What does getting old "feel" like?

A lot of older guys than me posting, but I'm in my early 30's so I'm in that middle zone where I have started to feel it but still have the goods.

I find myself a lot more tired than I used to be. Those 3 or 4 hour nights you pull and survive the next day through? Not really survivable anymore, I take naps almost every day. That said, most of my peers can't sleep in. I am finding it harder and harder to sleep in, but get tired in the afternoon if I don't. I have to force myself to stay in bed sometimes to break the hard-wire of waking up early. 5 days a week and then a race on the weekend is too much rhythm and the body wants to follow the pattern. I'm basically the only guy my age that I know that sleeps past 10am, a combination of can't and responsibility I guess.

I wouldn't say that running is harder, but these days everything counts. You're walking back from the bar with your boys and you jump a fence? Expect your oblique to be pissed at you the next day. Generally I just lack the non-running strength I used to have. I lift like a maniac but it feels like everything is one dimensional. If I go outside of that range, like trying to hop into a soccer or football game, it will be game over for a week. Doing some yard work and your lower back starts to fire up? Yep, that will effect your run later. I helped a friend move and totally bonked on an easy 12, nearly had to walk.

Personally I also have lost a lot of pop to my sprint. I feel like I can only get to 95%, I feel like I'm an ultra marathoner or something, it just feels very enduranc-y. Not sure if this is true for others or just from my training, but yeah. Makes me question dudes like Justin Gatlin even more.

Now 58. Noticed that it was getting harder to do three track sessions a week, or two track sessions and a race per week when I was early to mid-30s, but did run my fastest ever 3000m s/c at 36 (then didn't do another one until the National Masters ten years later!).

Have managed to keep weight down to around what I was at my best, but it is hard.

Still run most days, and still do two hard sessions (track, road intervals or tempo) twice a week, and a longer run on Sundays. Last hard run was 4 x 4 mins at just under 6 min pace, with 2 1/2 min recovery.

Should do weights, but have to make do with throwing hay around for horses (loaded 400 bales in one day back in summer).

I do try and do regular stretching.

Don't feel a lot different but the watch is telling me otherwise. Still it's worth doing to feel and look a lot better than most contemporaries, and to be fitter than most much younger people.

Mileage no longer seems to be the answer to performance. This after running more than 100,000 miles over four decades.

What about non running things? Sex isn't the only one, but just general vitality, etc.

I'm not trying to set PRs anymore and I'm in my 20s. I just don't have time so I'm not too worried about needing more recovery when I in my 40s.

There are things you can do now to increase your chances of running into your 70's.

Don't run consistent 70-90 mile weeks. (Maybe higher mileage for a month or so during marathon training) When I was in my 30's & 40's I only ran 40-50 miles a week. All my friends who were running 70 or more miles a week are no longer running.

Run on dirt or grass as much as possible.

Don't become a slave to your running diary. Don't run through injuries.

When I hit my mid 50's I cut down to 4 days running a week averaging 30-40 miles a week. (Unless I was training for a marathon) I usually ran a 3-5 mile tempo run (hard pace) once a week. I started doing more strides in my 60's. I'd only race 6-8 times a year. In my 30's I was racing 20-25 times a year.

An 8 minute mile at 69 years old feels the same as a 5 minute mile did when I was in my 30's. The only difference is the time on the watch.

I've never been flexible. Never able to touch my toes, so there's no change there.

Energy level is not what it used to be. Takes longer to recover from injuries.

I'm still running 25-30 miles a week (69 years old) but have slowed down considerably. An easy pace is now 10-11 minute miles.

My weight is the same now as when I was 35.

I have a terrible diet. I can't eat fruits or vegetables and am addicted to sugar, especially chocolate.

