Aches and Pains

[Mobasser]

I retired as a carpenter not long ago. I probably should have gotten away from this work years ago, but I didn't.  I stuck it out untill the end.                   Because of the physical demands of this work, I have aches and pains which affect my fishing. I start the day with some stretching exercises. I wrap my rod handles with rod tape, to help with pain when I grip things. I also coat my knees with a deep heat rub. And last, I can't fish as long as I would like to. Sitting in a boat chair bothers my back after some time, then I'm standing up and sitting again, trying to get comfortable.                                       Now at 64 I can fish around three hours, then I'll need to go home. We can never expect our bodies to stay young our entire lives. Old age happens.                                Are there others here who have aches and pains which affect your fishing?

[A-Jay]

I retired a while ago from what could be considered a fairly physically demanding job.

At 62 I have my fair share of aches & pain and my overall capacity & daily endurance is no where near what it used to be. These things definitely effect my fishing, especially the long drives home.

 

But I do a few things that I believe have helped quite a bit:

Getting regular physically demanding exercise several days a week, 

helps my balance, mobility & confidence. 

Keeping my body lean - takes some of the load off my joints and gives gravity less to work with.

And finally, I focus on, and am grateful for, the things I can still do, instead of what I can not. 

Going fishing tomorrow and I'm pretty excited.

A-Jay

 

 

[Jig Man]

A knee surgery (long time runner) took standing up to fish out of the picture.  4 hand surgeries plus occasional cortisone shots keeps me being able to grip my rods.  Bad back couldn’t deploy and stow the trolling motor.  An Ulterra took care of that.  Two acetaminophen before leaving home and two more every 6 hours keeps my back going.  Otherwise everything is fine.

 

By the way you two are just kids.

[LrgmouthShad]

5 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Going fishing tomorrow and I'm pretty excited.

Get 'em ?

[SC53]

At almost 69, I feel it too. 
I walk 2 miles a day (when not fishing?) and  workout 3 days a week. Probably not Ajays workouts but doing what I can. 

What gets to me most is my shoulders aching after 3-4 hours of casting. 
But I’ll continue to push on. 

[Sphynx]

I got shot twice, and hit by 4 explosives with the largest being a 3,000 pound car bomb, jumped out of planes, helicopters, carried hundreds of pounds up and down mountains for a year, then because I'm stupid I did it a second time just to make sure it was a bad idea, broken bones, been blown off lumber loads on a flatbed, it's safe to say I've got a few aches and pains. I do what I can, I have to frequently take breaks, can't offer any real solutions to how to make it hurt less, but it might be of some use to know that you certainly aren't the only one.

[Mobasser]

2 minutes ago, Sphynx said:

I got shot twice, and hit by 4 explosives with the largest being a 3,000 pound car bomb, jumped out of planes, helicopters, carried hundreds of pounds up and down mountains for a year, then because I'm stupid I did it a second time just to make sure it was a bad idea, broken bones, been blown off lumber loads on a flatbed, it's safe to say I've got a few aches and pains. I do what I can, I have to frequently take breaks, can't offer any real solutions to how to make it hurt less, but it might be of some use to know that you certainly aren't the only one.

Sphynx, your not stupid man. Your a HERO

[FryDog62]

The only thing that has worked for me besides Advil (which you don't want to take often) is Glucosime Chondroitin. You have to get the kind with MSM in it. I never miss a day, the times I did I definitely noticed. 

 

https://www.amazon.com/NOW-Glucosamine-Chondroitin-300mg-Capsules/dp/B0013OSMRK/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1S05C9C653P6S&keywords=glucosamine+chondroitin+msm&qid=1651012335&rdc=1&sprefix=glucosamine+chondroitin+msm%2Caps%2C101&sr=8-5

[Sphynx]

Just now, Mobasser said:

Sphynx, your not stupid man. Your a HERO

No sir, there's whole fields of those, and others who have lost a good deal more than I have, that is a title for them.

