I do NOT have all the answers. The first videos will feature on what I currently do - food, strength, aerobic conditioning. Then I'll visit experts and try to improve. What works for me might not work for you. Full series ▶︎ tinyurl.com/OlderAthleteVideos

Thanks, I love the content. At 72 I found the low carb life style 10 years ago. Lift heavy things and ride your bike.

I know I am on the younger side for this content, 51 years old, but I find your videos to be very informative and well made.

I’ve just spent three months completing a nutrition and psychology course, researching round the subject and summarising my thoughts, only to find you’ve already done it here! Excellent advice and far better presented than I can manage. Thank you.

Stumbled upon your videos, glad I did, though can’t call my 77yr overweight arthritic self an athlete by any stretch of imagination. I admire your clear focus on staying active & healthy as we age. The bean salad looks great, have just started TRE again and going no sugar to reduce inflammation and weight. Hope to be able to walk better and be many kg lighter this time next year. Subbed

Excellent stuff and strangely very motivating. Nothing is laboured or over explained so easy to absorb.

I took early retirement and I am 54 years but I find these nutrition videos excellent and very informative thank you for taking the time to make them.

72 years old ,not in bad shape , first time I have seen this man’s site …….love it thank you

Fantastic video. I am 75 years old and have been riding bicycles most of my life and bicycle touring in various countries (North America, Germany, South East Asia) for the last 15 years or so. In the last 5 years or so I have also been "experimenting with Intermittent Fasting" and find your experiences and advice to be very close to my own experiences and views. Thank you very much for this video.

76 here with Afib issues so appreciate all the great tips.

Your loving your senior years. Great series of videos.

Just watched it; another interesting and helpful video, Simon. As much as anything, watching it was worthwhile for the two recipes; just on the edge of my "faff" limit! You're striking the right tone - not too authoritative (not setting yourself up as an expert), the audience is in no doubt that the message is "use what you find useful", or "take it or leave it".

Accidentally stumbled upon your videos and glad I did. You seemed very low key and authentic in your life style and quite inspiring for someone who’s turning 60 in 2024. Thanks for the videos. Keep posting them, I’ll be watching them.

The Roast Fennel and tomatoes with chickpeas and Tuna steak looked amazing- I'll defo be trying that. I've been a subscriber for 3 years now and I hope that you continue making great vids.

Kefir is my go to everyday but make it myself as it’s very easy and free from any processing. Your videos have been very timely for me just out of hospital from major surgery so looking forward to an even healthier 2024. Thank you!

Thank you so much for these videos. My Bike riding has been interrupted over the past year owing to a torn meniscus. While I'm waiting for the operation I have taken on your diet and strength training plan so I'll be well prepared. Thanks so much for the motivation. It really is appreciated. Having the tray bake for dinner tonight. Really looking forward to it!

I’m in my late 40s and really appreciate your insightful videos! It’s easy to get lost in “volume” and “intensity,” but long term health and wellness, while preserving fitness is the key! Thanks!

Very good videos. Really appreciate them. Im 69, took up running 5 years ago. Now regularly race in cross countries, half marathons etc. i found whay i eat makes a huge difference. For half marathons i discovered I really must 'carb load' beforehand, or I feel weak and exhausted towards the end. I'm still learning about my body!

