Just hit me today actually how old I am

[Mancity08]

So I’m a 67 yr old woman

As the sun was shining this afternoon I picked a couple of plants up whilst out shopping today.
I made a brew and took myself outside to plant them.
last year I enjoyed doing the garden, would just go out and tinker about tidying it up mainly flower beds as dp woukd cut the grass.

so now to today, It was a chore ! My knees were burning feeling with bending down I had to sit on the grass. The soil is full of cement balls/stones and twigs from last year when we cut hedge down due to next door neighbour damaging about 2 foot of hedge and neighbour put fence in for the damaged hedge.
It felt so so much like hard work, hard soil(winter also) obviously I had to finish what I started and dp helped move the rubbish etc
but I’ve come in and Im literally too tired to make a tea and just feel completely scattered and really feel down. I know people say you should be grateful for your good health and what you have (I do have bad feet and it’s uncomfortable to walk) but I feel so defeated and deflated
I come to realise
In my head I think I can do. But
my body isn’t as capable

anyone else come to this conclusion?

I don’t think “use it or lose it” works for everyone. Obviously everyone should aim to be active but don’t assume people who are struggling didn’t prioritise this.

I was in my early 40s and doing 13 gym classes a week when my leg started hurting while running. Kept going and going. Eventually found out I’d got a torn tendon. Then tore another tendon. Developed serious back issues. Got diagnosed with two autoimmune diseases. Life’s shit to be honest. I still go to the gym a lot. Had to stop running but cycle instead. Had to stop high impact stuff but do weight lifting and Pilates instead. But some days struggle to walk.

Not necessarily. My cleaner is downstairs, she's 80 this year. Another friend is approaching 90. Both of them have energy levels that absolutely put mine to shame (mid-sixties).

I'm 56 and so far, knock on wood, I'm healthy and doing fine. However I've definitely noticed I don't have as much mental or physical stamina as I did 20 or 30 years ago. I have an active life with a full time job, a dog to walk, a teenager to ferry about and friends and family to socialise with, but a night in front of the TV is a real treat now, whereas I used to hate sitting down. We're going on a very long haul flight later this year and I'm dreading it and the full itinerary at the other end as I try and keep up with the teen and twenty-something DCs.

I'm 60 and am starting to get grumpy about my arthritic knees that stop me doing what I want to do. I've recently been told I will need a knee replacement - bah!

My maternal grandmother was fit and healthy until her mid-90s. I remember her complaining at aged 95 that she was now struggling to manage a five mile ramble, when the previous year she'd found it easy. Sadly, I seem to have inherited my dodgy knees from my dad's side of the family.

@soupyspoonyes me too!!!!

I never passed judgment. I said she needs to see a doctor as this is not normal. I read the post to my 63 year old mother and she agreed. Being exhausted to this extent after light activity is concerning.

It’s not a bad shout to get checked out to make sure not anaemic, check vit d and b12 levels and thyroid levels.

The bloke in the dry cleaners asked me if I had an old persons’ rail card. Fucking cheek. Think I’ll do my own ironing from now on. (I’m 63) x

I’m late 50s. I do a five min work out every morning, at first it was hit and miss as to whether I felt motivated or not.

I always say a positive little thing about the new day, whatever the weather.

I bought myself some 2kg dumbbells and some resistance bands. I promise you I don’t do more than 5 mins a day.

There’s loads of videos for older women on YouTube for 5 min workouts. Now I feel bad of if I miss a day. I am stronger, I can do the gardening.

I intend to do my 5 min work out for the rest of my life so that I don’t end up a bag of old bones. I know it’s not easy for everyone but I find having developed a little routine helps.

You won’t get immediate results but we hope to be here for a long time, don’t we?

Also if you haven’t already, make an appointment at the doctors and get a bit of a check up and a blood test. See where your bodies at!

It seems your parents had you when they were older. It is possible that there's a bit of survivorship bias there, as people who were biologically capable of having children when older and felt energetic enough to do so may well be aging more slowly genetically than the population as a whole.

The senior rail card is something you pay for and can get at 60. If you travel by train a lot long distance it can save you a lot of money.

I think it’s more likely OP has something medical going on. Even my disabled next door neighbour can go into town, so some shopping and walk back without being so exhausted she can’t make a cup of tea. But apparently pointing out that that’s not normal is now wrong?

Thanks everyone for posting I’m overwhelmed at how many post there is

I do have issues as I said my FEET, I have much discomfort in them. This has been going on for over 25 yrs (YES) First podiatrist gave me orthotics and night splint. Can’t say they worked

Left it a while after that and went to private consultant who diagnosed PLANTAR FASCIITIS
I had steroid injections in both feet ( bloody hurt like hell and never again ). Didn’t work still having much discomfort/aching after.
Had mri same consultant said PF 🤷‍♀️

over the years I’ve seen nhs podiatrist who thought it may be coming from my back , sent me to physio and because I could touch my toes , bend forward /backwards dismissed me
Ive gad shockwave therapy , another mri later (showed nothing) 🤷‍♀️

I could go on and on the amount of test I’ve had
different podiatrist, orthopaedic/physio treatments £££. Not to mention the amount I spent on shoes/trainers different makes etc
Im now at the point I’m looking again as I’m so so fed up of not being able to walk for more than 15 mins without discomfort/aching and feeling tired out. I only have to sit and watch tv and when I get up my feet feel like 2 blocks of lead and I’m walking through treacle

She hasn't been walking though. She's been kneeling and that's a stressful posture to keep for any length of time. I would say a prolonged period of kneeling plus manual work would make a woman of 67 tired, yes. Although I'm northern and assumed when she said she was too tired to make tea she meant standing and cooking a full meal, not making a cuppa. That would be more concerning.

