Finding Your “Fountain of Youth” as an Aging Athlete

Written By Body Wipe Company Tags: Aging Athlete , Fountain of Youth , Weekend Warrior

 If you’re someone who is holding on to their athletic past at all costs (constant injuries), this blog is for you. When it comes to aging, we are forever looking for ways to stay young or at least slow the process. This is especially true when it comes to our athletic activities. Many “weekend warriors", in their 40’s and 50’s, desperately attempt to hang on to their “glory days” as a younger athlete. They continue to play sports that their mind says “Yes” to, but their body says, “Are you kidding me!” These individuals suffer through sprain ankles; back pain, sore muscles, etc. just to continue playing the sports of their youth. Now, there is nothing wrong with having a passion for playing sports, but the older we get, the “Fountain of Youth” from sports comes from changing the actual sports we play. Here are some helpful tips on finding your “Fountain of Youth” sport activity:

1. As we age, our joints are not as fluid. Therefore, sports that requires quick starting and stopping motions, and/or pivoting, such as basketball, baseball and football, tend to be very tough on the joints. Not mention your ligaments, tendons and muscles. Changing to sports that are more fluid in motion like cycling, hiking, kayaking, etc. can be easier on your body. This more “fluid body motion” sport can still provide you with a good cardio workout.

2. As it is human nature, the older we get, the more resistant we become to change. When it comes to changing sports, don’t look at it as you are old and one step away from assisted living, but rather as a new athletic frontier to concur. Embrace a change in sports with passion and enjoyment.

3. Remember that you have a day job for a reason. You do not have to play sports at all cost to win or push beyond your physical limits. Besides, the Senior PGA Champions Tour, there are not many professional sports for people over 40. An older athlete should still feel the competitive juice flow, but not to the point of getting out of your physical comfort zone. This is when injuries can occur.

4. The quality of life provided by feeling fit and staying active is really the goal we achieve from participating in sports. Therefore, select a sport or sports that you can consistently participate in without constantly getting hurt. It doesn’t make much sense to play hard in a sport from your youth, then get hurt and be laid up for days or weeks without any activity and then when better, repeat the same fitness cycle.