I’ve always been very conscious of my diet from a young age and bodybuilding. The difference between eating UPF or not is amazing for your body, generally one to two stone lighter, feeling less tired, diminishes chronic body pain, better intestinal being sleep etc. I do an anti inflammatory diet which is very similar to your diet. I start my day with a ginger shot which I make from scratch as I do with all my juices. It’s particularly good at setting up your digestive system for the day and means I can like you breakfast early. I do a porridge with raisins, pumpkin seeds, flax oil and add ground almond to it. I also add in half a mashed banana and that fuels me right into the afternoon. I do like the look of that fennel recipe. I do quite a few like that but with salmon and done in the oven within 30 mins. I had a cycling coach at the grand old age of 60 and he always said that an older rider should eat protein within 60 minutes of a ride. 0.6g/kg. Another thing I’ve started to drink is celery juice for its anti-inflammatory properties and I drink kombucha for gut health. The hard bit is when out cycling if you don’t take food with you but I generally go for proper food. I’m looking forward to the next video, I’ve let myself down a bit with strength training probably due to my previous obsession and attending a gym six days a week. I find the correct eating takes a fair bit of dedication probably more than actual cycling but making the time to source the right ingredients and cook from scratch is worth it. I’d be interested to hear what your sleeping routine is as I have a problem with mine about two hours proper sleep so still working on that but it’s due to my two health conditions M.E and Pulmonary Sarcoidisis hence why I follow AID. Have you read “Ultra Processed People” it’s worth a look.

I love this series, please keep up the content. In my 50’s and this kicked me back into taking back my fitness and being serious about my health and lifestyle. Thank you so much

Great video nice to watch a series dedicated to the older athletes.

Trying the breakfast - which is different enough to mine, to look interesting. Plus, love peanut butter but never tried Almond butter - for some reason. So just ordered some for delevery later today. Thanks!

I really enjoy your ideas for a healthy breakfast and lunch. These look delicious and I will definitely try them. I love your whole series. I really appreciate your videos.

Just ran across this channel. Very well done and interesting to me at 66 years old. Keep it up as I enjoy the content and presentation.

Thank you I enjoy your videos, I dont enjoy prepping my meals once in a blue moon I will , I really like the way you do it and your choices, but I do my salmon and tuna fish can and sardines can, spinach and zucchini most other vegetables I don't do much, lots of fruit but have to watch ,I wish I had your discipline, I run and light weight traing I know I need more but I only like to run, but now I have injuries ugh I should of strength traine haha

Another great video, I can see you face and body shape has changed for the better Simon👍🏽 This lifestyle is a journey, some drop the carbs straight off and get a wee bit of ‘Keto flu’ while others take your approach👍🏽 there’s no right way, just progress. Having been LCHF for a few years now I’ve also binned alcohol for a year…..it is toxic, even that wee dram or glass of red😞 Well done, there will be a ‘ripple effect’ from these videos for sure 👏🏽

We will definitely be trying the bean salad and the tuna recipe. Thank you.

Good tone and engaging. I think these vids are going to get a lot of followers. Looking forward to seeing on Masterchef next year.

Your videos are great - positive, optimistic, and offer a good understanding of nutrition and exercise. Like you, I'm in my 60s and have been a long-time cyclist, incorporating strength training into my routine as well. However, I believe nutrition is where longevity with quality truly begins, and you do an excellent job in your videos educating those who may need some guidance in this area. I would like to point out one issue I noticed in this video - your use of toxic cookware. Teflon-coated pots and pans are not a great choice; the chemicals used in these cooking implements, known as forever chemicals, are highly toxic and detrimental to human health. I removed all toxic cookware from my kitchen years ago, opting for cast iron or stainless steel on my hotplate instead. Please keep producing those informative videos! And if you ever make it to Australia, bring your bike, and I'll show you some fantastic riding routes.

Thank you for the great positive and informative videos. My father is 83 and does some form of exercise each day. As a young man football and jogging initially then he became a good club sqush player. Now tennis, walking and a small amount of rowing in the gym. We have done yearly fell walking in the lake District. I am 56 and unfortunately 19st 12 lbs with slight arthritis in my left hip. Exercise has been v sporadic!!! Procrastinatioin is my problem. Cycling may not be my go to but this gentleman is inspirational!!! Welll Done!!! Thank you!!!!!

