Sometimes doing things for others fills that void. Look into coaching. Kids always need good coaches. That may rekndle your running passion. Or maybe look into some ither volunteer work. I have news for you it doesnt get easier.
Oh.......come on children.........get a grip..........you have a lot to live for.........stay healthy.......dont drink too much and love the one your with! You can run like I do until 70........not fast but strong!
1) You could do a bike ride of all 50 states. It's 50 miles, in 50 states, in 50 days. It's both a physical and logistical challenge. It's also assuming that you can get 50+ days off. Perhaps if you do it in between jobs that would work.
2) Don't know if you're into hiking or not. Fly to Nepal and do the Everest Base Camp Trek or some other trek. I come from a hiking, backpacking, and climbing background so it was fairly natural for me to do. It's also a lot easier than one would think. Being independent I didn't go with a guide or porters, just myself and some friends. It's actually a lot easier logistically then you would think.
Life pretty much ends after your early 20s. Everyone spends the rest of their life trying to relive the "glory days" of high school and college.
After college, you can still set PRs, travel the world, try new adventures and hobbies, and develop your career.
Your 30s might be a plateau, but it's all downhill after 40. Your muscles and brain get slower each year, your activities start becoming stale, your earnings are pretty much maxed out, and a lot of the people you know will start dying.
Status, esteem and the ability to share your life experience with others. The ability to positively influence a young person just starting out at life.
Look at the mentors in your own life. The older people who gave you knowledge and wisdom.
That's the primary thing an older person can offer you. They can see the mistakes you're about to make a mile away and guide you in a better direction.
You are a very cool person. By the age of 33, you have really achieved a lot, and you can be proud of it. As for old age, it really is not only retirement. You can expect a lot of interesting things and a lot of sad things. In addition to the fact that you can travel, relax, and do many other interesting things in retirement, you can simply not worry about anything. However, many older people develop Alzheimer's and many other terrible diseases that make old age very hard. The first thing I think of is Home Care Assistance by https://homecareassistance.com/palm-beach. I save money for a babysitter so that if something happens, someone will look after me if I cannot take care of myself.
Did go through a similar phase in early mid-30s. Felt that I had already had the best of everything I was going to have.
Turned to be a transitional phase. Carried on running into Masters - placed in US Champs four times to date, and at 65, am currently top ten on World Rankings (wouldn't have been top 10 in my club when I was 30) in one event.
Started my own consultancy, and in the last few years have been involved in introducing new technology, and would be better at my job now at 65 than I was ten years ago.
I definitely don't want to retire, and wouldn't know what to do if I did.
I think that 30-40 time is a period of adjustment and accepting that some things are gone, but (one hopes) that there can be plenty of new and rewarding things to come.
Having just turned 50 I will tell you that there really is not much to look forward to.
Sure there's grand kids but they are temporary and once they're 13 they want to do fun stuff with their friends, not hang with old folks.
If you've been smart there is the benefit of financial stability that comes with middle age, but there's also the realization that maybe you HAVEN'T done enough for retirement.
Health is a total crap shoot. Sure as runners we're mostly thin and fit, but the knees/hips/backs are a constant bother, and honestly being a runner is not some guarantee of living to 90. You better hope you have good genes.
Right now I can say I have a good life, I'm very stable financially, my job is secure, and a comfortable retirement is a reality.... I would gladly trade all that to be 25 again.
I'm 55 and that's a good summary. Especially that last line, "I would gladly trade all that to be 25 again."
The obvious downside to aging is watching your physical state deteriorate in so many ways. And the inevitably of death becomes more apparent. When you're younger you tend to look at death as something far in the future so you're not concerned about it.
All that said there are some positives. Maybe because death is drawing closer I have more gratitude for each day I'm here. And with all the misery, dysfunction, etc. in the world I have a greater appreciation for people places and things that enhance the human experience. Just little things, like seeing the waves roll in to the beach during my morning walks. Or just appreciating how kind and sensitive my periodontist is. Wondrous moments are more deeply appreciated. And I'm so much more comfortable in my own skin. So if somebody were to say to me "OK, Boomer," I just chuckle. My life keeps flowing.
I turned 33 a few weeks ago and realized that life doesn't seem to be getting any better. When you consider the following, I think it's pretty safe to say that I've already peaked:
- I'm at the "sweet spot" of my career. I've got enough experience (10 years) and pay ($110K/ year) to keep me happy. I can advance further if I want, but the extra stress, hours, and responsibilities aren't worth it to me.
- I ran competitively since I was in middle school, but I hung up the spikes last year. I only jog once in a while to stay fit since I have no hope of setting any more PRs unless it's for obscure distances. My last PR was at age 29.
