Obviously at first glance, athletes tend to deterioate as they reach the age of 30. However, why do they do so? Can a trained 50 year old past athlete beat a nonathletic 25 year old to a race? Well first of all, at age 25, the muscles and mind of an individual have completely developed, and they have reached their peak. Additionally, their maximum oxygen consumption, VO2max is also at its greatest potential. For athletes at 25 especially, their VO2 max is extremely high, since they train their body to do so. However, after the age of 30, VO2max decreases approximately by 10%, thus causing muscles to deterriorate. It continues to drop for the remainder of an individual's life. THis comes to the next question, can a trained 50 year old beat a nonathletic 25 year old? Although it sounds unlikely, the answer is yes. For athletes that continue to train, their VO2max does not drop as fast for that of nonathletes. This is why it is extremely important to exercise, since it usually results in a healthier body. Therefore, if an athlete continues to train until he's 50, he can potentially beat a nonathletic 25 year old in a race.
works cited
http://www.svl.ch/SportsAge.html
good job. Thanks teddy
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