Very interesting videos. I am 68 and I have been training for 50 years and I agree that over 60 it is really important to do resistance training to build and retain muscle. Psychology and motivation are really important and my advice is to train in a gym - get a trainer and train when the gym is busy and full of younger people. Never train with pensioners because that will make you feel old. Also get regular blood tests to check PSA ( prostate ) blood sugar , testosterone and regularly measure blood pressure yourself at home. Doing a lot of weight training , together with good diet and sleep will boost your testosterone naturally.

another interesting video. I lost quite a lot of weight in 2022 (over 20Kg), through diet and a change in my attitude towards food. I realised that being in my (very) late 50's, if I didn't change things now, i would have a slow painful old age! I am a kids cycling instructor so, although I'm no athlete, I'm not sedentary. I also sail in the warmer months and have started bike touring again. I have been eating mainly eggs for breakfast but lately I have found I feel a bit rough mid morning and crave carbs. So on work days I started eating slow release carbs as part of my breakfast - maybe wholemeal toast (sourdough when I can get it) with peanut butter on, plus a high protein yoghurt type pot. I'm learning more and more about my body and am constantly surprising myself with what I can do. I can honestly say I'm fitter and healthier than I was ten or fifteen years ago - it can be done!

I’m in my 30s and these videos are awesome!

As always, fantastic content covering a number of great topics. Just a suggestion for you to ruminate over: your channel is getting bigger and is seen by a much different audience than GCN. Perhaps it's possible to interview dieticians, cycling coaches and exercise physiologists who cater to the older athlete. Just a thought and thanks for this series.

Great video. Thanks❤

As others commented i came across accidentally n loved it inc sone other videos of yours. Very down-to-earth advice. I try to do cycling, walking at my age of 67, im always looking for ideas to keep healthy, enjoy rest of our life n away from those dreaded tablets! Once again many thanks

Great information and inspiring motivation Simon 👍

Really welcome advice and appreciate the target audience being 61 with no intention of ever stoppping. I'm going to take some of that on board more now and try and ditch my cookie monster tendancies etc. Please can you share the location of your rides! Love those car free tracks/roads by the water. Thanks.

Good video series. I find lots of good quick recipes on The Happy Pear KZfaq channel. They do a whole series of 5 minute recipes which are easy for the amateur cook like me but also plant based. Keep cycling!

Where are you filming? Stunning! Must be a be a great inspiration to get out there.

I’m not a baker but I’ve read a few things about bread and sourdough in particular. What I learned is proper sourdough is fermented and the fermentation process takes time. So even though a loaf my have all the right ingredients, if the process is rushed you may not actually have a loaf of sourdough. The way you can tell if the dough has been allowed to ferment is whether or not gas voids are present in the dough. I’m guessing that in a properly fermented sourdough the sugars have been consumed and therefore there is less effect on blood glucose levels after consumption.

Great series Simon, really appreciate the practical advice. I am now 61 so am becoming aware of the extra attention I need to pay to my health as I age. My friends are all experiencing age-related health issues and I hope to avoid that as much as possible.

Made the roasted fennel (with swordfish), was great, will do again. Great over a bed of Farro.

Thanks for this. I'm really enjoying this series. Cheers.

Very nice,👍👍👍 I like that you share the recipes and how to make your meals, easy and simple, I eat this any time, I only add more healthy fat to it, Avocados, Boiled Eggs, more olive oil, cheese. Also , I do lots of Soups or Stews in bulk, to make them more filling, you add fiber( vegetables, legumes) and good healthy fat, I usually add a can of Organic coconut cream or heavy cream at the end to my pot of soup and after, I can add two fresh eggs to my soup when warming up for next meal. Eating healthy is easy if you know how to cook! I have enough cooked meals in my fridge for my next four to five days, this way , I have time to enjoy my outdoor activities and not spend time home thinking of what to eat and cook! cook everything in bulk!👍👍👍

Yummo! Those beans and chickpeas are so very good for our bodies, really enjoying this series, thank you.

