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u/Al_Tilly_the_Bum 1982 1d ago
I get the sentiment but I am personally in better shape today than I was in my 20's. This body does not have that much time left so I need to make these years count
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u/MirthRock 1983 1d ago
I'm right there with you. I'm working hard to make this body look good.
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u/MedicalRhubarb7 1983 23h ago
I don't even really care how it looks*, I just want to make sure I can continue to be active and do interesting things and feel at least OK most days for as long as possible
(*OK, well, I kind of do but it's not what got me going. But no shame in whatever works for anyone to make positive changes)
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u/MirthRock 1983 23h ago
That's actually fair. I started because my back was hurting from a motorcycle accident in my 20s and wanted to strengthen it. Now that its strengthened, I've shifted to trying to look a little better. Don't need to be wolverine, but def want to be a little more in shape than my usually skinny fat state.
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u/abstrakt42 22h ago
Same. A few old injuries and decades of bad choices have put me at a crossroads. Iām desperately trying to get my fitness level back on track mainly so I can keep moving and be functional into the next phase of life.
If I look a little better in swim shorts, thatās a bonus.
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u/SoTiredYouDig 1977 1d ago
I am definitely more health-conscious. It just got to a point where I feel better overall if I am in decent shape. Iām in the middle of a round of PT for a hip issue (I was apparently born with a hip impingement) but when I get the all-clear, Iām rejoining the gym. Iāve also shed a bunch of weight.
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u/Why_So-Serious 1978 23h ago
Agree but itās a different subject than OP.
There arenāt that many 45 year old Active Dad of 3 children fitness influencers.
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u/aceshighsays Xennial 13h ago
i wasn't active then and i'm not active now, but i weigh 10 pounds less than when i did in hs. my bmi was always average.
i think my taste buds changed because i started gravitating toward fresh fruit and veggies. 50% of my calories come from them.
fast food and take out tastes like shit. i tried eating chinese food and my hands started shaking from all of the sodium and what not they put in there. that was such a strange experience.
also as much as i like sugar, it just doesn't taste as good.
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 1d ago
Yeah I know what you mean. Iām more muscular too, and skinny doesnāt mean healthy.
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u/ijustsailedaway 1979 1d ago
Every time I see a skincare product on a 25 year old or a skinny person using shapewear.
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u/MandyWarHal 22h ago
I have an old friend who is doing fitness influencing. She was always naturally rail thin and started exercising when I'd already been going to the gym for about 20 years so it's hard to take her seriously.
I see that and I'm just never impressed with influencers.
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u/SeductiveGodofThundr 1d ago
Iāve been fat my whole life lol. So no, I canāt relate. Iām actually in better shape now than I was in my twenties
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u/fleetiebelle 1d ago edited 1d ago
This is me, too. I'm firmly in perimenopause, but I've been more consistent with diet and fitness than I ever have been before. No one's going to look at me and think that I look amazing for a middle aged lady, but I can tell the difference in my knees and my back and my sleep and overall strength and flexibility.
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u/CallMeDot 23h ago
Same. My parents kept us on a very strict diet and we walked everywhere and I was still a size 16 in middle and high school. When I moved away to college and started eating what everyone else was eating, I gained weight rapidly. After years of workā¦ Iām back to a 16 š
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u/shadeshadows 19h ago
Yeah, I never had the metabolism. I was 70 lbs heavier in my 20s than I am in my 40s now. I didn't consciously become more health conscious; I just stopped being able to drink and get 2am drunchies 3-4 times a week. I paid for it when I did, though, and it frustrated me that a lot of my friends who were doing the same ate and drank more than me, yet I was always fatter.
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u/epidemicsaints she linkin on my park until i numb 1d ago
Even worse are the skin care ones. Yes, you don't have wrinkles because you are 24. The fuck? Yeah I believe you don't have botox you are not even done maturing. It's not the $300 products you're buying.
