CYCLING PERFORMANCE · JAKUB PIENIAZEK
Start With an Honest Threshold
Age changes the starting point
Yes—improving your cycling performance after 50 is possible. Your scope for progress depends on training history, consistency and current fitness. A rider returning after several interrupted seasons has a different opportunity from someone who has trained systematically for decades. Neither needs a plan built around age alone.
Understand the number
Functional threshold power, or FTP, is a practical estimate of sustained cycling power. The result depends on the test used: a short test and a longer steady effort do not measure exactly the same thing. Use a consistent protocol, similar conditions and the same power meter when comparing results. Check whether the resulting training targets match what you can actually sustain.
When your FTP is set too high
One of the most common mistakes I see is riders setting their FTP too high. They then build sessions around that number—for example, three ten-minute threshold intervals—but the target does not reflect their current fitness.
The first interval may be manageable. By the second or third, power falls, the effort becomes excessive, or the rider cannot complete the session as intended.
My preference is to lower the target to a realistic level and build the amount of controlled, repeatable work the rider can complete. I want to see consistent intervals before asking for more power.
This matters after 50, but the mistake is common at every age. Your training should reflect the fitness you have today. A higher FTP setting does not make you stronger; completing the right work consistently gives you a better foundation for progress.
Look beyond your best test
Track whether you can hold useful power for longer, finish long rides more strongly and recover well enough to train consistently. Those changes matter on the road even when the FTP estimate barely moves. The aim is a stronger cyclist over months, rather than a higher number on one good day.
Research & further reading
FTP testing: validity and physiological responses ↗
Masters endurance performance and ageing ↗