But that's quite expensive for me 😂. As for Asian, white rice and egg is a must. We don't get good groceries store here 😢. I do appreciate you to share us such quality ingredients for good health. As always ❤

I really like this series. I’m 63 and look forward to cycling more in retirement, but in order to make sure I’m able to do that I’m already trying to improve my diet, nutrition, and fitness, as well as lose weight. Several months ago I started IF too, but I have no idea if I’m causing other problems, and I have no idea if I’m doing it right. Or if I’m improving my fitness. Problems.

Exellent info and delicious looking receipe! I second avoiding processed foods at all costs. For me, that's first and foremost, along with eating entirely organic -- unless travelling or on long bikebacking rides where that's not always feasible. For short rides and runs I find maintaining all natural unprocessed organic eating entirely doable. Likewise, for me, avoiding excess salt, sugar and unhealthy fats is an absolutely must. I've not yet tried using a glucose monitor and it's something I'm now inspired to do -- at least initially -- to see if the spikes that I sense from eating certain foods at certain times can be backed up by actual data. In the past I've maintained glucose levels buy carefully selecting my meals based on activity levels and listening closely to my body. I think it would be very beneficial to use an actual glucose monitor for a period of time, take good notes, and then work with that. Thank you for the sharing some excellent resources. Great content and production value as always. Looking for to the next one.

Instead of buying Kefir every day, I buy the same bottle of Kefir. I put it in a 2 litre container of whole milk, from which I have used some to leave more than enough space for the live kefir culture. After it is added, I partially expel the air and tighten the lid. Then I shake it up and leave it in a warm place for the starter Kefir to transform the whole. When it is the consistency that I like, I keep it in the refrigerator. As I use it up, I partially top up the Kefir container (suitably marked on the lid) from a second container of whole milk. If needed, I expel some air and set it in a warm place to continue the fermentation. Periodically, I start the process again with a fresh bottle of the Kefir and a container of whole milk.

Looks like you're living in a beautiful part of the world! Thanks for the info.

Simon, excellent video. How about sharing a few of your meal recipes you use.

Just stumbled across your videos and they’re really good. I also do many of the things you recommend but nevertheless I have learned a lot thank you. At 64 I recognise both the physical and dietary needs but worry about keeping mentally active. After a career of requiring continual mental agility to almost nothing, this worries me. What do you do or recommend?

I think that there is something important in giving the digestive system a rest occasionally and not eating anything. After a fast i always feel better, more alert and full of energy. I think that it goes back to hunter gatherer days, when your body recognised that the calories being eaten were becoming limited, therefore it had to do something about it and heighten every sense and ability to catch that next important meal. I have seen my lowest resting pulse when i have fasted at 35 bpm. The digestive system needs feeding with oxygenated blood as well to process food and raises your pulse rate whilst doing so. For shorter sporting events, this could be used to advantage to divert oxygen from digestion to propulsion within stored energy parameters.

Yes! definitely pay attention to your protein intake daily--for me, this is a struggle, that is, eating enough daily protein especially since I am very active

Another couple of interesting videos. I think I eat pretty healthy. Although quite a bit less than your goodself! Thanks for taking the time to make these videos, cheers Alistair 👍

Interested that you did the Zoe test. Are your recipe / snack recommendations based on theirs for you? Thx again for the videos. Very well made.

TURMERIC Consider adding Turmeric (fresh or dried) to something every day. I’m making a soup right now and just grated fresh turmeric root into it. Always add black pepper so your body can absorb more of the turmeric. 😊

That lunch meal looks really good might try it, but would swap the fennel for other veg possibly courgette and aubergine, not a big fan of fennel.

The meals look great but they also look fairly small and low calorie? Maybe it's just me who's used to eating only 2 larger meals. I would definitely add more protein though especially animal based. Don't be scared of red meat and eggs, they're very very nutritious.

Just subbed. I am a new carnivore from keto eating. So much better with sleep and anxiety. Weight I don’t worry about. 8kms a day at 70.

Good lad, thanks!