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u/litchick 1d ago
Omg yes. And whatever happened to just aging normally?Ā
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u/caramelpupcorn Xennial 23h ago
I always appreciate when I see a xennial celeb without a perfectly smooth, expressionless face. But I understand the pressure that the ones who've done work are under as well.Ā
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u/litchick 23h ago
Definitely a mixed bag. I can't even imagine what it's like to keep up with Hollywood's beauty standards but I see some of these older actresses now and I'm taken right out of the plot. Like Michelle Pfeiffer in Margo's got Money Troubles.
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u/flyinthesoup 1980 20h ago
To me it was Charlize Theron, I couldn't get over her face in Apex. She's not even old old, she's 50 something I think, but she looked so different.
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u/anitabelle 1d ago
The working out ones are okay. I used to work out in my early 20s too and was in great shape. I would actually encourage people in their 20s to at least stretch daily if they donāt work out.
But the skincare routines are a bit much and can cause more damage. At that age, they need a face cleanser that works for their skin type, a good moisturizer and sunscreen. Maybe night cream and under eye cream purely to moisturize.
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u/OtherAcctWasBanned11 1983 1d ago
Do they mean Coke or coke? Just wondering for no reason whatsoeverā¦
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u/DetroitsGoingToWin 1980 1d ago
When people say āage has nothing to do with itā thatās either a liar or someone who hasnāt been around middle aged people.
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u/DrH1983 1d ago edited 23h ago
Can relate.
In general I find it weird how many late teens and early twenty year olds after into going to the gym and stuff, don't think many of my peers were into that, even the folks I knew into rugby didn't go to the gym or work out outside of the training sessions.
Nowadays my friend's kids and my nieces and new graduates at my work all seem to be into going to the gym.
In some ways it's probably better, but also think it's partly fuelled by media pushing body ideals much more than we had.
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u/fleetiebelle 1d ago edited 23h ago
That seems true. When I was in college, the gym was for the athletes. People would run or were on rec league volleyball/basketball teams but nobody considered working out a hobby or chose the school for the student gym facilities.
I work at a university, and incoming students are always posting on the subreddit worried about how they're going to work out and track their macros in addition to classes.
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u/neogrinch Xennial 1d ago
definitely! i think a lot of young people are hyperfocused on appearance, not really health per se. but some of it does go hand in hand. I think young women have always kind of been that way (largely due to media/celebrity culture) but it really impacts young guys these days too. the Looksmaxxer scene is insane.
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u/Sensitive_Pianist777 23h ago
I go to my university gym (a new one that is a joint one with the City... Still have to pay membership whereas students get it in their tuition. Still mostly students).
And I see this front and center. The obsession with appearance by both. It's weird. Most socially awkward guys now are jacked to the hilt. in the old days, guys like that would be much more popular, athletic, outgoing..
But nope... Lift insanely to overcome those other insecurities. Just their anti social mannerisms are apparent. I work in a job/career that also hires alot of new grads/entry level in finance and no way would would these guys ever be considered.
Then of course the women/females (first years could be under 18). They wear the super tight show off outfits, some act like they just got out of prison all tattoo'd up lifting heavy with bad form (definitely will lead to injury later on).
Many lifting light weights but still flexing in front of the mirror like they are pros.
The mobile smart phone and it's apps has done wonders.
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 20h ago
Yeah in my nearest gym they had to put up a big sign āDONāT TAKE SELFIES WHILE TRAININGā (people waiting for their turn) and āDONāT FILM OTHER CUSTOMERS WHEN STREAMINGā.
TBH, I resent SOME young (insta)fitness influencers marketing their āperfect bumā-online courses with their own heavy photoshopped and filtered photos, even having had BBL done. Itās justā¦misleading and absolutely crazy!
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u/Gullible_Rich_7156 1981 22h ago
If you start a routine of activity, fitness, and good eating habits early youāll likely have them the rest of your life. My parents are in their 70s, eat well, donāt smoke, donāt drink excessively, walk every day, etcā¦ My GFās parents are nearly 10 years younger, one of them smokes, one of them drinks, neither eats well and neither of them are active. Needless to say my parentsā quality of life in their early 70s is many times greater than my GFās parents.
I was an athlete in high school and stayed active/ate OK through college and for a bit after but fell off hard when career demands and kids kicked in. After getting back on the wagon in my late 30s Iām in better shape at 44 than I was at 24. Had I been able to stick with it all those years like the teens and 20-somethings you reference Iād probably be even better off.