Funny that this thread goes up not long after I just moved up to the 45-49 age group. I am not exactly sure where my running is going. I did really well in my early 40s and had no trouble with recovery. I actually saw a few PRs (got back into running in my early 30s). The past two years my legs have not been holding up well. I had a pretty bad injury that kept me out for a few months. But when I returned to running, a bunch of chronic injuries had cleared up thanks to the rest. Now, I am feeling surprisingly good. I run with a group that is mostly 20-30 year olds. I just focus on trying to keep up with them and don't worry about times and age group placing.

I have plenty of energy. It is just a different kind of energy. I can spend all day working on projects around the house. I did about 16 hours a day over a three day weekend to landscape my back yard. But I would not want to go to a party and jump around to someone's mix tape blasting on a cheap stereo system.

The main thing I notice about getting old is that the excitement fades away. So much of life becomes "been there, done that." I can see why people have affairs and get in trouble with various vices (drinking, gambling drugs) when they hit middle age. It is hard to find the same thrill when you get older. But it is also nice to be able to just move slower through life and enjoy quieter moments instead of always looking for the most super extreme awesome thing.

Female perspective here: I'm in my late 50s. All the garbage that women go thru for menopause is very real. I think it's a lot like the hormonal drop-off that men experience except ours is packed into a much shorter (2 - 5 year) period. So it can be weird. I was pretty fierce all the way to age 51 and then I fell off the cliff. Injuries, weight gain, fatigue, etc. Now that I am finished, this is what I've noticed and this may be helpful in the future to understand what your GF/Wife will experience, but I think it's very similar to what the guys are posting: Injuries happen far too frequently and for the most innocuous of reasons. You have to baby yourself in every way, for example diet and sleep. You can eat spicy food at 10:00 pm, drink a few beers, and sleep 5 hours but you will pay for it the next day; far more than 30 years prior. Your range of motion will start to decrease - the "old runner shuffle" will happen unless you're diligent about doing dynamic drills in your warm-ups. Even then, it will still happen just not as much. You'll need an afternoon siesta to recover from a hard morning run. Do weight training to avoid the loss of muscle mass. Cross train with low impact work to avoid too much impact on joints and connective tissue. And don't look back too much at your past self. Too many runners (people?) are caught up in the "I used to be..." mindset. Many posters are mentioning the positive points of aging and I totally agree. Even though my physical body is far from what it used to be, my life is rich and full of adventures. How you age is up to you.

And something else that relates mostly to women: The ladies who have traded mainly on their looks and attractiveness are in for a big shock. Or as my friend said, "It's tough when you used to be the 'hot chick!'" That's when being in shape and having taken care of yourself will pay off big. You no longer have the hotness attributed to a 20 or 30 year old but if you've taken care of yourself and become a well-rounded person, it's all good. It's sad to see some women resort to extreme measures in order to capture their lost youth.

I can't believe I feel this good at 49.

I've slowed down over of the past 10 years, for sure, but still just managed to bang out a 1:30 for a half trail marathon. There's not as much pop in my legs when I do track workouts but I still feel like I'm running fast and enjoy the benefit of that sensation.

I do run only 4 days a week now and usually only run fast on one of them. Have recently taken to cycling twice a week and that has helped the aches and pains stay away.

Also, my wife told me to start drinking Cherry juice and while I'm loathe to promote something as a "magic elixir" I have found my joint pain to be almost non-existent since I started with it. Could be coincidence, could be in my head but I take about 8oz a day and I'm feeling good.

Can't speak highly enough too on the benefit of taking care of the whole body. I work out in the gym a couple of times a week focusing alot on my hips, low back and balance (single leg exercises).

Good news readers, getting old ain't so bad.

Dadfan wrote:

start drinking Cherry juice and while I'm loathe to promote something as a

What species of cherries? No sugar added i assume?

Enjoy it while you can, it can be over in no time.

In a couple of years I went from 2:50 marathon at age 47 to hip replacement candidate and end of my running days due to hip impingement (FAI) grinding the cartilage off my femoral head. And i thought it was just sore groin muscles! If caught early then can do surgical intervention (Tyson Gay, Alex Rodriguez etc). So count yourself lucky if you have good skeletal alignment and mobility (which yoga can help).

