Aging, Fitness, and Marathon Times in a 91 Year-old Man Who Competed in 627 Marathons.
Aging is associated with a decline in maximal aerobic capacity (VO2max) that may be attenuated by chronic endurance exercise. This case study chronicles the changes in marathon times in a 91 year old man who completed 627 marathons and 117 ultramarathons over 42 years. He began running marathons at age 48. His yearly best times remained fairly constant at ~240 minutes from age 50 - 64 years and then gradually rose to about 260 minutes in his early seventies followed by a curvilinear deterioration as he approached his ninth decade. His times plateaued at ~ 600 minutes in his late eighties. Between ages 68 and 89 his VO2maxdeclined from 43 to 20 ml/kg/min. His marathon times were highly correlated with his VO2max(r2=0.87). The decline in marathons times and VO2maxmay reflect the contributions of biological aging, changes in exercise training volume and intensity, injuries, and comorbid disease.
Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, USA. ; The Baltimore Veteran Affairs Medical Center, Geriatrics Research Education and Clinical Center, Baltimore, Maryland 21201, USA.
Odessa
O
Addison
Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, USA. ; The Baltimore Veteran Affairs Medical Center, Geriatrics Research Education and Clinical Center, Baltimore, Maryland 21201, USA.
Gregory
G
Steinbrenner
Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, USA.
Andrew P
AP
Goldberg
Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, USA. ; The Baltimore Veteran Affairs Medical Center, Geriatrics Research Education and Clinical Center, Baltimore, Maryland 21201, USA.
Leslie I
LI
Katzel
Maximal aerobic capacity; athlete; exercise; longitudinal