Don't underestimate old guy strength

Hot648

Active Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2024
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25
Location
Florida
I'm not that old. Only 36. But my fitness has definitely fallen off a bit in the last few years.

That being said, I still do the "Murph" workout every year. I've been getting gradually slower since my peak at about age 31.

Well, this young guy (23) that works for me started talking some friendly trash about beating me at Murph, and called me old. He's never done Murph before, and he's not a real impressive specimen, but he does some running and lifting a few days a week.

Anyways, I went with it. I agreed with him that I'm getting old and I've lost a step in my old age. I told him that he should come over this year and do Murph with us, even though he'd probably beat me. Then I started training with an extra fire that I haven't had in a while. It's been fun to have some extra motivation, and push myself a little harder, and I think there's a chance that I get a fair bit faster this year.


Anyways, that kid doesn't know the fire he lit, and he won't till memorial day. He keeps talking smack at work, and I just smile and agree with him.
 
I am in my late 50s. Never athletic but grew up working my tail off on the family farm
My daughter played every sport in high school then played club soccer in Europe until a year ago. I am currently visiting her in Spain. We are walking over 20000 steps every day. Yesterday we rented bicycles. I thought I was keeping up well until leaving the pub after midnight last night…..had to walk my bike up a hill
 
WOW Peak at "31" and OLD at "36".
What are you a "Millennial"

I started to "PEAK" around "60" and then had a spinal cord "Operation" @62 that went bad. So that slowed me down. I am still waiting to get "OLD". Probably another 20 years.🙏 🚫OLD.
Yep. Peaked @ 60. When I was 60 I got married...now at 84 I have seen signs of slowing down.....it is a b%%%%% trying to get up after keeling to pick up brass.
 
WOW Peak at "31" and OLD at "36".
What are you a "Millennial"

I started to "PEAK" around "60" and then had a spinal cord "Operation" @62 that went bad. So that slowed me down. I am still waiting to get "OLD". Probably another 20 years.🙏 🚫OLD.

Depends on the trade and some life choices. During the cod rush, 25 on deck was old and 30 was a fossil.

Some Jobs beat the body down harder than others. I've lost a few steps since 21, it's mitigated a bit by the weakness of gen z so it doesn't feel like as big a gap..

Fished for some tough guys in my teens and early 20s, then again in my late 20s. They went from late 50s to late 60s in that time. Boy we got a lot more sleep the second time around...

Still on the sunny side of 40, my goal for the last 2 years is to no longer be the toughest guy on the boat, ready for gen z to step up and fill that role. Fingers crossed after 40 I'll be able to tell stories of the tough young men who run the deck.
 
I am 53. I feel I am in pretty decent shape. And much better shape than most of the guys my age that I know.

I got a lesson two years ago. Work smarter not harder has been my motto for a while now. Went on an elk hunt with my 27 year old nephew who just got out of the military and is a ruck-runner. While I went up every single mountain he did, I did the skirt around to the top while he went straight up. He never did beat me to the top by much though. We averaged 7.2 miles (IIRC) and 4k' of elevation change a day for 7 days straight.

Got the most backhanded compliment I have ever heard. "You are in really good shape...for a guy your age." Little $#!t.
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I am in great shape...glad pear is a great shape. I am not where I consider myself old either. Early 50's is a change, but still able to work 14 hour days 6 days a week and I can keep up when hiking with gun and pack with much younger hunters. It amazes me how I used to think 40 was ancient, and now I think 80 is not but middle age. I can certainly lose about 50 lbs but I could be much worse off. If I can drop that 50, I will be back down to my fighting weight when I lived in Brazil.

I hope you show that "kid" what us OLD guys can do. Hope you are not just getting our hopes up.
 
I am 53. I feel I am in pretty decent shape. And much better shape than most of the guys my age that I know.

I got a lesson two years ago. Work smarter not harder has been my motto for a while now. Went on an elk hunt with my 27 year old nephew who just got out of the military and is a ruck-runner. While I went up every single mountain he did, I did the skirt around to the top while he went straight up. He never did beat me to the top by much though. We averaged 7.2 miles (IIRC) and 4k' of elevation change a day for 7 days straight.

Got the most backhanded compliment I have ever heard. "You are in really good shape...for a guy your age." Little $#!t.
Hahahah that reminds me of something a little over 10 years ago when my dad still farmed and I was in college…well one summer day me and my friend were at the farm and were helping him shovel out grain bins, the old school flat bottom kind. At that point he was 63 and my friend and I were 20 and 21 and my dad absolutely TRASHED us in terms of how much grain he was moving, he had the old man strength but even more so the technique and efficiency that came with having done this sort of thing for a very long time. My friend wasn't in as good a shape as me cardio wise and was visibly winded and red when we got done the first bin…and I saw out of the corner of my eye, my dad standing there with his grain scoop cool as a cucumber and just looking at us trying to catch our breath…. and he had the most SMUG grin on his face I had ever seen, didn't say a word just stood there grinning which somehow was even worse!!!! 🤣

My friend expressed his surprise at how my dad could go that hard at his age haha…but my dad was honest about one thing and said

"years of experience…but the difference is you boys probably won't feel a thing tomorrow and I will for three days now"
 
I'm 57. Been a runner (then jogger) since I was 18. Just got an inguinal hernia so have to transition to walking with a truss on. The hernias not that bad, only 1.7 cm protrusion so I'm managing it for now. Anyway, I didn't see a real decline until about 47. The first ting I noticed was the inability to handle trauma, like jumping out of the bed of my truck or climbing stand. Then, going down stairs was getting hard on the knees. All in all, I'm in pretty good shape. I could stand to eat (and drink) less and better however. The worst thing about getting old is going to the Urologist, I have found….😬😬😬
 
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