[GTN-NY]

I’m 62, not overweight, led a pretty pampered life as a photographer. Man I hurt all the time. It’s not to the point that it stops me from doing things but I know I’ll pay for it later if I do it. 

[king fisher]

If I would have know I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself.

 

All of my joints, and my back hurt, but when I hook a big bass, I feel like a kid again.

[Catt]

70 years young, retired master carpenter, A/P licensed aerospace mechanic, & ASE certified auto mechanic. 

 

All 3 physically demanding resulting in ruptured discs, torn ligaments, arthritis, bursitis, calcium deposits, bone spurs, & 2 recently installed stints.

 

I stay as active as possible but it a constant movement from sitting, standing, & laying down.

 

 

 

[TnRiver46]

The aches and pains come when im

not getting any bites 

[WRB]

As a teen raced boats, motor cycles, fuel dragsters, water skied at high speeds and gymnastics put me in college.

All of the above had sudden hard stops but survived somehow. 

As hard as I tried to destroy my body I am still upright.

It catches up with you around age 50 when bone spurs and arthritis begins to show up in damaged joints, the pain starts.

Both my shoulders are held together with Kevlar string, pins and screws. I don’t have a L5 vertebrae and fused block of bone from the S1 to L4. Range of motion at my hips is marginal. Don’t let your kids become gymnasts.

The only thing that keeps me going is stretching every morning to tie my shoe laces. 

We thought we were indestructible and we were wrong.

As long as we are above the grass it’s good.

Tom

[Bird]

Welcome to getting old. Lol 

All my jobs were physically demanding.

Started out in the hay fields growing up to a roofer, then painting barn roofs, then drywall hanger.....OUCH.

Volunteered for all the overtime I could get on every job.

luckily got to retire early but the damage was already done.

Simply realize your limitations, keep a smile and fish til it hurts.

 

Excercise and stretching has helped immensely.

[cyclops2]

 84  and  the approaching rain AND then the period of following rain ? Causes random stabbing pains everywhere. Joint pains. Balance unsteady. Vertigo, start of double vision. Need for deeper breathing. Erratic heart beats. Tired beyond caring. Occasionally just want to die in my sleep.

Sun comes out and humidity drops...........Life is good. No pain killer drugs. Just tough it out and I am like I was at 40. 

[5/0]

A week from 70. Sidelined now with cervica radiculoparhy in my neck. Why the doctor didn’t say “pinched nerve” is beyond me. Been in pain for a month now. Probably caused from old football injuries and physically demanding jobs. It sucks, but will get through it. Like WRB said, above ground is good!

[Log Catcher]

In a lot of ways I'm doing better now than when I retired almost eight years ago. Before I had knee replacement surgeries my knees were so bad if I mowed the yard it would take me 2 or 3 days to recover to feel like going fishing. Now I can mow one day and fish the  next day. 

 

I have some shoulder pain from a lot of casting and sometimes my back will hurt but I can usually keep going for several hours.

 

I'm 70 and when I was working every job I had was physically demanding. I'm lucky to be doing as good as I am.

[NYWayfarer]

Knee, back, elbow…it’s a roll of the dice to see what’s going to bother me on any given day. 

[GreenPig]

As a youngman I rode dirt bikes(CRASHED), broke a herd of horses(HIT THE GROUND HARD ALOT), threw 797,104 hay bales, lifted very heavy things and weights that eventually break a body, and worked way too many 15 - 18 hour days on concrete as an A & P Mechanic. At 39 my neurosurgeon walked in the room laughing with my scan in his hand, I ask what's funny and he said I had the back of an 85 year old and needed a fusion. Now I'm 47 with the back of a 93 year old. The pain varies and on good days when I can stand straight up I go fishing. 

