Aging Progression and Getting Old

[eytonxav]

Interesting article by Will Brink on Sarcopenia which is the loss of muscle/bone mass due to aging and it explains how exercise, diet and hormones can have positive benefits to prevent or delay this common condition in the elderly population.
https://brinkzone.com/sarcopenia-the...XU0OrNJ5eZhxTA

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DFW_M5 Interesting article by Will Brink on Sarcopenia which is the loss of muscle/bone mass due to aging and it explains how exercise, diet and hormones can have positive benefits to prevent or delay this common condition in the elderly population. https://brinkzone.com/sarcopenia-the...XU0OrNJ5eZhxTA

Thanks, great summary article. At 76, I need to pay attention about this.

[Amethyst]

In fact, it is important to start earlier, like 36. But it's never too late to get going.

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 Thanks, great summary article. At 76, I need to pay attention about this.

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amethyst In fact, it is important to start earlier, like 36. But it's never too late to get going.

Although I am in good health for my age, this article is a good reminder to focus on what's needed on a continuing basis. Now that my new replacement hip is a month old, I plan to hit the gym again after Christmas.

[Amethyst]

That's the spirit. I wish you all the best!

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 Although I am in good health for my age, this article is a good reminder to focus on what's needed on a continuing basis. Now that my new replacement hip is a month old, I plan to hit the gym again after Christmas.

[Old Microbiologist]

DFW-M5, Thanks for the article. It is a problem for us getting older. I use a whole body vibration platform with dumbbells for resistance training.

Here are some scientific articles about WBV and sarcopenia:https://www.researchgate.net/publica...ng_an_overview

[eytonxav]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Microbiologist DFW-M5, Thanks for the article. It is a problem for us getting older. I use a whole body vibration platform with dumbbells for resistance training. Here are some scientific articles about WBV and sarcopenia:https://www.researchgate.net/publica...ng_an_overview

I usually end my workouts on a FreeMotion vibration machine doing body weight squats and calf raises for 2 minutes. I was told it is good for preventing neuropathy and muscle soreness, and some use it as a warm up before exercise. There probably is a better protocol for using the machine, but I do not know what it is.

[Old Microbiologist]

I do a bunch of different stuff on it. I alternate one day exercises without weights and the other with dumbbells. I do 4 sets of squats (straight feet, toes in and toes out which works different muscle groups) and the last set in crow position bent over and straighten the knees which seems to fix my knee problems. I also do pushups on it as well as sitting leg extensions. Pretty much I tried to adapt whatever I was doing without the WBV to try and do it on the machine. Some exercises had to be adapted a bit. I believe because the muscles are trying to compensate for the vibrations it adds a lot extra workout. Sort of like using free weights is better than static machines because of the micro balancing effect movements so this adds much more to that. I feel like I am working out twice as much this way. If I am doing multiple sets it goes over 30 minutes. Single sets of 15 reps is roughly 15 minutes. I stick to a set routine mostly as that is how I remember what to do. But, I also do real workouts like cycling, hiking, and swimming. I also cycle 30 minutes a day on a stationary recumbent cycle. Generally I also try and fit in a 30 minute yoga routine and I toss in all day 10 sets of 10 reps of burpees and pushups. I don't seem to suffer any serious illnesses or have any medical issues at least not yet. Just a bunch of little stuff. I will say though that my arthritis is nearly gone after using the WBV for 4 months. That is a nice surprise.

[Chuckanut]

One learns something new from this site every day. I never knew there were vibration machines to help with exercises. Are they mostly at gyms?

[steelyman]

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Originally Posted by Chuckanut One learns something new from this site every day. I never knew there were vibration machines to help with exercises. Are they mostly at gyms?

Yes, one learns a lot here, the articles posted in this thread so far are interesting.

I think vibration machines/accessories for personal use have been on the market for a while. One example is from Soloflex (not a recommendation for or against).

http://www.soloflex.com

https://soloflex.com/collections/whole-body-vibration

[Dawg52]

At 65 I still feel pretty good. No major aches and pains. But I can't hit the golf ball as far as I used to and that is a chapper. The other day a friend posted a group picture of us on Facebook. I saw a fellow there that look somewhat familiar and then realized it was me. What the heck? How can I look so much older in a pic than in a mirror? Maybe my friend needs a new camera......

[bolt]

A good friend is 70ish+. He's reluctant to say how old. He was recently*(endofwarmertemps) doing about 80mph on a MC on a deserted hwy. headed for CCod. He slowed down for the turn, hit sand on the side of the road and went down, he has been out of work since,..he's a well known and in demand custom painter of MC's/vehicles. He does not want to stop working as many FI individuals I know.

Another friend did the exact same thing but was in a coma for 3 months, he was given last rights @ accident when he was 19. Same headed down CCod senario w/roadside sand. He however, fully recovered by 20yrs old, and had more accidents, none to the injury level of the first.
Honda & Kawasaki's are fast.

Being over 60 I do not think I'd every re-mount a rice burner for transportation.
As for age, well I've been banged up several times. Everyday waking up is worth it.
Have a great holiday!

