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After reading the “Old Roofers Never Die” post, I thought I’d ask a question which I’ve been thinking about ever since I began my career in the trades about a year and a half ago. What kind of physical toll does years of working as a carpenter or remodeler take on you? I’ve met carpenters who are in exceptional shape, and others who look very old for their age. Of course, there are many other factors involved (diet, heredity, etc.), but what do people here think?
My father, who was a car mechanic for about 20 years, felt it was kind of a trade off- the physical labor made you strong, but eventually wore out your body. He died pretty young (54) of a heart attack, but I believe this was due more to his fondness for steak and mashed potatoes than sliding under cars.
Anyway, I love construction and I’m in it for the long haul. But some days, like after knocking out lath and plaster walls and ceilings and carrying drywall up several flights of stairs, I can barely drag my stuff out of my truck and into my apartment. And I’m only 26!
Thanks for any responses, and also for all the knowledge and information that is shared here.
Steve Harding
Replies
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Steve,
The local union has a plan where you retire at age 55 with full pay and benefits. (actually I think it's 85% of your last few years) I understand it's well funded and there is no benefit to working past 55.
*Steve, I know what you mean. I'm 32 and I feel the same way some days (OK, MOST days) after being in the Florida sun for 10 hours or so. Mike
*I still prefer a handgun and bandana over half my face for hold ups.
*"I can barely drag my stuff out of my truck"Buy wheels where you can lock up your tools.SunscreenGlucosamine sulfateVacationsGood food.A good doctorDont't ever work for dickheads......everAlways put off what you can do tommorrow, especially if it's dangerous and your tired.Get youngsters to haul D.W., lumber, ........damn, get 'em to carry your tools if you can.A good, after hours lover........
*Underwires.
*A demonstration please?
*UU
*I've seen many, many bad backs, knees and necks. Tricks?......1)buy a bobcat and get a set of forks for it. We frame with it(floor joists etc), use it for roofing and sheathing on ranches. 2) Know the cell phone number of the crane operator and don't hesitate to call.3) Know a good massage place....4) Be lazy, have a lazy attitude, laziness breeds inginuity. Always be looking for the easier way.
*Andy - good one
*I am not in the construction trade. Some years ago I went to an orthopedist for a back problem. He looked at the X-rays and saidthat I had some arthritis in my back but nota lot; about as much as someone my age thatworked in the construction industry because they lifted moderately heavy loads.
*Andy - Wimp -Does Taunton have a Florida office? I can take pictures and maybe string a few words together.
*a good chiropractor, or massuse, then again, drinking heavily and looking at splints shorts does it for me.hey splints where ya been missed ya.
*Don't try to get everyting out of the truck at once. Similar start of thread a while back. Commented that I could carry 6 sheets of 1/2 PB up stairs when 25 YO, and could barely carry 2 now. Frenchy had a response that he'ed never carried more than 2 at a time ever, and can still easily carry 2. Maybe you are good for so much lifting total in your life and taking it easier when young results in better endurance when older.
*I agree with Frenchy's attitude.Protect those disks at all costs.Carry lighter loads at a faster pace. You'll get the same amount done, in the same time frame.blue
*Great responses and tips- thanks for all the feedback. I'd just like to be lucky enough to shoot hoops with my grandkids some day, maybe on a court that I laid out myself. I think limiting the heavy loads that you carry is a wise thing. My girlfriend and I took a massage class last year, and this is helpful in many ways. And keeping a sense of humor- as so many here do- sure makes it easier to handle all the setbacks and mistakes that come with the territory. Much appreciated,Steve
*And SEX...get plenty of sex...it helps.
*Hey keith, I don't know about where you work, but in these parts the boss kind of frowns on that sort of thing while on the clock.
*Seriously, treat your back well. I worked stupidly for years - bent at the waist for speed while nailing down decks and subfloor or shoveling stone - with the result that, by 34, I knew that I had to seek a way out of actively building or face disc failure. There's nothing like a bad back to make you regret your mis-spent youth.Andy
*I worked concrete for twenty-some years. My advice is when you are placing ("pouring") concrete don't move the wet concrete with your foot. Use a shovel or a concrete rake. I sometimes walk with a limp from bad knees. I wised up too late.
