Author Topic: Age and performance  (Read 2349 times)

Leif

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Age and performance
« on: May 02, 2018, 07:33:11 pm »
What are people’s thoughts on aging, and how the body slows down? Obviously someone more senior will never perform like a 20 year old, but is this a big difference, and is it just speed or speed and flexibility? I do wonder if someone fit and in their fifties or sixties can out skate someone half their age who does not train much. Or is this wishful thinking?

What I have noticed is that recovery times are longer, so I need more time off ice between sessions otherwise I am totally knackered.

A friend is a few years older than me, an ex pro hockey player, and he is still an excellent skater. But I do feel he uses his age as an excuse not to push himself.

WednesdayMarch

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2018, 11:23:57 pm »
I am seriously knackered after far less time on the ice.  (Admittedly, I'm 20 years older and with a decidedly difficult leg!)  I would love to go off and do one (or more) of the summer skating camps for adults and/or ice dancers but there is simply no way I'd cope with the demands.  I'm hoping that I'll develop a lot more fitness/stamina over the next couple of years and then I'll review the situation but right now I'm shattered after an hour and a half and continuing to push after that time results in bruises.

Whilst I'm not doing the difficult compulsory dances that I used to do, and I don't feel I have the speed (although I skate rings around most of the other adults) or agility I'd like, I am finding that there are things I'm doing now, that I used to struggle with or by-pass completely.  Maybe there's a lot to be said for age bringing wisdom and patience, because now I'm thinking, "Well, I can't do it right now but if I keep practising, I will..." and, sure enough, I do seem to manage things. 

One thing I have definitely noticed, however, is a marked raising of the Fear Factor.  I am definitely more fearful of falling.  Although I'm more determined to actually do things that I know are likely to be difficult, I'm loath to take risks or fling myself about like I used to.  I prefer a more measured and thoughtful approach.

Back when I was training seriously, I used to see a lady who I believe was in her 70s.  She was actually the mother of a skater a few years older than me, and every day that lady would take to the ice and skate her heart out.  She would jump and spin and fling herself around with little style but some serious moves!  The day after I jokingly asked her whether she felt it was possibly time to take up crochet, she came in as usual but with a present for me - a beautifully crocheted net for my hair!  Wonderful lady with amazing joie de vivre.  (When she wasn't skating, she was playing competitive tennis...)

I was 50 a month ago.  I'm not coy about it or in denial.  I don't feel old.  (Most of the time!)  Over the past few years, I've watched other friends - mostly a couple of years or so older than me - take up pole fitness.  One of those friends too it up 3 years ago at the age of 50 and is now an advanced pole fitness instructor and has her own studio where she runs classes and teaches privately.  She's inspirational and the core strength and flexibility she's developed over the past 3 years that enable her to perform astounding tricks on that pole leave me breathless.  (She was also interviewed on Radio 2's breakfast show this morning!)  Angie says that she's living proof that you should never think yourself "past anything", including fitness and sport.  I think she's right.

And now, if you'll excuse me, it's time for my nap.   ;)
« Last Edit: May 03, 2018, 09:11:56 am by WednesdayMarch »
Returned to the ice in Sept 2017 after a major leg injury in 1999. Skating in Jackson Elite Pro & MK Vision Syncro. Still scary after all these years.

beginner skater

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2018, 11:36:27 pm »
The differences for me that Ive noticed are that fitness is much more specific, and I lose it quicker. So if I walk regularly up hills Im good  at hills, but if I take a break for a couple of weeks Ive lost it again. They do say you lose power with age, no matter what, but at a slower rate if you keep fit.
Wrt skating you should google Zoe Jones who has re embarked on a competitive career in skating, and everyone is marvelling because she's 38.
With skating, obviously technique is important, so in yr scenario I presume youre saying they have equally good technique? And then skates in themselves produce an improvement in speed due to physics, which possibly would minimise advantages of fitness. But I guess an older fitter runner could outrun a young unfit one.
Def agree that a lot of older people say they cant run because of their age

spinZZ

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #3 on: May 03, 2018, 12:42:14 am »

WednesdayMarch

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #4 on: May 03, 2018, 12:20:38 pm »
Ooh, good article!  Thanks for that one.   :)
Returned to the ice in Sept 2017 after a major leg injury in 1999. Skating in Jackson Elite Pro & MK Vision Syncro. Still scary after all these years.

black

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2018, 07:29:14 pm »
Read up on Tim Noakes and the central governor idea.

Or just some quick Franz Stampfl quotes.
The greatest trick figure skaters ever pulled, was convincing the world it was easy.