- I've tried out and have become somewhat decent at quite a few non-running activities like water skiing and riding my dirt bike. They're all fun, but I don't have the same competitive passion for those hobbies as I did for track when I was in my teens and 20s.
- I've been to a bunch of different states and countries. I definitely don't mind travelling to say, Colorado, for the fourth time, but it's just not exciting as the first or second time. I sometimes feel like a drug addict trying to chase that first high (hey, what do I know, I've only done booze and weed). It seems that almost all the places I haven't been to are places I have no interest in going, like most third world countries.
- I'm fairly happy with my home, the car I'm driving, and the stuff I've got in my home. Chasing after bigger or fancier stuff is just diminishing returns, with a possible temporary increase in happiness at the expense of a permanent increase in maintenance or depreciation costs.
- I'm hanging out less and less with my friends, as they've been busy with their wives and/or kids (neither of which I'm interested in).
So, is there anything exciting I can look forward to besides retirement? The only other thing I can think of is possible technological advances. Hurry up and get me my flying cars, intelligent robots, and trips to Mars, because thinking about this thread for too long is becoming depressing.
You've convinced me - your life is over. I don't know why I bump into people who still have a reason for living in the 70's and 80's.
Life pretty much ends after your early 20s. Everyone spends the rest of their life trying to relive the "glory days" of high school and college.
It's surprising how many people live for decades longer and keep doing stuff that has nothing to do with reliving their glory days. But I guess you're one of the few whose life ended in their early twenties.
Find a wide open piece of road and see how fast you can drive your car.
Then keep trying to beat your top mph every day.
That'll give you something to look forward to.
I wonder how many people live near those areas. Most of the highways in my area are a clogged mess until well after midnight.
FWIW, here are my speed records:
Race track - 138 mph (fastest lap time), 145 mph (peak instantaneous top speed)
Autobahn - 122 mph
On an empty American highway - 112 mph
My fastest time was 96 mph in October 2003 on I-271 near Oakwood (271/480 split) in a '93 Civic with a D15B7 (102 hp) automatic. Not fast but even those non-Si Civics with automatics would hit 110 mph. It was the '92-'95 generation, before the '96-'00 refresh. All Civics since haven't been the same.
I have a '14.5 (mid-year model!) Camry that's fast but I'm afraid to push it.
0-60 7.8-8.1 seconds
Quarter in the high 15s with a trap around 86-90
125-128 mph top speed
Basically, even with the 4-banger, it's equivalent to a late C3 Corvette with an L82.
I turned 33 a few weeks ago and realized that life doesn't seem to be getting any better. When you consider the following, I think it's pretty safe to say that I've already peaked:
- I'm at the "sweet spot" of my career. I've got enough experience (10 years) and pay ($110K/ year) to keep me happy. I can advance further if I want, but the extra stress, hours, and responsibilities aren't worth it to me.
- I ran competitively since I was in middle school, but I hung up the spikes last year. I only jog once in a while to stay fit since I have no hope of setting any more PRs unless it's for obscure distances. My last PR was at age 29.
- I've tried out and have become somewhat decent at quite a few non-running activities like water skiing and riding my dirt bike. They're all fun, but I don't have the same competitive passion for those hobbies as I did for track when I was in my teens and 20s.
- I've been to a bunch of different states and countries. I definitely don't mind travelling to say, Colorado, for the fourth time, but it's just not exciting as the first or second time. I sometimes feel like a drug addict trying to chase that first high (hey, what do I know, I've only done booze and weed). It seems that almost all the places I haven't been to are places I have no interest in going, like most third world countries.
- I'm fairly happy with my home, the car I'm driving, and the stuff I've got in my home. Chasing after bigger or fancier stuff is just diminishing returns, with a possible temporary increase in happiness at the expense of a permanent increase in maintenance or depreciation costs.
- I'm hanging out less and less with my friends, as they've been busy with their wives and/or kids (neither of which I'm interested in).
So, is there anything exciting I can look forward to besides retirement? The only other thing I can think of is possible technological advances. Hurry up and get me my flying cars, intelligent robots, and trips to Mars, because thinking about this thread for too long is becoming depressing.
You've convinced me - your life is over. I don't know why I bump into people who still have a reason for living in the 70's and 80's.
I'd love to travel more and do half the things he's done.
I think he's on the right path in that he's realizing chasing stuff isn't going to bring him forever happiness though!
I'd rather have my simple apartment and '14 Camry and use that $ to help others, take trips, pay for my modest running hobby and then sock some away for retirement with my soon-to-be wife.