Athletic performance in your 40s?

**alias_rice** · 06-06-2025, 06:04 AM

Originally Posted by californiagrown

Do you want/need to keep throwing BP? If yes, then go get imaging and work with your ortho to gameplan a PT option and possibly a surgical option if there are significant structural issues. If you are realistically done throwing BP other than the odd weekend your kid cant find a buddy to go hit with, then you need to ask yourself if the pain and time of PT/surgery is really worth it. If you can do everything at full capacity except throw, and you dont really need to throw much anymore, then is the shoulder really a problem? By the same token, is there some structural issue or degeneration that is likely to get worse without surgical or PT intervention? you probably want to intervene.

TLDR: Its best to get imaging and KNOW what is going on in there so that you can make a gameplan. Get professional help.

That’s the thing. At this point my bp days are pretty much over. My kid enters high school in a year and my pitch speed isn’t enough to be helpful anyway. An L screen and soft toss is pretty much the same as my fastball. It’s just weird to me that I never feel anything unless I’m throwing a baseball. I’m guessing years of poor mechanics and/or overuse just gets things inflamed. I’ll probably make time to go in just to make sure there’s nothing too funky going on though.

**californiagrown** · 06-06-2025, 08:49 AM

Originally Posted by alias_rice

That’s the thing. At this point my bp days are pretty much over. My kid enters high school in a year and my pitch speed isn’t enough to be helpful anyway. An L screen and soft toss is pretty much the same as my fastball. It’s just weird to me that I never feel anything unless I’m throwing a baseball. I’m guessing years of poor mechanics and/or overuse just gets things inflamed. I’ll probably make time to go in just to make sure there’s nothing too funky going on though.

FWIW, i have a 3.5 yr old who i am hoping loves baseball, and im hoping to throw a few hundred thousand BP balls to him over the next 10-12 years. I got a fairly major reconstruction of my shoulder this past fall because not only could i not throw AT ALL, but i was in pain constantly and it was severly affecting my daily life. The repair that was done has a limited lifespan so the plan is the get back into throwing with my kid and progress as he progresses. I played in college and on the local semipro team on the right side of the infield. I had an arm. In the last few years though, my outlook had to change from wanting to throw lasers 120ft, to now im just hoping to wring out of my repaired shoulder what i can to support my kid. I dont need my arm to be even 75% of what it was...50% will do just fine. i just want to be able to throw ~150' onehopped (long) toss, and throw 50-60 BP balls from 30ft a few times per week. If i can manage that from age 5-15, i will be VERY happy with the surgery.

It sounds like to me, it was a job well done by your arm. Tip of the cap for a good career. Time to retire it, there isnt any need to fix it to get back to throwing well again... unless you plan to play softball? The next time youll need a throwing arm is for a grandkid. If your shoulder doesnt limit you in anyway other than throwing, then i would think long and hard about if a surgery is worth it- surgery comes with its own risks from general health, to scar tissue buildup, long painful recoveries, and no garauntee things will be improved. Regardless, i would still reccomend going in to get some imaging done so your healthcare team can see if there is a clear and obvious issue, and maybe there is a simple straightforward fix? Sounds like your arm spent decades throwing... IDK anyone ever who spent decades doing a repetitive highstress sport, even with flawless mechanics and developed musculature (tennis, golf, baseball) who doesnt have some kind of degeneration going on.

**GoosiePoo** · 06-06-2025, 10:55 AM

There are a TON of resources on Youtube for throwing. Starting with something like the throwers 10 would be a great start: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THs_MzojVYUIf you need to see an Ortho, don't hesitate to find someone who has baseball experience: Dr. Elatrache in LA, Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas, etc. I had a UCL repair at 17, its been a bit of a balancing act keeping my elbow/shoulder happy into my almost 40's.

**MultiVerse** · 08-17-2025, 08:42 AM

Two world class athletes in their 40s. One making a comeback, the other discovering she's one of America's best free divers:

At 45, Venus Williams will be the oldest player in the U.S. Open in decades:
https://www.npr.org/2025/08/14/g-s1-...-oldest-player

Sara Burnett, 41, went from an introductory course to a world championship in just over a year:
https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-en...tt-free-diver/

**Name Redacted** · 08-17-2025, 09:21 AM

Originally Posted by MultiVerse

Two world class athletes in their 40s. One making a comeback, the other discovering she's one of America's best free divers: At 45, Venus Williams will be the oldest player in the U.S. Open in decades: https://www.npr.org/2025/08/14/g-s1-...-oldest-player Sara Burnett, 41, went from an introductory course to a world championship in just over a year: https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-en...tt-free-diver/

Not to mention good ol' Lindsey Vonn and her comeback.

**The AD** · 08-17-2025, 04:55 PM

And another one: Mary T. Meagher who set the world record in the 200 butterfly in 1981 that stood for 19 years just broke the world record in that event in the 60-64 age group a few days ago: https://swimswam.com/mary-t-meagher-...200-butterfly/

Sounds like she's really just getting back into competition again. If she keeps at it I'll bet she can shave a few more seconds off the record.