Old man strength is bullshit after what age?

[SAD]

It’s not old man strength… it’s “this is as hard as I can do this particular thing without hurting myself” strength and it goes down with age after what number?

I’m already experiencing it before 40 so I’ll say 34yr is the cutoff where, all else being equal, your body just won’t function at as high a level as it once could, strength/speed/power wise.

What was that number for you? Keep in mind I’m talking about highly trained athletes here, not some avg desk joe who picked up a weight for the first time in his 40s and is making gains and stronger than ever.

 

[Mike_RN]

I’m near 30yrs of at least 3 (usually 4) workouts a week. At 51yrs old, my body still does what I tell it to.

I train 2 days Push/Pull & Legs and get 2 x 10-15mile MTB rides per week. Genetics is always a big part of it but consistency also plays a big part.

Too many guys take a hiatus for a few years and then go back hardcore and get frustrated. I never stopped asking for a high level of performance from my body and it runs well still because of that demand.

 

[tommyguns2]

I made slow and steady gains in my 30s and 40s, but I have noticed a difference in my 50s.

For me, in my late 40s I was moving some modestly heavy weight (at least for me), and I started to get nagging injuries more often. Fortunately no full tears, but minor tear stuff and strains of muscles that took longer and longer to heal. As that whole process started to become more and more frustrating, I pulled back on my heavier workouts and went to a more lightweight volume based training. For the first several years I was able to hold onto my size, but I did lose strength.

This past year I've lost size and strength. I think I'll need to mix it up again, as my body has acclimated a little too much. On the bright side, I haven't been getting lots of injuries related to the weightlifting.

 

[SAD]

Did I peak young, lol?

I continue to ask a lot of my body, but have had to change what I ask, and how often. Lol.

I’ve also jumped around from sport to sport and while that’s kept me athletic, it hasn’t been great for any one modality in particular, including pure strength.

 

[rawdeal]

Adding size and/or strength are almost irresistible motives at some point in our lives. Much later, just feeling young again becomes the main goal. A bit later still, just reaching the finish line without needing other people's assistance is your prayer.

The trick is to decide where/when your sweet spots are as to guiding yourself through training, dieting, and supplementing schemes as smoothly as possible from cradle to grave. Being a swole beast with all the attendant euphoria you worked so hard for before your 40s - 50s don't count for shit if you spend your remaining years pathetic, and painfully aware of it. Look at some older relatives if you have that option, or do a brief volunteer gig in a local nursing home if you can stomach it ... "perspective" is easily available if you look for it.

 

[Bilter]

I didn't see any significant reduction in strength until I was 55 and that was last yr and I attribute it to being out of the gym for 8 months due to closures from covid. That said, Im back to training after setting up a decent home gym. The thing is, I really don't give a shit if Im a 600 pound squatter anymore. I've been going light in comparison to pre COVID lifts. I may get my drive back someday but who knows. Im in pretty good condition, my joints feel great after the lay off and I hope to add back some size and strength in the coming months. Only been doing Dr prescribed TRT for the last 18 months and that's been pretty half assed since I am 1 week late on doses at time.

 

[BrotherIron]

I'm over 40 and I wouldn't say it's at 34.

I just think that you have to train smarter as you age to continue to push numbers worth mentioning.. at least that's my opinion.

 

[DieYoungStrong]

Sad - I hear you 100% because this hits home for me. I played football from age 8 - 26. For the age mathematicians, no I did not play in the NFL, but I did play for a high level semi-pro team for 4 years after college.

Started lifting and training in 7th or 8th grade to become a better football player, and from then end of 8th grade on - my high school had a year round S&C program with an excellent coach who taught us how to lift properly. We were actually very lucky to have him, and he's still at my old HS doing his thing 20+ years later. So that's when I started lifting seriously. Found gear in college because it's football and more of us did it then didn't do it at my school back then. Had plenty of minor to moderate injuries and concussions throughout my football career.

When I quit playing football, I spent about a year just being a gym bro, and realized I hated being a gym bro...became a powerlifter. Fell in love with powerlifting and rode that train until I completely ruptured my adductor when I was 37. Had a million other small - moderate injuries along the way like most powerlifters.

I'm also an Ironworker by trade.

Since I've torn my adductor I went from still feeling close to my peak to going off the cliff Thelma and Louise style. All the little nagging injuries started bothering me around 38. Now I'm 41 and have to be very careful how I train. Sucks getting old. It takes me about an hour everyday from the time I wake up until all the snap, crackle and popping is gone and I can be a normal human for the rest of the day.

I have a few buddies who played short stints in the NFL, and watching them in their 40s is painful. Makes me feel better about myself haha. My business also attends a charity event for Navy Seals every year. Those guys are just completely beat to shit by their 40s. The amount of surgery scars on them is scary. Then you have the other "regular" vets who walked around the dessert or training back at home with 100lb packs on for years on end.

I guess the short answer comes down to "training age" for lack of a better word. If you've rode the injury train, or beat the shit out of your young body one way or the other - it's going to be harder, and you'll just "age" faster. But we all have old man strength. I'm sure could still deadlift 600, or kick the shit out of some young whipper snapper if I had too. I just wouldn't be able to walk for 3 days after. Pick your battles.

 

[midevil]

I think it's an individual thing. Personally I feel I peaked in my late 40's mid 50's but I didn't use gear till I hit 47.

 

[luckysaint]

1st Pic with my hat on I'm 6'5" in my 30's just finished my 1st AAS cycle ever, I weighed about 244#'s. 2nd pic is me at the beach sitting in a chair I was in my mid 40's and weighed around 280-290#'s. 3rd pic is me in my 50's weighing about 265#'s and this was 5 yrs after my "open heart surgery", so I'm actually 56 yrs old in the tank top pic w hat turned backwards and now-a- days I'm 57 so not much has changed from that pic at all... No Pains, no aches to speak of (just minor here and there),B/P is perfect e.d. along with my heart rate, and my blood work I just did Friday was On-Point everything being perfect! Also my Avatar pic I was early 40's at 300+

 

[ValeTudo8080]

I think around 45 I lost my old man strength.....shit just seems heavier now than in my late 30s/early 40s.

I am going to do a tren ace run and see if it comes back

 

[SAD]

To counterpoint (and make myself feel a bit better), there is a reason you don’t see elite strength athletes (or elite athletes in general) who perform better in the mid 30s+ than they did in their mid 20s-early 30s.

At the body’s peak (limit), I still think strength/explosiveness are downhill after your early 30s, sometimes even earlier. There are some exceptions (Tom Brady isn’t one of them, that’s a whole other thread, hahaha), but I think it holds true unless you got into lifting/sports late, in which case you’ll never know if you would’ve been more powerful as a 25yr old.

As bummed as I am that I seem to be more destroyed and beat up and worn out than most of you, I’m happy that y’all have all found ways to push the limits into your 50s and beyond. Thanks for the motivation.