# Energy levels as you age.



## ren531 (6 Mar 2021)

How have others experienced as you age your physical energy droping off, this is a work related thing more than a cycling thing, my job is outside working in a yard 9 hours a day lifting, carrying, walking and only rarely having a sit down role. Been there well over a decade, up to age 56 could keep up with all the youngsters I work with no problems now age a couple of months short of 59, over the last couple of years my energy levels have slowly eroded away and ever day is a struggle, used to love running around there getting things done, I've taken plenty of steps to limit the physical effort I put in but to no avail I know plenty of guy's my age but non of them work in a fully physical environment so can't make a direct comparison, I also cycle to work which probably doesn't help but that's the bit I do enjoy so not giving that up.
How have other's experienced this ageing process as they go into their late 50s/early 60s, I eat healthy have a positive attitude to most things and this has been a long gradual process not a sudden drop off.


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## vickster (6 Mar 2021)

Have you seen a dr? Had a full work up?
Hormone levels drop with age in both sexes, perhaps your testosterone level needs testing?


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## OldShep (6 Mar 2021)

I recognise your symptoms. I too worked manually outdoors with some long hours some days in summer could be from 5am til midnight and a day off was unheard of for months on end. I’d done it all my life and many young people couldn’t keep pace. From the age of 55 I felt a gradual tiring especially after really heavy days. Aged 58 I just could not seem to recover from long days and would spend weeks really struggling. Aged 59 i'd had enough and retired.
Spent the next 6 months doing projects at home id put off for 20 years because I was too busy at work. The pleasure of starting when I wanted and stopping when I was tired was immense and my well-being improved monthly. So much so aged 60 I got a part time job, that wasn’t manual, and the next 5 years gained a valuable insight into another working world which I knew nothing about because I was always busy at work.
My advice, knowing what I know now, don’t knock your pan out and work yourself into ill health. I’ve seen two guys I know do exactly that. Secondly there are a lot of people drawing wages without breaking into a sweat or bending their back and are probably going to draw a pension a lot longer than someone who’s had a lifetime of hard physical graft.


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## gbb (6 Mar 2021)

You are where you are in life, I guess acceptance is the key (assuming you're not doing something wrong)
63, I feel the difference, I dont have the upper body strength I used to and do get achy through the day (and night) but that's probably osteo arthritis plus a serious health issue 10 years ago.
But I still run flights of stairs at work, I still keep going and a 35 year old at work cant keep up with me.

Dont try to overcome the natural process, there has to be an inevitability to it and growing (or slightly shrinking) to accept it and live within it seems to me a quite natural...and healthy thing to do.
All of that of course is assuming there is nothing underlying. If you're concerned it's coming too soon, a visit to the docs might put your mind at rest.


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## Drago (6 Mar 2021)

52 here, just starting to feel a bit lethargic in the mornings, and a little more prone to doze off in the afternoon if I'm not active.

I'm finding the trick is to keep a daily routine going and stick to it rigidly. That and crack cocaine.

When the brown stuff hits the blade rotating object I can keep up with the 21 year olds, and then some, but I can't sustain it 24/7 and I'm not about to risk illness or injury trying.

Having retired at 47 I do wonder if it might play out differently for me, be it better or worse. Either way, ill keep pushing my daily routine until that becomes difficult.


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## Cycleops (6 Mar 2021)

You cannot expect to have the same level of energy you had in your thirties and forties. It’s a natural process and part of life. You’ve done all you can with a healthy diet etc. I should try to find something less physically demanding, it’ll make a world of difference to your well-being. Analyse what you’re good at and enjoy doing and find something along those lines. Any hobbies that could be expanded into an income source?


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## I like Skol (6 Mar 2021)

gbb said:


> If you're concerned it's coming too soon, a visit to the docs might put your mind at rest.


Your doctor will probably be a 20 stone couch potato and think you are some kind of physical God for being so active at your age...... (What, you can ride a bicycle for 5 miles? In one go?)


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## Sharky (6 Mar 2021)

Took the grandsons out (in prehistoric times), and they were running backwards and forwards, jumping up and down. Must have covered 10 times the distance we walked. My son popped over to help move stuff around. He just picked things up by himself and carried them upstairs. It was taking me and the OH all our efforts to do the same.

I remember seeing my dad out on the bike, some 30 years ago, plodding along and thinking he was riding like an "old man". Now when I go out, I think I am riding just like he was.


