It's Not Too Late — Why Your 40s Can Still Be the Best Shape of Your Life
My brother and I were talking the other day, and something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately came up.
He said how at age 43 he was really impressed with himself and his physical ability. How he sees other dads around his age and is constantly amazed with how much better his physical condition is than theirs. And how he finds it amazing all the things he’s still able to do with ease. He said “I don’t feel like I’m 43, I feel like a kid.”
I share in my brother’s sentiment. At 39 I still feel like I’m one of the young guys, even though I’m not. I like to tell this story from about a year ago when I was out trail running with a local run group. We’ll all gathered around the groups leader, a guy in his 70s, as he briefed us on the route, and when he was finished said, “ok fast guys, get going.” When no one moved he said “young guys, let’s go!”
Right when he said that I thought o shit, I’m not ready to go. But then I quickly checked myself and said you’re 38, he’s not talking to you.
But as I approach 40 I think about this more and more. I think about how young I feel. I think about all the things I’m still able to do that other people my age struggle with. I think about how many times in the last decade (at least once a year) I’ve said this is the best I’ve ever felt. Or this is the best shape I’ve ever been in. I just said it recently in the lead up to the few days I took off from working out. And the thing I think about most, is how all these years of consistent exercise are just now starting to pay substantial dividends. Like an investment left to compound for decades. How I finally realize why it’s so important, and why everyone else should be exercising too.
The first time I ever stepped into a weight room I was in 4th or 5th grade. When I was in 8th grade I started really training sport specific (lacrosse at the time). That same year I took my first exercise workshop with the high schoolers, including my brother. The program was titled Bigger, Faster, Stronger (BFS for short) and it taught us about proper form, technique, and programming. And since those early days in weight rooms, until now, I’ve never really stopped. It’s been a daily grind for me for 20+ years, and only now do I understand the impact all those years of exercise have had on me, and only now I am seeing what I think are the real benefits. Improved lifespan.
Of course throughout the 2+ decades I’ve been exercising there were other benefits of being in shape and always working out. As a kid exercise helped me excel in sport. As a kid having six packs abs was a desired trait, envied by anyone who didn’t have them. In college being strong gave me the confidence to stand my ground when confronted. While I was working a demanding and high stress job, exercise is what kept me sane. And after completing my first Ironman I realized that sometimes what seems impossible is possible with the right amount of focus, work, and discipline. And all of these things have been great, but none of them come close to matching the joy I feel of knowing that while now is the time we’re expected to just mail it in and accept our fate of getting old and everything that comes with it, that I’m still feeling as good as ever. And it’s all thanks to the fitness journey I started 20+ years ago, never knowing how much this habit would eventually pay off. It’s been one of the greatest surprises in the last couple of years.
If you’re reading this, and you’re about my age, and you’re thinking “well fuck, I’ve never focused on my health or my body and now it’s too late,” just know that it’s not. That, god willing, you and I have another 40+ years left on this planet’s and that if you start now you can be saying you’ve never felt better as you hit 50. You can be the guy or girl that everyone wants to know their secrets at 60. You can be winning age group races at 70. It doesn’t matter when you start, it just matters that you do right now.
And if you’ve never done anything exercise related before, or it’s been a very long time, than you’re in luck, because the people that respond the quickest and best are the people who are undertrained. So start now and take control of the one thing you can control, your health. And follow my page and my channel for updated training programs, content, and support on becoming the happiest version of yourself.