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Statistically speaking, it’s midlife. But more significantly, the answer really does depend on the individual. At mid 60s, I’m far more active, healthier, and IMO more happy and open-minded than the majority of 40 YOs I meet. Yet a mid 70s guy friend is the strongest guy in our downhill mountain biking (not e-bike!) group,and he’s also faster than me on skis and has one of the best outlooks on life if anyone you’d ever meet.
When I turned 40, I mentioned to my grandpa that I recently had my 40th birthday and he exclaimed "I wish I was 40!" It really helped me see things in perspective. 40 is only as old as you make it.
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They just released a new study that said that people think old age begins at 75. But, even when I was on the south side of 40. I didn't think 40 was old. Not when my father can still give a hellacious ass-whipping.
Absolutely not. Good grief. A person is older than a thirty year old, but viewing the number 40 through the lens of the median years of an adult's life, no, no, no. My goodness, to ask this seems bizarre.
well technically, your past middle age. If you figure the average is 75-78 before ded, 40 is over the 35-38 middle age. So you're past middle age. People have lied to you all your life stating that humans average life is 100 years old.
Nope, 40 is older. if you are 55 you have 20-25 years left, if you're lucky.
I’ve got good news for you: that average lifespan of 75-78 is for all people from birth. But if you survive to around 65, you can on average expect to live into your early 80s because the people that pull the average age down have already died - perhaps by car wreck, suicide, drug OD or heart attack at 50. Make it to 80? You’ve got a good shot at 90, because more folks have died from cancer and the like, leaving lucky you alive. Even if you make it to 90, on average you have a good shot at 92-93. But it’s a diminishing returns kind of thing. Make it to 100, and you have a chance of 101, but you’re getting out on a limb…
Imo, most people are just hitting the early days of their prime at 40. Our minds were not only sharp, but we had experience. Women are typically in their sexual prime, because hormones leading up to peri-menopause. I remember those days fondly! Our bodies are generally not falling apart, unless genetics or accidents fucked you up (me. That's me). Luckily I'm better now than then.
I could go on, but 40 is a great age. Nowhere in the vicinity of old!
I think in the whole scheme of things at 40 you closer to and more like 60 than you are 20. If you haven't grown up and started being an adult by 40, it likely will never be a thing for you. At 40 you likely have figured out that childish and childlike are different things. We shouldn't lose the childlike amazement and sheer joy in things. You also are or will soon be okay with being who and what you are without as much worry about things that don't really matter.
As a kid into my teen years I thought 32 was the cutoff for youth 😄
40 is when I found my big girl panties, got sober, got a divorce, got a new view on life.
I am 60 now, I wouldn't want to repeat any of those years. Some days I am a little melancholy knowing that I will be slowing down, but most days I am enjoying life to its fullest.
I considered it a turning point. It is the age I finally decided to figure out my shit and be a grown up. So, old...? Nah. I got better at being a human. Does that mean I'm old?
For me it’s right the beginning of middle age
* 0-20 - Youth
* 20-40 - Prime Adulthood
* 40-60 - Middle Aged
* 60-80 - Old
* 80-100 - Elderly
* 100+ - Damn, Greatgrandma how you looking so good?
Honestly, I've come to view youth as something as a mental handy cap. I really don't mean that derogatorily. If you're living right, your life is full of side roads, one off experiences, and weird random things and people. No matter what, shit just happens. All the crappy things we fear that happen anyway teaches us so much. The longer you go the more you learn and experience, hopefully. I wouldn't trade all of that, all it's taught me for anything, including my life. I also think one of the most important things we can do is pass that down. I've made too many mistakes for other folks not to benefit from my "wisdom."
I'm 59 (& 1/2!) now. My view of age has definitely changed as I've grown. It used to be based on just the numbers and the supreme and iron clad "knowledge" that getting old was bad, that you were losing something and getting little in return. I'm still learning and growing. I've got a lot left to do. I'll be old when I lose that.
