60 year old knees...

Nevis2

...still going ok, generally willing to cycle long sportives/hills/sprints/commute/etc. Just wondering if anyone has some words of wisdom on good maintenance, as starting to feel occasional sharp pain & wonder if it's an age thing.

sungod

where in the knee? there are different potential causes for pains in different places, there's a good guide here...

http://www.cptips.com/knee.htm

Nevis2

Thanks very much, lots of info there. Very guilty of pushing big gears and no use at the high cadence stuff - time to change old habits.

keef66

Well I returned to road cycling at the age of 50 and following a second bout of knee cartilage surgery. I specced a triple crankset when choosing the bike, knowing it would help me keep up a decent cadence whatever the terrain. That was 8 years ago, and the triple is now on my newer carbon bike. I've fitted a 46/36 CX chainset to the original alu bike. Both setups allow me to spin rather than mash, and my knees are holding up well, despite my consultant's cheery prediction that I'd need knee replacements by the time I'm 60.

The leg muscles - not so much...

fenix

Spinning is the key I think. Maybe get a fixed wheel for winter and learn how to spin your gears.
Pushing a big gear at low cadence is a lot of strain on your knees.

Theres old folk in my club able to spin ridiculous speeds on their fixed wheels. Amazing to see.

stevewj

use Speedplay pedals - works for my 62 yr old knees where SPDs, Look and Crank Bros didn't

Spartacus1981

Plus one for Speedplay. Recently moved to Speedplay after using Look pedals since taking it up (often had knee niggles on those), and they seem to have made all the difference. Wish I did it sooner.