Thoughts on Exercise/Getting Older

S

sparrow

Cathlete
Hey All,

Hope everyone is having a peaceful Sunday :)

I turned 36 this year and I've really noticed some changes in my exercise and body. Actually, since I was 35 I've been noticing. I definitely have to favor my knees and back more. Also, although I have problem getting through my routines, I do seem to need more recovery time. I did ME this morning - also walked a bit - and am throughly wiped out tonight! There's the mental aspect too; I don't feel the desire to kill myself in every workout. I used to be so "grrrrr, no pain no gain" about exercise! Mind you, I'm not complaining. I'm prefectly content with my routines, and I haven't felt this comfortable in my own skin since I was a toddler. I'm happy with my body. If that comes with getting older, I'll take it. Still, it's such a marked change in my body/recovery/attitude. Has anyone else gone through this?

Sparrow

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow - what a ride!’ — Peter Sage
 
I am having a great sunday Sparrow, despite the pouring rain! I might need and ARK!!!...:)

As a runner I experienced changes at 40. When 2 weeks after I turned 40 I tore a calf muscle running....so started some injuries...:(...and of course my 1st visit to a Physical Therapist, although sadistic...he has healed me well. I have been so blessed with my knees. No injuries there. I am 46 now and I know alot of 46 year old women that have never worked out a day in their lives. That to me seems so bizarre. But then again I tend to be obsessive compulsive about exercise. I am very happy with the shape I am in and my running has slowed down, but I have chosen to run more trails instead of the constant pounding the pavement gives to my aging body...:)...I need more recovery time too. You have an awesome outlook which I think will carry you thru whatever comes up...you are not getting older, you are getting better!!!!...:)...Carole
 
Well, I'm not an athlete. Just someone who exercises for health and well-being. I'm sure that real athletes experience real slow downs due to age. But for me, I have found that whenever I think a physical limitation is a result of age, it usually isn't. If I find myself slowing down a bit, I look at other factors in my life and try to figure out why. Maybe there's a lot of stress in my life, so I don't have as much energy. I find that if I think it's my age, I tend to just give up because there is nothing I can do about aging. But if I search a little bit further, there are usually other factors that I find that I have more control over.

Just my two cents worth.

-Nancy
 
Hi Sparrow!

I agree with everything Carole said. I will turn 46 in February and this year was the year my knees started talking to me. This year was also the first year that I had to really watch what I was eating. In fact, all of a sudden although my diet and exercise routine stayed the same, I started to gain weight and inches in my waist and abs.

Hang in there...just imagine what life would be without exercise!

Tammy
 
Interesting... I'm 47 and really want to push my cycling to another level this year (without putting a lot more time into it) and am enlisting the help of a friend who does Ironman competitions (has competed and finished at Kona twice). I wrote to her and mentioned that at my age, I want to see if I can still improve as the clock is ticking. Her response was: "One thing I have learned from training and racing triathlon is that age really doesn't matter. Something that matters more is your attitude. If you let age be a determining factor for you, then it will be. There are women out there who are very strong and very fast and they are waaaay older than you. And some of them just turned to sports as a middle age thing, so you can't say they have been athletic their whole lives. You would be amazed at the age group women at a triathlon event. Two most important things are desire and dedication to doing something. If you want to be faster, and put your mind to it, you will be. Just look at Tom. He made up his mind, did the work, and now he's cycling with the big boys." Tom, her husband, I'm guessing, is in his late 50's and he really improved his cycling this year by exercising smarter, not longer, and yes, he is riding and staying up with the fast guys in our little town.

Hope this helps, her response inspired me.

One thing that I highly recommend to those that exercise is to pick an event and train for it, be it a 5K run, 1/2 marathon, metric century, century or whatever. Definitely helps me keep interested in working out at home.

Jeanette
 
Sparrow - I started exercising really when I turned 32. I'm now 41. Okay, so I don't recover from climbing that big mountain quite as easily as I did 10 years ago (I'm also less like to take that wild mountain bike trail - falling seems to hurt more!), but I also find that I tackle that big mountain better and I can ride my mountain bike longer. There have been studies that have found that the flash and burn sports - sprinting, football, basketball - sports that require a lot of fast movements - younger is better. But endurance sports - marathons, triathalons, endurance races, long bike races (over 50 miles) people between 30 and 50 actually have the advantage. Think the tortoise and the hare. Literally, slow and steady have the advantage over flash and burn. And with age comes wisdom - when you're older, you have more experience and more ability to plan how to spread your energy out over long distances). There is a reason Lance Armstrong (who was 41 on his last tour) did so well, and it's not just because he's an incredible athlete.

So, you're 36 and literally coming into your prime when it comes to endurance. Just be more cognizant of things like knees, elbows and other joints. If they start to bother you, get them checked. At 36 you should be able to go for a long time, especially if you have befre.
 
Oh my goodness! I'm 53 and the only limitation I find now is that I can only run 5 miles before my knee starts to hurt. That's it. I can keep up with all of my Cathe DVDs. Just this morning I did KPC with a 27 year old friend and she couldn't quite keep up with me. I agree with statements made by Jeannette. It's an attitude thing. It is also probably a genetic thing and has something to do with how you've "abused" your body in your younger days. I ran for about 10 years, hence my knee "problem." However, I can do a nice 3 or 4 mile run, but really enjoy other forms of exercise, such as P90X and Cathe workouts. As for taking longer to heal, I don't have a comparison. In my "younger" days, I never worked out this hard. DOMS actually feel good to me. (Is that sick?)

Take heart. I have an idea that you can do whatever you put your mind to for almost as long as you want!

Margaret
 
hi all!

Thanks for the replies. Just wanted to make clear that I wasn't looking for reasons to slow down or not exercise :D 36 is *not* old (good lord, no) and I hope I didn't give the impression that I thought it was!! I just find in interesting that in the last year or so I've noticed some definite changes in my my body and mind and was wondering if any of the others around my age or older had experienced such mind/body shifts when it came to fitness. :D


Sparrow


Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow - what a ride!’ — Peter Sage
 
Hey Sparrow--I'm 37 (38 in 3 months! :eek: ) & I've noticed the same thing during the last 2-3 years. I've been training pretty hard since I was 21 & it does start to take its toll.

I still push myself pretty hard, but more & more often I find my heart's not really in it--I think this has to do with a variety of things but mostly I get so darned TIRED so much faster than I used to. Also I pull muscles much more often--when I was in my 20s I could do whatever I wanted & still feel great the next day. Now if I have an especially grueling workout I need a little more recovery time.

I have incorporated more stretching & added pilates to my workout, mostly for injury prevention b/c I plan on doing this for the rest of my life. But man, there are definitely some days when it's much tougher than others. x(
 
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