WednesdayMarch

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2018, 09:57:11 pm »
Science v inspirational quotes, eh?

All of a sudden I want a nap.  And a bun.  Not necessarily in that order.
Returned to the ice in Sept 2017 after a major leg injury in 1999. Skating in Jackson Elite Pro & MK Vision Syncro. Still scary after all these years.

Leif

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #7 on: May 04, 2018, 12:37:31 am »
Thanks all, you’ve given some excellent replies, especially the Guardian article link.  :D So ageing occurs, but some or even a lot of the decline can be slowed down or even reversed.  :)
 
Science v inspirational quotes, eh?

All of a sudden I want a nap.  And a bun.  Not necessarily in that order.

 ;D

transmissionoftheflame

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #8 on: May 05, 2018, 08:29:17 am »
The world 400m record is around 43 seconds.  The world record for some of my age (52) is around 50 seconds.  So that's a 20 percent decline.  It sounds a lot until you consider that we are talking about athletes at peak fitness.  Most of us are nowhere near our peak fitness, so we have lots of margin for improvement - as you get older you may need to train more/better/smarter to compensate for ageing.  I work quite hard at my physical condition, but I don't spend hours in the gym every day - I average about 1-2 hours a day of exercise but mainly skating and tennis.  I don't feel my physical condition is a big barrier to skating better.  I possibly take longer to recover from injury, but so far nothing disastrous.  The barriers are more mental and making my muscles remember movements.  I didn't go into a skill sport deeply as a child so don't know for sure if it is my age or just me - probably both.  I have observed it is almost impossible for people who learned as adults to emulate the smoothness of movement that those who learned as children, even with the same number of hours practice.


P.S. I am not and have never been much of a runner but my best time for 400m is the same as the world record for 90 year olds!

MonkeyBeaver

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #9 on: May 06, 2018, 08:58:12 pm »
This is something I think about quite a lot. I’m a tree surgeon (hence the screen name) & will be 44 this month. Now 44 is not really old in the grand scheme of things but in my job it used to be considered pretty ancient for a full time climber. I find that I now rely on technique more than physical fitness & strength but can still get the same if not more done than some 20 year olds, if I still climbed like them or like I did 10 years ago I’d be completely ruined after 2 days & would need a few days off to recover.
So I do think that in a technically difficult sport like ice skating an older skater with excellent technique is very capable of beating a younger fitter skating with lesser technique.
I once heard that as you get older you can still do the same things as you used to but you can’t do them as often as you used to, I think that this is very true.
Having said that, when it comes to learning, the younger fitter skaters have a definite  advantage in being able to skate for longer & more often so will probably progress faster than the older skater. There is a lot to be said for volume of training in any sport. My own experience of learning as a adult (started about a year ago) was that because of my job & running I was fitter than a lot of the others & so could spend more time on the ice, I was always the last of the group to leave on lesson night, and when I took my 7/8 year old to Saturday public skate I could skate all day with him. As a result I probably spent 2-3 times longer on the ice per week than any of the others & so progressed faster than everyone else on my lessons.
Another thing to think about is how much effort was it to just stay upright & skate in a straight line when you first started & how much effort does that take now. Superior technique will need less energy expenditure, so the energy & power you have on hand will be more effective.
So yes getting older does have an impact but I believe it can be mitigated.

What are people’s thoughts on aging, and how the body slows down? Obviously someone more senior will never perform like a 20 year old, but is this a big difference, and is it just speed or speed and flexibility? I do wonder if someone fit and in their fifties or sixties can out skate someone half their age who does not train much. Or is this wishful thinking?

What I have noticed is that recovery times are longer, so I need more time off ice between sessions otherwise I am totally knackered.

A friend is a few years older than me, an ex pro hockey player, and he is still an excellent skater. But I do feel he uses his age as an excuse not to push himself.
I ran faster in my 40’s than in my 20’s because running in my 20’s was an ancillary activity to gain general fitness to make me a better rock climber, my chosen sport back then, but running became an end in itself in my 40’s so I became faster when I was older. So yes I think it’s possible for the fit technically excellent 50 year older to beat the slacker half his/her age.

Florence

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Re: Age and performance
« Reply #10 on: May 12, 2018, 03:13:01 pm »
Fab article thank you.


I fully recommend Joe Wickes fit in 15 DVD. It is hard work for those 15 minutes(But half of that is rest!)  and it has some good stretching in too. Very easy to fit in to your day! I have gym subscription too but this makes me feel I've worked harder in 15 minutes than the 45 I do at the gym.



 

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