Question that's totally unrelated to hobbying, but I am curious to know people's thoughts on whether it's a good idea to give up jogging in your 40s?

after I got a bunion and an old knee injury flared up.  I also felt like my body no longer could take the  pounding.  I took up cycling and it's now all I do.  I'm on the road several days a week during the warm months, plus on a stationary bike at the gym the other days.  During the winter I put the bike on a Cyclops fluid-drive trainer in front of the TV and crank away.  I feel great and my body seems to appreciate it.  I saw my doc recently and she said, "Whatever you're doing, keep doing it."

Give up the squats (not that 200 is much weight)! Take glucosamine

Lose weight if you have any to lose. F=ma.  

I went to physical therapy a few years back because running was too painful. He told me he wouldn't suggest running long term, and that jogging was even worse. Great for your heart, but not for your joints.

lol, my bestie/old roommate had one of those. I'd wake up at 5am every morning to  

I can only stand it for an hour, even with the TV blasting.  But it's a beautiful day today here in the Northeast and I'm planning a long road trip.
As for the sweating part, I'll admit I sweat profusely and got so much of it on the bike it corroded the front derailleur.
PS: I would love to sweat all over you if you come to NYC.

I ran 3-8 miles 5 days a week for four years and it really messed up my knees/back/ankles and I'm only 27.  Swimming is better as it's low impact and a full body workout.

Running is more of a therapeutic activity than a fitness tool. Two laps around the Reservoir Track in Central Park is enough to clear my head when the world stars closing in.  I stopped running as a regular exercise because I was prone to injury – particularly my shins.  

nd will spare the knees. And the back. Walk the route you used to jog.

great for the knees as well.

casual walking of a few miles, while very healthy doesn't give you anywhere near the cardio workout that running does.

A good/great substitute I have found is walking on an incline, Walking even at a moderate rate, say 3.5-4.0 MPH on a 15% incline will give you the same cardio workout as running, but WITHOUT all the stress on your joints, and unlike regular walking you can get your heart rate up to 170 or even more, and I find I can even break a sweat in only 7-8 minutes, something impossible with ordinary walking.

Eventually the knees or ankles start giving up after the pounding of so many miles. Mine did...  

Yeah, actually, the roller blading idea has always appealed to me, but I've never really gotten around to investing in a pair of roller blades...but maybe I should..

While I was never hugely sporting I have found as I enter my 40s that I had to give up playing five-a-side football (soccer to most of you) as the impact of running on my ankles would leave me crippled for the following couple of days, plus old knee injuries that I thought were long gone would rear their ugly heads.

I ran a half marathon at age 60.  Everyone is different, if it hurts don't do it.

Not necessarily relevant to "health" but the OP may find it important that a runner will adapt to walking many many times faster than a walker (even on an incline) will adapt to running.  

Everyone can be the judge of where their optimal heart rate during a workout is for themselves, (or have their doctor or trainer advise them) but even though I am well into my fifties, and I drink like a fish, I still don't feel like I have really had a workout unless I have gotten my heart rate above 170 for at least 30 minutes, but that's me. I don't claim to speak for anyone else, nor do I consider myself an average 50 something.

Who knew???

A very busy work, and family schedule.  Work for me.is physical in and of itself.
But by 40, I missed the Long runs at day break....so I started back...
I've been Off and on since, more Off, but nearing 50 something this week, I've had to increase my activity level substantially, and that includes 2-3 miles a day running, some biking, ball playing, weights, thera-bands, etc....

Also, while it is impressive for a 50 yr old to hold +170 for over half an hour, it's just not useful as training. I can't imagine a goal where that is not either wasted effort or down-right counter-productive. Especially if that workout is repeated multiple times a week. I don't doubt that you can do it, you seem intense and focused enough to accomplish it. But I do have to ask, what do the 40bpm above say 135bpm to 145bpm get you? What is the increment of improved "fitness" or "health" or "performance"? Is the discomfort and risk of overtraining worth that increment? The cardiovascular system is being effectively trained at the lower range and increases come as a result of time spent in that zone. Strength is not being effectively trained nor is the anaerobic system. What are you trying to do other than create the psychological perception of working hard?  

Bust out your old Schwinn and don't forget the baseball cards in the spokes ! Girls dig guys with bikes , 40 years old virgin fantasy. Hell Devin will even jump on the back of your banana seat ! And don't forget to put a couple hundred rubbers in your basket !  

If you want flexibility I could help u get those legs back ? And yeah don't jog u might knock yourself out with those puppies of yours ! xoxo

Posted By: devindavette

Not in my forties yet, but Pilates is great. It keeps me fit and flexible. Stair master and walking also to stay active. I always wanted to be a jogger, I would just need a super deluxe sports bra

4 a full series of x rays . Check your bone and tissue .  The pain may be caused by weakened tissue density in your joints. You may have to adjust your diet . Good luck.

But I was lucky enough to have smoked my way through youth (it was ok in those days), and I'm now perfectly preserved. Yeah right! I started distance running at 30, ran lots of 10ks and marathons. Since my mid 40s I've just run for mental and physical health. I don't get sick, and my stamina is excellent.  

You're not just in pretty good shape for your age. Sadly, many 12 yrs old can't do that.

