Can I Ride Up Alpe Du Zwift Under 50 Minutes? (Over Age 50)

[@mumblecake251]

Awesome going. How you had the energy for that final mini-sprint across the line is beyond me. It took me ages to manage to get a sub-50 on AdZ and I'm quite a bit younger. Mad respect!

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks. It's an odd thing to say but, getting out of shape in my 40s was probably a good thing for me. Not so much the getting out of shape part . . . but the process of getting back into shape taught me determination and let me know I could do hard things if I just kept consistent. It's a lesson I've taken into my 50s and it's been invaluable.

[@LofotenCycling]

Huge effort! I dont know if people actually realize how hard it is to be under 1hr on the Alpe segment, but under 50 min is a real performance! Congratulations

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks! Consistency paying off - the gains each year aren't huge but you add them up year after year and you get someplace you didn't think possible at the beginning.

[@ZwiftyZwifter]

That’s sooo cool! Nice. I shall add it to my list of things I’d love to do…

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks! I'm generally inventing some sort of carrot to chase - keeps things lively and gets me on the bike consistently which is the goal. I enjoy your racing content - thanks for putting it out there and helping create the community.

[@RideWithGerben]

Yes! Well done. The pacing was excellent! Congrats on the KOM Jersey.

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks, Gerben. More to come in the 2025 for both of us, I'm sure.

[@erwinpluys1279]

Great job, you're getting faster with age. My PR is 58:47 three years ago at age 62.

[@E.M.B.R]

That's solid work right there. Congrats! Under 60 minutes at over age 60 is a goal I have out there for sure. At some point, we all stop getting faster and its just fending off and holding on, but that's a fight worth fighting as well. The hope is for quality years and not just quantity years, so holding on to whatever fitness we can for as long as we can is the goal.

[@cjspice6310]

Many congrats brother. Just starting my Zwift journey. Not thinking about tackling big climbs yet. Ride on.

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks, CJ. Good luck. If you're new to Zwift, I agree with getting settled in first. There's a lot out there to discover whether its group rides, solo riding around for route badges, structured workouts, racing, etc. It a great platform with many options and has definitely kept me consistently engaged and riding which is the goal.

[@steveouwerkerk7719]

Superb effort and result!!!

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks, Steve. Happy New Year.

[@phil_d]

Cracking effort Eric! The first (and last) time I did ADZ it took me 2hrs 7mins! New-ish to Zwift, overweight and over 50, I can't comprehend how anyone can push 300w for 50mins 😳 Mind you, I've been doing some races and my max HR has bumped from 170 to 175, so it must be working. You have a new sub!

[@E.M.B.R]

In the case that it gives you any extra motivation, let me just say that at age 43, I was around 230 lbs (104kg) and badly out of shape. Raising kids, bad work/life balance, and just not taking care of my fitness put me there. I was walking up a hill having a phone conversation with a client and I actually had to stop and pause the conversation because I was out of breath and couldn't continue the sentence. That was my wake-up call. I didn't get where I'm at today overnight and there have been some ups and downs along the way but I started making decisions that prioritized fitness and longevity and, as I did that, I started to feel better. With each passing year, things that I didn't think possible before suddenly became realistic. When I started, a 5k run without stopping was something I had to work up to. And then suddenly a 10k didn't seem that far away. 10k done and suddenly a half-marathon was realistic. And then a marathon was realistic. And then a marathon at Boston qualifying time. Realistic goals each step of the way repeated over and over can take you a long way whereas a big far away unrealistic goal can just leave you feeling defeated. My only advice beyond that is take it slow and let the muscles, tendons, and ligaments catch up because they take longer to adjust than metabolic fitness. It is indeed a marathon and not a sprint. If you push too hard too fast, you're more likely to get injured or just burn-out. Slow, steady, and consistent progress is the way. Especially over 50, the body needs time to rest and recover so I do a lot of Zone 2 and below in between these harder efforts. Z2 does a lot of work to improve fitness and treats the body kindly enough that it is repeatable throughout the week.

[@phil_d]

@E.M.B.R Good day to you, Eric! I am extremely grateful to you for taking the time to reply. What you've described in the first paragraph was me too. My peak was 96kg at only 5'5". I have worked hard to get to 79kg today, but I still have another 10-12kg to go. Yes, it is a slow burn but I am seeing the benefits. Unfortunately, I can't run, and I have been told I need a partial knee replacement, probably due to being overweight and inflammation, but I can cycle without issue. Zwift has been a game changer. But I let it slip in 2024. I started out a year ago and worked up to winning a few Cat Ds, but found Cat C incredibly tough. My weight went up again and felt incredibly tired and ached a lot. These last couple of months I have grabbed myself by the scruff of the neck and shed 6kgs, and started winning again! I hope your channel takes off for you; some of your racing efforts are incredibly. And thanks for the Zone 2 encouragement, I have overlooked that. Cheers 👍🏻

[@E.M.B.R]

​@@phil_d I slipped a couple times as well but once the light goes on, there's a realization that you don't want to go back to where you were. You know what bad feels like and you know how hard you worked to get where you are today. Definitely do more zone 2 and allow yourself rest days when you need them. It has to be sustainable for the long haul. You got it in 2025 and beyond.