PS: I suspect the 'shaker' machines @ gyms are left over technology from that fad that era. IIRC those weight belt type machines were targeted as the lazymans workout targeting the waist area.
I started our HSs first weight lifting room. A empty room that fit a universal weight machine, they cost 1k in that day, the late 60s/early 70s. 1k'ish was a lot.
I got permission to start a candy/popcorn/hats etc. store in its opposing room used as a storage area for ground maintenance supplies. Thats how I financed the Universal machine.
Needless to say I was @ HS 6am to 6pm.

The religious sect. HS made quite a buck in hindsight.
Although they denied it, and I was off to Higher Ed anyway. O'well. I better shut up.

[imoldernu]

84th year....
Gotta be careful what I write... can't remember all of my lies.

Every day is new, for both jeanie and me. All of the bad times are behind us, and we look forward to what ever we may be facing without fear or any negativity.

Despite memory problems, and a number of close encounters with the "other side"... life is excellent and we don't stress ourselves. We went through our 1958 yearbook.... and matched our memories (both graduated together). A few years ago, one of our classmates sent out an update. Helps give a perspective.... and special appreciation for what we have.

Have stopped bragging about exercises, social activities and the way we were at age 76. Just do whatever feels good.

Just came back from our CCRC "Estates'... A fun hour of sitting with the "ladies" and talking about the 1940's. Watching "Holiday Inn" now. "A Christmas Story" this AM... Ready for our kids, coming for Christms Day.

Life could not be better.

[razztazz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dawg52 At 65 I still feel pretty good. No major aches and pains. But I can't hit the golf ball as far as I used to and that is a chapper. The other day a friend posted a group picture of us on Facebook. I saw a fellow there that look somewhat familiar and then realized it was me. What the heck? How can I look so much older in a pic than in a mirror? Maybe my friend needs a new camera......

I've experienced that too. Shaving, brushing my teeth. I don't look anywhere near geriatric. But when I approach the car to get in I see that old gray haired guy in the glass.

[Old Microbiologist]

steelyman - Home machines are roughly $180 or so. There are basic units and larger ones up to $2500 so you can get something within the entire range. We have 2 machines. One is for my wife which has a stand with handles for balance and cost $250 through Amazon. Mine is from Aldi and cost $135 which I bought as a test. In terms of performance hers is a bit better and has a slightly higher frequency. My machine maximum is 16 per second and hers goes up to 20. My machine has a vibration amplitude of 5 mm and hers 7 mm. On mine you can sit and it fits larger people like myself and you get complete range of motion. On hers I can make it work but I have to jam myself between the handles and risk beating it with dumbbells. If you go to a gym they might have one of the enormous over $2500 machines which if you already going would be worth using and has more adjustments. But, I am satisfied with mine. It has already died once and Aldi replaced it immediately and has a 3 year warranty. At that price it is almost disposable.

The scientific literature on these machines is somewhat extensive. It was a concept that the Soviet space program came up with to try and ameliorate the bone and muscle loss experienced by cosmonauts/astronauts in space which is a serious problem. So, their experience extends over 40 years. More recently, there have been some IMHO weird observations about WBV and its effect on the body. First, people who are pre-diabetic it lowers blood sugar dramatically. But, there is also lower cholesterol levels as well which is hard to explain. It turns out the vibrations themselves effect our gut microbiome in a good way but there is also the effect of increased exercise levels. Personally, after using it dutifully for 4 months I can definitely see a positive effect. I have no bad side effects at all. However; my wife discontinued using hers after a few days as it made her violently ill with a massive headache. After consulting her doctor who as it happens has some experience (Soviet) with these machines there is a sub-class of people who suffer from motion sickness and this machine causes this problem. She was worried she had damaged her neck but it turns out to be just sea sickness. We know she suffers from this problem already and cannot go out with me sailing unless she drugs up and then passes out from the medication. So, I sail alone. I take her out when it is relatively calm and then she is bored to death. Such is life. She is returning to the machine this week so we will see if she can overcome her motion sickness problems. She is going to try herbals and see what happens.

I can also comment on retina detachment which is a problem I suffer from and I have not experienced this problem yet from the machines. I have had 3 episodes in the past 3 years due to my vitreous humor drying up inside the eyes which causes the sack to collapse and it pulls the retina off the back of the eye. We have a local ophthalmologist who has his own clinic and he has a laser surgical instrument for re-attaching the retina. He charges me roughly $150 each time. As we are friends he usually doesn't want to charge me at all but I insist just to keep it on a professional level. Medical costs in Hungary are very low and he comes in to do this even late at night. I call him and we have surgery within 30 minutes. He did my cataracts as well. Anyway, so far no problems but I pay close attention to any side flashes which is the first symptom. A a side note I was taking Cialis before the detachments and stopped using it completely (after we figured it out) and since then no more detachments. This is a known side effects of all erectile dysfunction medications. So, you get a choice blindness or sexual pleasure. ED is a sequelae of lipid metabolism and high LDL cholesterol levels (and blood sugar as well which I don't suffer from) correlate to ED. I can say that since using the machine my ED is gone and I am unaware of anyone doing any studies on this aspect of it. Probably this is due to changes in lipid metabolism from the WBV. So yet another reason to use the machine.

