When did the machine start breaking down and how did you power through?

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grace_mercy

New member
I’m a few months away from 40 and my god I’m feeling it. It must have come on gradually, but I became acutely aware about a year ago that my body was not recovering like it used to. I can barely muster the energy for an hour golf lesson or a few sets of tennis, let alone weightlifting or cardio. I’m honestly beginning to think it’s something medical how quick things went to hell. As the pandemic hit I was deadlifting 400, squatting 300, pressing close to 200. Now those numbers are halved.

Does anyone else remember when the game changed and how did you pivot?

Edit:
Thanks all. I have a physical next month so I’ll definitely get that box checked. I did have surgery for reflux in 2020 and digestion has been weird since so might be worth revisiting that. Getting B12 tested has been suggested by a few people. As for sleep and stress, I get 7.5-8 hrs and I just started a new job that is a lot less stressful than my last. Nutrition is decent but no different than what I was eating a year or two ago; though smaller portions now and less caffeine and booze due to the plastic holding my stomach valve closed. Weight has stayed about the same +-5lbs (6’0, 210-15). What I’m feeling I guess is fatigue and apathy. Not at death’s door if I lead anyone to think that.
 
@grace_mercy I’m 43 and if I suddenly couldn’t handle a one hour golf lesson I’d see a doctor ASAP while taking a hard look at my nutrition, sleep, stress, and recovery. I train Olympic lifting 4 days a week, work full time, and have a couple hobbies outside the gym with no issues.
 
@grace_mercy Like the other guy said, I'd see a doctor and take a look at your sleep/diet/etc. I turn 40 next year, and even with a fussy newborn I'm still training, albeit a bit reduced.
 
@grace_mercy 36, and aside from this damn cold I have, I've felt better year after year that I've been working on my health.

You should go get your blood work checked out and speak to a doctor.
 
@missgolightly That's reassuring. 36, best shape of my life, but sitting here with the 4 th upper respiratory infection this year and wondering wtf. The rebound in the bug population since the pandemic is insane. Everyone's ill.
 
@grace_mercy I hate to say this because I know it’s not what you want to hear - it’s not your age

Does our body slowly change over time? yes. How you feel at 40 is likely quite different than 20 or even 30 years old.

Do you hit a massive wall one day around 40, compared to say, 37? No.

This is a rabbit hole and we could get into muscle mass loss, metabolism, etc etc all the things that slowly change over decades or we can just focus on the real answer:

Something major has changed to make you feel this way. Could likely be mental (anxiety, stress etc) or physical (change in diet, how much you walk, sit, sleep etc) or a small combination of factors. Try to find what could be the real cause.

Tl;dr hate to be a buzzkill (or maybe it’s good news) that nothing changes magically near 40. Something else is going on and you should try to find the cause. Likely something related to your diet, sleep, or stress
 
@grace_mercy Late 30s when I realized it all had come much easier before. Keep in mind that around 50 we all start getting the gift of Sarcopenia and then, if you aren’t proactive, you will begin to feel it even more.

Mid 50s now. Yes, you will have to dig deeper. Yes, you’ll have to be smarter and more strategic. You’ll find that you can. Take it as a challenge.

I may only be in the second best shape of my life right now but the gap isn’t that much due to extra effort, discipline and mindfulness about diet and alcohol consumption. Not 29 anymore but I still summited 25 Colorado 14ers (and enjoyed a view that has to be earned) in the past 16 months. Feel prouder of that now than any of the 14ers I basically ran up in my late 20s and 30s and failed to really appreciate. Gratitude has more value now as part of the fitness journey for me.

You have the gift of relatively good health, time, experience and wisdom. The rest has to be hard earned now and that’s a gift in itself.
 
@grace_mercy I’m turning 35 soon and I would say my peak athletic performance was around 28. Since then I just am always tweaking/nursing injuries and I can’t be as active as I want to be.

After a torn quad, severe strained calf, and sciatic issues this year I’ve decided to taper away from heavy weights and as far as my sports i’m going to limit to once / twice a week and adjust other workouts accordingly.

Focusing a lot more on yoga and feeling good over aesthetics. Also at 5’9” I feel pretty stiff/heavy at 185 so am on the way to hover at 170 which I think having a lighter load might help reduce the injuries etc.

As far as energy goes I’m still the same now as I was when I was young. When I’m feeling lethargic I look into my sleep hygiene and diet and that usually solves it fairly quickly.
 
