My health issues all started surfacing the last few years (just turned 65). Seems like I'm falling apart at times.
lament on old age.
- Thread starter grover99
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Don't let the old man in...................Sung by Toby Kith.
BLACKHAWKNJ
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A few aches and pains, otherwise doing OK for 75, I am the envy of a lot of younger people. Slacked off on my bicycling this year, now some of the hills have gotten a lot steeper.
I turn 73 in July and there is not doubt that I ain't the man I used to be. There was a time that I believe that I could have walked to California, now the 1/4 trip to the mailbox is a chore. Then again, the man I used to be ain't the current me either and I wouldn't swap with him. It is hard to accept slowing down, but I am trying to roll with it.
My health is good but my energy level is low. Part of my aging process has made me a mechanic; I specialize in installing rear ends in recliners. I used to wonder why my Mother in Law went to so many funerals, I am now getting it, it is smug gloating over your contemporaries that you outlived. A good third of my highschool class is dead and buried. (better them than me) The gloating thing is exactly why I have requested to skip a public funeral or a death notice in the newspapers. People important to me will know and everybody else can keep wondering.
50 target
Member
Too soon old and too late smart. At 79 I discovered that my mind and body got divorced without telling me. My mind says we are going to do such and such. My body says what are you thinking? You're gonna kill both of us.
LOL
LOL
Same here. I am inexplicably Becoming One with The Power of the Nap. Mind "still on highway at 60 but body wants to do 20 in school zone." Evenings like this I should be doing something useful like loading ammo but I'm lying on the couch with the cat, listening to music.
Time with the family is important.
'79 Magnum GT
Member
I agree! I do the same thing with my 2 collies everyday. Gets a bit cramped with all three of us on the couch though.
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Maybe a couple tips of what seems to be working for me. I'm 80, fully retired (as is the wife who is 77), everything paid off, literally fat, dumb and happy until last year, July 1 to be specific, crushing weight on chest, wife called a crash wagon and I wake up later with heart attack and stent installed. Doc says quit smoking or die, start exercising or die, cut the heavy sugars (A1C), bad cholestrol (LDL) or die.
Believe it or not, the man was right!!!! Have not had a cigarette, or cigar, since July 1, 2024. Bought a recumbent bike (works the whole body), to go along with the stationary bike and Nordic Track Treadmill that we have owned for 25 years (wife uses daily...me never until now). So.....now days, 3 times per week, 5 minutes warmup on the Gold's Gym stationary bike, 10 minutes on Treadmill at 1.5% incline and 2.0 mph; 12 minutes on Sunny Health Systems recumbent smart bike at 70 to 80 watts, resistance level 4 which is all exactly the same as the 13 week mandatory Hospital Cardio Rehab Program that I attended right after the heart attack.
Yea...........getting old sure is a crummy deal, but I actually am 11 lbs lighter than a year ago, feel like I'm back 20 years ago physically, biceps actually looking fairly good again. Food tastes and smells great, especially the no fast food, healthy meals the wife has always made...I just never seemed to notice, dropped two complete jean sizes (waist...not length).....may have to invest in new gun belts!
I know....I know.... I sound like a reformed drunk or born again guy....preaching to the choir.....but it is working for me, could maybe work for you in lessening the effects of getting old...........and NO.....I still hate broccoli, don't eat many salads, love fish (any kind anywhere, any style) and definitely have a filet mignon at least once a week... and pie (also any kind, anywhere). Just backed way, way off from Big Macks, Popeye's, Kentucky Fried, etc and the dozen Krispy Kremes every other day.
Equipment Costs? $600 for the Sunny Health recumbent bike, $200 for the Gold's Gym 290C stationary bike (years ago), $600 for the Nordic Track Treadmill (also years ago)................so a heck of a lot less than some of our prized Smith & Wesson treasures
Believe it or not, the man was right!!!! Have not had a cigarette, or cigar, since July 1, 2024. Bought a recumbent bike (works the whole body), to go along with the stationary bike and Nordic Track Treadmill that we have owned for 25 years (wife uses daily...me never until now). So.....now days, 3 times per week, 5 minutes warmup on the Gold's Gym stationary bike, 10 minutes on Treadmill at 1.5% incline and 2.0 mph; 12 minutes on Sunny Health Systems recumbent smart bike at 70 to 80 watts, resistance level 4 which is all exactly the same as the 13 week mandatory Hospital Cardio Rehab Program that I attended right after the heart attack.