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## ren531 (6 Mar 2021)

vickster said:


> Have you seen a dr? Had a full work up?
> Hormone levels drop with age in both sexes, perhaps your testosterone level needs testing?


Not seen a Doc, It is just age related I supose and still getting used to the idea.


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## vickster (6 Mar 2021)

ren531 said:


> Not seen a Doc, It is just age related I supose and still getting used to the idea.


It may not simply be age related however, hence having an MOT (I think everyone over 40 should every few years regardless, much better to pick up potential issues early)


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## ren531 (6 Mar 2021)

OldShep said:


> I recognise your symptoms. I too worked manually outdoors with some long hours some days in summer could be from 5am til midnight and a day off was unheard of for months on end. I’d done it all my life and many young people couldn’t keep pace. From the age of 55 I felt a gradual tiring especially after really heavy days. Aged 58 I just could not seem to recover from long days and would spend weeks really struggling. Aged 59 i'd had enough and retired.
> Spent the next 6 months doing projects at home id put off for 20 years because I was too busy at work. The pleasure of starting when I wanted and stopping when I was tired was immense and my well-being improved monthly. So much so aged 60 I got a part time job, that wasn’t manual, and the next 5 years gained a valuable insight into another working world which I knew nothing about because I was always busy at work.
> My advice, knowing what I know now, don’t knock your pan out and work yourself into ill health. I’ve seen two guys I know do exactly that. Secondly there are a lot of people drawing wages without breaking into a sweat or bending their back and are probably going to draw a pension a lot longer than someone who’s had a lifetime of hard physical graft.


Respect to you for the long days indeed. 
My workplace is reasonably civilised and not TOO physically demanding I've always found it easy with only short periods of tiredness but the length of the tired periods are growing longer and longer and I do have understanding bosses and work mates but I do want to pull my weight and not become a burden.


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## ren531 (6 Mar 2021)

Cycleops said:


> You cannot expect to have the same level of energy you had in your thirties and forties. It’s a natural process and part of life. You’ve done all you can with a healthy diet etc. I should try to find something less physically demanding, it’ll make a world of difference to your well-being. Analyse what you’re good at and enjoy doing and find something along those lines. Any hobbies that could be expanded into an income source?


I think up till i was 56 I thought 'yeh this age thing is ok not affecting me at all' but then of course it did. I do have other options for employment but rather stay were I am if possible.


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## ren531 (6 Mar 2021)

I


vickster said:


> It may not simply be age related however, hence having an MOT (I think everyone over 40 should every few years regardless, much better to pick up potential issues early)


I did have an mot check up late last year and everything was fine.


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## ren531 (6 Mar 2021)

Drago said:


> 52 here, just starting to feel a bit lethargic in the mornings, and a little more prone to doze off in the afternoon if I'm not active.
> 
> I'm finding the trick is to keep a daily routine going and stick to it rigidly. That and crack cocaine.
> 
> ...


Yeh cocain might help, but seriously i do know what you mean about not having the stamina you used to.


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## Ming the Merciless (28 Aug 2021)

Metabolism stays pretty level from your 20s to 60s. Then declines. In my mid 50s and so far no decline with energy. About as active as I’ve always been. I think what does change is how much recovery you need after a hard physical session. I’m assuming that your weight has remained static since your 20s. If you’ve allowed your weight to creep that can be a cause of lower energy levels. Fat cells aren’t biologically inert. They consumes nutrients and oxygen just like any other cell in your body.

You might just need more recovery periods to restore your energy levels.


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## Gillstay (28 Aug 2021)

Odd thing I find, now I am over 60 is that i do a hard days work and in the evening I am not hungry. Next day, hungry all day, where as before a good evening meal was a must.


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## Rusty Nails (28 Aug 2021)

Ming the Merciless said:


> Metabolism stays pretty level from your 20s to 60s. Then declines. In my mid 50s and so far no decline with energy. About as active as I’ve always been. I think what does change is how much recovery you need after a hard physical session. I’m assuming that your weight has remained static since your 20s. If you’ve allowed your weight to creep that can be a cause of lower energy levels. Fat cells aren’t biologically inert. They consumes nutrients and oxygen just like any other cell in your body.
> 
> You might just need more recovery periods to restore your energy levels.