[@phil_d]

@E.M.B.R Absolutely spot on! I am starting to feel I have a spring in my step again rather than feeling sluggish. I will catch up with you soon!

[@mfuller3398]

Awesome effort!

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks! I think I've taken this challenge to the limit now - although if history is any guide, I'll probably find a new goalpost to chase on it in 2025. Something about the Alpe keeps bringing me back.

[@JoshuaWallner]

Well done!

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks, Josh. Congrats to you on getting Uber Pretzel done as well. That's the last route I have to knock out on Zwift after doing PRL Full with Eric Min this week. Both of those routes are not for the faint of heart.

[@rosvopaisti]

My goal is to climb that thing in less than an hour in autumn 2025. Being 47 years old, this video got me thinking about a sub-50 minute time before turning 50.

[@E.M.B.R]

Great stuff. Stay consistent and the times will improve. Even 2 or 3 minutes faster each year and the goal becomes reality. I definitely wasn't thinking of sub-50 minutes as a realistic mark 2 years ago, it just slowly came into possibility as the fitness improved.

[@glynostler1158]

Hi, great job. Your saddle height looks low. Might be able to get more power if higher? Great video 😊

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks for the comments. On saddle height, it's possible. I've played with a few different heights and setbacks trying to get it dialed-in. I have even taken images from the side and overlayed a protractor to measure knee angle to see if I'm within at least shouting distance of "best practices". I will say that current height is erring on the side of too low vs too high at the moment for sure. On the bright side, there's no discomfort, no joint pain, no bouncing in the saddle at high cadence so all of that is good . . . but, there is a chance that I'm throwing some efficiency and power away. I may take a look at it again and toy with a few mm up and see if it changes ride feel.

[@joshvillen]

Team Time Trial for this beast on Thursday, lots of pressure to not let the speedy lads down. PR or death i suppose.

[@E.M.B.R]

Lol, "PR or death" is up there with "I choose violence". TTTs are something I'm looking to start doing in 2025. Like you said, the extra pressure of not letting the team down will probably push me to do things I otherwise wouldn't.

[@joshvillen]

@E.M.B.R TTT is everything great and terrible with bike racing hahahaha. Sometimes it feels like a marriage. One teammate just sent a goodie bag of team merch for christmas, some people are just awesome

[@carstendieterle1595]

Did it in 59 min in feb 24 at age 50. 50 min. means +30 watts for me. Cannot imagine at all… not yet 😂 cool goal, good luck!

[@E.M.B.R]

Under an hour is still hard work and a strong effort at age 50 . . . and I also couldn't imagine it 3 years ago. I like your "not yet" 😅

[@MrMichaelKyp]

Great work! How is your SB20 holding up?

[@E.M.B.R]

Thanks! As to the SB20, it's in year 3 and I've put 30,000 km into it. By and large it has held up extremely well (with very little maintenance required - closed belt drive is a wonder). That said, about 2 months ago, the wiring in the handlebars that control shifting shorted out and I could basically only use the bike in ERG mode. Because Stages went bankrupt, I couldn't order replacement parts either. I had to go to a Stages SB20 Facebook group to find a guy who was parting his bike out (selling cranks to one person, seat post to another, etc.) to find a replacement pair of handlebars and get myself up and functional again. I'm hoping to get another year or more but it's on borrowed time. I'm watching for the Elite Square reviews to start coming out in early 2025. I really like virtual gearing and the low maintenance of a dedicated indoor carbon belt drive bike and the Square looks promising.

[@MrMichaelKyp]

Good to know. I have had my second hand SB20 For 1 year now, all ok except I only use the left power sensor as the right one is malfunctioning. I love the feel and stability of the bike. Let’s hope Giant do something to support it.

[@E.M.B.R]

@@MrMichaelKyp It has fantastic ride feel for sure and is built like a tank. It doesn't even move an inch when I pop sprints. Giant / SPIA subsidiary have put a note on forthcoming support that can be found here: stagescycling.com/en_us/support Somewhat vague but in theory, Stages as a brand with support will be back in 2025.🤞 I'm just doing my research on replacements as a backup plan as it's unclear yet how they will support the legacy products.

[@davegearing2707]

Yes