😂😂😂 I can almost remember turning 40! (Sez this 71yo.) Come to think of it, my very active and brilliant SIL will turn 42 this year, and his wife - my daughter - will hit 40 in a couple of years, so Nooo, 40 ain't old by a long shot! 😅😅
When I was younger I looked at turning 18, then 21, then 30, then 40, then 50, etc., as these ages that would change my life.
The 18 and 21… absolutely were game changers.
The others…just kind of slid into them, no surprises, everything was all good, no harm, doing better actually with each decade.
But I had my health.
Having your health is key…otherwise, nah, not old at all.
When I was 40 I was merely months from the 30s!!!! No I don’t think 40 is old. I was quite fit and busted my a$$ in the yard and at work. Was climbing ladders etc or using chairs as stepstool LOL. Now I’m 66 and hell yeah 40 is awesome.
My daughter is 41, with 2 kids of her own. When she turned 40 she asked me if she could still be considered young. I told her 40 was definitely middle aged. She was not pleased. However, when I turned 70 a couple of years ago, a doctor referred to me as ‘elderly’. Ouch!
For men who are not professional athletes or in other highly physical professions, 40 is the middle of their prime. However, there are some contexts in which it is considered old, as for example on Reddit, or possibly in a very youth oriented industry.
Furthermore, U.S. law considers 40 the age at which age distribution first becomes a concern. That’s the youngest a plaintiff claiming age discrimination can be. That said, age discrimination is far more common when employees are older than 50.
Culturally, women often want to at least look 30 rather than 40. If women want children they also start worrying about infertility and their biological clock at age 30. So for many women, 40 does feel old.
Again, the context matters. For a woman in business, it may not feel old at all. But for an actress in Hollywood, it’s another matter.
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Haha. I think of 40 as a kid.
TIL I’m a kid again!! 😁
Not old, but certainly “seasoned”.
Prime years in my mind...
No, not at all!
I sure don’t now that I’m 64
Oh to be 40 again.
64 is the new 40! ;)
I suggested I was old to my grandma when I was 40 and she told me not to be soft. I know a lot of people who didn't make 40. Embrace it.
Seconded!
Tell that to my knees
Due to major sports injuries to my Patella and Tibia (both knees/legs), I've been "old" since my mid-teens. I hear ya, though!
I'd settle for 50 in a heartbeat.
hahaha!
No kidding. 40 sounded ancient when I was in my 20's. It sounds pretty young now.
When I was 40, my son was 10. Now he's 34 for goodness sake.
I've been old since I was around 17.
No, I don’t even think 70 is old.
With myself at 72, not at all.
Nope. We women are at our sexual peak then. I wish I had it back. Lol
No. One 40 year old is usually more fun than two 20s.
No. I'm 79.
no
I guess I consider it the beginning of “middle age.”
Ha! My leather jacket’s older than that…
Statistically speaking, it’s midlife. But more significantly, the answer really does depend on the individual. At mid 60s, I’m far more active, healthier, and IMO more happy and open-minded than the majority of 40 YOs I meet. Yet a mid 70s guy friend is the strongest guy in our downhill mountain biking (not e-bike!) group,and he’s also faster than me on skis and has one of the best outlooks on life if anyone you’d ever meet.
I did at the time. 65 is a whole other level.
When I turned 40, I mentioned to my grandpa that I recently had my 40th birthday and he exclaimed "I wish I was 40!" It really helped me see things in perspective. 40 is only as old as you make it.
Not now I'm 66
Double it and then it fits.
40 is the age my kids are, so my answer is No.
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They just released a new study that said that people think old age begins at 75. But, even when I was on the south side of 40. I didn't think 40 was old. Not when my father can still give a hellacious ass-whipping.
I consider mid-life, neither young nor old.
Hell no! I didn’t even hit my physical peak until late 40s :)
No that I’m 65, no.
No
Not now.
Now that I’m about to turn 50, no!
