If you could live for a day in your 21 year old body...

[Helen S]

I'm turning 48 this year. Even though I'm in good shape especially for my age (I can still outdo some 20 year olds at the gym), I was in much better shape at 21. I was in college and I took about 4-6 PE classes each quarter. In college, you can take such a variety of different PE classes like dance, gymnastics, running, raquetball, etc. and not have to pay extra for them. In running classes, there were college track members that could tell that I was in the track/cross country team at high school. I did run on my own sometimes and I did go to a gym too (I really loved working out back then and now).

Now, I still run but I can't run as fast or as long. This is the same for cycling but it's especially true for running since I had ACL surgery two or three years ago. If I run too long, my knee really starts to hurt. So I'm gradually trying to increase my mileage and speed. I injured my knee during martial arts. It does seem that as I got older, my right knee and left rotator cuff hurts off and on. I need to warm up longer. When I was in high school, I hated warming up for track. I just wanted to run fast right away. I would pull something if I tried to do that now.

In my 20's and early 30's, I could eat whatever I wanted and not gain weight. I was 98 lbs. at 5 feet even. This was a good weight for me. If I was training for a long distance race, I would drop to 90 lbs. which is still healthy (not anorexic looking) but then I had the body of a teenage boy since I had no body fat. Sadly, I can't eat whatever I want and not pay the consequences. OTOH, it has made me eat a lot better even though I still have to wrestle my sweet tooth. I just love chocolate!!! My family likes to choose recipes from healthy cookbooks.

[iheartsts]

Gosh...21 was so long ago, I don't remember too much about it... It was actually 34 years ago Seems like forever... I'd love to have the body I had then, 5' 1", around 100 to 105 lbs. I could eat anything and everything I wanted and never gain a pound. I'm about 25 lbs heavier now and could lose about 10 to 15 lbs, but I'm ok where I'm at.

However, although I'd love to have the body I had back then, I'd keep my brain where it is now! I'm more confident, stronger, less shy, and smarter about the ways of the world now than I ever was back then and I wouldn't go back for anything! 55 rocks!

[Lizzo]

Even though I am a few pounds heavier, I have to say that I'm in better shape now than when I was 21. I can do more push-ups, lift heavier weights, and run faster and for longer periods of time. I was skinny fat at 21 and only really did cardio on the elliptical for my exercise. I didn't have the energy I do now because I had a lot of destructive habits, i.e. bad diet, I drank more often, ran on minimal sleep, etc.

The one thing I do miss about being 21 is being able to bounce back from destructive habits quicker. Although I will never have my 17-year-old metabolism back (I use to be on the swim team in high school), I was still able to get away with eating more junk food at 21 than I can now. Even though I can somewhat run on minimal sleep now thanks to grad school, I use to be able to run on 1-2 hours of sleep, versus 4-5 hours at the minimum now.

[Gams]

I was in better shape then because I was dancing professionally, so working out all the time. Having said that, though, I'm fairly fit now, so I'm happy.

[Lucky Star]

Oops, how did I miss Sharon's post & photos? LOVE them!

[Nuggie's Auntie]

I was in great shape at 21, but not at 18! I discovered videos (The Firm) when i was 19. It's funny this thread came up, b/c the Vol. 1 thread reminded me how winded I used to get just doing the jogging-in-place segment of Vol. 1.

What I would TELL my 21 year old self is to WEAR SUNSCREEN... and that I looked awesome back then and to stop being so critical of my body.

[bee1forfitness]

Fitness wise I wouldn't change anything I'll keep doing what I'm doing now, I've always exercise (I remember even as a little girl my Mom and her friends teasing me about all the workouts I would make up and then show them... they would laugh and laugh, but I still did them)To this day I still prefer designing my own or written workouts to videos..and mostly do those kind of workouts. I've been a vegan 20 plus year, so I wouldn't even change how I eat either

[Juli]

Originally Posted by iheartsts

However, although I'd love to have the body I had back then, I'd keep my brain where it is now! I'm more confident, stronger, less shy, and smarter about the ways of the world now than I ever was back then and I wouldn't go back for anything!

If only I knew then what I know now.

[joycet]

This is a really interesting thread! For me, when I was 21, I was 20 lbs thinner. I am thin now... I was sickly looking thin then. Unfortunately, I was in the terrible grip of an eating disorder and certain that I still had another five pounds to lose. I was in college, on the dance team, ran cross country and involved in a lot of campus activities but food and my weight preoccupied my thoughts a good part of the time. I would not want to go back to that. I see photos of myself from then and I even see how shockingly thin I had gotten. I'm in a much better place now and would definitely not want to go back to that time or that body.

[Laura S.]

I turn 48 this year. Back then, I weighed many pounds lighter, but, as I didn't discover exercise until I was 39, I was in pretty bad shape. I was horribly shy had a few good friends.

I would love to have a day in my 21 year old body to see what it could do with exercise. That would be pre-arthritis (diagnosed at 22-23) and I'd love to see what it felt like.

I wouldn't give up my eyes though! Last year, I had cataract surgery on both eyes and I can see better now that I ever was able to since the age of 9! I wasn't able to do anything without glasses since then until my surgeries. I actually can take my glasses off to do things on the computer and read and lose track of them.