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Post by alexandra on May 2, 2016 9:33:56 GMT -7
I read various threads here where people in their thirties refer to themselves as "old". Let me disagree by means of this 40 year old gymnast (to be 41 during the olympics) who qualified for the olympics in Rio!!! www.rferl.org/media/video/27711008.html. There is hope, guys! |
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Post by Charlie S on May 2, 2016 13:14:35 GMT -7
And here I thought 28 was getting rough because for the first time ever a "rest day" was actually a requirement...
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Post by Lundy on May 2, 2016 20:42:39 GMT -7
Love it. Especially since all the young-20-somethings I climb with call me grandpa.
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Post by jessebruni on May 3, 2016 9:06:05 GMT -7
Lol, a single data point isn't exactly a great foundation for a thesis, but there are plenty of examples of 5.14 climbers in their 40's or later. I think the issue is that we've built up V10 and 5.14 in our heads as being these lofty grades, achievable only by the gods, when really it's still kinda a semi-pro level.
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Post by alexandra on May 3, 2016 9:58:39 GMT -7
it is not a thesis, just another datapoint to my collection which points to that fact that the majority of it is in our heads, at least up to some reasonable age. If you persist, train hard, and take care of your body, then anything is possible. I think that most 30 and 40-something people that claim they are "too old" to do something, have just made some life choices that make them "age" faster. Be it bad diet, stressful jobs, merely feeling old, or whatever else. I think the only real threat that exists past 25 is that your body takes more time to recover from injuries so you really have to be very conscious and not attempt injury-prone things unless you are already strong enough to minimize your risk (for example, don't attempt training closed crimp if your fingers are weak, don't attempt iron cross if your shoulders are weak etc...)
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Post by jessebruni on May 3, 2016 12:39:53 GMT -7
I dunno, I think there will always be outliers but the majority of world cup competitors and 5.15 climbers are younger than 30, and there is a reason for this. It doesn't mean that 5.15 is impossible if you're older than 30, but it's also not quite so simple to say that age is just a number. There are all kinds of scientifically verifiable facts that point to the pinnacle of athleticism being late teens to early 20's. Can a person achieve their highest level beyond this age? Certainly. Can they achieve the highest level humanly achievable? Almost certainly not.
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Post by MarkAnderson on May 3, 2016 14:07:09 GMT -7
I would say there is a big difference between maintaining a high level of ability/fitness/performance into "old " age, versus acquiring that ability/fitness/performance at an "old" age. Most of the people you hear about doing amazing things at an old age were doing them at a young age too, and never stopped (see OP). From a physical perspective, that is extremely key (never stopping).
I am really impressed to hear stories of guys like Joe and Ted, who climbed really hard in a previous life, then drifted away, but are now coming back to meet or exceed their previous high points. I think that is pretty rare. Perhaps it speaks somewhat to advances in the sport (dare I say advances in training knowledge?), but I think most of it has to do with the increased dedication and wisdom that comes with age. When you haven't had something (like climbing) for a long time, I think it helps you appreciate it more, and maybe that appreciation can be translated into renewed motivation.
Getting back to "never stopping", that is almost completely mental. Sometimes an injury can make it harder, but ultimately you have to be really psyched for a long time to just keep going year after year. Especially if marriage, work, kids are in the picture. In my own experience, turning 39 on Thursday, I would say it's significantly harder for me to maintain my motivation than it is to maintain my physical abilities.
Still, Jesse's last point is right on--a 40 y.o. may never win the gold medal in the 100m, but a 40 y.o. who has stuck with it throughout their 20s and 30s can certainly set a PR in the 100m. I think most of us are much more interested in setting personal bests, and as long is that is your focus, there's no reason to rule out the possibility of improving well into your 40s if not 50s.
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Post by jetjackson on May 3, 2016 20:10:49 GMT -7
I hope I'm still setting PB's into my 40s! If not, I guess I could always just learn trad. |
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Post by amalec on May 10, 2016 14:03:30 GMT -7
So no hope for those of us who started in their 40s? And love the discipline the least appropriate to that age group (bouldering)?
I'm still setting PBs in my 40s -- it helps to start at a low base.
Some advantages of being 45 rather than my daughter's age 19:
* Long term planning and thinking
* Discipline
* Money
Disadvantages: everything else.
