This 'getting old' thing is not for the meek

[DocSavage]

At 71 I figured out my days of leaping tall buildings in a single bound passed a while ago. Could lift my wife no problem now I got a Hoyer lift to make life easier.

[Finster101]

I Will turn 61 in just a few days and retired from turning wrenches at the dealership level this past April. A heart attack that led to seven stents a few years ago and a brandy new defibrillator this past November finally caught up with me. Huge loss of muscle mass and stamina, coupled with eroded disc in my lower back said enough is enough. Can't swing a cyclinder head in place without getting a young guy to help and then he does most of the work. Can't pull the the wrench enough to get the final torque required. Problem is I still look okay but I ain't got no oomph anymore. I also have the old man skin plus the joy of blood thinners. Don't even know I'm bleeding till I see a smear on something I'm working on. Glad to hear I'm not alone but dang I got old quick.

[BJK]

<snip> Huge loss of muscle mass and stamina, <snip> Problem is I still look okay but I ain't got no oomph anymore. I also have the old man skin <snip> Don't even know I'm bleeding till I see a smear on something I'm working on. Glad to hear I'm not alone but dang I got old quick.

Same here. I sold off many of my long guns due to the loss of muscle mass. Sure I could use them just not as fast as I once was with them. Arm braced handguns, SBRs, and bullpups have kept me in the game for "long" guns.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

I'll be 80 next year. I remember the old TV show "Petticoat Junction", and the theme song that said, "and that's Uncle Joe, he's movin' kind of slow, at the Junction." My lively step turned into a shuffle. I hurt here and there, but compensate. After all, what else can you do? I try to keep challenges in my life, such as cutting firewood, an interest in all things "gun", and I think if I didn't do so I'd have already expired. I still like being here, but am pretty sure when the end arrives I'll welcome it. Dying is part of life, just the end part. Best to you all.

DG

[gwpercle]

The last time I changed the oil in my Silverado, I couldn't believe how sore I was from all that crawling around underneath the truck. My son did it for me the next time. Our other vehicle, a Traverse, I don't even know where the oil filter is. I just take it to a trusted mechanic.

Local 15 Minute Oil Change business became my best friend about 15 years ago ... Crawling around under a 1968 Chevelle wasn't too bad ... then I got to where I wouldn't fit under the car ...
If you bring your own oil and filter ...they will change your oil for $18.50 ... they did a few years ago anyways . They never had my Oil filter and stopped carrying conventional 10- w-40 motor oil ...
the manager told me just bring my own oil & filter ...$18.50 was worth every penny for me not to roll around on the ground ... getting up off the ground is getting a lot harder than I ever imagined it would !
Gary

[white eagle]

I'm almost 67, and always thought I was in pretty good shape for that.

The other day, I was changing the serpentine belt and repacking the front wheel bearing on my '06 F250.

The belt only took a couple hours of working off a step ladder being bent double, and/or laying
across the top of the engine reaching down through the about 1/8" gap between the engine & the razor sharp fan.

The two bolts holding the caliper bracket--- Whew!! They come in from the backside, and had some sort of goo
on them that required 3-4 strokes with a 8 pound hammer to make them turn for each 90 degrees.
And yeah, they're fine threaded and seemed like they were about four feet long.

Driver's side- not too bad since I could swing down.
Passenger's side: Hammering UP for about an hour on the breaker bar & socket while all hunched up in the wheel well was different.

Then, taking off the rotor & hub-- they're one piece, and must weight 50-60 pounds.

I remember when this was just another quick, 'no big deal', evening project. Not any more.
It about killed me..... I'm sore in places I didn't even know I had.

I was going to wimp out and take a couple of aspirin,
but it's more fun to hobble around, moan & groan, and complain all day.