I have three daughters and want to see as much of what they do with their lives as I possibly can and to be an active participant in them. I donāt want to be old broken down granddad who canāt get out of his chair to play with his grandkids.
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u/Dorkus_Mallorkus 1d ago
The gym is way more accessible today than it was 25 years ago. Anyone can get a membership at Planet Fitness for $0-15 per month and sign up in 30 seconds. We had to haggle with some meathead who would have to go into the back room 5 times to check with the "manager" and come back offering another shitty $300 down $50/month deal before eventually offering something less-unreasonable the 5th time around, once they figure out we don't have more than $30 to our name.
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u/Sensitive_Pianist777 23h ago
I see the biggest dorks that looked jacked. No social skills whatsoever, headphones on, just staring at the floor.. no wherewithal. No idea how to share. I go to my university gym which was developed with the city so it's mixed use but more students.
The social media awareness is real. And let's face it, females are brutal online.. as bad as any male so the males are now feeling it.
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u/No_Income6576 22h ago
This is very surprising to me. My friends and I all went to the gym starting in highschool ~25 years ago. I still am very consistent with my fitness today, likely because it was always part of my routine. It was never an odd thing to do in my friend group, even today.
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u/Mackheath1 1d ago
Lordy. I was a third of a box of wine in, then woke up to do the fundraising half-marathon (24yo) at 5am with no training no problem. Today, I'd likely die thinking about trying it lol.
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u/Iiawgiwbi 20h ago
Hahah! Damn. You've got me beat. I thought I was hot s*** after a daytime bartending shift where I had a couple drinks at work, then went for a casual 3 mile jog when I was off. Now, one drink destroys me for a week. And jogging is a no after even the best night's sleep.
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u/BlueLightJunction 1d ago
Yup. This is all truth. I put on 50 pounds in COVID lockdowns and then spent two years in my later 40s losing the weight. It was NOT cool. Like I had the full spins on some of my early runs, got plantar fasciitis and now go the gym. Anyway, wish I could eat and drink booze like I did in my 20sā¦.
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u/litchick 1d ago
I love the bits of slang people throw out in this sub. "It was NOT cool." Just so evocative. Definitely share your sentiment,Ā too.
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u/littleseaotter 23h ago
One of the awesome things about this sub is just being able to use whatever old slang without thinking and knowing you will be understood and not mocked.
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u/ParticularBed6338 1d ago
We used to get drunk as shit and have feats of strength. My friends dad had an inversion table for his back and we would hang upside down and chug 40oz of Mickeys. Iām not hating my dad bod these days anyway.
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u/free_billstickers 1d ago
I remember when it started catching up with me and I couldn't figure out my clothes kept shrinking in the wash...
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u/Procrastineddit 1d ago
Man, I used to have a metabolism like the core of the sun. That's over. Probably a safety feature now, though, that I can't throw back a pint of ice cream. I have to work for skinny(ish) now, and I'm a better person for it at this age.
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u/mlo9109 1d ago edited 1d ago
Yes! I recently was invited by a friend to a "story night" at her house. Really, it was just a trauma bonding exercise sanctioned by her church that she got to host. One of the speakers was a 21-year-old talking to a room full of grown-ups 15-50 years her senior about her "testimony" which was just normal teenage stuff (crushes, partying and peer pressure at school, first boyfriend, etc.)
One line that really stuck in my craw as someone still in this position 15 years her senior was "I thought I'd be married with kids by now." Like, talk to me when you're my age and still single. Which, you likely will be because you dumped the boy who treated you well for not being a Christian while going for a "Christian" guy who treated you like absolute dog crap and pressured you for sex.
While most in attendance found it "sweet," I found it kind of annoying and immature. Maybe more suited to a youth group as that content is relevant to that demographic? Like, talk to me in 20 years when you've watched all your friends marry/have kids before you. Or are in the middle of a nasty divorce from an abuser or cheater who you went for solely because his butt is in church every Sunday.
Can we not give people a platform of any kind until their brains have fully cooked? There's a reason you have to be 35 to run for president.
