Are you surprised by your age?

I’m 26 and sometimes I look like a high schooler

I feel like this guy

https://youtu.be/_YbVsEhNuT0

"Each of us walking our own green mile".

Or running it.

I foresee a long life ahead and the witnessing of many friends, loved ones and family passing. I think acceptance is the key. Don't be sad or mourn too much, just move on. Life is an adventure.

I'll be 52 this year, and I am just living in the now. Truth is nothing really surprises me and I find I actually care less as I get older, but everything in some way is sort of amusing to me. Weird, but true. Carry on- follow your bliss.

Cool Thread.. turning 52 this year.. Think about this stuff semi often.. 20's -30's seemed like they took forever.. Married my best friend and started family mid 30's .... 30-40 flew.. 40-50 even faster!!... teaching coaching for 30 yers now... And now coaching my children in running.. life is great....My running buddies are all 3-12 years younger than me and while I have faster pr's I struggle to keep up with them (and yes that hurts the ego at times!!).. running is still my favorite fitness activity and often my social life... Try and keep myself going with different challenges since race times both frustrate me mentally and hurt me physically.. so come up with crazy run/bike/hike combo challenges. Hope to hike Pemi Loop ( 31 miles in White Mt's) this summer in one day?? a few other things. Lifetime goal of thru hiking AT upon retirement.. hopefully at 6o!! So my only advice is stay active, stay immature, and enjoy life.

56 and am always dumb-founded when I see some longtime public figure and learn they are younger than me. But I guess that happens more and more with age.

Age truly is a state of mind for the most part. I try to do a couple of planned workouts a week with some guys in their 40's and like to joke with them that the cliff's edge is coming soon. I felt I could keep improving until I was 46. Then something happened and I just started getting slower. But I'm OK with it.

I keep an eye on the age graded tables and think if I can stay right around the 80% mark, I'm doing something right. Just can't hit high mileage and have added in some cycling on the other days.

Nice thread to read.

Got back into running in my early 50's after kids started growing up, career settling out a bit. Was running about 15 miles/week and entered a local 5K. Ran about 20 minutes and felt that I'd retained some of the youthfulness of my early days. During the awards ceremony I got shut out of the masters podium and was hanging my head a bit, when they then announced the "GRAND MASTERS" division. Heck, I didn't even know there was such a thing! They announced my name as the Grand Masters champion and then I really hung my head because it was official that I was now OLD!

Getting old sucks, but it's sure better than the alternative!

Ben Franklin:

‘ To posters over 50, what is your outlook left on life? I have worry that once I get above a certain age I will be depressed because I am not young (mid to late life crisis), but maybe the thought of it is worse than the actual thing.’

So you’re 36......that’s a number like I am at 58.....what midlife crisis? What depression? Remember your first birthday? Probably not....

What I am trying to say is that you are 35 years older than on your first birthday! If you believe in God, then God willing, the years will keep rolling on by and you’ll define ‘old’ as it the next decade than you are right now....

You will just have to purchase more ‘log books’ to record your miles....

I had prostate cancer surgery nearly five years ago, thank God everything is good now. I might not see you hit age 66, but just like last decades, last year, last month, last week, and yesterday, I am just trying to live my life the best I can and look forward to making a new log book to record my miles for the next year!

Enjoy the ride the best way you can!

Surprised? Yes. I have been running 5 miles a day x 5 times a week for 35 years. Regular running keeps one fit and able well into what is considered old age. People my age who did not run are mostly overweight, unfit and old looking. Running is a miracle worker! Spread the word.

62 here. These are the best years for me. Never in my life did I think I would run 5-10 miles a day at this age. I'm so blessed to feel this good. Go granny!

I'm 37 and yes, it shocks me. I always thought of myself as mature for my age, but now my age has caught up to my maturity and I'm just...average. Average and aging.

Interesting thread to read. I'm 70 now and still running 50-60 mpw. Married for 48 years next month. I ran with my kids when they were growing up and they both became pretty good HS and college runners. They both met their spouses on their college XC teams. Now they are starting to run with their kids, and we still run together when schedules permit. I still love that feeling of excitement/anxiety standing on a start line waiting for the gun. I enjoy running with my team mates who all are younger than I am and I intend to keep on with it until something stops me from doing it. My dream is to check out about 5 feet from the finish line in a race and have my momentum carry me across the line to be the line to be the fastest dead guy to finish an XC race.

I am 38; I can’t believe it. Like you, there has been different times in my life when I have had this thought. 25, 30 and 35. I had a terrific childhood and I bet that has something to do with it. But I have also tried to always spin it and think on the things I can enjoy now that I could not before. For one thing is disposable income and freedom to do more of what I want to do.

I'm in relatively good health as an 85 year old.

Getting old ain't for sissies.

wedfwe wrote:

Surprised? Yes. I have been running 5 miles a day x 5 times a week for 35 years. Regular running keeps one fit and able well into what is considered old age. People my age who did not run are mostly overweight, unfit and old looking. Running is a miracle worker! Spread the word.

A lot of truth in that post.

Turning 57 next week. Ran in high school and college then spotty in medical school and after due to career and arthritis issues. Started up again at 40 after reading "Ultramarathon Man" of all things and was doing well until last year when my back pain was getting worse rather than better during workouts. Now that my L5-S1 disk is flattened I'm a pedestrian. Always thought that I would run a lot longer but it some ways I'm lucky my body made this far. I walk for an hour almost every day, something I could never do when I was running. I miss running but life goes on.

I look young for my age but I always joke, "If I wake up and nothing hurts I'd be afraid that I was dead!" Happy in my job as a physician and probably have to work until 70 to retire comfortably. I still feel like a kid inside. I'm a two-time cancer survivor (not as bad as it sounds) who's trying to do the best w/ a suboptimal genetic hand. My paternal grandfather was dead by my age and my late father had already had a heart attack; I recently passed my third stress test w/ flying colors.

I probably work too hard and rest too little but I have to. Loving your job makes it easier. After reading an article about retirement I now realize that I'm training for the rest of my life and "I'll never be as healthy as I am right now" so take opportunities to travel and such when you can.

I'm 73 and still love to run!

But...what used to be my half marathon pace is now my 10K pace

My 10K pace is now my 5K pace. Etc.

And I notice that every time I get injured, I come back just a little bit slower.

So if you see me down by the side of the road,

Check Garmin

Call my wife and have her log the mileage

And remember, I expired doing what I love.

Maurice79 wrote:

I'm 73 and still love to run!

But...what used to be my half marathon pace is now my 10K pace

My 10K pace is now my 5K pace. Etc.

And I notice that every time I get injured, I come back just a little bit slower.

So if you see me down by the side of the road,

Check Garmin

Call my wife and have her log the mileage

And remember, I expired doing what I love.

Back in the day in college I used to do intervals running 400's at 56-57, 600's at 1:30, and 800's at 2:05ish. In between the run we would jog slowly at about 8:00 pace.

Fast forward 40 years. Now that jog at 8:00 pace is my "hard effort" for a 3 mile run if I'm lucky!

I don't feel old, but I'm often surprised by how old the women my age look.

JamesD2 wrote:

I don't feel old, but I'm often surprised by how old the women my age look.

I don't feel old either but I am surprised how out of shape men in my age look.

Quirks how we see age:

1) we think of someone 5 years older than us as older, we think of someone 5 years younger as basically our age.

2) we think we aged well and look younger than our actual age.

3) we can see the effects of aging easier in other people.

4) When we get older we have a lot more fun at this age than we thought we would when we were young.

5) we understand better that there is an end.