@grace_mercy I didn’t start lifting until 44 years old. Now I’m 50 with a squat of 365, bench 240, and deadlift 450. I also go on longish 25 mile bike rides with friends that are much older than me. I definitely need to manage fatigue and recovery, but I also don’t feel wrecked like it seems you do.

Basically, if shit if breaking down for you it’s not age. I don’t think my genetics are magic. I definitely take care of myself: eat healthy, don’t drink much at all, manage stress, and get good quality sleep. So yeah maybe talk to a doc. Get a physical and some bloodwork done if it’s been a while. But also look at other factors like sleep and food quality.
 
@grace_mercy At 40 a few years ago, coming out of the pandemic, I found myself obese, inflexible, in a bad mental health state, and hardly sleeping at all. Now I'm 43. This week I deadlifted, benched, and squatted like I did in my 20s. My mobility has returned. I'm relatively lean (about where I want to be), And I'm in a much better place mentally.

For me, it was first "getting my head right". Then small weekly changes that built on each other and lead to a better lifestyle; a lifestyle that includes taking time each week (and each day) to work on my health (eating well, exercising, dealing with stress).

You may be different, but what I'm trying to say is that it's not about age breaking us down at 40, it's lifestyle and mental health.

Take care on your journey brother.
 
@grace_mercy 41 in two months. The only drop off I have noticed is the reduced training due to a change in lifestyle. When I train regularly, and eat right all is good. Maybe the only difference is I am recover better without injury because I know the niggles my body has and what kind of recovery I know I need to avoid it.
 
@grace_mercy
  1. I felt the change about 2 years ago. I just couldn’t lift as heavy. Got out of breath quicker in my workouts. I used to do weight lifting and HIIT. My knees started crinkling like wrapping paper when I squatted lol. I got kinda depressed. I was still trying to do lighter weights, ofc, but the drive was gone.
Then this past May, I had a hysterectomy and that took months to recover. They removed 2 massive fibroids. Miraculously, after the recovery period, I felt much better! The fibroids were wrecking my body including causing so much back pain. I now have more energy, not like in my 20s ofc but it’s def more so than before. I’m starting back up again. Got a Concept2 RowErg for cardio. Doing lifting again. I’m not competitive anymore. Going at my own pace. Just trying to be kind to my body.

If you have or suspect any underlying condition, def go to the doc. I got a friend who has hypothyroidism and for years she was fatigued and constipated and all that and no one knew why. She went to the 3rd doc who was smart and thorough enough to test her. She’s on meds now and she says it’s much better.

I’m more open minded and gentler with myself. If I don’t have the motivation to row that day then I switch to doing something else like taking a walk or cleaning. As long as I’m moving I feel like it makes up for it. I’m setting new and different milestones for myself now. My pr was 300 lbs for dl but now I’m working back to it. I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it again but I’m OK with just being able to move SOME weights.

Get yourself checked out thoroughly! Make sure to get a second opinion or even a third opinion.

Good luck! Don’t be discouraged! We’re just different now. Not less.
 
@grace_mercy Coming up on 40 as well, but unfortunately I know exactly when my health went downhill. 2017 I had a high energy collision with a semi, diagnosed bipolar, and went bankrupt.

I was in decent shape in 2019 when I had the first repair done on my shoulder, had been on track to challenge the police physical that fall. Then the repair failed (in 2019) and I reinjured the shoulder (in 2020). Had it repaired again in 2021, and can't get close to what I was doing in 2019 nevermind 2016.

Working another physical job, I'm the old guy and the heaviest, and still move more weight than the young guys just because I know how to use my weight. Will have to get back into the gym in 2024 when I'm not seeing a chiropractor twice a week anymore.
 
@rozycka35 I was cycling and got hit by an suv who ran a light at 40mph. I’ve never not been injured since then. Going on three years now.

Stuff like traumatic injuries ages us so fast.
 
@releaf I've been collecting injuries since I started running track in elementary. I've injured everything at least once.

Can't say how many collisions I've been in, insurance only found me at fault in 2. They wanted to find me at fault with the semi, until the crown prosecutor saw my dashcam footage and cancelled the ticket I was given... The semi told insurance he didn't see the stop sign out of the parking lot (with absolutely ZERO obstruction within 100'), failed the medical and lost his licenses.

Massage has been the key to keeping me going. Just had a great 2hr massage last night from a student
 
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