*The key is to work smart, not hard. The work is good exercise, and will improve your health if you do it right and don't hurt yourself. My father lived to be 88.-- J.S.
*For God's sake, take care of your back!!!Yeah, you young bucks think you can pick up the world and run with it. Don't be stupid. You don't impress those of us who made that mistake.I was 26 once. By then, I had already wrecked my back. Too late for me.Be careful, please.Ed.
*More like vvGabe
*watch your knees and your back...pace not race....smart and lazy... (or age and wisdom ) will beat yute and enthusiasm.... sometimes...invest in the best staging...and proctor wall jacks... comealongs...bullwork went out with big crews...here's one.. the lumbertruck delivered the deck ply to the wrong side of the house...do we hump it up the hill ? or load it on the FORD and drive it around to the front ?
*Hey Mike,Just let the help hump it. Why waste your gas. Besides, when you wear him out you can just send him home to the underside of the world.Hi Mark -
*Ditto the comments about working smart and taking care of yourself ...... just had a knee replaced at age 48 ........had to hang up my hammer ......at least for the time being. Got plenty of twenty- twenty hindsight.
*I'm doing a cabin remodel right now on a beautiful little lake near Grand Rapids, MI for a doctor and her husband. Just got home for the night. Spend the day hammer-swinging, and the evenings fishing...which is real good. She did her residency at U of M (I know, not a good school like Michigan State, but okay)...anyhow, they studied work professions and "problems", and it seemed in the construction trade, there was an abnormally high rate of early kidney problems (from not drinking enough water over long periods of time---like years), and a higher than normal skin cancer rate (you know why). Interesting stuff.
*I think this kind of discussion and intrest is great for us all. back when I started, the general attitudse towards taking care was, "wasa madda - you some kinda pussy. get tough or get out"
*Michigan State is a good what? GO BLUE
*Mike!! Where ya been?I drive the stuff around too. I drag stuff too. I see you are using advantch or something. I actually like that stuff. At first I hated it. Now I like it.blue
*When I first started in my early twenties I would work like a dog all day, go home, fall asleep just about till the next day, and start all over again. For the most part, I felt like crap 24/7. Sore back, tired all the time, etc. I swore then that I wouldn't do this my whole life. I then started going to a gym after work. Most people thought I was insane. " How can you do that stuff all day then work out?" I also learned how to lift things the right way, and when to get another guy to help. Now, seven years later, I still work as hard, have tons of energy (most days), and my back only bothers me when the weather is bad. Just like a few others said, take care of your body and work smart.
*Work smarter, not harder. Live that motto everyday!I used to teach a safety class years ago. Most back injuries are caused by lifting LESS than 5 pounds of weight. They lifted it WRONG. Collectively, the muscles in the back are strong. Individually, they are weak. Twist one the wrong way, and you will hurt for days. Some back injuries are permanent.Even so, at 39 I survive on a regime of naproxin sodium, elbow support, and heating pads. I work alone, so when I am tired, I rest (take a break). If I am overly sore (rarely), I go home. I do not lift more than one sheet of ANYTHING at a time, and I use lifting devices for that. I use liftting devices to get material and tools to high areas. I work off of ladder platforms instead of standing on the rungs of a ladder all day. I found that standing on those rungs all day made my back sore. Flat work platforms made all the difference in the world.And I wear a back brace for EVERYTHING I do. Back, knees, and necks take the brunt of this line of work. Best medicine is relaxation and peaceful evenings/weekends.James DuHamel
*When I was younger, I liked to push myself....lift those beams by hand, carry the shingles up on my shoulder in full bundles, etc. Then an older builder gave me some wise advice in the form of a joke (edited for decency here):An old bull and a young bull stood on a hilltop looking down upon a herd of cows grazing in the meadow. The young bull says, "Let's run down there and jump one of those cows..." The old bull says, "Naw... Let's walk down and jump them all."
