# How to Stay Ahead Of Your Chronological Age



## Screamin Senior (3 mo ago)

Wow! how time flies, Where's that pill to make you young again? 39 years to 73, it seems went by in a blink
And you hear everyone start talking about losing things like you mind/memory. I started Mt biking at 35, a late adopter, but Mt Biking just ,just started its ascent slowly reaching some public in Eastern USA by the mid 1980s and that was around the time that I got my 1st Mt. bike. Anyway looking back I keenly remember riding with folks my age and there's a few of us still but mostly they're way younger now. For the past 20 years I have ridden with 95% that were considerably younger

So tricks of the ageless trade: I always ride with Arnica(anti inflammatory) both pills and rub-on cream. No matter how good you think you are 99% of us will take a hit or two or three... Arnica works best applied immediately to the point of impact/bruise. if it was a real significant impact, serious ache take the pill form also keep taking it till the pain lessens. Arnica is not to be used on cuts or bloody wounds. The longer you wait to deal with the impact the longer it takes to heal. So, use ice or a cold stream on the trail. Turmeric is also an anti inflammatory but doesn't work as fast as Arnica.
Turmeric can be bought in pill form or bags of powder, you can cook with it as many do

Riding posture. A bike needs to fit you like a glove so keep adjusting the seat location on the saddle rails, remember the seat slides forward and back as much as 2+inches .if seat is too forward your arms are bent too much and the liklyhood of doing an endo also goes up. Sometimes it may be back too far if you have a very short upper torso or arms. However, I've often found that further back with just a barely noticeable bend in the arm is best, and most comfortable The correct distance -arm stretch to the cockpit bars will alleviate undo pressure.

The cockpit riser bars and or angle of the head set are also critically important elements to keep your poster in a neutral pain-free position. If you are leaning on the handlebars you either need to slide the seat back and or increase to a larger rise on your handle bars or or a steeper angle on head set . Or you may have some room to add a couple of thin spacers to the frame below the point where headset attaches. And always check your seat height particularly when you're not in need of your dropper seat. With improper SEAT height you'll be putting unneeded pressure on your legs, back, etc and by all means you are Mt biking and get of the seat as often as you can. Road riders have to deal with sitting for hours, is not something that is friendly as you are older. 

A focused mind , is an active mind. Research has shown that exercising you mind supports your ability to remember, to focus, to be present in the moment. What does exercising your mind look like for a mountain biker. Probably many of you know where I'm going wit this. If you're in the moment on a challenging piece of trail there is no room for lack of focus. riding tight singletrack with twists and turns or doing a downhill section with some reasonable drops, and rocky rooty areas require split second choices often focusing 20-30 40 feet down the fall/ride line . There is not a lot of room for daydreaming. If your everyday set of trails offer enough challenging singletracks you'll be exercising and tuning your mind, keep riding as you get older on enough challenging terrain. Tight flowing rolling, ups and downs in rapid succession, with twists and turns over long track cross -country terrain will do wonders for your mind and body At least this is the terrain that I and my clients ride all the time

The 30+ years of working with riders of all experience levels have offered me some deep insights into posture,mt bike set-up, safety, and focus. Of course racking up about 800-1000 miles of this type of riding per season for years has helped my lungs and heart as well as efficiencies of energy management, bike, and gear use are also critical components. And keep any and all personal stresses at bay, by living the life you want and have created. Of course there are many ways of reaching these goals. I just happen to find this path.


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

I thought it'd take longer to get this old.
=sParty


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

tl;dr

is the answer time travel?


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## venturi95 (Apr 25, 2012)

Still smoking?


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

Wouldn't it be better to be behind your chronological age rather than ahead of it? 
That's what I'm trying to do, anyway. 
=sParty


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## beartraps (4 mo ago)

Keep your joints lubricated. I find whiskey works best.


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## levity (Oct 31, 2011)

beartraps said:


> Keep your joints lubricated. I find whiskey works best.


How do you get them to light?


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## Sanchofula (Dec 30, 2007)

It’s good to get old, I feel like the progression has been satisfying, here’s to another twenty years 🤟


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## Tallboy723 (4 mo ago)

Arnica and Tumeric. I need to try them.


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## Kelly Parker (Mar 15, 2017)

Vic’s vapor rub doses wonders for old worn out body parts.


