rsbob 

You reminded me of my last employment. I was surrounded by fellow employees that were 10 to 20 years younger (I bike commuted then). Just being surrounded by young people did a lot to keep me feeling young too as well as keeping up on aspects of life that my generation is clueless (more or less). It felt good and kept me young to be around spunky, energetic, intelligent people. And it was great to be invited by them to go for a run at lunch even though I couldn’t hold a candle to the hard core runners.

Speedway2

......only sometimes when I'm walking up stairs (I feel it in the lower back and hips).
Also, as I'm getting older I swear I'm getting taller because things that have fallen on the floor seem to be so much further away while trying to pick them up.

JanMM

I completed a bachelor degree in nursing at age 60 and learned in a Human Growth and Development course that Older Adulthood begins at age 66. That helped me feel like a young member of Middle Adulthood, especially as I was still often playing in traffic on a bicycle riding to work at a downtown hospital. At 73 and retired just shy of five years I realize can't claim middle age status but feel merely Older, not Old. Looks like 2023 total biking mileage will only be 2600, which ain't bad, really. Hey ho, let's go!

striker65

72 and ride 5 miles every day the temp is above 55, I don't feel old but when I see a picture of myself or in a mirror I realize I'm getting old.

SpedFast

Who hid the Advil? I was going to remain a perpetual 69, but the wife says she doesn't want people mistaking me for her kid so we're growing old together. Still manage on average 150 miles/week and except for normal aches/pains I can't complain. Still got a week to go and it looks like I'm breaking 7000 miles this year and turning 75. BooYeah!
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

rsbob 

Interesting comparison to a user age poll here a year or so ago. Even though a high number of respondents were in the 50-60 and early 70 YO categories, it appears a faire number of people feel far younger. Have no feel for the general public’s thoughts on the manner, but i would imagine that a majority of people who consider themselves athletes or clean eaters would concur. Totally unscientific, total supposition and maybe total BS, but not completely unexpected.

Alan K

Agree with everything.

Alan K

The poll should have one more category: I look and feel younger than my age.

davester

With all due respect,that is not true.

Longevity science has advanced significantly over the past decade or so, and shows that nobody dies of "old age". Everybody who doesn't get killed in an accident (e.g. "Cyclist hit by bus!") dies of age-related diseases (cancer, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, neurogenerative disease [e.g alzheimer's], etc.). Genetics does play a role in increasing susceptibility to those diseases, but it is definitely not the biggest factor. Lifestyle plays a much larger factor in staving off early death due to those diseases. Fortunately, riding bikes is a lifestyle factor that helps in multiple ways, though it's not the only one. Nutrition (especially cutting way back on carbohydrates and eating a Mediterranean diet) is also a massive factor. Another huge factor is having an extensive supportive social network. Apart from these things, there do appear to be a few drugs that help stave office-related diseases. The foremost of these is Rapamycin. There are others, but they do not have the evidence-based proof of efficacy that Rapamycin has.

Alan K

Please elaborate on what are office-related diseases and what role an immunosuppressive agent plays.

As for distinction about dying of old age versus dying due to age-related diseases, I’m sure that no one thinks that at a certain age, a person simply drops dead without any reason.

rsbob 

Good catch!! Happens with every poll. One category is unfortunately missed.

However I do look, feel and act younger than my age group. <-Non-humble brag. I see some males my age and say, Good God, what happened to him/them?

rsbob 

Blue Zone studies have validated most of what you have written. I find it interesting that all of us have genetic switches, as it were, that can remain dormant or be ‘flipped on’ due to external triggers. These may be environmental, psychological - stress hormones, dietary, drug abuse, exercise, etc. Flip the wrong switch and you may go down the dark rabbit hole.

terrymorse 

It depends on how much of your nutrition [calories] comes from carbohydrates. If it’s less than 30% or more than 70%, that’s less healthy. The healthiest groups get about half their nutrition [calories] from carbs.