I have found that I was fine stamina-wise until my 60s but after that hard work needed longer recovery or rest times. The slide was very gradual through my 60s but I am now 74 and only 7/8 lbs heavier than I was in my 20s and things are much more tiring. Five hours heavy gardening one day last week, including pruning big branches off some tall leylandii trees and trimming 80ft of tall privet hedge and bagging up the waste, took a couple more tea breaks than normal and I was too knackered to go for a bike ride the next day. Ten years ago the same work was easy. I won't do a day return trip from Cardiff to London by car any more and when I was working often used to do a 300 mile round trip with 6 hours of meetings.

Aging is not for wimps.


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## I like Skol (28 Aug 2021)

Rusty Nails said:


> Aging is not for wimps.


No country for old men!


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## ColinJ (29 Aug 2021)

I like Skol said:


> No country for old men!


@colly romped up some steep stuff ahead of me to get up here last Monday...







He is 70 in a few weeks time!


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## JtB (29 Aug 2021)

Just re-discovered porridge and that seems to have given my energy levels a much needed boost.


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## Buck (29 Aug 2021)

Age plays a large factor in this as does general fitness. When doing any activity, mental strength and a positive attitude also help immensely.

I don’t think it is a case of age in isolation, more like an accumulation of activity and the need for the body to recover. 

I feel as though I am as fit as I have ever been but recovery does take me longer, much longer. This is compounded by my autoimmune disorder which can sometimes sap me of energy without any activity.


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## Mike Ayling (30 Aug 2021)

Buck said:


> Age plays a large factor in this as does general fitness. When doing any activity, mental strength and a positive. Elide also help immensely.
> 
> I don’t think it is a case of age in isolation, more like an accumulation of activity and the need for the body to recover.
> 
> I feel as though I am as fit as I have ever been but recovery does take me longer, much longer. This is compounded by my autoimmune disorder which can sometimes sap me of energy without any activity.


Muscle loss - should not affect the op as he is still doing manual labour but can be an issue for the more sedentary of
us. Notice how your quads shrink away in your seventies!


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## yello (30 Aug 2021)

I'm thankful for this thread, its timelyness for me, so thank you to @ren531 for starting it. It

I'm 60 now and have noticed energy levels tailing off these last 3 or 4 years. I've had some minor ailments, aches and pains over the summer (I consider them to be 'age related' ) and mentioned them to my doc a few weeks back. They've given me a referral to a cardiologist but stressed it's simply precautionary, so not to worry - part of the MOT.

Tbh, I'm not used to being old and it's kinda caught me out. I've always been in good health and pretty robust. So I struggle with knowing what to accept as simply due to age, and what might be worth seeing a doctor about.

I think one has to accept the reality of aging, and take it into account, and yet at the same time know when something isn't right. It probably just takes a bit of time to find that balance when, as I say, it's new to you.


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## oldwheels (30 Aug 2021)

You are all youngsters still in my eyes.
I was able to keep going until well into my 70's as I was a full time carer for my wife and keeping a large vegetable garden.
I gave up touring just before the start of the pandemic. I was on my own by then and free to come or go as I pleased but suddenly lost the ability to do longer distances on the bike or the motorhome. I want to go back to Shetland but the 200 mile drive to Aberdeen is now daunting. I used to think nothing of doing the return trip in a day.
The lockdown put the final nail in my fitness as I could not travel anymore and now aged 86 with a trike I can only manage about 20 miles or so comfortably but need a rest day after two consecutive days. Short steep hills I can manage ok but longer ones are a problem.
Currently while I hate to mention this the touroid avalanche restricts my mileage even further and I have to go out very early morning to get any exercise at all on a restricted distance which I repeat to get a reasonable workout. I cannot even get to the mainland due to ferries being blocked by the aforementioned tourists where I could get longer distance runs in comfort.
I do have the expected health problems age brings including aortic stenosis but the local health service keeps an eye on me regularly.
Do whatever you can while you still can as a day will come suddenly when you lose it.


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## fossyant (30 Aug 2021)

oldwheels said:


> You are all youngsters still in my eyes.
> I was able to keep going until well into my 70's as I was a full time carer for my wife and keeping a large vegetable garden.
> I gave up touring just before the start of the pandemic. I was on my own by then and free to come or go as I pleased but suddenly lost the ability to do longer distances on the bike or the motorhome. I want to go back to Shetland but the 200 mile drive to Aberdeen is now daunting. I used to think nothing of doing the return trip in a day.
> The lockdown put the final nail in my fitness as I could not travel anymore and now aged 86 with a trike I can only manage about 20 miles or so comfortably but need a rest day after two consecutive days. Short steep hills I can manage ok but longer ones are a problem.
> ...