Otherwise, strength training, esp eccentric work, is well worth the time, it doesn't take much, 15-30 mins/week. One legged squats, glut bridge, eccentric heel drops.

As my Doctor said, there's nothing graceful about aging.

Not a troll need serious advice.

I ran in college but to be honest don't really do it much anymore. I was always a "big" runner, could bench like 150 in college and I ran a 4:09 mile and 1:53 800 so I looked a lot thicker than some of my peers. Was never injured literally ate anything.

Took a job after college where I was working crazy hours (auditor). There would be some weeks were i never worked out, ate every meal at my desk and would eat junk food. I actually lost weight bc my metabolism is crazy.

Took a new job where I work less, started working out with a personal trainer and have bulked up to about 175 - 180 (I'm 6'3"). I have 10% body fat and have ok abs but a pretty thick chest and shoulders. The only time have ever felt out of shape was when I got kind of fat when I was taking an absurd amount of weight gainers with whole milk 3x a day and creatine (body fat % was up to 17%) but literally I lost 10 lbs when I hit the treadmill and stopped eating as much. I am 27 now and have never felt strong or more explosive.

When do you start to notice your metabolism slowing down? There is a 60 year old at my gym, completely ripped, insane abs. Very strong, have seem him bench 225 8.0x. How much is genetic? I understand if you can't race at a high level in your 40s but why do some guys stay in such good shape? I know diet is important but my uncle eats a ton of red meat and carbs and still has a pretty insane six pack (he is religious about cross fit).

I know everyone is different and I was blessed with a tall frame. My roommate is shorter and if he eats at subway he will gain like 5 pounds which will never go away.

When do your metabalosim slow down and when does it get harder to lose weight?

Aging gracefully - not wrote:

doesn't take much, 15-30 mins/week. One legged squats, glut bridge, eccentric heel drops.

After 25 years with a desk job, my glutes are dead and psoas tight as a violin string. My one regret is not starting early and doing:

- single leg glut bridge

- lunges or bulgarian split squats

- supermans

- psoas stretch

- foam rolling

If there is a completely ripped 60 year old at your gym with "insane abs" the guy is on T supplementation. Either that or a genetic freak. The decline of testosterone differs for everyone but it's real. Can't tell you when it's gonna happen. You are 27 now and it's still good. If you have a naturally active metabolism you may not see anything until 10 or 15 years from now but it will happen. Keep your muscle mass up in order to fight the inevitable decline.

And the ripped 60 year old? If he's abusing his T supplementation he's asking for prostate cancer.

It is also likely that he does not do nearly enough cardiovascular work and eats red meat. He is doomed!

my gym does have a bunch of guys who juice so maybe he is using. I think you alluded to this but my PT said that you can do a lot better job of fighting the decline of testosterone if you are doing heavy body weight exercises. Mastering squats and deadlifts tears by far the biggest muscle groups in your body and to fix them you produce more protein and testosterone. If you do these safely and consistently you can expand the amount of natural testosterone production.

I don't understand why more runners aren't doing deadlifts (really college athletes in general). It is fantastic for core building and injury prevention and if you only do 135 - 225 lbs you aren't exactly going to strain your back or glutes.

If you're one of those young guys who has to work really hard to gain weight, there will come a day when it becomes really hard NOT to gain weight, and even harder to lose it once gained.

Cherry bomb wrote:

Dadfan wrote:

start drinking Cherry juice and while I'm loathe to promote something as a

What species of cherries? No sugar added i assume?

I typically have cherries with my fur burger

fat old guy wrote:

If you're one of those young guys who has to work really hard to gain weight, there will come a day when it becomes really hard NOT to gain weight, and even harder to lose it once gained.

When bro? Need a date