I’m half joking. But as a 30-something who used to be very active, I recognize I’m over the hill and my joints sound like pop rocks
Keep moving
Dance dance revolution and weight training
I run 3 times a week, do yoga most days, walk to and from work, go to raves at the weekend. Getting close to 40 and feeling good still! I don’t think we are old enough to be struggling in our bodies yet.
Strength exercise keeps your joints working well long-term
As a 54 year old who has just had two weeks of agony because he forgot his age and tried to deadlift a 225kg motorbike by himself, I’m going to skip this one because I clearly haven’t learned anything.
Mustn’t’ve groaned enough.
A for effort though
Just dying slowly really.
Walk up and down the stairs instead of taking the elevator at my office (4 floors)
Walk parts my commute where I could take the bus or an extra train. (About an hour walking per day).
I wish I did more but my aging body is too tired 🙃
Bikram yoga weekly. And even biweekly, whenever I can.
Restored me from the incredibly bad health situation, and so far was the easiest way to maintain the body.
All other activities are too stressful in the organizing.
Cycling is great. Not hard impact. Can really push yourself if you want to. Cardio and strength training. You get to be outside feeling the wind against your face. And you can cover a lot more distance than walking or running so you can make a trip out of it.
And don’t feel bad for getting an e-bike. Riding that is still a good workout if you get into the habit of going fast. E-bikes usually have a hard speed cutoff (25 km/h by law where I live); if you want to go faster it’s all you and the motor is just there to give you better acceleration and take the pain out of things like hills or opposing wind.
If you don’t want to go fast, the bike still expects you to put in a certain amount of work. Low-intensity training is still training. Most crucially, getting that bit of assistance might get you to use the bike when you otherwise wouldn’t, turning no exercise into some exercise.
People underestimate the benefits of light exercise. Even brisk walks or relatively leisurely motor-assisted bike rides can absolutely be beneficial if done regularly.
I was ignoring bicycles for the most of my life, and only recently re-discovered them for myself.
Even a daily ride to the train station feels good
- Evening random trips are priceless for body and soul.
I totally agree!
Time to start paying attention to the protein content of your meals. Joint issues are often postural tho
I began working out heavily in my 20s because I was scared of being unable to in my 30s.
The key was discipline and training, your body remembers, and you age but you keep half.
I look at Arnie for inspiration, he was happy and still pumping iron in his 60s and 70s, proving it’s all about a good mental attitude and consistency
I’ve watched Pumping Iron as much as a straight man can but we both know we can’t sustain that amount of growth without some PEDs
I mean; you’re right, they’re probably taking some kind of supplements and are on a very regimented diet
Obviously we don’t need to be in the same caliber or grade as them, it’s more to do with the general attitude or headspace they’re in
I don’t think fitness should be competitive, other than with oneself, and those small lifestyle changes amount to being able to sustain said athletic lifestyle late into life
(See: That 90 year old guy always doing winter morning walks in the park!)
I have been trying get back with jogging/walking. It works well for me.
I got really out of shape for a while after having kids. Everything was hurting and I barely had time anymore to go to the gym, so I stopped working out. Getting out of shape exacerbated the aches and pains. Eventually I saw some photos of myself on a family vacation and realized how badly I’d let myself go. I started working out again. Took baby steps at first, like walking, body weight exercises, and high rep, low weight exercises. Over time, the aches and pains went away. Got back in a routine and slowly increased my goals. Now I’m in pretty damn good shape. I only do 2 days on and 2 days off for lifting so I don’t hurt myself, and it works for me. I’ve been doing a solid routine for 2 -3 years and I’m feeling a lot better. It was so crazy to see how out of shape I’d gotten. I was an athlete in the past, so it was humbling to see myself struggling doing like 10 body weight squats. Staying in shape is definitely easier than getting back into shape. Don’t do what I did. Stay active.
I’ve had to come to terms with taking things slower than I used to. I learned the hard way that I can’t just train for a 10k in a few weekends.
The rule of increasing distance/duration by 10% per week is to protect our joints/bones/etc when they ain’t what they used to be.
I find a variety of activities help distribute the loads
I often push my older body when it’s not used to work. This means I pull a muscle once every few weeks, often in my upper body; or demand too much in my knees.
Fortunately I can heal in a week or two, but I definitely am slow to heal compared to before.
I was in a terrible youtube rabbithole of knee replacement surgeries the other day and I’ve been hating our fragile corporeal vessels lately
I road bike, try to do yoga regularly, and incorporate strength training when I have time (never). Don’t try to ramp up too fast with activity because not getting injured is the biggest priority. The more mindful activity you do, you’ll become more resilient and less likely to get injured.
Trying to eat healthy (really just avoiding ultra processed foods and not drinking too much) also helps. I normally check to see where stuff falls on the NOVA scale. If it’s higher than a 3, I try to avoid it all together.
