[Closed] For those of us over 40.......

My favourite trousers have an elasticated waist. There I've said it.

Spending all last sunday building a bigger & bigger table top jump. Still ache across the shoulders now

I realized the other day that I have a specific shirt I always wear on the odd occasions I go out for a social night out, it is my only casual shirt.

On holiday and doing lots of walking and it's made my pelvis hurt and my legs ache and my feet hurt. 🙁

I'm 60 this month and I'm massively fitter than when I was 30.

But tinnitus is annoying and the occasional need to get up in the night for a tinkle. The rest works OK; still got a 32" waist and can easily get a foot up onto the basin to cut my nails.

My 3.5 year old reminds me daily that we should have had him when I was 30! ha.

Good grief people at 44 im fitter than i was inmy 30's my knee plays up now and again at it take longer to recover from a good sesion. But apart from that i feel great and id still sleep with a 20 odd year old if the opertunaty arose 😉

me an badllama...

in my 40s I'm fitter than I'v ever have been, worn glasses all my life, that doesn't bother me, nothing hurts. the same belt that was on the last notch when I bought it in my twenties, is still on the last notch. Just got up from a full night's sleep.and was in a relationship a couple of years ago with a woman 15 years younger than me.

what have you been doing? 😆

The realization that interns are closer to your sons age than your own.
From the perspective of a woman, they are not being 'eyed up' but being letched at!

Having to remind myself I am 45 when talking to a 25yr old woman.

Maybe those of you who are wonderfully pain-free and "fitter than ever" in your 40s and 50s didn't do as much as some of us when you were younger? Or just lucky?
I did gymnastics 4x a week from the age of 8 to 16, cross country running, fell walking, and kayaking as a teenager. Then in my 20s: running, squash, and 5-a-side football, and commuted by bike to work. In my 30s: running, circuit training, spinning classes 3x a week, and 5-a-side football until I got pregnant at 36. All of that was while putting up with serious pain in my lower back.
I had to stop running at 40 because of my back, but I took up mountain biking and road biking and am still doing them. I can still do road rides of 100-mile+.

Blimey some of you lot are in a right state

What have you been doing

Or just lucky?

you know, I don't really drink, don't smoke, I'm a veggie, and I've been cycling and running pretty much continually since my twenties.

to mangle a quote, "the more I look after myself, the luckier I get".

Mostly it's the minor injuries taking longer and longer to go away and just generally taking longer to recover from exercise. It's also things like the general level of tiredness every day and it's certainly the hangovers taking longer to go away (hence the 'not drinking any more' thing).

Being morbid, it's also seeing more and more people I know dying. You keep wondering when it will be your turn and what will you get hit with. That might be the biggest reason I watch what I eat, don't smoke, don't drink and exercise a lot.

Oddly, I've found that my risk appetite for things has increased a lot in the last five/six years, so I am more likely to do stupid things now than at 35. Maybe it's a response to all those heart attacks I've known people die of... Wanting my end to be _not_ something random, but something of my choosing. No idea really.

Eyes changing are the main thing. Must get them tested.

Enjoy the gym 3 to 4 sessions a week and run once a week. As long as I get enough sleep then recovery doesn't seem to be a problem. Getting enough sleep however is the problem.

50 this year but chronological age is just a number. I know some younger than me who are in an awful state and some older who are still doing what they like doing when they feel like going it.

After 20 years in gyms ended in my mid 30s, 13 years on I'm aerobically fitter than I've ever been and 2 stone lighter than when I got married. Rode my first sportive on my 40th birthday.

Signs of getting older? Well, I prefer audax to sportives, and gravel to rocky trail centres.

My lower back is wrecked from an old powerlifting injury, and my osteopath is now a good friend. Injuries take longer to heal, mysterious aches and pains come and go, alcohol and/or late nights are just too hard to recover from.

Sex is an occasional treat when we are both in the mood. And awake.

A mate had to point out that technically an attractive lady 25 years our junior can no longer be referred to as jailbait. By some distance!

But the 15-18 year old young ladies that my 13 year old son will be going on a music tour with in the summer definitely are.