Hi, First I would like to say thank you for all the very interesting content you publish here for older athletes. I post my question under this video as I think it's the most appropriate place. What I would like to ask you is, what do you take in on longer run and bike rides? Because in some way it does not make much sense to me we pay so much attention to the type of carbohydrate we consume in our day to day diet, but then when we jump on our bike, we begin load up with different very fast carbohydrate, to keep the energy-level up. Thanks again Henrik

So much of that could be my kitchen 😀 I've recently moved to having a mixed nuts box on the counter (I buy the bags of individual nuts from Aldi and mix at home). I might try a handful with my morning porridge

Thanks. A great video with plenty of good information.

Now I'm hungry. Thanks for the recipe!

Since losing my smell from Covid over two years ago there are certain foods I can no longer eat - because they smell and taste like rotten garbage or sewage. Unfortunately, most salad dressings fall into this category. No canned food. No preservatives. All tastes like crap. It’s so hard on me I don’t know what to cook or prep any more because so much tastes weird. My goal is to meal prep for the month of December. Thanks for the inspiration.

Very good content…I have subscribed…I eat in an 8 hour timeframe, usually 2 meals breakfast about 11am consisting of seeds, chopped almonds and hazelnuts together with chopped organic apricots which I soak overnight in either spring water or whole unhomogenised milk the soaking helps release the nutrients for the body to absorb, I also top with kefir and fruit usually banana, dinner is similar to yours…

Love the content, the balanced approach and the under 10 minutes video. You have mentioned a couple of times how you check your blood sugar spiking for different food combinations. How long after eating can/do you test your blood sugar?

I am planning on trying your recipe. Is the stated temp for the oven (240) in celsius? That is 464f for me - near broilling. Thanks for your videos!

Steel cut oats are the best for breakfast, a bit hard to come by in shops but you can order online and they take longer to cook I have mine topped with walnuts greek yogurt and honey

👍🏻 another good one.

well done inspiring backdrops

Early time restricted eating(8am-4pm) has added health benefits. 👍 Great recipes btw. I'll be making that bean salad!

I suspect I should add more nuts! otherwise your meal plan is eerily similar to my own. I will try glucose monitoring to see what affects me. I do try to substitute for the pinnacle feeder fish where possible to avoid heavy metal loading. Although, living in Japan it is difficult to pass up on the fresh tuna! New subscriber, many thanks for your thought provoking videos.

I'm only 59 and have been cycling for many years. Once a week, mostly the Thursday night ride. I'm fueled by beer, which works amazing!

Great video.!

Glad I found your channel. Subbed. Your advice is not only practical but totally easy to understand. ( I'm now past my 30's I don't need the HIGH SPEED Athletic Advice from these elite athletes that plague the internet. Your content is breath of Fresh Air which leans towards my goals for consistent self improvement physically and physiologically.) Thank You. ( What Brand Extra Virgin Olive Oil do you use?)

Have you done a Zoe review? I am thinking of trying it out. Would appreciate your thoughts.

Very good Simon, thanks for sharing your food tips, we all work on a good diet that works for our lifestyle, and that always starts with whole food, little UPF, and no refined carbs or sugar, unless excercising. A few things I also do is reduce my nut intake, most are high in omegs 6 fatty acid, they compete with omega 3s, and can be somewhat inflammatory. I also never used teflon pans, they are poison, and the carcinogens released into your foods as soon as you heat them, let alone smoke them, are horrendous, cast iron is the way to go.

What is the protein powder that you use? I.m trying to find one without that does not have all the aditives

That lunch looks delicious

Just found your vids, I love the first three but now I have to hit the road even though we have 15cms of snow here in Nova Scotia, Canada. Curious as to where you live, it looks like it's up North, or Wales or Scotland.

