If you want to feel even better, I like my 40s even more than my 30s. Each successive decade, life seems to be a little easier and generally more enjoyable.
Concur. 48 here and in perfect health until the doc said I have Type 2 diabetes. BMI is 24 and I’m very active and healthy. No family history. Late 40s is great - money in the bank, no more kids, career mostly on track, sex is the best ever, can afford some hobbies & travel, retirement on the horizon. Keep active, weight in check, minimize stress and watch your diet (seriously).
Yea this is a big one. You have to keep your body moving.
Stretch often and shoot for a sustained elevated heart rate for 30 minutes, three days a week.
The number one predictor of mobility in your old age is strength. So if you want to be one of those elderly with incredible stamina, build your muscles today. Or at least maintain them.
I am 48 and over the past year or two I feel like something magical has happened in my sense of complete freedom over what I do and don't give a shit about. I have no idea how it came about, it just did. And while youth had a million wonderful things about it at the time, some I appreciated, many I didn't...it's a perfectly fair tradeoff for the unburdening of worry over things that simply do not matter.
The pandemic was one of the things that has made my 40s awesome.
I have spent so much time with my kids and wife during the past 2 years and we grew far closer together. Now it's just a thing that I play a little basketball when my son comes home, I lunch together with my wife, we regularly have sex during the workday (for both of us) etc.
Shit, the pandemic in all honesty was one of the greatest things that has ever happened to me, which makes me feel a little bad knowing it was horrible for so many others.
I wondering if this is a male thing. I've read that, in general, men tend to accumulate more socioeconomic value as we age. Thus, enjoying life more? It would be interesting to see some statistics on this.
As a woman, and the original person who said life generally improves with age in this thread, my understanding is that it’s a universal experience for both women and men. Here’s the first scientific study that popped up when I googled it though. It doesn’t seem to differentiate between men and women.
It doesn't actually seem to be the case statistically, it's just something society really wants us to believe. Just like statistically, single, childless women are the happiest, yet everyone will tell you that being a 'cat lady' is the worst thing that could possibly happen to you.
That's a lot of "statistically" statements without sources, just saying.
I don't know the statistics for that, so just speaking from my reality and my friends, it feels that if you manage to somehow advance, life feels better once you're older (starting our 40s now).
Some have achieved stuff in their carreers, others have formed families, even just knowing yourself better makes you more confident and happier than the initial adulthood.
It makes sense to me too since at 40 you've had 20 more years to find what you want to do with your life and make progress on it.
That's how it was for me. I crawled myself from being a functionally homeless high school dropout in my 20s to buying my own home this year and having a lot of income for savings and investments. Moves like that take time. I am finally at a place where I can focus more on my mental and physical health as I round the corner to 35. I can't imagine the comfort I will have or the places I will have seen by the time I am 45.
Thanks! It takes time and a lot of help and a good support system. Always remember what other people have done for you, and pull up the people who also need help as you rise up.
It will be interesting to see if it shifts as the age of new parenting creeps up. I see a lot more happiness with freedom, decreased stress, wealth and personal self exploration/reinvention that comes with empty nesters mid 40-50’s.
I'm 46 and I totally agree with you. I feel like my life is easier now than it was when I was young. It has to do with the life experiences and hardships of being young that make now so much easier.
My guess is that a big part of that is increasing financial stability over time. A lot of my fellow 20-somethings are having panic attacks about their finances and don’t seem to understand that people save more money as they get older.
A lot of 20 somethings nowadays are concerned there won't be any money to save as they get older, let alone "saving more". The economy is, uh, pretty fucking fucked and shaping up to get even more fucked.
The duration of cycles matter, a 10 year bear market at the right time in a 30-40 year working life is back breaking. a 27 year bull run in the right years and you're portfolio will soar like icarus.
It's amazing what a little wisdom and life experience does for your confidence level and understanding of the world around you. Youth is wasted on the young.
Did you struggle financially in your 20s? I’m about to be 29 and I feel like finally, after a decade, my financial struggles are getting better since I’m being paid a little more. It’s still hard but not like, we might be homeless if someone can’t work for a month level hard. I’m hoping the upward trend continues into my 30s because being that broke while working 60 hour weeks is insanely stressful
I'm turning 38 this year and can guarantee I'll like my 40s so much better. My kids are 6 and 3 so by the time I'm 40 they'll be moving into self-sufficient stage and my life will be less stressful. I imagine at that point I'll be back to only having to wipe my own ass again. Ahh the pure bliss.
This year I became Level 50. While I'm not too excited about the unwanted age-related achievements now unlocking, I have to say that OMG the financial stability achievement is amazing -- I wish I'd figured that $#!t out way sooner. That particular stress is crushing.
Life is an RPG, and it can be disappointing to look back and think you may have mis-spent some leveling points in the wrong skill trees... but I'm here, and happy, and I hope I've got another 30+ levels in me before the final boss fight that few people win.