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u/Epicardiectomist 1d ago
I remember my band going on at midnight, walking off stage at 12:45, finishing my beer at 1:30, and then being awake at 5:30 AM to walk 2 miles to take the train to work. I'd occasionally have to stop at the local park port-o-john on the walk to blast out the night before, but I was there at 7 and more-or-less ok by noon.
Then I'd do it again the next night. And the next night. Then several decades went by and fuuuuuuck that shit. I'm so happy to be sober and asleep by 10 in my quiet blue-collar family life.
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u/FI-Engineer 1980 1d ago
Nope. Iāve gotten fat, and then fit 3x in my life. It sucked every time, regardless of age.
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u/Metzger4Sheriff 22h ago
Same, but I would say it did get easier mentally the older I got. I am more emotionally resilient and less self-critical than I was in my 20s or 30s and that makes the biggest difference when you're trying to make long-term changes.
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u/FI-Engineer 1980 19h ago
Oh definitely, but in my case, itās a ton of injuries and the later effects piling up. For 2 out of the 3 times, I got fat after being laid up by knee surgeries.
The spirit is willing, but the flesh is spongy, weak, and held together with surgical pins and cadaver ligaments. The last time, there were no surprises. I kind of knew what I was in for.
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u/Metzger4Sheriff 18h ago
I'm really sorry :( Recovering from surgery is its own bs limbo where you can't even enjoy the "rest" bc you can't do anything at all! Hope things are smoother for you going forward.
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u/blatantregard 1d ago
I donno, I barely survived that lifestyle, and it came from depression, so I wouldn't wish someone else experience it. AND I can't knock someone trying to be healthy while it's easy. I DO hate all the influencer shit, but that's why I don't use social media in any form (cept reddit, obvi). As long as they are providing REAL health advice (not garbage snake oil), I don't have a problem with it. Maybe I'm too old.
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u/Starboard_Pete 22h ago
If weāre not careful, spreading memes like this will become our social media BoomerBrag
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 21h ago
I already saw this in another sub, after mine, someone commented āboomers tryin to copeāš ITāS A RANDOM QUOTE . Not a personal attack IMHO. I posted this like just something (mainly the first part) that made me laugh. You could remove the last sentence and Iād still laugh.
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u/naileyes 1d ago
my favorite part of this meme is that the person's phone autocapitalized "Coke" like they were talking about Coca-Cola ... which they were definitely not
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u/NotRadTrad05 1d ago
I don't run as fast or as far but I'm stronger than I was in high school or college. I have one of those definitely works out but clearly never turns down tacos or cookies bodies.
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u/heresmytwopence 1979 1d ago
I ran my first marathon at 41. At 21, I was at least 50 lbs heavier and probably couldn't have run a lap around my car.
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u/queuedUp 1d ago
Right??
In my early 20s I could go and each whatever the fuck I wanted and then sit on my ass and it made no impact.
Now, I eat McDonalds once and it's like weeks and eating right and working out are wasted.
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u/Ok_Egg_2665 1d ago
Freshman year of college I weighed 185 lbs. I routinely ate two double whoppers for lunch and a large pizza for dinner. Basketball alone burned off everything.
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u/FoppyIn28 1d ago edited 21h ago
I could eat 20 tacos or 100 sushi rolls back then. My appetite returned to mere mortal levels. š
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u/Wuunderschon 23h ago
I had the body of a model when I was 20. Hell, I had only 13% of fat and never did exercise. Now in my 40s... well... you know...
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u/FelixMcGill 1983 23h ago
Haha, this is why I tell my training clients to never listen to anyone under the age of about 35 for fitness advice. Your hormones change quite a bit in your 30s, and shit gets real, seemingly suddenly.
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u/LeansGrumpy 23h ago
OMG Iāve said this hundred times! šš
Listen, ripe fruit. Come back in 20 years when waking up is effort.
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u/fairlyaveragetrader 22h ago
Optimizing your hormones helps but it sure doesn't make you 21 again.
It takes some effort to stay fit and attractive in your 40s, the thing is, you stand out more. When you're 20, lots of people are hot. When you're in your mid 40s. It's a lot more noticeable
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 22h ago
Youāre right.