[T-Billy]

1 hour ago, FryDog62 said:

The only thing that has worked for me besides Advil (which you don't want to take often) is Glucosime Chondroitin. You have to get the kind with MSM in it. I never miss a day, the times I did I definitely noticed. 

 

https://www.amazon.com/NOW-Glucosamine-Chondroitin-300mg-Capsules/dp/B0013OSMRK/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1S05C9C653P6S&keywords=glucosamine+chondroitin+msm&qid=1651012335&rdc=1&sprefix=glucosamine+chondroitin+msm%2Caps%2C101&sr=8-5

Works well for me too. I take Osteo Bi-Flex Triple Strength. I've broken both wrists and have tendonitis in both elbows. This stuff has made a big difference for me.

3 hours ago, Mobasser said:

I wrap my rod handles with rod tape, to help with pain when I grip things. I

If you're not wearing them already, try a pair of fishing/sun gloves. I'm really happy with my Fish Monkey gloves. I never fish without 'em anymore. Tendonitis has reduced my grip strength. The added grip I get with these gloves does a great job of compensating for it.

[king fisher]

     After having open heart surgery, a constantly painful back, and knee surgery in my early 40.s.  I decided I would need to change careers if I wanted to continue to work.  Sleeping on the cold ground, carrying bear hides, and moose meat over mountains was not going to be a sustainable career, in to my 50's and 60,s.  Also having to get wavers, and pass an FAA physical every two years was getting difficult.  One bad  word from a doctor and a career can be over in an instant.

       I decided I would captain a private yacht in Mexico, in order to be able to work longer.  Though I mostly give orders, and have others do the heavy lifting, I still have to do my share of physically demanding mechanic work, but compared to living and working in the Alaska bush it is a job made for sissies.  I do have to pass a Coast Guard physical, but I only have to get one every 5 years, and they seem to be less strict than the FAA.  I miss the rugged life of the mountains, but I made the right decision to switch jobs when I did.  Since moving here I have had to get surgery on one shoulder, and will have to get another one done some day.  The knee that was operated on years ago leaves me limping most days, and I will eventually have to get surgery.

       I won't have to retire for many years, because as my body gives out I simply hire more of the physical work done.  I gave up all of my hobbies, except bass fishing.  I am very lucky my knee doesn't hurt when I pedal my Hobie, and my back pain only starts when I stand up after a day on the water.  I told my wife the day I can't fish is the day she needs to either put me in a home, or the ground.

      After hearing some of the stories in this thread, I feel very young and fortunate.  Many here are much older, and have had much tougher lives, and still manage to get out and catch a few bass.  I may have many aches and pains from stress on my body when I was young, but the memories are worth it.  Besides now I can have an excuse to hand the rod off when a 200 pound tuna bites, and watch some young guy deal with the pain of landing it.  Like others, I try to stretch and exercise in order to lesson the pain, but in the end I know the surgeons knife will eventually be needed.  For some reason buying tackle seems to help more than exercise.  Imagine that.  

[crypt]

ruptured tendon in my casting forearm had to have it reattached with screws, herniated discs in my back,2 broken knees,5 of ten fingers broken, hiatal hernia, cancer,and plenty of other pains in my butt. oh yeah broke my hand also. but I still weight train everyday to stay as lean as I can.still work 50 hours a week. not slowing down anytime soon. just turned 59......it's just a number.......

[The Bassman]

 I deal with arthritis in several places. One thing that helps my fingers is Trigger Happy Comfort Grips on the stems of my spinning reels. As mentioned, I feel blessed to be able to do as much as I currently do. Still painting after 48 yrs. I'll be 68 next month.

[FryDog62]

1 minute ago, The Bassman said:

 I deal with arthritis in several places. One thing that helps my fingers is Trigger Happy Comfort Grips on the stems of my spinning reels. As mentioned, I feel blessed to be able to do as much as I currently do. Still painting after 48 yrs. I'll be 68 next month.

X2 + Trigger Happy Grips ?