Jogging was beating the crap out of my back and knees.  Went to the elliptical - great workouts with no problemo!

You don't have to run for 45 min. straight. You can jog in five minute intervals to get your heart rate up, and then walk. Repeat the process. Wear knee straps if you need the extra support and buy the right kind of shoes. I know guys in their 60s who still run 2 miles a day a few days a week.

You have to wear a bra AND a sport's bra lol. I would have 2 black eyes if not.

running many miles hurts my knees; been happening since my 30's. So I am doing more elliptical now. And for running what I do now is sprint running, 2 miles alternating progressively faster 1-2mn sprints (starting at speed of 7.5 or 8 and ending at 9.5)  and walking fast when resting between sprints. I get a good sweat with it.
Spinning is another good option.

been using an elliptical machine for the past 6 years and get almost the same "runner's high" as I did from running. I have added weight training to my fitness regime as well and have lost weight too.

Now I fast walk on the treadmill three days a week. I choose a cardiovascular program for 40 minutes. The machine will adjust the speed and incline to achieve the desired heart beat rate. At the end of the workout, my peak heart beat rate is usually around 145-150 and calories burned is around 450. I use the weight machine to tone my muscles; nothing heavy just enough so my muscles feel a little sore the next day

ome physically blessed folks can jog well into old age it seems, but that's not true for many of us. The impact from running on hard surfaces takes its toll on your knees, ankles, and back. You can get great results from low impact workouts comprised of walking, swimming, and/or careful weight training, for example.  Listen to your body. If your knees ache and/or swell with jogging find something else that you enjoy doing enough that you will keep it up. If you just have to jog, then figure out a means of incorporating sufficient rest into your routine to allow for some healing before your next run. Consider some alternative workouts like swinging kettlebells, dips, pull ups, lunges, burpees, and other resistance exercises that do not require being compressed under the weight. You'll get a really good cardio workout and more safely build strength too.  Just food for thought

My knees hurt too!  I am going to tackle this goal, but think I maybe doing damage to myself by running.  I have always loved to run, but may have been best in my younger years.  I am not mad because swimming is still an option.  

-- Modified on 9/30/2013 7:19:18 AM

Which was not the debating the relative merits of attaining and holding a BPM of over 170.

My point was simply that you can achieve the same intensity workout by walking at a brisk rate up an incline as you can by running. Can we please just agree on that point and get off this debate of whether I am doing more harm than good by getting my heart beat up to this level at my "advanced age"? lol

and for what is worth I LIKE the feeling of working up a good sweat when working out, and I am hardly a gym rat. I drink tequila for breakfast when on vacation, and do a host of things that are bad for me. Working up a good lather is my way of confirming that I have not completely fucked up my body by the lifestyle I live.

-- Modified on 9/30/2013 11:23:33 AM

Were working on ? I'd love for you to take me for a spin, then perhaps we can go for a roll in the hay together ? Fall in NY is lovely, the changing colors of the leaves , oh I know. Fill up the tank and up to bear mountain, the views are spectacular as r u my dear xoxo I'll even pack a picnic lunch xoxo u have a great week .

Used to be a gym rat when younger and ran 20-35 miles a week for a lot of years/did a bunch of 10K's and half-marathons.  Joints don't like pounding that pavement now, so I picked up spinning - great cardio exercise, but was looking for something else as well.

and stationary bikes... Oh, some swimming as well.  it preserved the bones for the road, and even there, I always wore new shoes, which were highly supportive.  There are ways around almost everything, but see a doctor/orthopedist just to be sure you are healthy enough.  I worked up to it be exercising regularly for a year before entering in 10ks.  Good luck.

I say DON'T give up the squats.  Do more of them and cut the weight down to up the reps.  Or do squats with no weight at all.  Do 50 of them and make sure you go ALL the way down so you crease in your hip is below your knee.  See a trainer to make sure your form is good.

but I am hardly obsessive about it, and truth be told I have always hated running. OTOH I do like to drink beer (amongst other beverages) and I just like I hate poverty more than I hate work, I also hate being fat and out of shape more than I hate the gym.

I actually never payed any attention to my heart rate while exercising until recently when I started to both run and walk on treadmills that of course all have heart monitors, calorie counters and the like on them. I found that after about twenty minutes at 3.5-4.0 mph on a 15% incline that not only was I working up a healthy sweat and huffing and puffing, but that my bpm had surpassed 170. What I also found that really pleased me is that unlike running where I can no longer peel off 6 minute miles one after the other, walking gives me the ability to do a reasonably high intensity workout for over an hour without giving out, which at my "advanced age" I can no longer do running as I can't even keep up an 8 minute mile clip for an hour when running, Nor do I have the least desire to do so to tell the truth. lol Like I said, I really hate running in all honesty.

I did find it a bit depressing that I could actually get a workout by simply walking, i was always of the opinion that a man should be able to "walk" all day without breaking a sweat. after all it's just walking lol I still remember laughing at the "fat kids" in boot camp who would hit the rack after a "20 mile forced march" and pass out immediately because they were so tired. I just couldn't imagine for the life of me how someone could get so tired by simply walking, Oh the arrogance of youth.