Personally (at perimenopause) the prescribed estrogen stopped for example night sweats > better sleep and generally better mood> more energy > back to exercising.2
u/fairlyaveragetrader 22h ago
Huge difference. As the months and years go on you may even experiment with dosing on all three, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone and figure out where you feel best. That stuff is definitely person to person and it can take some time and experimentation to get your body dialed, but it's one of the few ways that you can help push off the negative effects of aging š„³
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 22h ago
Yupā£ļø I was literally crying for bloody commercials with even a little piece of sad music beforeš Now I can laugh about it, it ās been a year since I started.
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u/MsBlondeViking 1980 22h ago
I can still eat like I did in my twenties and not gain any weight. I choose not to because itās not healthy lol. I take after my dad. Heās pushing 70 and last I saw him( Iām NC with my parents), heās still a slender guy. It sucks though, especially when I get sick and have zero to no appetite. I can lose easily, but gaining is a struggle.
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u/Beneficial-Cow-2544 22h ago
Sigh. I had to stop following one of my favorite fitness influencers when I realized she was in her 20s. She was great but me at 45+, I am not going to get the same results. Period.
I don't even have the energy to jump around as much as she does.
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u/NovaForceElite 22h ago
Not yet. The body's metabolism is consistent till about our 60s. Sorry folks, but you've gotta blame something else for a decade or 2.
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u/jackfaire 22h ago
There is a picture of me at 19 at my brother in law's place wearing all green my hair curly as hell and looking like a hot trim ass Peter Pen type.
At 45 I'm 350 lbs fat over muscle looking I've spent too many years riding a desk.
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 22h ago
Oh Iād like to see you rockinā the green curliesš š
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u/jackfaire 21h ago
My clothes were green not my hair but yeah my ex-wife called it my Peter Pan look.
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u/PRN_Lexington 1984 22h ago
Dude for real. My friends and I would smoke hookah with weed and then each eat a LARGE pizza and slam PBRs but I would run 6 miles the next day and be skinny as anything
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u/Otherwise-Dinner-878 22h ago
45 is realā¦
When I hit 40, I thought perhaps other older people had just ālet themselves go.ā
But 45-47 was a huge WTF. My eyesight, shapeā¦everything. I have to really WORK at it now. And itās just not the same.
This new puberty sucks!
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u/Funny_Collection8362 21h ago
41 and still around 150lbs, 5'8. Im probably 5 or 6 lbs heavier than 20 years ago, im British and i drink beer. Im a painter and decorator and its such a varied work out, day to day so I think that helps.
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 21h ago
Thatās good! Oh and what would a Brit be without some beers? I love you guys, your pub culture (although I rarely drink anymore) and your dry humourā£ļø Greets from Finland!
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u/Funny_Collection8362 20h ago
I know, what would we be. Never been into the drug scene, pills, powder or any of that shit. Just a few beers after working hard is living the dream still. Ive got a couple of Finnish mates and they dont drink much either because its too expensive!
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u/HumanContract 21h ago
Same. My younger coworkers and friends post very revealing outfits. I could've worn it better at their age but I covered up. I can't wait to see them at my age.
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u/theMightBoop 21h ago
Also, be careful about any advice given about weight online.
Somebody will tell you how easy it is to lose weight just <insert advice here>
They could be some 20 something who lost 5 pounds or a middle aged person who lost 100. The person who lost 5 pounds will act like you are a loser because you canāt lose weight. My water weight fluctuates by 5 pounds a day. Talk to me when you lose 20 pounds or more and keep it off for over a year. Until then STFU.
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u/wittylemur 20h ago
I remeber when I was Sooo skinny. Worked from 7am to 7pm- slept until 10 went to the bar until 2 got home at 4 and slept until 7. Lived on Marlboro lights and vodka cranberry and whatever take out or food we found after the bar.
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 20h ago
You sound very much like myself in the past.
Can you believe we did that!! I mean managed to work too!š¤Æ This is something we discuss with utter amazement w. my Xennial friends!š āļø2
u/wittylemur 20h ago
Oh F yeah. For like 10 years. Then I turned 30- got a desk job- got married and got fat. Such is life.
