definitely look at saddles with a huge cut out and also look into lubricants or chamois cream you can use.

[lauraelmore1033]

Crankin, my Dr TOTALLY gets me, and I really respect her opinion, so I suspect she has a good reason for not letting me have E string or something like it. Might be the fact that my father dropped dead of a heart attack at 47 and a history of stroke on my mother's side makes it seem like not a good risk to take....

[Crankin]

Yeah, that's a good reason.

[lauraelmore1033]

Also, Awsmile, as a new convert to the church of recumbents, I would highly recommend giving them a look in. A compact longwheelbase recumbent is easy to ride and ever so comfy, and gets so much attention and approbation zipping along the road:cool:.