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26 Things People Enjoyed But Gave up Because They Got Too Old for Them

I loved to play hockey when I was younger.

I played in leagues from the time I was 16 until I was 22.

And then life kept getting busier and I couldn’t commit to showing up one night a week because of work schedules, so I didn’t play for quite a few years…

Fast forward about 15 years, I got asked to join a hockey team in Kansas City. Sure! Why not?!?!

I have to say, it was still kind of fun and it was definitely good exercise, but this old man was hurting after every game and definitely having a hard time keeping up with the youngsters.

I still go skate and play in pick-up games here and there, but I think that season might have been my last, sadly…

Folks on AskReddit talked about what they had to give up because they got too old for it. Let’s see what they had to say.

1. I miss it!

“Trick or treating.

Last time I went I was 15.

I did dress up, but still the looks on people’s faces when they opened the door told me it was time to stop.”

2. Can’t do it anymore.

“Binge eating candy.

It was fun as a kid, but buying my own to binge eat is kind of depressing.

Also, if I kept doing it I would eventually develop serious health issues.”

3. What did you say?

“Rock concerts.

I started having to deal with hearing damage in my mid-20s.”

4. Used to be a collector.

“Polly Pockets. I had a massive collection.

When I was 12, mum said I was too old for dolls and made me give them to my niece. I didn’t want to, but thought I’d get them back for my own kids one day. When my niece was told to pass them on to another one of my nieces, she did.. but not before destroying the lot.

I know they’re just dolls, but I was devastated. Now I have a daughter who would have loved them.”

5. Let’s take a trip.

“A cardboard box I’d sit in and had drawn, in my mind, the controls of a rocket ship inside it.

I’d sneak food from the kitchen to eat because I was sure I’d get hungry on my journey and being so far away. It wasn’t an option to shout down to Mum for food.

I used to sit in it and my imagination did the rest.

Oh if you could only see the places I’ve been, the journey’s I’ve taken and the adventures I’ve had.

50+ yrs old now and I still remember back to those places I’ve been and seen.”

6. Took it for granted.

“Eating whatever I wanted and never having to consider calories or fat grams.

I miss being able to eat anything I wanted and never gaining a pound.

I took it for granted.”

7. No more of that.

“Roller coasters.

I can’t ride them any more because I have a bad back and last time I went to Busch Gardens I got whiplash from riding all of them. Threw out my back at Disney when I rode “The Mummy Returns”.”

Shame too, coasters are one of the only things that make me feel truly alive.”

8. Sports!

“Playing sports for hours at a time.

And not feel tired afterwards!

I can’t even imagine how I used to play for hours outside in the heat and not feel a thing.”

9. Uh uh.

“Climbing trees.

I’m finally tall enough to cover some ground.

The fear of falling and breaking the hip also amplifies with age.”

10. Those were the days!

“I used to love sleeping in my closet as a kid.

Nestled in their under a bunch of hanging clothes, in a pile of pillows, blankets, and stuffed animals was the most comfy, secure, cave like feeling ever.

So dark too.

Mmm those were the days!”

11. Protect your knees!

“Running.

One of my knees decided it was too old for it without consulting the rest of me, unfortunately.”

12. Very true.

“Always having a close friend around.

The older you get, the less and less time people have to be around you with families and work.

People want to destress during the week, not entertain company.

Probably was the hardest thing to come to terms with. Especially since I live alone.

But I got a dog, he’s my best friend I wouldn’t trade him for the world.”

13. Swinging for hours.

“Swinging.

I used to swing everyday.

I would listen to music and go out in the backyard and swing for hours just thinking and reflecting and enjoying the repetitive motion.”

14. It hurts!

“Rollercoasters.

I used to go with my dad and we would ride all of them at the park, back to back.

These days it just hurts my bones and gives me a headache that takes hours to get rid of.”

15. The best!

“Water Balloons.

Water Balloons were at the core of some of my favorite summer moments growing up.

As I’ve transitioned from a Summer Camp Counselor to Mental Health Counselor though, water balloons have lost of lot of their utility.”

16. Not enough time.

“Video games……I have less time each year, the games require more knowledge and input than they ever did.

And a lot of games have so much bullsh*t attached that logging in and playing for 30 mins you might have is a waste of time.

I still play some, but it’s getting less, but to be fair I am 50 this year, so maybe I am winning still.”

17. Go easy on that stuff.

“Candy and soda.

I still eat sugar, but at much lower doses and I’m way more picky with it.

Candy and soda just makes me crash hard now.”

18. Good times…

“Playing with action figures.

I had giant storylines for all my action figures, I’d spend hours and hours fighting them and writing down statistics.”

19. Try to be a lifelong learner!

“Learning.

I didn’t realize it at the time but I really thrived during high school and college when I was constantly pushing myself with fun and challenging classes, learning new things every day that I might not have otherwise been interested in.

Now I’m out in the adult world and with my full time job, my freelancing work on the side, the grocery shopping and the cooking and the cleaning and whatever else I have to do, there’s just no time to learn for the sake of learning. If I ever come across that time, it’s best spent taking an online class that will keep my skills for my freelance work sharp and up to date with changing technology.

I feel like my brain has suffered for it too, because most days I feel incredibly dumb, despite being at the top of my class in college.”

20. Punk no more.

“Playing in punk bands.

At some point I realized I was a grown man surrounded by children and it was time to call it.”

21. Don’t want that to happen.

“I love Lego, and of course any adult can play with/buy them, but I live in Florida.

A few years ago Legoland opened up, not that close to me but certainly a half-day drive. I was initially so excited, but then I realized I can’t go.”

I know me, and I don’t trust me, and I know full that once the gates started to close I would be so engrossed in the Legos playing and I would scoff at any notion I had to leave.

Then I’d be on the news as a 30 something old man was arrested for refusing to leave Legoland and was dragged out kicking and screaming.”

22. Don’t connect anymore.

“Reading books that revolve around people in late high school or early college.

I’m a big romance novel fan, and coming-of-age is a HUGE subgenre of books. It used to be my favorite and 90% of what I read.

Now it feels distant. I don’t connect to it anymore. It feels icky to read about their physical relationships.

Unless something is particularly good or has some sort of social relevance, I’m buying fewer and fewer of them every year.”

23. So fun!

“Playing on a trampoline.

My favorite thing to do as a kid.

Now a home owner, I buy one for my backyard, and now my neighbours kids just stare at me while I use it and I get super uncomfortable and go inside.”

24. Fun in the outdoors.

“Spending hours playing in the creek in the woods on our backyard.

I could spend an entire day in .5 square mile, just pretending I cross that creek into other worlds. I would never have time now, but maybe when I’m older…

How would y’all feel about an eccentrically dressed old lady hopping along rock and downed trees in your nearby creeks?”

25. Shamed.

“Barbie dolls.

My best friend and I secretly played with them all the way up to 7th grade, until my 12th grade sister shamed me for it.

I’m in my 40s now and to this day, when I see a Barbie doll, I still have the urge to dress her or brush her hair.”

26. The joy of riding.

“Bike riding.

I used to love cycling around the neighborhood on nice days but by the time I was 12, I had to give it up as my parents were concerned about me being open to ridicule for still having training/stability wheels.

I have balance/ equilibrium issues due to being deaf and the extra wheels helped me immensely but nowadays, as a 33 year old adult, my only option to get back cycling is to buy an Adult Trike.

NGL, they look awesome and I’d love to get one but I don’t have the space and the folding models are pretty d*mn expensive.”

Did you ever have to give up something that you loved because you got too old for it?

If so, tell us all about it in the comments.

Please and thank you!