*I vote for the work smart thing... (when do you know when you are getting PLENTY of sex?)
*When you haven't got time to ponce about on the computer adding comments to topics in forums. I guess I don't get enough either! ;-) Slainte, RJ.
*I think I've made just about every error mentioned here, but hopefully I'll get smart before I do any serious damage. One thing I might also stay away from is concrete driveway work. On my first pour, two guys didn't show up and I was elected to help pull that 2x4 to level off the just pumped mix. As I was bending over trying to simultaneously drag the concrete, scoop handfuls to fill in the low spots and reach down to pull up the wire mesh, I thought: This is absolutely insane- what am I doing here and is it too late for med school? What a complete knee and back killer. But you know how it is when you're just starting out- you really want to know first hand how everything is done. Steve
*Plenty of sex is when you are actually more tired before work than after...you go to work to get a break. Have to excuse me now, it's breaktime, and I have to go to work.....boy, am I beat
*James, the docs convinced me that I was accelerating my back problems by wearing a brace so much. Hang it up and do a hundred situps and leg lifts. let the muscles give the support. Sex is also a good exercise for the lower back and abs. A regular practice of it is good for the prostrate too!For you guys that work seven days a week - listen here. God himself only worked six. What makes you think you're tougher than him? Take a day to enjoy your blessings!I guess we all know what Kieth'll be doing on Sunday.....
*The last 2 days I worked like a man possesed to get a deck done. LOTS of bending, lifting etc. When I got home one index finger went bloodless white and had a very unpleasant tingly feeling. It turned out to be a pinched nerve in my neck, ( my wife is a physio ). that made me think about the 'working smarted thing, that and the nagging ache starting in my back. Trouble is, by the time the pain starts, often there is already some harm done. protect your back, you only get one.
*There are tools that do the lifting for you. If you're not using them to the full extent you're dummer than your hammer. When there is no other way but becoming a beast of burden, work slow, steady and rest enough to take the strain off. If your boss/customer/wife tries to crack the whip ask them to share the load. There is never anything that must get done so fast as to hurt someone. At least not something you'd get paid for!
*To this point, this is 40 posts of the most helpful information going! I'd just recently been wondering -- after some aching in my elbow and fingers at a whipper-snapperish 30 years old -- how long I was going to hold out. I just started, and love the work, but I'm not very big, and not 18 any more. This has been inspiring and downright useful info. I was an exercise physiologist years ago, and I would consistently admonish my clients to rest, rest, rest... that it was as important as exercise in keeping your body strong and nimble. Now I'm forced to heed my own advice. Also, someone in an earlier post noted that they exercised on top of a heavy workload, and I have to say it has helped to begin stretching and doing mild cals (push-ups, chins, sit ups etc) again.Anyway, great question and great discussion. Long live living long!!Brian
*Brian, Maybe you have some insight to share with us as to why additional exerecise is good while rest is too. This seems contradictory but I know it isn't and I have a clue why but as an ex physio you could maybe explain it better
*The short version is that generally speaking, sleep (rest) is when your body recovers/rebuilds tissue, cells (even memory) from the prior day's activities. Most folks in the trades get maybe 6 hours when in fact... especially after working your a-- off all day, people physiologically need closer to 9. Exercise, stretching, calasthenics all increase your body's capacity to bear physical stress (to say nothing of the mental benefits). Because it's done through a controled range of motion, and with relative stabilty, the risk of injury is much less, and benefit greater, than if we rely on our work alone to keep us fit. The biggest problem we have is what Ex/Phy folks call "overuse" or "repetitive stress" injuries. 400 shovel fulls of sand... for instance, or turning a screw all day. I think the benefits, short term, to me have been that by starting to exercise again I've been applying my work stresses to a warm body v. a cold-stiff one. Stretching, in general, done regularly will alleviate a good number of the aches and pains assoc. with hard work OR exercise for that matter.At least that's what the research say's, and I've found it to be pretty right on.Hope that helps.Brian
*My understanding is that stretching extends the range of motion and increases blood(nourishment) flow to the tissues in action. Exercising targeted muscles through specificly designed moves build strenghth that distributes stresses equally. eg. by tightening my abs I take some of the load off my back muscles.Sum it up and I feel better.
