Fear & age?

[Sky King]

Getting old ain't for sissies. What I do enjoy is that I have moved beyond needing to compare what I do to what others do. Although I will confess to pushing back on limitations, I do make a conscious effort to "play smart". I avoid group rides, I avoid high traffic roads, I realize a "full day" of skiing for me is a bit shorter than when I was in my 20's.

The DH wrote a pretty soul barring blog post just prior to our Death Valley trip that fits somewhat into this thread. Here is the last sentence: "I will die…. violently, peacefully, suddenly, unexpectedly, accidentally or by my own hand…. I will die. But right now I want to go ride my bicycle in the desert."

[Crankin]

I guess that saying (getting old ain't for sissies)is emblematic of what I mean. Why say that? If you think you're old, you'll act it. This is apart from slowing down or needing more rest when exercising like most of us do. What exactly is it, about getting old that's not for sissies? From my perspective, I'm more self aware, I have a lot more money, and I have a job I love. I don't let negative people bring me down and I've divested myself from all relatives who are dysfunctional. If an emergency or something bad happens, I can handle it a lot better now than I could when I was 20, 30, or even 40. My life has not been perfect, but maybe because most of the bad stuff happened when I was young, I have a different view.
I think people say this as it applies to health problems. If you are active, a lot of those things just aren't a problem. Of course, cycling, etc. does not totally protect you from disease, but it sure helps you survive illness mentally. What I do makes me tough. Sure, I may be more cautious, but my frame of mind is different than a lot of others I know.

[lph]

Hm, I don't understand why you dislike the phrase. To me it means (roughly) "as you get older things you took for granted when you were young become harder work. You'll need to keep up regular training, you'll need more rest, you'll be more aware of aches and pains, and injuries will take longer to heal. So toughen up." In other words - don't stop doing active stuff, and don't complain if it's a bit harder work. I think that's a pretty good message.

[OakLeaf]

I'm with Crankin there. I hate that phrase, and not just for the misogyny/homophobia of the word "sissy." I've never heard anyone use the phrase whose understanding of the aging process was "more recovery, but also more intervals."

Which is not to say I haven't heard people use the phrase who were trying to stay active in their frailty. But they haven't been working smart, just making stabs at trying to do things they no longer could, not trying to improve their form, using weights that were too heavy, etc.

I don't know, because I'm not there yet, and I don't really intend to get there ... I do know that aging makes it harder and harder to adjust to new things, and maybe they really can't learn. But I wasn't really joking when I said I'd get a new sport. Just as some people say they'll be done when they can't learn new ideas ... I'll be done when I can't learn new things about my body.

[Sky King]

Ohhhhh sorry, didn't mean to offend anybody. It is a weird phrase isn't it. For me it means much as lph says. The "alternative" is something that will happen eventually and in the meantime I think great conversations, like this thread are invaluable. I will always remember by FIL saying to my DH that he thought my DH was getting to old for that crazy stuff - riding his bike! and he had just turned 50. You can all imagine my DH's response to that

[Crankin]

Oakleaf, you hit it on target. People i know who use that phrase are not worrying about recovery periods or trying out a new sport.
Sky King, I am not offended by you, I just think that it's something people say when they have aged poorly, because maybe, unlike most of us, they have not given a thought to the long term effects of their lifestyle on their health. And, I just hate the negativity it projects.
I think I have strong feelings about all of this because when I was a kid and into my teens, I was totally unathletic. I'm still uncoordinated in a lot of ways, but once I had a inkling that I had some endurance ability, my feelings about a lot of stuff has changed. Being fit secretly boosts my ego in a way that could have helped a lot when I was younger.

[lph]

Right. People I know who say something of the sort are usually active types who have been active their whole lives, and are griping about how things take more effort. Good-naturedly, I might add . I can see that it sounds very different if people say it by way of complaining that their age is the sole reason that they're unfit or whatever.

Come to think of it, I don't hang out much (or at least listen much to) people in that second category... :-D