Yea...........getting old sure is a crummy deal, but I actually am 11 lbs lighter than a year ago, feel like I'm back 20 years ago physically, biceps actually looking fairly good again. Food tastes and smells great, especially the no fast food, healthy meals the wife has always made...I just never seemed to notice, dropped two complete jean sizes (waist...not length).....may have to invest in new gun belts!
I know....I know.... I sound like a reformed drunk or born again guy....preaching to the choir.....but it is working for me, could maybe work for you in lessening the effects of getting old...........and NO.....I still hate broccoli, don't eat many salads, love fish (any kind anywhere, any style) and definitely have a filet mignon at least once a week... and pie (also any kind, anywhere). Just backed way, way off from Big Macks, Popeye's, Kentucky Fried, etc and the dozen Krispy Kremes every other day.
Equipment Costs? $600 for the Sunny Health recumbent bike, $200 for the Gold's Gym 290C stationary bike (years ago), $600 for the Nordic Track Treadmill (also years ago)................so a heck of a lot less than some of our prized Smith & Wesson treasures
Getting old is like puberty in reverse. 
YeshuaIsa53
Member
Getting old ain't for sissies, someone used to say.
Doriangray6
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According to several VA ortho doctors all the worn, damaged, and rebuilt body parts I've accumulated over the years have resulted in my body being 25 years older than my real age so next year when I hit 75 technically my body will be 100 years old. 
Oh well......... I've lived far longer than I ever thought I would and had a lot of fun wearing this body out and when people ask me if I'd known that I was going to live this long would I have taken better care of myself I tell them no, I would have travelled to more places and done more things to remember.
Oh well......... I've lived far longer than I ever thought I would and had a lot of fun wearing this body out and when people ask me if I'd known that I was going to live this long would I have taken better care of myself I tell them no, I would have travelled to more places and done more things to remember.
I bought a Nordic Track walking machine, used, about 30 years ago. Used if for a week and was so bored I started walking outside, which, for me, is a whole lot more entertaining...
Feelin pretty spry at 74 until my grandson ask if I fought for the North or the South. Guess I must be ancient to him. LOL. All started when I showed him my Daisy 25 pump from back around 61-62. Thought that was the gun I fought with! Don't think I would have lasted very long.
TRUE..........IT"S #1.........
Just passed the 74 mark this month. Without acupuncture I would be in a world of hurt. Get a treatment every other week and my new normal is pretty decent. Electro-stimulation is the hot ticket, night and day difference over traditional needle only system. I can eat whatever I want, just had my cataracts done this past year, back to winning shooting matches. My only real complaint is that I had my prostate removed twenty-two years ago and back then you pretty much said goodbye to spontaneous sex, thats all. Don't get me wrong I'm able to walk for miles, uneven ground is a bit tough on my back and knee joints but I get around pretty well, I'm grateful, I may be great grandfather this year.
^^^ This.
The memories of an old man are the deeds of a man in his prime.
Ya shuffle in the gloom of your sick room, and talk to yourself as you die...
Ya shuffle in the gloom of your sick room, and talk to yourself as you die...
Jäger1
Member
Yeah... that line and another from another song from about the same time: The dream never dies, just the dreamer.
I have many of the laundry list of physical shortcomings for those of us in our 70's. But they weren't what made me realize just how much I've physically changed since retirement, despite continuing to work as a safety officer in industry.
I played a lot of badminton and then squash and racquetball into my 30's, until I was posted to where playing any of those sports was either impossible or took so much driving to get there it wasn't worth it.
Started playing pickleball in January, looked like an easy sport for a former racquet sports hotshot like me. (actually not: I got humbled... I think it's a game rigged to give the advantage to those who used to play tennis, which I never did)
Anyways, the recreation facility I belong to has glass panels along the back of the courts where the walkway to the changerooms and pools are. In going backwards to try and save a high clear hit to the back line, in turning I tripped over my feet and fell into the glass panels. The safety glass wasn't safe - it shattered and chunks of it falling from the frame fell on my head, shoulders and arms.
No real drama other than lots of lacerations that had two physicians assistants doing tag team suturing on me, one on each side for an hour. The crochet work was more drama and annoying than actually going through the glass.