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

Kelly Parker said:


> Vic’s vapor rub doses wonders for old worn out body parts.


Does NOT make a good sex lube, BTW. 😬
=sParty


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## kosmo (Oct 27, 2004)

Sparticus said:


> Wouldn't it be better to be behind your chronological age rather than ahead of it?


Came here to say this. 🙃 

Happy New Year, oldsters!


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## Rocket88R (Jan 10, 2013)

I have been very thankful to have mountain biking as my life sport. Too many tangential bonus-added health benefits to count. 

I am within 18 months of ending an active-duty military career (current age-57). Been an avid MTBer for 35 years. After 50, I found mobility/flexibility training to be as important (maybe more) as strength training. Eat less volume, but higher quality food. Continuous mental engagement, emotional intelligence, stress management and good sleep seem to be the glue that holds it all together. 

Barring a catastrophic health issue, I expect to keep doing this for the next 20 years. 

Ride on my friends!


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## levity (Oct 31, 2011)

Sparticus said:


> Does NOT make a good sex lube, BTW. 😬
> =sParty


You may also recall when the Altoids mints thing was going around 😉


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## IRTGU (Apr 22, 2005)

I went back to college when I was 57.
Took all the classes available in physical conditioning, including Akido.
The teacher was the Football team coach, has a doctorate in biomechanics, and has multiple patents for many pieces of excersize equipment.
This put me in the best position to make the most of what I had.
4 days a week in class 3 days on my bike.
The actual work outs were less than 45 minutes, but the lecture was the other 2 hrs.
We learned from the inside out.
The first thing he did was put each of the students on a piece of testing equipment to give us our BMR, body type, the recovery graph, amoung other internal things. He even told me I had an injury on my left knee which was correct.
Enjoyed the 3 semesters of this training. I started being 3 years younger physically than my calender age and in the end my physical age was 9 years younger than my calander age.


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

I work in healthcare. The average age of the patients (veterans) on my units is 97. There are 13 veterans on my 2 units over the age of 100 who are in remarkable health; the oldest is 105 (female)

Lifestyle is a strong determinant of health and longevity. Nonsmokers, not being obese, and cope well with stress. Also, most are women (women live longer on average than men). Because of their healthy habits, these older adults are less likely to develop age-related chronic diseases, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, than their same-age peers.

Our oldest veteran lived to 108 (he died this past spring) was athletic (he played rugby and skied well into his 80's) in addition to being a journalist by profession. His muscle tone was amazing and he walked without aids until 105

Genetics help. All our 100+ veterans have children in their late 80's that visit regularly. So if you have relatives that live long so might you  Some of the gene variants that contribute to a long life are involved with the basic maintenance and function of the body’s cells. These cellular functions include DNA repair, maintenance of the ends of chromosomes (regions called telomeres), and protection of cells from damage caused by unstable oxygen-containing molecules (free radicals). Other genes that are associated with blood fat (lipid) levels, inflammation, and the cardiovascular and immune systems contribute significantly to longevity because they reduce the risk of heart disease (the main cause of death in older people), stroke, and insulin resistance.


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## dave54 (Jul 1, 2003)

At age 68, I am in better health than people twice my age. 
I keep in shape (round is a shape) by rigorous jumping to conclusions, dodging responsibility, pushing my luck, stretching the truth, running off my mouth, and finishing my workout with 12 ounce curls.

All seriousness side, I can still pass the physical fitness test for firefighter. Barely, and don't ask me to do anything else the rest of the day. On my last birthday I completed the 1000 pushup challenge.

My remaining life goal is to outlive my pension and become a burden to the taxpayers.


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## Screamin Senior (3 mo ago)

Rocket88R said:


> I have been very thankful to have mountain biking as my life sport. Too many tangential bonus-added health benefits to count.
> 
> I am within 18 months of ending an active-duty military career (current age-57). Been an avid MTBer for 35 years. After 50, I found mobility/flexibility training to be as important (maybe more) as strength training. Eat less volume, but higher quality food. Continuous mental engagement, emotional intelligence, stress management and good sleep seem to be the glue that holds it all together.
> 
> ...


Sounds like you're well on your way Carl keep it going!


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

dave54 said:


> At age 68, I am in better health than people twice my age.


