andrewclaus

Here we all are, preaching to the saved. We've found the Fountain of Youth, and nobody believes us.

My anecdote: The other day a friend asked how, at a relatively young 66, I can do all the work see regularly sees me do. I'm retired, but I maintain six houses (rentals), volunteer building sets at a theater (carrying lots of 3/4" OSB @ 85 pounds), and volunteer on various trail crews doing a lot of rock work. She watched me replace the entire floor in a 900 sf house last winter, a lot of stoop labor and lifting. My answer--bicycling. There was one decade, in my 40s, when I wasn't able to cycle regularly, and I felt my fitness level slipping. I got back on the bike in my 50s and I'm still going strong. I hear the comment above about 60s vs 80s, and I'm starting to feel that coming.

AJW2W11E

Amen to that. I've been very lucky and last year I painted my whole house.On top of that I've always done our car repairs. Adjusted my valves, replaced a timing chain. I hope to continue to be able to do that.
The only thing I won't do is replace my roof. The pitch is too steep. I'm glad I ride my bike everyday and do some light weight lifting.

andrewclaus

I did my last roof at age 59 and vowed to not do that again. I'll still get up there to work on lower pitches, but no more shingling. I'm way more careful about ladder placement and balance. I volunteered on a fire department for ten years (into my fifties) and we transported a lot of middle aged men fallen off ladders.

I do my own auto work, too, most recently exhaust, suspension, brakes, engine oil seal. I can still get up off the floor without using my hands (or grunting). I freaked my brother out when I did that a few months ago.

I-Like-To-Bike

The Fifty Plus (50+) list seems to top the BF lists in percentage of posters who enjoy patting themselves on the back about their alleged accomplishment in "dropping" others, be it in passing strangers on a bike trail, or registering "better" health metrics than other people their age.

AJW2W11E

A wiser and kinder man would have written nothing .
He would have had the wisdom to understand that we're all aware of our mortality and inevitable frailty.
We've seen our parents move on in pain and weakness and yes we will also.
These anecdotes are just another way of delaying this one more minute, one more hour , one more day.
You'll understand better when you're our age.

I-Like-To-Bike

Really?

plumberroy

Some of us have worked physically demanding jobs for decades, works tons of overtime. As far as fixing repairing stuff . When you have built, fixed or repaired things 8 to ? Hours a day for close to 40 years, the last thing you feel like doing is repairs and remodel crap. Pretty easy to preach when you don't walk in others shoes . I got to the point I was in so much pain by the time I got through work I just collapsed. Two surgeries on my right foot I am just getting back to riding 10 miles today I know it's not much but I am gaining strength. As far as commuting. My job is maintenance at a level one trauma center . If something goes south I am there until it is fixed. How many of you are going to ride home after 19 hours,14 of which you were running a big sewer machine? Only time I have ever hired my lawn done was when I was under Dr order for no weight on my foot. I am 61 until 5-6 years ago. There was a 97% chance I was the strongest person in the room I could ride 50 miles any given day. Today I struggled with the last half mile of 10 miles. It doesn't take long to go from healthy to struggling to even work.
FOr the record foot issues sneak up on you . You don't notice it until it's bad . We used my riding logs to figure out when my feet started giving me issues by my declining miles ridden