Even being too tired to make a meal after light activity is concerning. Yes kneeling can be uncomfortable but not to this extent. She needs to seek medical help from her GP.

It's the way you wake up thinking 'That was a good sleep, I'm feeling refreshed today!' Then you look in the mirror and you look like you've been crying in space for six months... 😫

Nearly 60, definitely not got the stamina these days, but that's since autoimmune disease and cancer treatment in the last five years - after the latter I went on a Fatigue course, and they were all 'It's okay, you just need to pace yourself and not do as much'... all very well, but they don't tell you a) who's going to pick up the slack for you, and b) how the hell you come to terms with it! 😖

That is brilliant 😁

I get heel pain too, sort of burning feeling and have to be really careful what shoes I wear.
I use Biofreeze or Tiger balm crème which soothes temporarily. Also a Tens machine is nice on your lower back and hips.

Really it home about 3 years ago when cycling up a hill. Was always ok at hills but had been finding it harder. My bike computer has a heart rate monitor feature that I thought I would use. Used to use one 20 years ago but it drove me nuts with beeping etc. My max heart rate was approximately 158 and I was comparing it to when it was 185 BPM. Max heart rate declines with age and there it was. More effort stressed my heart so had to go slower and/or in lower gears.

Oh my goodness I could have written this! I too am 67 and after spending a couple of hours gardening this week I had to have a sit down and cup of tea too!
But when the sun is shining it is so lovely to spend the day gardening.
I have decided to use it as a wake up call and get fitter … starting with increasing my steps each day.

I echo another poster, sorry forget who, who felt it all go a bit south two years ago. Started strength training at the gym and now feel better than I ever have at 57. Pilates and swimming were simply not cutting it. My dm is 82 and is constantly on the go, can also outlast us all on a night out. Being strong will lead to being active, a circular thing.

It's all just a gradual, depressing decline isn't it? (But still better then the alternative!).

I'm early 50s and should be the fittest I've ever been.....lost 7st, healthy diet, regular cardio, weights, pilates, walk average of 10,000 steps a day.
However I still had to reduce my cardio so my knees didn't ache and keep me up all night. I would also love to walk alot more but my dodgy hip won't let me.

Meanwhile my 80 yr old father is constantly moaning how gardening wears him out now and he had to give up cycling a couple of years ago. I swear he is personally offended that old age has happened to him. How dare it!!?😆

64 here and definitely noticing things getting more difficult and tiring. I'm having to force myself not to make grunting noises every time I kneel or bend down!

I have found this stool absolutely brilliant for gardening though.

I can resonate , I turned 60 last month and really feel the need to get on top of my health . I’m overweight and my knees / one hip can ache if I don’t walk regularly. Sometimes I feel exhausted doing general tasks like light gardening whereas I use to be out all day doing some sort of activity. My diet is rubbish and I’ve just been diagnosed with fatty liver so need to overhaul . I eat fruit / veg but not the amounts I should and I have what I think is a sugar addiction . I feel my muscle strength diminishing aswell . I also have random aches and pains from head to toe . I’ve started wearing arch fit shoes because my left foot started paining when walking a lot . In fact everything is rubbish compared to a few years ago but I know I can do a lot more to help myself . In fact I booked myself onto a beginners Pilates course yesterday as a start. I think I’ve been surprised how quickly the body deteriorates when you age and don’t live well .

This is the thread for me at the moment.
Im nearly 64 and suddenly really feel everything falling apart. I’ve got back problems that flare up if I am not really careful . Joined the gym and started swimming two winters running. My back went each time, leading to months of expensive treatment and difficulty walking. Recently went out to rake leaves for an hour or two and could hardly walk for days afterwards. It dawned on me that maybe I can’t cope with gardening anymore. Mopping the floor isn’t good for my back either. I’ve suddenly got worryingly high BP, high cholesterol and high blood sugar just into the diabetic range. I feel exhausted all the time . The worst thing though is the constant aches and pains that have appeared from nowhere. My feet hurt, my knees hurt, and again out of nowhere seem to have started to get arthritis in my joints.

It’s all happened over the last couple of years really. I walk regularly and eat well, but need to lose weight and just cannot seem to do it. If anyone can give me tips for weight loss beyond the obvious, I am all ears. I think about my mortality a lot and suddenly feel that I am struggling to cope. I think I need to get a cleaner for a start. OH has had hand surgery and can’t do a lot himself. It’s all very sobering.