However... the facility is denying any liability and refusing to pay my medical bills, despite the fact I have found those same glass panels have broken previously, and they keep putting the same grade of glass back in.
ANYWAYS... to fight for compensation I finally got my hands on the surveillance video from the cameras in the gym. They gave me the footage covering five minutes before I went through the glass to five minutes afterwards.
So for five minutes I watched video footage of this old guy's stiff-legged lumbering around the pickleball court to serve and return balls, etc.
If I didn't know that I was the guy I was watching in that footage, I would not have recognized myself. "Awkwardly slow" is a perfect description of what I watched and saw of that guy and how he moved.
Now that has been a real 'out of body' experience to me. A bucket of ice water in the face, showing me that even when you think you're pragmatic about what you're losing as you get old, your self-image doesn't even begin to match the reality the rest of the world is seeing as you live your life in old age.
Of course it sucks. But I never lose sight of the fact some friends came home in aluminum boxes while others are getting old in wheelchairs or missing a few essential parts here and there. I know I'm lucky to be as active and as healthy as I am in comparison to most of the kids I went through school with and those I served in the military with.
In old age, we're all on the very wrong side of the bell curve and probability statistics, and most of the events for family and friends we get notified of are funerals, not marriages and christenings.
Wow… this topic is deep and wide.
I hesitated to post a comment.
I suppose like many of you, I could write a book on my experiences and thoughts on “aging”. I have some wisdom to share, but I have discovered that almost no one really cares. Can you tell people how to live or die?
Aging and death are inevitable, but with self-care we can age with less pain and discomfort and have a more enjoyable physical and mental life in ages past the “over-the-hill” age of 50.
Stats show only about 50% of American adults claim to actively try to eat healthy. Why do the other 50% choose to die at an earlier age than they should?
Well-documented research and studies indicate that by just doing very basic common sense activities, educating yourself, and developing health conscientious behavior you can extend your life by 10 to 20+ years. If you are not seriously focused on your body, health, and diet by age 50, your LACK of health may be seriously focused on YOU.
The human body is the most miraculous living thing on Earth. It can perform incredible feats of building and repair. It can take a high level, but limited, amount of neglect and abuse, then it suffers and dies.
In November of 2020, I took an online course from a Yale University professor, Laurie R. Santos, called “The Science of Well-Being”. It is by far the most influential education I have ever experienced. At age 72 it changed my life and my thinking.
According to Sonja Lyubomirsky (Sonja Lyubomirsky is a Russian-born American professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside and author of The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want.), The 3 factors that determine our general happiness are: 50% Genetic setpoint- our DNA, 10% Life Circumstances – like accidents, and 40% Our Intentional Actions and Thoughts.
How many people actually understand and exercise their 40% of control of their happiness?
I found this guy is spot on with nearly everything about aging.
I hesitated to post a comment.
I suppose like many of you, I could write a book on my experiences and thoughts on “aging”. I have some wisdom to share, but I have discovered that almost no one really cares. Can you tell people how to live or die?
Aging and death are inevitable, but with self-care we can age with less pain and discomfort and have a more enjoyable physical and mental life in ages past the “over-the-hill” age of 50.
Stats show only about 50% of American adults claim to actively try to eat healthy. Why do the other 50% choose to die at an earlier age than they should?
Well-documented research and studies indicate that by just doing very basic common sense activities, educating yourself, and developing health conscientious behavior you can extend your life by 10 to 20+ years. If you are not seriously focused on your body, health, and diet by age 50, your LACK of health may be seriously focused on YOU.
The human body is the most miraculous living thing on Earth. It can perform incredible feats of building and repair. It can take a high level, but limited, amount of neglect and abuse, then it suffers and dies.
In November of 2020, I took an online course from a Yale University professor, Laurie R. Santos, called “The Science of Well-Being”. It is by far the most influential education I have ever experienced. At age 72 it changed my life and my thinking.
According to Sonja Lyubomirsky (Sonja Lyubomirsky is a Russian-born American professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside and author of The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want.), The 3 factors that determine our general happiness are: 50% Genetic setpoint- our DNA, 10% Life Circumstances – like accidents, and 40% Our Intentional Actions and Thoughts.
How many people actually understand and exercise their 40% of control of their happiness?
I found this guy is spot on with nearly everything about aging.