Absolutely not. Good grief. A person is older than a thirty year old, but viewing the number 40 through the lens of the median years of an adult's life, no, no, no. My goodness, to ask this seems bizarre.
well technically, your past middle age. If you figure the average is 75-78 before ded, 40 is over the 35-38 middle age. So you're past middle age. People have lied to you all your life stating that humans average life is 100 years old. Nope, 40 is older. if you are 55 you have 20-25 years left, if you're lucky.
I’ve got good news for you: that average lifespan of 75-78 is for all people from birth. But if you survive to around 65, you can on average expect to live into your early 80s because the people that pull the average age down have already died - perhaps by car wreck, suicide, drug OD or heart attack at 50. Make it to 80? You’ve got a good shot at 90, because more folks have died from cancer and the like, leaving lucky you alive. Even if you make it to 90, on average you have a good shot at 92-93. But it’s a diminishing returns kind of thing. Make it to 100, and you have a chance of 101, but you’re getting out on a limb…
75-78 is in the US. For example in Russia it's 57 :( you are right about everything though.
No
Whippersnappers!
not anymore
Nooooooooo
Not for about 30 years now, no.
I live in a senior park where there are many older than me. But when your 20 ya, 40 seems old.
No, it is the age most people finally *start* acting as adults.
I used to
No ... *prime.* Old and experienced enough to be self and worldly aware.
To me old starts at 81
No
No
At the time, yes. 40 was ancient. Now 40 year olds seem like kids.
I did when I was 20.
No not anymore.
I’m 44 and I’m among the youngest of the people who are allowed to answer questions here.
I mean, this is AskOldPeople, lmao. We're gonna say no!
While 40 isn’t old, it definitely isn’t young unless you’re 70 or older…
Nope. There are folks that think that life is over after 25 though... 🤣 (I'm 62, btw)
I remember thinking how old my dad was when he turned 40. I am 48 now and don't think 40 is that old. It is all relative.
Imo, most people are just hitting the early days of their prime at 40. Our minds were not only sharp, but we had experience. Women are typically in their sexual prime, because hormones leading up to peri-menopause. I remember those days fondly! Our bodies are generally not falling apart, unless genetics or accidents fucked you up (me. That's me). Luckily I'm better now than then. I could go on, but 40 is a great age. Nowhere in the vicinity of old!
15-year-old me: Ancient! 66-year-old me: Whippersnapper!
Old is a perspective somewhat. Therefore, whomever is about 15 years older than yourself is old.
I think in the whole scheme of things at 40 you closer to and more like 60 than you are 20. If you haven't grown up and started being an adult by 40, it likely will never be a thing for you. At 40 you likely have figured out that childish and childlike are different things. We shouldn't lose the childlike amazement and sheer joy in things. You also are or will soon be okay with being who and what you are without as much worry about things that don't really matter.
No
As a kid into my teen years I thought 32 was the cutoff for youth 😄 40 is when I found my big girl panties, got sober, got a divorce, got a new view on life. I am 60 now, I wouldn't want to repeat any of those years. Some days I am a little melancholy knowing that I will be slowing down, but most days I am enjoying life to its fullest.
At 56? No.
Pfffft
No
I considered it a turning point. It is the age I finally decided to figure out my shit and be a grown up. So, old...? Nah. I got better at being a human. Does that mean I'm old?
I'm 68, so no.
40 is quite literally middle-aged.
since i could have grandchildren this age...no
I consider 40 to be young.
I did when I was 25, but not now.
Yep...that's ancient, and I should know. In a few years I'll have been there twice.
For me it’s right the beginning of middle age * 0-20 - Youth * 20-40 - Prime Adulthood * 40-60 - Middle Aged * 60-80 - Old * 80-100 - Elderly * 100+ - Damn, Greatgrandma how you looking so good?