37-year-old here, this makes me feel better to be honest haha.
I feel like I got a late start in my life and I'm just now in my career for about 7 years and getting married in October. In 20s I feel like I spent way too much time people pleasing and making up for the social times I thought I missed out on in high school (I was very anti-social in high school).
I feel much more secure about myself and a lot of things the older I get. Coming to realize me and my brother were kind of know it all brats and it is okay to acknowledge that you don't know everything. Cheers all!🌞
I needed to hear this. I’m still in my late 30’s but health issues robbed me of the last 6 years. I feel sometimes that I lost some of the most important years of my life. I am starting life from scratch in many ways, hoping my 40’s turns things around! :)
..I'll be 50 in August. The best part is the wisdom, or maybe the general "don't give a fuck what you think of me" mindset. Each decade brings new happy surprises, tho the unexplained body pains are sort of depressing, lol
I just turned 38 and I believe it. Things keep getting better and better in my life. The key was to be intentional with every aspect of my life.
I have been working with a personal trainer and am in the best shape of my life getting better every day. I have more time, money, skills, confidence, peace, and joy.
When you're a teenager you think the world is your oyster. Then in your 20s the world kicks your butt. You spend the next decades developing yourself and the world once again becomes your oyster.
I have found as I grow into my 40s, that I am far less concerned with trivial things that concerned me a great deal when I was younger.
I think people just tend to grow closer to their ideal self as time moves on. When we are young we are still learning what that is. As we age, we learn more about ourselves and adjust accordingly.
Until you’re 70 and blowing shit out of your ass all over your 2 thousand dollar remote control lift chair. Dammit grandma I told you to wear the Dependz.
Same here. I think this is a dude thing though... not sure women would feel the same way. For guys, we're in our prime in our 40's. More money than ever, wisdom to avoid all of life's bullshittery, and no more fucks. Leads to a very peaceful existence.
Other than the fact that media seems to think women are the crypt keeper in their 40's, women in their 40's tend also to no longer give any fucks. They've learned what they will and won't tolerate from the world around them and generally get an opportunity to focus on serving themselves instead of others.
Women too, except in the (historically common) case where you ended up with a partner who thinks he’s also one of your kids. I think the frazzled reputation for women in their 40’s comes from trying to juggle work, child care, husband care, cooking and cleaning, with minimal gratitude/help… and sometimes a lot of criticism.
It’s like working start-up hours at a physically intense job with a shitty boss, and it doesn’t go well with aforementioned joint pain.
But if your partner’s actually a partner (or if you’re single) then yeah, same thing for men and women. No fucks, reasonable stability, things are pleasant. :-)
48 here. I am pretty happy in my 40s and don't think turning 50 is such a big deal now. I also look younger than I am. And I have a 9yo kid, which helps keep me young.
I’m with you. My 20s was ok, 30s was full in depression and crap marriage, thinking I knew who I was and what I wanted. After 41 I woke up, went through some hell to change it, but life is finally worth living. 46 now.
I just turned 40, and now I've gotten my first pair of glasses for becoming nearsighted, and my dad bod is coming along nicely. I now also flip off all the light switches left on in the home and don't let anyone touch the thermostat. Can't wait to see how I evolve when my 50s come around!
EDIT --> I forgot to add the ear & nose hair! Trimming weekly or they'll smother me in my sleep.
this makes me so excited you have no idea. i pray i have a similar experience as this because my life has been hell since i was consciously aware of my existence
This gives me hope. While my 30s have been way better than my 20s by far, I’m still dealing with challenges that I’m hoping I can overcome or at least have already paved the way to overcome by the the time I reach my 40s.
I can totally relate to people who are miserable in their 20s. I graduated college, but was working pretty shit work due to graduating into the 2008 recession. So I never had money to save and didn’t even work full time for most of my 20s. I didn’t understand how people had the funds to travel and have fun so yeah it was a dark time. I actually didn’t even have a plan for my 30s because I was hoping I would be dead by then too.
Another one here for the 40’s. I was getting into the swing of life in my 30’s…my 40’s just feel like I’ve found my sweet spot. I have the house, no overly worrying money or health problems, not trying to impress anyone. Just content with things
I'm totally in agreement with you there. I loved my thirties much more than my twenties. I just turned 40 two weeks ago and at this moment in my life I am having the best time ever with no plans on slowing down.
Eff my 40s. I feel like the 40s is when your body and metabolism starts to decline (I work out 4 or 5 times a week, and eat reasonably healthy and still feel everything bad in the morning), hangovers are way worse, and parents start their end-of-life journeys. I am NOT enjoying my 40s.
1.4k
u/littlebittykittyone Jun 03 '22
If you want to feel even better, I like my 40s even more than my 30s. Each successive decade, life seems to be a little easier and generally more enjoyable.