I imagine it's tough finding anyone twice your age so you can check their pulse.
=sParty


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## Suns_PSD (Dec 13, 2013)

Sanchofula said:


> It’s good to get old, I feel like the progression has been satisfying, here’s to another twenty years 🤟


It's certainly better than the alternative.


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## ElTortoise (Jul 27, 2015)

Vitamins, COQ10, Glucosamine for the joints, turmeric to help cut inflammation, panax ginseng for focus. I make it a point to walk, run or ride daily, and a glass of red wine for the heart. I go to the doctor for an ailment only when a shot of Jaegermeister can't fix it.


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## ValEs (6 mo ago)

dave54 said:


> At age 68, I am in better health than people twice my age.
> I keep in shape (round is a shape) by rigorous jumping to conclusions, dodging responsibility, pushing my luck, stretching the truth, running off my mouth, and finishing my workout with 12 ounce curls.
> 
> All seriousness side, I can still pass the physical fitness test for firefighter. Barely, and don't ask me to do anything else the rest of the day. On my last birthday I completed the 1000 pushup challenge.


when I took that test at 25, the water hose dragging was the worst. It reminded me of a tractor pull. 
Could I do it today at 71…nope. (Life of asthma and wilding taking its toll. Yet I still ascend the local trails. Riding and HAB gets as me to the top. Descending is my reward)


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

levity said:


> You may also recall when the Altoids mints thing was going around 😉


plan to bring that back as the next TikTok challenge?


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## levity (Oct 31, 2011)

Harold said:


> plan to bring that back as the next TikTok challenge?


better than an ice bucket 😂


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## Rev Bubba (Jan 16, 2004)

I'm 73. I'll return to this subject when I get old. 

I could drive myself crazy trying to adjust the bike to fit me but it's easier to adjust myself to fit the bike.

Between road and mountain, I rode 2200 miles and climbed 90,000 feet in 2022 and skied 70 days during the 21/22 season. I'm on track for more skiing this season.

As long as I keep moving, I'll keep moving. Happy New Year.


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

@Rev Bubba & @Velobike for co-presidents of this sub-forum!

All in favor say, "Aye!"
=sParty


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## Rocket88R (Jan 10, 2013)

Aye!


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## Ft.Rock (May 7, 2020)

I'm only 67, but that age is catching up a little with older injuries coming to haunt me. I rode through 2022 with a bulging C5/6 and per the OP cockpit adjustments (higher riser bar, shorter stem) allowed me to keep going, although I had to stop riding at the bike park as that did cause a lot of pain. First shot is Friday. But my doc is thrilled with my overall health and told me to try to keep it up despite the pain. I agree with him and will do that, as soon as the torn foot ligament heals lol. I also strongly agree with the mental exercise. For me that is studying music for an hour each day, then sight reading (on guitar) for another hour. Cross training of some sort is important as well whether it be yoga, skiing, tennis, etc. It seems my peers who focus solely on one sport are having a lot more repetitive use issues than I have been. Finally - the hardest part for me, admitting it's time to dial some things back. Jump lines, gap jumps, big drops, it kills me not to ride things I believe I can still handle but risk/reward has a much greater meaning now. Ultimately I think if you're over 60 and still riding a mountain bike you're already ahead of the chronologial age. Whenever I'm in the doc's office with an injury he always says "Keep it up, you should see what the other people your age are coming in with!"


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## Mikey456 (2 mo ago)

I feel diet is important too unless you can exercise/bike ride everyday (burning the equal amount of calories that you consume) I try to reduce carb and calorie intake (i.e. protein shake instead of cereals and cutting the booze till the weekends). I get in a ride 3 days a week.


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## Xylx (Mar 18, 2005)

I never thought the day would come when I'd think non-alcohol beer is good. But here we are. The youngsters are all over it. I look at a real beer and I gain a pound. Can't do that in your late 60s. Here's a list of purveyors I have tried if anyone is interested: Athletic Brewing; Surreal; Bravus. They ship for free if you buy a case.


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## edubfromktown (Sep 7, 2010)

Eat healthy / home cooked meals ~98% of the time, avoid foods with artificial additives, Glucosamine Chondroitin every day and occasionally sip bourbon or rye "lubricant"


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## Crankout (Jun 16, 2010)

I'm feeling out of place in this thread at the age of 56! I'm an older guy at work, but young fella on this Sub...


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