*Still going strong at 48 and 25 years of pounding nails. In my case I think it is due to a wide range of jobs. We build custom houses from the rough frame through the cabinets. A week of roofing is followed by siding is followed by digging holes for a deck is followed by tile setting. Any one of these jobs can injure your body but a little of each will make you fit. And don't forget to hike in the fall, ski in the winter, canoe in the spring and drink gin and tonics in the summer.
*My father worked as a carpenter before there were pneumatic nailers. What happened is that he developed much bigger muscles in his right arm and shoulder. That went away when he quit carpentry.-- J.S.
*One thing that'll help your elbow.....don't lift a bucket or anything with your palms faced forward, rather with the back of your hand forward.My SIL, the phys. therap. taught me that one, no more tennis elbow!
*Get ab gooddust mask and use it!My high school boss at the drug store told me I took a lazy man's load when I was hauling more trash than I could carry out the door. "Lazy man's load?!??!!?" "Yup. Too lazy to make two trips."Rich Beckman
*The two best pieces of advice have already been posted...work smarter, not harder and take the Union gig! I myself am not Union because in my area there isn't one for residential framers, however, I can tell you this. I'm only twenty eight, but this is all I have ever done. When I first started out I would glady carry two sheets of 3/4" T and G up two flights of stairs and couldn't wait to swing a 30oz Estwing. Now I own a Lull and swing a 14oz $120 titanium Stiletto. I'm twenty eight and had three days last winter that I literally couldn't get out of bed, or even reach my Nextel for that matter, to get help. Tendonitis, bad knees, compressed disks, numb fingers...you name it! But I wouldn't trade any of it if it meant I had to sit at a desk all day and never smell sawdust again.
*Great post here. I just finished my first exterior job in 7 years. I could'nt get out of bed for a week. I told the wife that I must have cancer. About 7 months ago I visited a friend on a job site and try to move a 5 gal bucket to the side with my leg. I thought it was empty. It was full. I pulled my groin so hard I didn't even want the wife to go down on me for 6 months. Now the wife works 2 jobs and has class in the evenings. Now she is to tired to go down on me. Go figure!!!
*something that has really helped my health is a little toning up at the gym.....lift some weights and cardio....seems like being stronger and having more wind is a real benefit.
*Does anyone have a great (easy) way of removing wood plugs which were glued in over countersunk screws without damaging the wood around the plugs?A real good client, with a very fussy wife, has asked me to replace a few boards in their exterior window shutters and I don't want to upset the little lady or be forced into replace the whole shutter.thanks for any help, da'Lou
*bad back, knees' that sound like gravel in a wheel burrow, sore neck, callused hands. sure beats an office job.
*Luther --You need to hit the "back" button on your browser to get to the list of message titles rather than the actual messages, then at the top of the screen (scroll all the way up) click on "Add Discussion". Then you can ask your question as a new thread. Leaving it down here in a completely different subject means that most people will never find it. -- J.S.
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After reading the "Old Roofers Never Die" post, I thought I'd ask a question which I've been thinking about ever since I began my career in the trades about a year and a half ago. What kind of physical toll does years of working as a carpenter or remodeler take on you? I've met carpenters who are in exceptional shape, and others who look very old for their age. Of course, there are many other factors involved (diet, heredity, etc.), but what do people here think?
My father, who was a car mechanic for about 20 years, felt it was kind of a trade off- the physical labor made you strong, but eventually wore out your body. He died pretty young (54) of a heart attack, but I believe this was due more to his fondness for steak and mashed potatoes than sliding under cars.
Anyway, I love construction and I'm in it for the long haul. But some days, like after knocking out lath and plaster walls and ceilings and carrying drywall up several flights of stairs, I can barely drag my stuff out of my truck and into my apartment. And I'm only 26!
Thanks for any responses, and also for all the knowledge and information that is shared here.
Steve Harding