Hello Simon, great video. I have raw oats with whole milk, mixed nuts & honey for breakfast. This may cause me a blood sugar spike - how did you test? Only open the biscuit tin after dinner? Yes that my problem as well😂. Looking forward to the strength training. Kind Rgds Tim

That looks mouth-watering! Sadly for me, I would struggle with my health if I ate that. I discovered in my mid-late 40s that almost all vegetables simply don't agree with my in a number of ways and I had to give up eating meals like that. But what I add next is not because of my personal circumstances but just general info for everyone: Protein is the number one nutrient that our bodies need and this need increases as we age because we become less able to absorb protein from our diets. As a general rule, eating three meals a day each containing 30-50 grams of protein is healthy for all but as athletes this could be considered a minimum to aim for. An additional point for those of us who are taking part in exercise which we hope will result in muscle building (ie. strength training) is that you need an absolute minimum of 3g of an amino acid called leucine in order to grow muscle (muscle synthesis). (This is a step limiting amount so if you get 1-2g of leucine then you get zero muscle synthesis following exercise.) Approximately 10% of animal protein (meat, fish, eggs) is leucine so you need about 30g of animal protein per meal. Beef is about 30% protein by weight so you need a minimum of 100g of steak or mince (etc.). Chicken and fish are more like 25% protein so you will need to eat more. Eating two eggs is never enough. There is roughly 7g of protein per egg so I consider 5 eggs as a minimum serving size for males or females... Plants do indeed contain protein but they are not very bio-available for the human body. And very few plants contain all the essential amino-acids (there are 20/21 amino-acids that our bodies need, 9 to 13 of which we need to eat because we can't synthesises them at all or in sufficient quantities for optimum health). To obtain sufficient amount of protein from plants you need to eat a wide range of plants or soya (which brings its own problems) and a considerable quantity of food too, which might be a problem if you are trying to limit calories. Vegetarians really need to maximise intake of eggs and dairy to reach their protein requirements but adding fish can be very beneficial (though be careful where you source your fish from - wild caught is best for humans if not for the environment). Best of all is eating meat. The supposed links between red meat and ill health that are often widely reported in the media simply do not exist in the scientific evidence once you start digging deeply enough.

This really is excellent information, as is the series to date. Can you recommend a protein powder supplement? It’s something I’ve been missing out on and that I know I’d benefit from post workout.

Trying the fennel bake thing tonight but when do the chilli flakes go in? Can’t seem to see.

How far do you ride and run ? I'm 66 . Ride 35km and run 9km every 2nd day. Thanks for your interesting videos

You mention that some foods spike your blood glucose level. How do you test this? Great series btw.

If nothing else you food prep LOOKS DELICIOUS!

Great information. I run 5 miles everyday of the year and i mean every day lol. I also cycle about 4000 miles a year , i do not do any strenghth training . How many calories do you consume on an average day?

That's my kind of diet, only you're doing it and I'm only thinking about it. You might want to watch your selenium intake with all those brazil nuts though.

My friend you would be amiss without a video on the importance of sleep and rest. Without which the body does not recover properly.

you make a simalar sald to me, i call it my kitchen sink salad because i throw everything but the kitchen sink in it!

I weigh 175 lbs and try to get 175 grams of protein each day. 1 to 1. How about you?

YUM! But watch the protein. Looks like a Mediterranean-style diet which is routinely rated the best. I’m not so sure about all the eggs, however. A few occasionally are fine, but daily? Athletes and even the public in general have gone bonkers over protein, however research seems to be building that excessive protein is as bad as too little. While older people need a bit more, don’t go crazy, with protein powders probably being overkill.

A big part of any diet is what you drink. it aways gets missed

I struggle with so many of the diet suggestions. I have lethal soy, legume and tree nut allergies. Options get really limited.

Haven't watched it yet, Simon, but noticed a typo and thought I'd mention it before the brain cells die. ;-) The video title says, "My daily meal-pan & how I make it" - should be meal plan (needs an "l")

For breakfast, try steel cut oat meal, add some golden raisins and a handful of walnuts, add some chia seeds and top with a little whole milk for smoother texture, good stuff.