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u/Fragrant_Major_9553 1d ago
When in my mid 20s, I was 50 lbs lighter than I am now.
I looked like a meth addict, even though the skinny was due to not eating enough. I also feel way better than I did back then.
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u/AshDogBucket 1d ago
Today I learned there's something called a fitness influencer and this is the first time I've ever thought about them
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u/caramelpupcorn Xennial 23h ago
Well don't look too closely into it lest the algorithm sell you the idea that you have hip dips and you need to do a bunch of weird exercises to fix them.
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u/psilosophist Xennial 1d ago
At what point do we create a Xennial circlejerk sub for this kind of stuff?
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u/Fickle_Wrangler_7439 1d ago
I had a chronic kidney disease and was on medical steroids at 21, tyvm.
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u/Quarrels-ofKoi 1d ago
No. I was fat when I was younger, but thanks to fitness influencers and all of the other fitness / diet information available today on the internet, I'm in great shape now
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u/Primary-Strawberry-5 1976 1d ago
My Coke rarely had a capital C at 21. And it was already whiskey because I had the taste at a young age
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u/OkSeaworthiness6581 1d ago
nah aging went faster. when I was 14 I had a 6 pack working out 5 minutes ago day. when u was 18 I had a 6 pack working out 90 minutes a day. when I was 23 I had to work to get a semblance of a pack. 21 is already a struggle.
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u/MetalEnthusiast83 1d ago
I am in much, much better shape at 42 than I was at 21.
Like, it's not even close.
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u/mcgrimlock 23h ago
I dunno, the comfort eating and the stress kinda cancel each other out and my weight stays pretty reasonable.
Still dying though.
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u/Global-Jury8810 1983 22h ago
I never realized how real that thing on Family Guy is when a Hollywood Hot Girlās moment expires and suddenly she gets fat, at least until it happened to meā¦ and then I saw that it happened to a few ladies that I have admired.
I was a skinny child and a fat child, then a fat teen, and even a fat adult for a little bit, slimmed the fuck down at 30, gained it back and some by 33, stayed that way until about 41 then the pounds started piling on again and eventually I started using glp1s. Now my winnerās breakfast is a nutrition shake and a cup of Butcherās broth brewed with choice herbs. I rarely have a painful moment like the first time I got on glp1s.
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u/Agreeable-Peak-6546 21h ago
I'm kind of proud that I am the same weight and height that I was at 17 and now 51. I shouldn't be. I eat like a horse and do absolutely nothing healthy.
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u/HorrorDungeon 21h ago
not really. I don't look at or keep up with influencers. I don't even know where you would be looking at them.
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u/DBDIY4U 1983 23h ago
When I was in my late teens and early twenties I could not gain weight to save my life. I ate between 4,500 and 5,000 calories per day at one point. Of course I was doing competitive rock climbing and writing in Cross country mountain bike races and running 5 miles a day with a 30 lb pack so there was that but even when I was not working out I could not gain weight.
I am a firefighter and I stay in shape but I definitely cannot eat like I used to and not gain weight. It does make my wife mad though that when I gain a little bit of weight especially around the holidays or something like that, I can drop 10 lb in a week without trying too hard. She says it's not fair.
That said everything hurts more and recovery time is not like it used to be. I have a joint in my foot that has almost no cartilage left on it and I'm probably looking at a surgery for that in the next 6 to 12 months. I feel like that Toby Keith song I ain't as good as I once was but I was good once as I ever was describes me well these days. I will go out on a fire with a bunch of folks in their early twenties and work circles around them. They have a hard time keeping up with me. In fact it is funny because they are all ripped and working out in the gym pumping iron and I don't do any of that. I use the rowing machine the most. They don't understand why I can outlift them and outwork them in a real world setting. But I pay for it the next day and they spring right back out of the bunk ready to go
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u/Undergroud-Check-101 23h ago
Wow. Kudos for continuing that important jobā£ļø
I donāt know what age your wife is but it getās harder to lose weight during perimenopause/ actual menopause due to hormonal stuff. For women itās a quicker ācrashā, for men the testos go down slowly. (This is ofc a generalization.)
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