Last year I had to give up running. As my sports medicine doctor advised, it was “time.”
Since I was a teenager, this has been my main form of exercise and stress reliever. But for months, I’ve been ignoring small signs of encroaching age: my right knee and hip creaking and grinding every time I stand, bend over or climb stairs. The medical term for this is crepitus, and I stubbornly convinced myself that I was still in my ‘young’ 50s.
I embraced the positive aging message that “50 is the new 30.” But when it comes to the cells that make up your knee and hip tendons and cartilage, 50 still equals 50. Our overall “biological age” could be much younger than our chronological age.
For decades I’d been doing everything experts recommended – eating well, sleeping well, exercising – but my doctor told me it was still time to adjust to my changing body.
My physical therapist told me that many of his Gen Each trendy sport or exercise brings a new wave to his office and others like him. for example, 2020 study We found that nearly 91% of people who go to the emergency room for injuries related to pickleball games are over the age of 50.
Many people approach their fitness as if they are 10 to 20 years younger. My doctor told me that patients over 50 often feel frustrated when they are suggested to change their daily routine. I began to see rejection of physical reality everywhere. One of my colleagues injured his shoulder doing CrossFit, then injured it again a few months later doing the same routine. A friend who had been practicing yoga for decades fell while doing crow pose and fractured his jaw. When I suggested she change her routine, she laughed.
As a medical anthropologist, it occurred to me that the anti-aging message might have inadvertently created a new problem. Could it be that our generation is at risk not because of lack of exercise, like the Boomers or the Silent Generation, but because of over-exercise?
How does our body change as we age?
Dr. Emily Finkelstein, a geriatrician at Weill Cornell Medicine, likes that people in their 40s, 50s and 60s have internalized the fact that exercise is important for healthy aging and longevity. That said, there are some practical considerations.
“Our muscle mass and performance peak in our mid-30s and naturally begin to decline thereafter,” Finkelstein said. “We need to be flexible in what we are doing and what we expect of ourselves.”
After age 45, you begin to lose important muscle mass, which can decrease your strength and balance. Decreased bone density can make you more susceptible to stress fractures caused by repetitive motion and stress. The cartilage in the joints becomes thin and tendons and ligaments become stiff. All this means that we are prone to injuries during physical activity. Recovery also takes longer.
“What people don’t know and don’t learn is that aging begins at birth and abilities definitely change,” said Dr. Rosanne Leipzig. As a septuagenarian and professor of geriatrics and palliative medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Leipzig knows a lot about the process.
“Muscle mass, bone strength, ability to remember word lists all reach their peak in your 30s, and after that, everything starts to decline,” she said. “Getting older doesn’t mean you can’t do the things you used to do, but you probably won’t be able to do as many things in the same amount of time.”
Most experts agreed that messages like “50 is the new 30” could be helpful if they persuaded people not to discount themselves as they age. It’s okay to push ourselves a little physically. However, the underlying assumption is that a 50-year-old body is no different from a 30-year-old body. that.
“One of the best things we can do for healthy aging is to be flexible and adaptable,” Finkelstein said. “We need to change our expectations and how we exercise as we age.”
How to Adapt to AgEProtect your body and prevent injury
During midlife, we all need to learn to become more in tune with our bodies. This may mean taking more recovery time between intense workouts, doing more stretching, and incorporating more weights into your fitness routine.
A healthy, adaptive approach to exercise as we age may include regular self-monitoring and assessment of how our bodies feel during and after exercise, and seeking the opinion of a qualified healthcare professional when we begin to notice signs or symptoms of encroaching problems, such as pain or discomfort.
Leipzig suggests that doctors begin conversations about accommodations by asking patients what they like about the activities they are continuing. Tennis players may really enjoy the social aspect. In this case, you can transition to a less demanding but similar version of pickleball with complementary strength training and stretching regimens to prevent injury.
However, your risk of injury naturally increases as you age, so it’s important to have a backup plan in case you overexert yourself. When I spoke with Dr. Melissa Leber, associate professor of orthopedics and emergency medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine, she had just finished working at the U.S. Open. Leber has a lot of experience dealing with athletes, both professional and amateur, who push themselves too hard.
“Some people are good at adapting and feel comfortable with their bodies changing,” Leber said. “Others work out really hard. I’ve seen patients who don’t want to rest even for a day.”
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Leber advises patients to switch things up while their bodies recover. So if you’re an injured runner, try a modified strength training routine and low-impact activities like swimming. Then, when you start running again, run fewer times per week or run shorter distances. To prevent injury or overuse, experts recommend at least one to two days of rest per week.
Strength training is also very important. “The stronger you are, the more you can avoid injuries and falls. And when you fall, the way you fall will change the way you fall. Your balance will be better and you will recover from injuries faster,” Leber said.
In general, Leber advises that people in their 50s should devote 50% of their total exercise time to strength training and 50% to aerobic exercise. By age 60 you should be at 60% strength and 40% cardio. By age 70, aerobic exercise should constitute only 30% of your exercise.
All the experts I interviewed agree that pain should never be ignored and that it is never a good idea to endure pain without seeing a doctor. That said, Finkelstein noted that most general practitioners are not well trained in exercise physiology. We recommend that you consult a physical therapist, physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist, or certified physical trainer for specific recommendations regarding exercise therapy.
“I wish we were all better educated about this, because it’s so important,” Finkelstein said.
Additionally, conversations about how to maintain muscle mass, bone health, aerobic capacity, and cardiovascular health take up more time than the average physician can spend with patients. Many people fill that gap with advice from fitness influencers online.
Raising Realistic Expectations for AgEing
Finkelstein worries about the influence of media, especially social media, which has numerous wellness and anti-aging influencers. “Take this supplement, do this exercise program, engage in this exercise routine – you name it, people are giving it to you,” she said. “I worry a lot about people’s credibility and the science behind what they offer, and that people are vulnerable to that because they want to do what they can to stay healthy and young.”
Popular media also likes to feature “superagers” (those whose mental and/or physical abilities are similar to those of people 20 to 30 years younger). For example, watching an 87-year-old run a marathon is great, but it can also lead to false expectations about normal aging. Super Agers are rare. Only about 10% of the general population fit all the criteria for inclusion in the category.
That said, it’s not very realistic to think that middle-aged and older people will achieve personal bests forever. As experts have pointed out time and time again, the best approach to exercise as you age is realistic and adaptable. Runners who adapt to the changes in their aging bodies and train effectively may be able to run the Boston Marathon, but the time it takes them to cross the finish line will inevitably be longer.
Part of the problem may be optimism bias. Although we may logically understand that our bodies are changing, we do not think that they are actually changing. Perhaps it’s because we live in a culture obsessed with looking young as well as living a long life. Number of cosmetic procedures 42.5% increase globally Over the past four years, Americans have $20 billion on plastic surgery In 2024.
“We have a big problem in our society accepting that things will change,” Leipzig said. “When people are privileged enough to have their own needs met, they are generally in better shape than ever, but this makes them think they will never die. This leads to ageism.”
The problem is that being overly concerned with how “young” you are relative to your age is just another form of bias. This is something that can create biases about your future self. “50 is the new 30” simply highlights our misconception that being healthy means not getting old at all. You will be healthier if you occasionally remind yourself that aging is a privilege. There is nothing wrong with saying “50 is 50” and “80 is 80”.