Looking forward to some improvements in the three years till I'm 50. A few pounds of weight to lose, a bit of gym work to develop more core strength and flexibility.

Im basically ok, I think.
Slightly fatter, and not particularly fit at the moment.
I think the worst thing is hangovers now. Jesus, more than 4 pints and Im completely destroyed the next day.

Another super power I've developed is that after 10 o clock at night I can fall asleep literally mid-sentence.

One thing this thread has shown me is how many of us at this age group are still avid bikers. 🙂

55

Hangovers last longer
Getting up in the night and longer wees
Thinking that 26" wheels will see me out.

But enjoying life more than ever

@vickyp when I was younger (13-25) I plalyed a lot of competitive sports to a reasonable level and am in no way fitter now (53). Biking is different as its more endurance which I've always been poor at, when I started mtb-ing in my mid 40's my 60yr old neighbour was fitter than me. I have no doubt my fitness was far superior at 20 than now but its possible to get to a decent level of endurance in your later mid years.

Thinking that 26" wheels will see me out.

For my 60th birthday I'm holding an informal bike race at the Stephen Burke cycle track for me and about 12-15 of my cycling friends. It's an important indication of how I intend to continue the rest of my life, God willing. We will have a coach/marshall and a training session followed by the race then we will ride over Pendle Great End to Downham where a cafe owner is laying on a barrel of Bowland Gold and a slap-up roast dinner for us all.

Nickc- like you, I've never smoked, I don't drink, I eat healthily, and have kept fit all my life, so maybe some people are lucky. 😉

Nickc- like you, I've never smoked, I don't drink, I eat healthily, and have kept fit all my life, so maybe some people are lucky.

For balance, Nick does look likes he's had a hard paper round 🙂

I recognise many of ^^ those things. On the upside, can do so much more because new Asthma drugs developed early in this century are SO much better than what came before.

The eating less to stay the same weight tho? That's so true. And damn unfair!

Fear not, y'all ageing folk. I can identify with most of the issues and ailments here and I turned 31 two weeks ago....

vickypea - Member
Maybe those of you who are wonderfully pain-free and "fitter than ever" in your 40s and 50s didn't do as much as some of us when you were younger? Or just lucky?

Ohhh, No. I've been competitive in sport all my life. Sad as it seems I once was a semi-pro roadie, t'was a long time ago now though. Then very high (World Champs level, trialed for the Olys in a Laser but failed) sailing and been windsurfing all my waking hours too, then theres the kitesurfing/paddleboarding..

Nope, only eat pretty healthy, drink little (1 pint a week, maybe 1 GnT/VnT) still have a couple of vices but now't serious enough to complain about.

Fit as a butchers dog, proven by hospital visits last year for a stomach problem, whereby the Doc's were concerned by heart was beating too slow and thought I was having a heart attack.. until I told them my sports related history..

Glasses, damn the things... 🙄

Anyone mentioned Prostate??

I thought a PSA would suffice....no says my female Dr with long fingers....I'd like to do a physical exam....Christ, I spent the morning sitting very quietly at my desk feeling violated!

Thankfully a little pill daily has sorted me reet out!

Looking at all those tired and late night wee comments I'd be thinking about sugar checks at the GP.

I got my shock a few years ago. Wasn't vastly overweight or unhealthy. Had a desk job where I was sat on my arse several hours a day.

Got a sugar check from the docs as I was getting really tired and getting up during the night. Sugar levels were sky high and I'm now on a cocktail of drugs for diabetes.

Crap pancreas is the source of most of my problems but I'm still healthier than if I just sat on the sofa. If I've learned one thing about diabetes, it's a little more complicated than being fat and lazy. It's not just sugar, I ate shed loads of rice and pasta which probably didn't do me much good.

Having to watch what I eat

+1

I am in a never ending battle to keep within 34" trousers....

I work for a "certain" emergency service...we have had new guys turn up and I am the same age as their dads.
FFS when did I become the old grumpy bugger ( or experienced font of knowledge as I prefer)

Another super power I've developed is that after 10 o clock at night I can fall asleep literally mid-sentence.

I'm impressed you stay up that late!