Yeah I hear ya
I was a brick layer for most all of my working life
and let me tell you my body has been broken down and the
supposed golden years are painful and not easy
been retired for 5 or so years and looked forward to it for as long as
I can remember since my first day of work
life goes on as they say but it aint easy at times

[cabezaverde]

[QUOTE=Finster101;5292812]I Will turn 61 in just a few days and retired from turning wrenches at the dealership level this past April. A heart attack that led to seven stents a few years ago and a brandy new defibrillator this past November finally caught up with me. Huge loss of muscle mass and stamina, coupled with eroded disc in my lower back said enough is enough. Can't swing a cyclinder head in place without getting a young guy to help and then he does most of the work. Can't pull the the wrench enough to get the final torque required. Problem is I still look okay but I ain't got no oomph anymore. I also have the old man skin plus the joy of blood thinners. Don't even know I'm bleeding till I see a smear on something I'm working on. Glad to hear I'm not alone but dang I got old quick.[/QUOTE]

Do the blood thinners cause this? I have the same issues and wonder if there is a connection?

[Finster101]

"Do the blood thinners cause this? I have the same issues and wonder if there is a connection?"

About the "old man skin" I don't know. The year following my heart attack 2015 I was on Brillinta and aspirin. I had to carry those little packets of blood clotter because it almost would not stop on it's own. I was concerned enough that I would not ride my motorcycle while I was on it and believe me, that was tough for me. I'm on Plavix now and while it is still an issue it is not near as bad. So while I'm not a Dr. my experience tells me there is definitely a connection. The thin skin issue I think just makes the blood letting easier to get started. You should talk to your Dr. I'm sure he can explain it much better than me.

[alamogunr]

No one has mentioned the emotional stress imposed by old age. I'm in very good health for 79 despite T2 diabetes. Not to say that I can do everything I could do 10-15 years ago but by pacing myself, I can get by. Unlike many others, I did not spend my life doing heavy physical jobs. Those obviously take a toll. My biggest problem is realizing that most of my imagined "bucket list" will never be complete. There is no reason to continue to accumulate guns and all the things that go with a new gun because I will never get around to making full use of what I already have.

I just finished reading a thread that addressed long lead times for ordered items(Example:Custom 1911's or any other custom for that matter).

I mentioned in another thread that I just received a Freedom Arms Model 97 in .44 Special. I haven't shot it yet but have a couple hundred reloads ready to go and another couple hundred boolits ready to load when brass is available. Another oldster, John Taffin and his Book of the .44 is responsible for that.

BTW, I didn't order thru FA. Got it from a dealer at a good price(for an FA).

[.429&H110]

Too soon old, too late smart.
Witch doctor prescribed Eliquis after they picked out the pulmonary embolisms.
I suppose it worked, here I am, though I believe prayer was more effective.

A caution about taking blood thinner- anticoagulants is car wrecks.
When (not if) you get t-boned you will have slight internal bleeding.
If you are taking Eliquis you will bleed out internally when twisted
because there is no clotting. It's a death of a thousand cuts.
You are gonna need lots of whole blood.

I won't say don't take it, but be sure any long term drug is appropriate.
Wear a bracelet so the EMTs know what you are into.

Beware witch doctors, when they don't know which doctor.

[Mal Paso]

I have never been on blood thinners but I have my dad's skin. Any little sharp edge will draw blood and reaching inside the dashboard will leave bruises on my arms.

My muscle tone goes away so fast I don't dare stop.

[lancem]

Guess I'm a lucky one, 67 in a month and I'm still running and working my 2-6 man steel construction team and plan too for a few more years. I feel it in my hips in the morning first thing if I've spent the day before on a ladder a lot or up and down a drywall sawhorse, but otherwise I can still keep up pretty much with the younger guys (40's) in my crew.

[Winger Ed.]

About 4 years ago I was doing a project to widen my driveway. I had my orange HD mixer, I'd go get a pallet of
42 of the 80 pound cement bags. I roll 'em down to the tailgate, and dump them 2 at a time into the mixer.

It was a good project, and something I could do. It took 7 trips, and I'd do one section at a time with 1 yard of cement.
Near the end, I wrenched my lower back from the lift, rotate/twist, and dump of the bags. And my knee hurt too.

The next day, it hurt!! I was sent home from work upon arrival for the first time ever.
I got a MRI and when the Doc read the tea leaves, he said, "Well, your knee is OK, but that crushed disc isn't".
He went on, "For some people it'll be OK in a few weeks. For some, it takes a few months. For others, it's after the surgery".