Alan K

As long as it is not excessive bicycling (or owning too many bicycles), it’s all good!

The switch “theory” to my simple mind, is yet another theory, not quite yet completely disproven. In my life time, I have seen many good sounding theories come and disappear.- some took longer than others.
The main problem with many/ most is the the person(group) proposing the theory gets so single-tracked that they try to elevate their baby over all else. Free radical (ROS) is one of those things… many people are beginning to come to their senses about it.
Before it, there was cholesterol hoopla… and many more.
Of course, completely unregulated industry of “food additives/supplements” is only too quick to run with it all the way to bank.

There have been some interesting observations about mTor inhibitors (Rapamycin and it’s other analogs) among subjects of renal transplantation but it’s not as simple as it’s proponents will have you believe - Rapamycin and live longer!
I imagine if it wasn’t something that is already regulated by the FDA, you friendly food supplement store would already have it labeled as Elixir of Life for Immortality. 😉

Alan K

Yes, but I would rephrase to say calories… nutrition is slightly more complicated.

Sometimes ideas get misunderstood to the point that even people who should know better, start making the error masses do.
We have been routinely hearing praises of Mediterranean diet… well, it wasn’t the magical diet, it was their “life-style” of decades ago which kept them healthier than others.

Bald Paul

Now 71. I spent most of 2022 providing 24/7 home hospice care for my wife (she passed from cancer) and did very little riding, or much of anything else, for that matter. It is exhausting, but a labor of love.
I've found that it's much more difficult to get back into shape now. At this age, it seems like a "use it or lose it" scenario. I'm determined to get back into some sort of conditioning. I know I'll never be as fast as I once was, nor capable of covering the distances I did. A lifetime of working in the auto repair field has taken a toll on my lower back, and arthritis is settling into my hands. A knee, severely injured in 1976, has finally just about worn out, but I'm putting off the replacement surgery for as long as I can. My neighbor, who is 10 years younger, rides with me on his e-bike. It's funny, he's always chasing me on the flats (sometimes I think he's just drafting to save his battery!) and I'm chasing him on the climbs.
On the plus side, when I filled out my forms at the pharmacy to get my flu shot and Covid booster this year, the pharmacy tech did a double take and told me I didn't look my age. Like an old car that has just been detailed, it looks good on the outside, but just don't lift the hood!

jadmt

sorry for your loss. my wife has been fighting the fight since the beginning of 2020 we always say 2020 worst year ever....cancer sux. get your knee done asap. you will heal better at 71 than at 75.....keep on keeping...

t2p

biking can help you keep ‘young’

in many ways

bruce19

I am 77. There are times in life when I feel "older" but I don't really think of age generally. On the bike I never feel old. I don't climb well and I'm never going to average 20 mph on my particular local route as I did on my 50th birthday. I'd be lucky to do 16 mph. OTOH, I'm also 15 lbs heaver than age 50. When it comes down to it, I don't really care..

rsbob 

As I have said once before, a bicycle is a Time Machine. And it happens to be in more ways than one.

Alan K

Combining swimming with bicycling will keep you younger in few more ways than many.

Alan K

A Time Machine that has the capability of working both ways - use it wisely and not push the wrong switch to get nailed by a door - and end up way too far in the future.

Had a good day… with 18 mile ride!

spclark 

Why I joined the local Y-operated indoor pool a month ago.

Over a decade has passed since I last had access to an indoor poll at the Park District where I lived in Illinois. The pool here's just been open (again) the last couple of years, not as big but clean & well-managed. I'm switching my work schedule starting next month so I can get an hour's swimming in before I punch it @ 9 AM a couple, maybe three days a week.

Eyes Roll

I kept feeling old ever since I overheard a neighbor visiting my home during the festivities of my birthday party, asking my parents the question, "is he 1-year old now?"

Alan K

An excellent plan!

Alternate days 1.5 to 2 miles swimming works wonders. 👌