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Eight women and 4 men, mean age 71·1 years, examined by a clinical check-up participated in a bicycle ergometer training program (12 weeks with 3 training sessions per week). Symptom limited ergometric bicycle tests were performed before and after the training period. The training work load was continuously controlled by maintaining the training heart rate according to 60% of the maximum work load of the first test. To hold the training heart rate (HR) on a constant level the work load had to be increased systematically during the whole training period up to 180% of the level at the beginning. The working time in each training session was increased from 2 × 10 mm at the beginning up to 2 × 20 mm after the sixth week. The maximum work load (+ 16%) and the maximum oxygen uptake (+ 11%) increased significantly. The submaximal HR decreased significantly. In contrast there was no significant difference in maximum HR and maximal change of base excess between the initial exercise test and the control study at the end of the training program. This indicates that the increased exercise capacity represents a real endurance training effect and not only an increase in the degree of exhaustion. We conclude that also in healthy people between 67–76 years a significant endurance effect is possible when the training work load and training time is increased systematically according to the rules of training sciences. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]