I told him, "No Doc, you don't understand. This is America. We have a pill for everything. You just need to find the right one".

After 4 years, it's tolerable without pain killers. But I don't buy the 80 pound bags of cement any more.

[AlHunt]

I'm not a far gone a most of you guys but I do know that I'm getting much taller as I age.

I know this because when I drop something I have to bend down a lot further to pick it up.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

I turned 87 in October and I am not doing too bad. I replaced a piece of oak flooring yesterday that covers the gap between the living room and the hallway. The job required that I get up and down a lot. It also required the use of a drill. I got the job done and it looks good but this morning when I woke up there was no part of me that didn't hurt, including my head. My wife and I had breakfast out. After several cups of coffee, eggs and French toast, I don't feel so bad.

[375supermag]

Hi...
I might as well chime in here as well.
I turned 67 today(Nov.6).
I retired in July 2018 after my third bout of cancer. Surgeries, chemo and radiation treatments really took a toll on my strength snd stamina and they really haven't returned.
Still, I still can do most anything I want but do need to pace myself. Radiation induced arthritis in my neck takes a lot of the fun out of things some days.
I do rely on my son to do car repairs and maintenance but I still do most of the maintenance around The Estate.
All in all, not too bad considering I was declared terminal due to cancer in 2012 and 2016. I am in total remission with an apparent cure from salivary gland cancer in 2012 and total remission from Burkitt's-like lymphoma in 2018. My bout with non Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1977 seems like it happened in a different life except for the scars from surgery.

[8mmFan]

Any advice for a 54-year old, to make the next few years easier/better, as far as aging goes? I’m in ok shape. Have had my share of injuries but I’ve been able to work through them or get past them with time. I still work out some.

One thing I’ve found, physically, is that the more days I go in a row with a good routine of stretching, the better I feel for days afterward.

Will take any advice I can get, here: there’s nobody with more wisdom on aging, than guys that are doing it!

8mmFan

[Winger Ed.]

Will take any advice I can get, here:

Don't over extend yourself.
If something feels 'too heavy' to pick up and carry---- it probably is. That's your body saying, 'Go get a 2 wheel dolly'.
The guys with the most 'issues' and aches & pains are the ones who've lived a life of strenuous exertion-- heavy lifting soft of things.

Lots of old professional football players are all stove up from doing such long term and extreme exertion in their younger years.

Another example:
Guys with knee & hip replacements--- very few needed to get them because they sat at a desk too long.

[MrWolf]

Any advice for a 54-year old, to make the next few years easier/better, as far as aging goes? I’m in ok shape. Have had my share of injuries but I’ve been able to work through them or get past them with time. I still work out some.

One thing I’ve found, physically, is that the more days I go in a row with a good routine of stretching, the better I feel for days afterward.

Will take any advice I can get, here: there’s nobody with more wisdom on aging, than guys that are doing it!

8mmFan

Be smart. When you think I can still do that - DON'T. Like Winger Ed. said, do not over exert yourself. Look into vitamins, joint vitamins, DHA (memory), etc if you believe in them or do not eat properly. Everyone is different. Just wish I knew how much damage I was doing to myself playing Superman. Sucks when you can't turn your head to the left or the doc can hear grinding when you move it up/down etc. Just be smart.

[GhostHawk]

Every morning when I get up I hand grind my coffee for a single 12 oz insulated mug. Which is the only coffee I allow myself in a day.

I blend my own beans, mostly buying whole roasted beans from Amazon, with some green beans to be freshly roasted and added.
Each morning it is 35 granks with the right hand, 35 with the left to get my measured dose. The blend changes according to season and temps.

Summer coffee leans more towards hazelnut, Kona, Mississippi grog.
Winter coffee has a good amount of Columbian Pablo's Pride, with some other central American beans added.

But I do believe that grinding them by hand helps keep my arms, shoulders in condition.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...e?ie=UTF8&th=1
currently sells for 24$.
The one I am using was purchased in Dec of 2018, still going strong.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...e?ie=UTF8&th=1