Thread: Here for a good time and (hopefully) a long time.

Not sure if this is the best place in the forum (and hopefully not a repeat), however I was hoping to start a conversation around ways to maintain the body for climbing hills as long as possible.

As I'm now moving through the fourth decade of life, I'm finding that the big walks are starting to take more of a toll. Recoveries are longer, energy is a bit lower, and there definitely a growing sense that the vitality of youth isn't indefinite. Like many, I've heard all the stories of old hunters having wrecked backs/knees/hips, which is something I'd like to avoid if possible.

I imagine that keeping a base level of fitness goes a long way, but was wondering if there were any particular practices that have helped others stay in good shape/avoid injuries as the years wear on?

start using walking sticks earlier and avoid running with a pack on.
55 and getting a hip done shortly (August) and 1 knee starting to give pain. (plus usual sprained ankles indoor netball/vollyball, , broken wrists / forearm from mountain biking etc.)
close mate getting his hip next week.

Keep weight down, allowing an extra 10 kg on adds a lot up the uphills and knees on the downhills. And it gets really hard to lose. Stretch and from time to time lie flat on the floor or even with a small rolled up town under your spine to striaghten up your posture.
Z

Genetics and luck are pretty big factors as long as you don't carry too much weight . . . .

I am knocking 78 and can still get around the hills, albeit a bit slower and a bit lower than I used to. I don't do any specific training and am a bit overweight but I keep active, walk a few k's with the dog every day and fit in at least one hill walk a week, not long distance but enough to feel the body working. Doing the same course all the time means you can monitor the improvement as you go. The other advantage is that I now realise that I probably walked past more animals down lower in my youthful rush to get to the tops. More stops and lots of glassing produces better results.

Hunt slower. You will notice more game, unless your hearing and vision are packing it in too!

58 this year and getting out as often as possible, my work is semi physical but its only 3 days a week. My previous life as a carpenter was of course highly physical.

I carried a 16Kg pack recently and although I was fine and recovered quickly it made me realise now is the time to start looking into lighter equipment (something I should have done 8 years ago).

I walk 3-4 times a week up to 5Km its flat around here but I try to at least biweekly climb up to the fire tower which is 7.5Km and 525m of climbing. I carry at most 2Kg more than I should but hard to tell as although my body shape has changed I still weigh the same as 15 years ago.

The best fitness training for hunting is going hunting but I know that's not always possible. I won't be looking at going out again from this week until after opening weekend.

I find the recovery takes a bit longer as you age. I wouldn't worry about that. I focus more on strength type activity rather than aerobic fitness which I used to do. Once or twice a week now with an 18-20kg back pack for up to an hour on flat ground has helped a lot to keep the body conditioned to carrying weight. Other than that a bit of cycling or swimming. Walk the dog daily. Just try and do something every day.

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Nice topic, I am in my mid 30s but last year changed to a less physical role at work and I've noticed the change in my body and fitness really quickly. So i've been wondering these things too.
My advice (though I'm younger than some of the other posters on here I've dealt with a back injury for a few years) is to stretch. You don't have to take up yoga or anything but think about where you regularly get sore and ask people or, even uncle google, what stretches you can do for that thing in particular and just do them regularly.

And I Second ZQLewis' recomendation to lie flat on the floor sometimes. It means you might vacuum more often

I was a full time swimmer as a child and teen but with the shoulder injury I have I'm no longer able to swim properly hence why I walk so much and my hands are stuffed so cannot cycle for long periods either any more.

Originally Posted by Bad Weather

Nice topic, I am in my mid 30s but last year changed to a less physical role at work and I've noticed the change in my body and fitness really quickly. So i've been wondering these things too.
My advice (though I'm younger than some of the other posters on here I've dealt with a back injury for a few years) is to stretch. You don't have to take up yoga or anything but think about where you regularly get sore and ask people or, even uncle google, what stretches you can do for that thing in particular and just do them regularly.

And I Second ZQLewis' recomendation to lie flat on the floor sometimes. It means you might vacuum more often

Legs up the wall.
Spent years going to a weekly yoga class locally run by a good mate. Mostly farmers/surfers trying to look after their bodies.
Legs up the wall pose is awesome. Have your butt as close or as far from the wall as you are comfortable.
Alternate between relaxing and while keeping your back flat on the ground, trying to 'push' the heels upwards. Done by tightening the quads to pull the kneecap down (not back) and picture trying to drive your heel upwards. Should give a nice hamstring stretch.
Whilst on the deck, you can also get your arms straight and let your hands try to sink to the floor up above your head (as if you had your hands high above your head when standing). Try and keep the shoulders down and not ride up around your ears. Just let the weight of your arms work to stretch everything out.
At the same time you might need to work the core a bit and focus on keeping your back flat on the ground and not arch. A bit of variation to stretch/open up the chest a bit more is to slide your elbows down so that they are now straight out on either side, but keep forearms pointing 'upwards' so that they are at 90 degrees. You'll probably need to now work harder to try and get the backs of your hands down to the ground.

Of all the yoga stuff I did, this is a guaranteed, low effort, make the body feel good again.

Anything from a minute to as long as you want.

For fitness training, fill up your pack full of water bottles to climb up to the top of a hill and then tip all the water out for walk back down. Saves your knees for when you need them.

I've discovered some of the content by Ben Patrick (knees over toes guy on Youtube) has been proving helpful - especially for knee and back health. Especially like the split squats and seated good- mornings for my overly tight hamstrings. I like how it all scales back to a level you can start from and then work up. Finding a way to keep doing it regularly is the challenge.

I also came across an idea recently called 'back casting' (by Peter Attia - not a fly fishing reference), whereby you make a guess at what you anticipate will be your last decade of life, then decide what you ideally want to be able to do (physically) in that decade.

If for example you want to be running marathons into your 80's, the idea is that you essentially work back from there to the present moment and develop a long-term fitness/strength program. He argues that most people are doing no-where enough in the present to actually make their future goals realistic.

I'm not sure if I'm totally on board with the concept, but I like that it encourages you (at any age) to think ahead and come up with a longer term plan or objective. It's encouraging to hear of people hunting well into their 70's or beyond.