Fast After 50: How to Race Strong for the Rest of Your Life Paperback – May 31, 2023

Ageing and the impact of ageing on the competitive athlete beyond age 50 is something that has not been written about in book form before. Friel has undertaken a substantial task and done a very good job with the subject matter. The physiologic changes that negatively affect athletic performance beyond age 50 (and to a lesser extent beyond age 40) are fairly drastic as any committed senior athlete can tell you. Friel develops a detailed framework to allow one to understand these changes and the ramifications on performance and then offers a training approach to slow down or possibly even delay the rate of decline. The current state of understanding is nicely summarized in a quote from page 108 of the book:“This brings us back to the big three- the primary determiners of performance decline with age according to sport science. To refresh your memory, these are declining aerobic capacity, increasing body fat, and loss of muscle mass.”Friel’s recipe for combating age-related performance decline therefore involves a primary focus on high-intensity workouts, methods for reduction of body fat, and heavy load strength workouts. It is proposed that these three areas are the keys to high performance as a senior athlete.The book is structured in two parts where Part I (about 1/3 of the book) reviews the literature and describes Friel’s own experience with physiologic changes going on in the human body. This establishes a base-line of what we are up against. Part II describes the various ways that the changes discussed in Part I can be addressed from the perspective of a competitive athlete. Part II includes a substantial amount of guidance on training plans and suggested workouts (along with good appendices that elaborate on work outs in greater detail) as well as discussions of diet and recovery. It is quite comprehensive, if you subscribe to this style of training.Friel has done a good job of dancing around the whole “diet” morass that is extant. Although he lauds a so-called Paleo diet (and has co-authored a book on the subject with one of the Paleo cult’s pseudo-scientific leaders) he is quick to point out that there is no one diet that works for everyone and that the task is to to determine what works for you.Friel has written a comprehensive and detailed guide to development of athletic excellence for the senior endurance athlete. The book also provides detailed training recommendations and structures with specific work out descriptions. For the senior endurance athlete, this book will serve well as a reference and as the basis of an operative program for achieving one's potential. Highly recommended.

The author readily admits that his turning 70 and losing cycling capability are the motivators for this book. It is his claim, backed up by a good deal of evidence, that large declines in performance can be avoided with training and habits that counter physical changes in older athletes. Of the two essential elements of training, that is volume and intensity, it is intensity that must be emphasized to counter the effects of aging. And that is contrary to the advice often given that older athletes must take a long, slow approach to training.Of all the declines in athletes, it is the reduction of VO2-Max, the ability of an athlete to process oxygen that most severely limits performance. After describing that change and others common to aging athletes, for example gaining fat and losing muscle, the author introduces a rudimentary training plan to address those issues. Key to his plan is the inclusion of aerobic-capacity and lactate-threshold intervals of varying intensity and duration. In addition there are more conventional elements like longer aerobic threshold efforts and weightlifting. His plan is tailored for those in any endurance sport. Periodization of training is also discussed with the elements of training adjusted based on where one is in a racing cycle.The main point of the book, that is the emphasis on training intensity, is noteworthy. In so far as the author sticks to supporting and explaining that idea, the book is good. However, there is some redundancy and the inclusion of bits of miscellaneous testimony from older athletes does not add much. The author also veers into general health topics of the aged such as sleep, fat, insulin, and diet. The book is a corrective to the notion that people somehow have to substantially decline in old age.

very well written and useful info. totally worth your time.

Great news here: The studies of fitness with aging show big declines because most of them are based on athletes that stop trying because they read that there are a big declines with age!He covers all aspects. What is a given and how training, sleep and diet need to change as we get older. And importantly how we need more time for recovery.I’m turning 70 and this answered all sorts of questions and makes my next 10 years in CrossFit look very exciting.

Joe was one of the world's top cycling and triathlon coaches for decades. He provides the viewpoint of an experiences coach, a serious athlete, and a scientist. This book represents a tremendous amount of work; almost everything he says is backed by peer-reviewed scientific refeences. As an Exercise Physiologist, professional coach, and athlete myself I have read many books on training and this is as good as any I've come across.

Now I am over 50, in fact over 60, and still try to be a competitive endurance athlete, I have been looking for the science on aging and how to stay strong as long as possible. Joe Friel does not disappoint in his research and writing. He starts out by stating that those who read this book are outside of the normal statistics on aging and athletic decline. He shows studies that track the performance of Olympic athletes who medaled since 1940, and how different ones stayed fit well into their 80's. Next, he talks about the true nature of fitness and how it is measured. I am about half way through, but already my training has changed. In the summer, by primary sport is mountain biking, and I have change my climbing patterns from Long Slow Burn (LSB) to High Intensity Training Sprints (HITS), Within two months, by average speed on a 15 to 20 mile ride has increased from around 6.1 mph to 7.9 mph; and I am usually less worn out after a ride. Thanks for this great tome on staying fit, aging, training and motivation. I bought four copies and gave them away to several of my athlete friends.