Yes I'm finding "a solid 8 hours a night" just isn't enough these days. I'm aiming for 9:30 tonight.

As I am getting older I seem to need less sleep...?

Can go to bed later and wake up quicker than I used too.

That of course might have something to do with trying to have a little snooze at any given time of day, when I get the chance

I feel a lot better having read all that. My main issue is that I, as I have always done, don't move around much in my sleep. This means that nowadays I end up very stiff in the morning where as I used just spring up and not even notice.

I don't get the whole weeing in the night thing even after being the pub.

I wonder what % of us are over 40? It's a lot more than I thought going by this thread .

Me, I'm over 40.

So thats one then..

Bloody reading glasses, receding/greying hair and injury/training recovery time...

Other than that, I'm the same weight as I was when I was 27 (52 now), although I went a period being 3 stone heavier! Played sport all my life rugby, sailing, cycling, motorcycle enduro, and taekwondo and now taken up competitive weightlifting again. Heavy squats have fixed my sore knee problem.

Gave up smoking 6 years ago (still chew the gum, alas) and I love proper beer and red wine.

I'm 'only' 37 (or possibly 38, I forget which), but I'm getting the odd hint from the universe I won't be 'young' for much longer. Physically I'm better now than I was 10 years ago, I'm fitter and stronger - but my arms are ruined from injuries - can't blame the clock for that though.

The things that have hit me though:

More by luck than judgement I've always been one of the youngest, if not the youngest person whenever I've worked, but the other week it was remarked that I'm now only 18 months younger than the young Lad at work's Dad, and when I mentioned the word "photocopier" to him, he didn't have a clue what I meant - not one, because who in 2016 actually makes hard copies of hard copies, it's just not done - it's a 3-in-1 or just a "printer" to young people these days, at first I thought he was insane, but when I thought about it, it's me who's out of touch - "scan to print" they call photocopying these days, and apparently only solicitors do it - the default solution these days to making more hard copies of documents is just print more, photocopying - Alien concept, and rightly so - it's just wrong.

I'm currently older than all the drivers on the F1 grid, all the riders on the MotoGP Grid and when Peaty retires at the end of the year I'll be older than all the riders on the WC circuit too.

With all my Grandparents now passed, I'm only 1 generation away from being the eldest in my Family, Mum was 60 a few days ago, which is the water-mark for 'old' in my head.

When I see pictures of me, I find myself wondering if I'm a bit under the weather, I look a bit rough, turns out it's the years, not a cold.

The one that really catches me out though, the one thing that really makes me notice the passage of time! Films, TV and Music!

I was moaning the other day about the "current fascination with Comic Book Films" and how Hollywood has run out of ideas - I mean they're remaking Spiderman again - I'm sure Toby Maguire is only about 30 and made his first one about 6-7 years ago, but it seems not - his first one came out 14 years ago and Toby's 40! If that was on TV tonight I'd have said it was pretty new! Oh and they made another series of them in between those and the one coming out soon and the rest:

The Inbetweeners - 8 years old.
Gavin and Stacy - 9 years old.
The Wire - 14 years old.
Entourage - 12 years old.

How can that lot be so old, the Inbetweeners FFS, that's last week, not the thick end of a decade ago!

When Ronnie Corbett passed away recently, I was staggered to find out Ronnie Barker passed over 10 years ago - I swear it was 3 years at the most!

The worse, though, the absolute worse is music - when I was a teenager, I kind of liked most things Radio 1 played, when I was a teenager and my tastes matured I disliked 'pop' but liked most other things, in my 30s I just moaned that R1 only played 'Pop' and little 'proper music' these days, it was only recently, very recently that whilst I do still like some current* stuff, mostly I hate it and it's not just because Radio 1 played 'Pop' made for teenagers, but the 'real music' they play has also passed me by. I'm officially too old for Radio 1, and if I was honest I was 5 years ago, for 30 years it's be my default choice on the first button on the radio, but for at least 5, if not 10 years I've put it on, they've played some music and I've said "not this shit" and gone for something else - usually my MP3 player, which means I've not heard any new music in ages - my musical palette is complete - closed if you will, not much new will ever go in. Even the "current" stuff in my Apple Music is 4-5 years old at best, the 'new' bands I like, like Kings of Leon, the Killers and Mark Ronson are actually all 10 years old at least. (I do like James Bay though).

