The Off-Topic and Random Thoughts Thread(Anything Goes!)
- Thread starter JCSteel
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That's why I think people should be having kids in their 20s if it's at all possible. 20s me thought he was tired a lot, but what I did day to day then in comparison to what I do now in early 40s is bigly different. In my 20s, I would have had the energy to raise kids and work. By the time I got started at 30, it felt like the clock was ticking for whether or not I'd have the energy to be a parent. My energy change between 20 and 30 was a lot more noticeable than 30 to 40. I was an average bloke, not eating clean, not staying consistent in the gym, and in my 20s I could go for a long time getting up super early to white knight a girl (despite working a late 2nd shift), get through a work day and be on my feet all day walking (I'd even jog around the outside of the warehouse on my breaks and lunch to try to burn more calories, the walking all day itself I didn't consider exercise), and still go to the gym after work. Even by my mid-30s I couldn't be on my feet all day and contemplate doing a workout or activity. By then the lack of clean eating was getting to me. While I'm still somewhat physically capable, my recovery is nowhere near what it was and I eat a lot cleaner.
At 37, I still felt young. I think it was when I hit 43 or so that I started experiencing the same issues as him. The thrill of living felt like it was gone forever. I can really relate with the whole "I've wasted my life" thinking that goes on once you hit a certain age. Now I wake up regularly with that thought in my head and the only thing I can do is become a more determined person in my 50s. So I can use that to my advantage, but the regret of wasting my youth will never leave.
Every man's journey is different and I personally refuse Matt's narrative. O'pining for "the good old days" and being negative with "I wasted my youth" is very feminine and beta. I think he peaked too soon with some fame and money and hoe's on is late 20's/early 30's and got numb to it all so now he feels nothing except "it's all downhill from here" doom. Matt's message is horrible, money is not the answer, God is. My arc is the opposite, I have been depressed and broke for the last 40 years and now I'm achieving mini-fame and financial success and I feel better than I ever have and I'm super excited about the future (quitting drinking has had a lot to do with this). I'm in my 50's and got all my hottest 20-something chicks in my 40's. I was 47 when I locked down the best, hottest woman I'd ever been with. I'm surfing better than ever (in part due to modern surfboard design), and I just finished writing the best song I've ever written, my guitar playing has vastly improved over the last year, and I'm making more money than I ever have by doing more creative, less stressful, and more rewarding work. Sure, aging is painful and scary, and dying sucks, but STFU, hit the gym harder, stop eating sugar and drinking, gird your loins, and go down fighting. Death makes heroes of us all.
I'm 41 and honestly I feel and look better than ever and I've been told that by others, I'm definitely better at life than I've ever been. I think that guy just burned himself out, an unclean life of degeneracy will do that to anyone.
Something the old owner of my gym told me that has always stuck with me. I was tired and dragging one day, he noticed because I'm usually an unsettled animal at the gym I barely even rest between sets. I told him I was tired and said the line about "I'm getting old" and he asked "Did you feel great every day when you were a kid? Think back on it, did you?". He was right, 100% dead on right. I remember school getting out and regularly dreading wrestling practice counting how many minutes of downtime I had before it started because I was tired and felt crappy, my ankle was bothering me after rolling it the day before blah blah blah....
Something the old owner of my gym told me that has always stuck with me. I was tired and dragging one day, he noticed because I'm usually an unsettled animal at the gym I barely even rest between sets. I told him I was tired and said the line about "I'm getting old" and he asked "Did you feel great every day when you were a kid? Think back on it, did you?". He was right, 100% dead on right. I remember school getting out and regularly dreading wrestling practice counting how many minutes of downtime I had before it started because I was tired and felt crappy, my ankle was bothering me after rolling it the day before blah blah blah....
I think the biggest key to stay young (feel good, have energy, feel optimistic) is to eat healthy and keep active. Avoid pleasure, learn to live without it. Intermittent fasting on your non-lifting days. A few longer fasts once a month or so. Cut out all sugar, eat more fruit and veggies, research juicing or healthy blended drinks, and cut out alcohol. If you do these things, you will feel great well into your 60's or even later if you are blessed.
I feel great in my late 40's, I have 20 something women hitting on me, and it is because I do these things. Also, as you get older your confidence naturally grows, which women pick up on as well.
Matt Forney's problem is he lived for pleasure, has started to clean it up a little, but he needs to switch to having a purpose in life that isn't just pleasure. He seems like the kind of guy who loses weight and then goes out and celebrates by eating a load of junk food. He still craves the pleasure and the pleasure is what is causing him to crash.
I feel great in my late 40's, I have 20 something women hitting on me, and it is because I do these things. Also, as you get older your confidence naturally grows, which women pick up on as well.
Matt Forney's problem is he lived for pleasure, has started to clean it up a little, but he needs to switch to having a purpose in life that isn't just pleasure. He seems like the kind of guy who loses weight and then goes out and celebrates by eating a load of junk food. He still craves the pleasure and the pleasure is what is causing him to crash.
Who would have thought that being an overweight, alcoholic sex addict like Forney would destroy your body??
Honestly, I think he can still recover his vitality if he changes and turns his life around. But does he have the will is the question. I would say men peak early to mid 30s but with the caveat that you have to take care of yourself. And the majority do not.
I can relate to what Matt Forney is saying. But he is missing the trade off part which is huge. When you are in your teens and 20s you are usually healthier, in better shape, have more energy and more tolerance for dealing with nonsense. All of that is true on average. But the big trade off he doesn't talk about is that most men don't get to a financially sound position until they are in their 30s so a lot of men in their 20s do not have a lot of money. So sure easier to get a one night stand or short term fling as a 22 year old man but its often easier to get a serious long term relationship in your 30s because a lot of women want a man who can provide when they are looking for a serious relationship. Like many things in life there are trade offs.
I honestly believe you but usually when men say this it means they were unfit or out of shape as a teenager or in their early 20s.
It is incredibly rare for someone who when young was highly athletic, played a lot of sports and ate well, didn't drink etc to say this. Someone who is healthy, athletic, sporty and in shape when young is generally only likely to go down downhill as they age. There is a reason that the vast majority of professional and semi professional sports the majority of the athletes peak in their 20s. Sometimes the older athletes can still come out on top despite being past their peak physically due to having more experience, better strategy, more mental toughness etc but basically as a man your body (when averaged out overall across a range of attributes such as flexibility, reaction time, recovery time, endurance, strength, etc) will generally peak sometime in your 20s.
But yes sometimes you see out of shape younger guys who get their act together later in life say the same thing you are.