You are doing fantastic. MIL is same age and knackered. Kept alive with drugs and has to be hoisted from bed to chair as she gave up years ago.


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## oldwheels (30 Aug 2021)

fossyant said:


> You are doing fantastic. MIL is same age and knackered. Kept alive with drugs and has to be hoisted from bed to chair as she gave up years ago.


Thanks but I often feel less than fantastic.


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## Milzy (30 Aug 2021)

It depends a lot on genetics & lifestyle. I know guys who are pushing 60 with 300 watts FTP and lads in their early 40’s who are ready for the knackers yard.


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## oldwheels (30 Aug 2021)

Milzy said:


> It depends a lot on genetics & lifestyle. I know guys who are pushing 60 with 300 watts FTP and lads in their early 40’s who are ready for the knackers yard.


Genetics mainly I think. Both my parents lived well into their 90's and my lifestyle for a long time was probably not ideal.
I had a high pressure job with long hours in the whisky industry for 20 years with free access to booze and a requirement to entertain potential customers from time to time, ie ply them with whisky and inevitably having some myself.
I knew a few distillery managers who suffered from too much free whisky. Indeed any job in the alcohol industry including pubs carries a fair risk.


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## cookiemonster (9 Sep 2021)

I'm now in my mid-40s and I'm just as energetic now as I was 25 or so years ago.

I concentrate more on gym work and cycling, Muay Thai no more sadly, and I pay more attention to my diet now.


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## mustang1 (9 Sep 2021)

OldShep said:


> I recognise your symptoms. I too worked manually outdoors with some long hours some days in summer could be from 5am til midnight and a day off was unheard of for months on end. I’d done it all my life and many young people couldn’t keep pace. From the age of 55 I felt a gradual tiring especially after really heavy days. Aged 58 I just could not seem to recover from long days and would spend weeks really struggling. Aged 59 i'd had enough and retired.
> *Spent the next 6 months doing projects at home id put off for 20 years because I was too busy at work. The pleasure of starting when I wanted and stopping when I was tired was immense and my well-being improved monthly.* So much so aged 60 I got a part time job, that wasn’t manual, and the next 5 years gained a valuable insight into another working world which I knew nothing about because I was always busy at work.
> My advice, knowing what I know now, don’t knock your pan out and work yourself into ill health. I’ve seen two guys I know do exactly that. Secondly there are a lot of people drawing wages without breaking into a sweat or bending their back and are probably going to draw a pension a lot longer than someone who’s had a lifetime of hard physical graft.


Nice one, @OldShep . What kind of PT job did you get, like an office role? Knowing what you know now, did you ever think of retiring even sooner? TIA.


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## mustang1 (9 Sep 2021)

Sharky said:


> Took the grandsons out (in prehistoric times), and they were running backwards and forwards, jumping up and down. Must have covered 10 times the distance we walked. My son popped over to help move stuff around. He just picked things up by himself and carried them upstairs. It was taking me and the OH all our efforts to do the same.
> 
> I remember seeing my dad out on the bike, some 30 years ago, plodding along and thinking he was riding like an "old man". Now when I go out, I think I am riding just like he was.


That reminds me I have to tell my kids something. Recently I told them while they are young, I stay slow on the bike so they can keep up. When I'm old, they might stay slow so I can keep up. What I _should_ _and will_ tell them is when I'm old, they should _not _wait for me, just keep going. (Caveat: mawhahaha until i get myself an e-bike which by then should have a solid 100 mile range mwahahahaa!)


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## mustang1 (9 Sep 2021)

vickster said:


> It may not simply be age related however, hence having an MOT (I think everyone over 40 should every few years regardless, much better to pick up potential issues early)


I am a right moron for NOT getting my MOT done. I know I really should but I keep making excuses (mainly I'm too busy at work, I'll do it tommorrow, I'll do it tomorrow, i really will, etc).


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## Drago (9 Sep 2021)

Had a busy day yesterday. Early start volunteering with the covid testing, on my feet all day, then in the studio with the band all evening on my feet. As a result I have less energy than an unemployed stoner.


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## yello (9 Sep 2021)

cookiemonster said:


> I'm now in my mid-40s and I'm just as energetic now as I was 25 or so years ago.



Tbh, I think I was _more_ energetic in my mid-40s that I was at 20


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