I can't deny it any longer, I'm holding onto 'young' with the skin of my teeth - it's middle age for me soon, and whilst I'll never being "boring and middle aged" I've reached the point when pretending to be young just looks desperate and embarrassing.

Can't burn the candle at both ends any more
The 30" waist is long gone
Old lower back injury that easily reminds me of its existence!
It gets harder to "get back on the horse" after accidents
Drop bar, rim-braked bikes suddenly feel very unsafe! 😆

On the subject of prostate / PSA tests, I have been diagnosed with benign, enlarged prostate but PSA tests are negative. I was first diagnosed 3 years ago and told I was too young to get treatment on the NHS or would have to go private for an op that could screw-up my plumbing! Main problem is simply down to reduced bladder capacity - grateful that the rest of my health is OK AFAIK and making the most of it.

dovebiker - good you are on top of it. Me and a few others on here got diagnosed with prostate cancer in our late 40's. Vigilance is the key...

I went to the docs a year or two back, before I was 40 certainly, with a urinary infection. Whilst there the lady doc asked if I'd had a prostrate exam. As the answer was no and because of my age she decided it was time for one, or maybe she just really liked me. Her next question was "would you rather a male doctor did the exam?" I know enough about prostrate exams to know I didn't want somebody with bigger fingers, hers were quite dainty, so I said no thanks. I don't think I've been back to the docs. In post 40 related issues, I had been thinking of playing football again, something I stopped doing 2 years ago after 15 stone of arsehole fell on top of me with the ball trapped under my leg, resulting in a sprained knee. But after having a kick about with my son last week I felt sore enough after 40 mins of crossing the ball so he could practise headers that I changed my mind. I should really try and do some yoga.

Thanks to a rather nasty case of Prostatitis / Kidney Infection 8 years ago, I've had no end of Prostate exams, tests, screenings of my nether regions. After 8 months, end results is plumbing was working ok but have lost 10% kidney function (not that it matters as you only need one kidney and mine are 15% bigger than normal thanks to a quirk of genetics).

My 5 yo grandson said to me the other day "you're the next one in our family who's going to die, aren't you?" Cheered me up no end

stevenmenmuir - Member

15 stone of arsehole

That sounds like a job for bigger fingers tbh

My 5 yo grandson said to me the other day "you're the next one in our family who's going to die, aren't you?" Cheered me up no end

When I turned 50 - I said to my elder son that I was two-thirds of the way to death - he said " No... four-fifths... "

I dodn't know whether to feel happy that he had managed enough maths to make a joke, or upset. 🙁

Clubbing - having it indecently large on the dance floor with a load of people young enough to be my children.

Once asked a girl if she ever went to the original Insomniacz back in the day. When she said no I asked why - 'because I was only 7 at the time' came the reply.

[/DBG scuttles off to dark corner of club trying not to feel lie a perv]

Nearer 50 than 40, but I've been very lucky and don't feel to have any real problems. Back is a bit stiffer than it used to be, but that was due to a slipped disk 15 years ago which has not troubled me since. About as fit as I've ever been, running marathons (which I never did when young) and although I'm no great talent, I'm towards the quick end of the local running club. Hold my own in cycling events too. All my own teeth (no fillings), no specs, bit thin on top but who cares. Haven't noticed the grey matter failing, but maybe you don't until it's really bad??

I blame cycling to work every day. Though of course I've been lucky too.

At 20 I was proud of the narrowness of my waist, and broadness of my mind.
At 40 I realised they'd traded places ??

"Other than those small issues, I'm still one sexy hunk of human male full of get up and go.. Never felt better fitness and psychologically wise, combine that with wit and aged charm and I'm one helluva catch."

Realised I was getting on when I found myself enthusiatically weighing up the pros and cons of collapsable garden furniture. It's exciting stuff you know!

I found out today that my gall bladder is "pristine", which is some comfort!

I wonder what % of us are over 40? It's a lot more than I thought going by this thread .