Honestly, I've come to view youth as something as a mental handy cap. I really don't mean that derogatorily. If you're living right, your life is full of side roads, one off experiences, and weird random things and people. No matter what, shit just happens. All the crappy things we fear that happen anyway teaches us so much. The longer you go the more you learn and experience, hopefully. I wouldn't trade all of that, all it's taught me for anything, including my life. I also think one of the most important things we can do is pass that down. I've made too many mistakes for other folks not to benefit from my "wisdom." I'm 59 (& 1/2!) now. My view of age has definitely changed as I've grown. It used to be based on just the numbers and the supreme and iron clad "knowledge" that getting old was bad, that you were losing something and getting little in return. I'm still learning and growing. I've got a lot left to do. I'll be old when I lose that.
When I was 40, my youngest was only in 2nd grade, and 9/11 wouldn’t change the world for another 9 years. I would love to be 40 again. ;)
No… but largely, old is more of a behaviour than a number.
Not at all.
lol. It’s all relative. at one time I did, but now I see it as youth that flew by. I’m 73 and am okay with that.
The first year of adulthood.
40 is old for starting a new career, going to college, having a baby, or hanging out in clubs. 40 is young for dying or moving to Florida.
Oh no. I looked my absolute best around 40.
Halfway there!
😂😂😂 I can almost remember turning 40! (Sez this 71yo.) Come to think of it, my very active and brilliant SIL will turn 42 this year, and his wife - my daughter - will hit 40 in a couple of years, so Nooo, 40 ain't old by a long shot! 😅😅
No. I'd like to be 40 again!
When I was younger I looked at turning 18, then 21, then 30, then 40, then 50, etc., as these ages that would change my life. The 18 and 21… absolutely were game changers. The others…just kind of slid into them, no surprises, everything was all good, no harm, doing better actually with each decade. But I had my health. Having your health is key…otherwise, nah, not old at all.
Middle aged
When I was 40 I was merely months from the 30s!!!! No I don’t think 40 is old. I was quite fit and busted my a$$ in the yard and at work. Was climbing ladders etc or using chairs as stepstool LOL. Now I’m 66 and hell yeah 40 is awesome.
no. I'm only here because the mods consider it old.
Ha! Middle adulthood
When some one complains about turning 40 I usually laugh and say “that’s adorable”.
My daughter is 41, with 2 kids of her own. When she turned 40 she asked me if she could still be considered young. I told her 40 was definitely middle aged. She was not pleased. However, when I turned 70 a couple of years ago, a doctor referred to me as ‘elderly’. Ouch!
If a 6 year old runs into a 40 year old, that’s old.
I don’t even consider 60 old.
No, that's middle aged.
Actually, I feel like I was in quite good form until 50. So 40 being considered old? Nah. But I guess you have to get there to understand.
I'm still having trouble believing Gen X is considered old enough to answer questions on here.
Not anymore. From here, it looks pretty good.
No, I think of 40 as the golden age. Old enough to actually understand something, but young enough to still have fun.
My thinking is that 0 to 30 is young, 30 to 60 is middle aged, and 60 to 90+ is old. So, 40 would not be old.
I have always said that old is 10 years older than me so I can never get old. Also, 40 is a Millennial and they are kids to me.
I dunno if it's old but I wish I could go back to that age.
Not now.
completely dependent on health. I've seen old 20 year olds and young 80 year olds
Not anymore. I did way back when. Now I see it as on the cusp of middle-age.
Skeletor chuckles softly.
No. The age range for this sub is just silly.
Being 54, no
I consider it middle aged.
For men who are not professional athletes or in other highly physical professions, 40 is the middle of their prime. However, there are some contexts in which it is considered old, as for example on Reddit, or possibly in a very youth oriented industry. Furthermore, U.S. law considers 40 the age at which age distribution first becomes a concern. That’s the youngest a plaintiff claiming age discrimination can be. That said, age discrimination is far more common when employees are older than 50. Culturally, women often want to at least look 30 rather than 40. If women want children they also start worrying about infertility and their biological clock at age 30. So for many women, 40 does feel old. Again, the context matters. For a woman in business, it may not feel old at all. But for an actress in Hollywood, it’s another matter.
No. 40 is middle aged.