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Post by jetjackson on May 10, 2016 16:38:10 GMT -7
I figure when I get old I'll just learn to climb trad.
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Post by tedwelser on May 10, 2016 19:30:43 GMT -7
I would say there is a big difference between maintaining a high level of ability/fitness/performance into "old " age, versus acquiring that ability/fitness/performance at an "old" age. Most of the people you hear about doing amazing things at an old age were doing them at a young age too, and never stopped (see OP). From a physical perspective, that is extremely key (never stopping). I am really impressed to hear stories . . . Perhaps it speaks somewhat to advances in the sport (dare I say advances in training knowledge?), but I think most of it has to do with the increased dedication and wisdom that comes with age. When you haven't had something (like climbing) for a long time, I think it helps you appreciate it more, and maybe that appreciation can be translated into renewed motivation. Thanks Mark- heh- it certainly has a great deal to do with advances in training knowledge. I was a dedicated reader of Performance Rock Climbing before, but the RCTM gave me a major improvement in perspective of how to use the different facets of training, and gave me a workable strategy for improving finger strength though the HB protocol. Combined those two things have helped so much in allowing me to keep making progress even when some things are blocked due to old injuries or otherwise have to be approached carefully. I suppose one benefit of taking so much time away from serious climbing is that I skipped some wear and tear, and let my persistent over use injuries fade away. Given my better understanding of resting now my knuckles are no longer swollen all the time, and the perma-bruise I used to have under my big toenails have not returned. A persistent downside of coming back is that it is easy to forget which aspects of past fitness have not been recovered, and therefore some things that seem like they should be easy or doable are not because new work needs to be done first to regain some fitness. I turned 45 last week and I was reminded while at the Red this weekend that I used to be much better at pulling big holds down hard. I see that I need to workout my shoulders specifically to get that strength back. I also need to just keep making the progress with finger strength because there are many new routes that I can consider because the RPTC hangboarding is curing me of my crimp allergy. In terms of sport climbing I figure I have 10 years left to accomplish all the improving that I hope to do, although I recently got sight of some ambitious new lines that might require all 10 years for improvement. lol. One bummer or limiting factor of aging, for me at least, has been that pulling moves at the limit of my finger strength seems to raise risk of injury more easily that it used to. This has meant I need to be much more careful with what I attempt while bouldering, and I can't just throw myself at problems like I used to. I need to be much more strategic, and I have to use carefully selected problems and holds to push myself on. This makes hard outdoor bouldering less fun for me. Mark's comment about motivation resonated with me as well. I find that these days I often have extremely ambitious goals during the planning stage, but when I actually get out to the crag I have to really work hard to force myself to follow through and push my limits, rather than do things that are sorta hard, but not quite what I intended. Part of this is that I think I have unrealistically high aspirations, but I think another part is that I lose motivation during the day. I think some really exciting projects will help with this, and I am hoping that some of the FA projects that I might be able to do will provide that motivation. I have never before been in a situation where I could make some major contributions, and if I am able to do so I think that will really solve the motivation problem. |
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Post by jetjackson on May 10, 2016 19:41:06 GMT -7
* Long term planning and thinking * Discipline These two - to me, are big. As much as I lament not getting into climbing earlier in life, the reality is that I wouldn't have had the self-discipline, or desire, back then, to put in the effort required for 3-5 year long term goals. Ted - I think I have that perma-bruise thing you are talking about. Didn't realise it was a thing. |
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Post by tedwelser on May 10, 2016 20:03:16 GMT -7
* Long term planning and thinking * Discipline These two - to me, are big. As much as I lament not getting into climbing earlier in life, the reality is that I wouldn't have had the self-discipline, or desire, back then, to put in the effort required for 3-5 year long term goals. Ted - I think I have that perma-bruise thing you are talking about. Didn't realise it was a thing. I think you end up with those bruises if your big toes bend upward and you wear tight shoes often enough for long enough. One key these days for me is that I have several different pairs of shoes, some of which I only wear for sending or when I really want to be precise. Also, if I am in HB stage or power, I might spend most of my workout without shoes (campusing etc). That helps a bunch. The swollen knuckles thing is more of a worry to me, and I am happy to say that simply avoiding over training and cutting out what amounted to junk miles has helped me tons. That and no longer working as a route setter so I can actually take rest days on my rest days. |
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