[steelyman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Microbiologist steelyman - Home machines are roughly $180 or so. There are basic units and larger ones up to $2500 so you can get something within the entire range. We have 2 machines. One is for my wife which has a stand with handles for balance and cost $250 through Amazon. Mine is from Aldi and cost $135 which I bought as a test. In terms of performance hers is a bit better and has a slightly higher frequency. My machine maximum is 16 per second and hers goes up to 20. My machine has a vibration amplitude of 5 mm and hers 7 mm. On mine you can sit and it fits larger people like myself and you get complete range of motion. On hers I can make it work but I have to jam myself between the handles and risk beating it with dumbbells. If you go to a gym they might have one of the enormous over $2500 machines which if you already going would be worth using and has more adjustments. But, I am satisfied with mine. It has already died once and Aldi replaced it immediately and has a 3 year warranty. At that price it is almost disposable.

Thanks for those comments. I have no experience with WBV equipment but as you say the price point is definitely in reach to at least give it a try.

I had no idea of the other aspects/benefits/side effects you mention (deleted from my quote for brevity), also food for thought/research.

I was chatting with a family member after reading this thread yesterday and mentioned WBV. We both had the same first thought from back when we were kids: we drove our parents crazy convincing them to cough up quarters in motel rooms to turn on the “Magic Fingers” on the bed. Ha!!

[Chuckanut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dawg52 The other day a friend posted a group picture of us on Facebook. I saw a fellow there that look somewhat familiar and then realized it was me. What the heck? How can I look so much older in a pic than in a mirror? Maybe my friend needs a new camera......

Yes, I realize I look OLD to my kids and just about anybody under 50. I am also getting to be 'invisible', which I find I am enjoying. It's nice to not be noticed, especially in crowded places. It makes it easier to get away from the crowds since nobody follows you figuring you might have a better idea of where to go and things to do.

The other day I caught a younger women (must have been early 50's) giving me the eye at the supermarket. So far so good. When the 60+ gals look at me and think 'OLD', I'll start worrying.

[Chuckanut]

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Originally Posted by imoldernu 84th year.... Gotta be careful what I write... can't remember all of my lies. Every day is new, for both jeanie and me. All of the bad times are behind us, and we look forward to what ever we may be facing without fear or any negativity. <snip> Have stopped bragging about exercises, social activities and the way we were at age 76. Just do whatever feels good. Just came back from our CCRC "Estates'... A fun hour of sitting with the "ladies" and talking about the 1940's. Watching "Holiday Inn" now. "A Christmas Story" this AM... Ready for our kids, coming for Christms Day. Life could not be better.

You remind me of my friend Charles who, as he aged, adapted to some new limitations and circumstance and kept gong forward into life. When he no longer was up to driving long distances he took the plane, or better yet the train. He didn't like making left turns onto busy roads, so he took out a local map and figured out how to get around town making almost only right turns. (He was ahead of his time, UPS figured this out a few years later.)

Thanks for your inspiring outlook on life. And, keep moving forward.

[haha]

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Originally Posted by Canoeboy Interesting to see the Reoccurring theme of (fear of) falling off roofs or ladders coming up frequently in this thread. Has been a concern of mine since we moved last year into a house that accumulates leaves and/or pine needles of the roof pretty much year round. Was going up at least monthly with leaf blower, each time thinking it would not be pretty if I fell off. Not afraid of heights, but afraid of severe disability one year into ER at age 58. Problem solved! Just blew some serious dough on a standing seam metal roof. And ordered 6” seamless gutters with high-end leaf/needle guards. While the roof looks real sharp and will never need to be replaced in my lifetime, a huge factor in our decision was that I would no longer need to get up on the roof. Those pesky leaves/needles slide right off a metal roof.

I think this was a very smart move. Another high return move is make your tub or shower as fall proof as you can.
Here in Seattle many sfh’s have steep stairs just to get from sidewalk or drive to the entry. Definitely less than ideal.

Ha

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by haha I think this was a very smart move. Another high return move is make your tub or shower as fall proof as you can. Here in Seattle many sfh’s have steep stairs just to get from sidewalk or drive to the entry. Definitely less than ideal. Ha

Good points!

And if any of us are thinking of moving to a different house after age 60 or so, it helps to look for a house that has already been modified in these ways, to suit elderly/disabled occupants. One day, with any luck, we will all be older than we are now.

Although I have one step to get in via the front door, the back door entry was modified by the previous (wheelchair bound) owner; I don't need to climb any steps at all to get in the house by that door.

She also had the world's sturdiest grab bars put in the shower, with non skid shower floors. There is just a little 3" threshold to the shower that must be stepped over, but it would have been nicer without that and with a wider shower door to handle wheelchairs. I'm not at that stage yet but might modify it later on as I grow older.

The house has had no gutters for the past 50 years, and with the climate and soil as they are right here, there have been no adverse effects from this. I am well aware that they are necessary in most locations. Our heavy rains wash the roof clean without anyone having to go up there. I will probably need a new roof sometime in the next ten years or so, but do not plan to pay the extra for a metal roof since most likely it would last twice as long as I would.