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Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

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461–470 of 534 posts

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#461
Experienced the same. Got quite severe. Turned out to be a few things. Autoimmune and heavy clotting the biggest.

Changing my diet dramatically, d3/k2 magnesium, Vit e, omega 3s, and blood thinners cleared up my mind.

Also exercise is absolutely critical.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#462
post #407

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Diet and physical activity play a huge role in mental clarity and energy level. The diet part of that we're only beginning to really understand in the last 10-15 years after some research breakthroughs in looking at our gut. Western diets (e.g. the standard american diet... what we actually eat) is fairly bad for our health which impacts our abilities. I would recommend folks look into the Blue Zones. Where people li…

Me too, I'm 37, and I did a radical diet change -- No sugar, no carbs, no dairy, no gluten. Only meat and vegetables and fish and some fruit. After a year of this I've dropped 20kg, and my mental clarity is back where it was when I was early 20's. I think it was mostly the no sugar that did it. Exercise too - I walk 2-5 km a day Oh and cutting down what I eat too -- I only have 1 meal a day, and a smoothie in the aft…

Similar results for me. Was basically stuck in bed most of the day. Finally went AIP diet, which is roughly the same diet. Few months later I was kayaking a couple times a week.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#463
post #422
post #329

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree that web development is complex. I disagree that abstraction layers add complexity. Abstraction layers solve problems. If you don't have the problems that these abstraction layers solve, then you might perceive that as complex, but most people actually do experience these problems. The web is not just for websites anymore, it's a universal platform for app distribution. This means web apps can instantly be ma…

> I agree that web development is complex. I disagree that abstraction layers add complexity. Abstraction layers solve problems. True, until there's a bug in abstraction level 6 caused by an upstream change in proprietary abstraction level 3 that's been patched in abstraction level 8, but not for your specific case. Then it becomes complex.

Yes, but in my experience this doesn't actually happen that often as long as you don't rely on external dependencies too much. This happens in any ecosystem btw.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#464
post #442

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tried paper and log books for a long time (I've got half a filing cabinets worth), but no matter what system I used I couldn't always find what I wanted. (When did I last modify routine xyz, and why?). Moving to flat ascii files meant it's searchable and has longevity as it doesn't need any specific tool or app. I can also carry the lot around with me - very useful on site. Cheers.

How do you organize the files? One per day? Task? Project?

I use a heirarchy of folders and within them I create a text file for each main task:

\work\customername\StockSystem

MyCust001 - Interface not updating PickStatus.txt

MyCust002 - Add Stock Check Flag to ScanPullStock.txt

MyCust003 - Look at enhancing Batch Split screen.txt

I use the numbers as a quick reference within all my documents.

\personal\Diving

Diving book recommendations.txt

Diving gas tables.txt

\personal\DIY

Standard screw sizes.txt

Choosing new security lights.txt

Getting new consumer unit fitted.txt

I add the date and time to a line whenever I start, or after a break. (Pressing F7 on UltraEdit does this automatically). I can use this retrospectively to see how long things took.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#465
post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exercise is a source of enjoyment, why would you want to replace that?

The trick is it's not a source of enjoyment for everyone; if it were there probably wouldn't be such an obesity/heart disease problem in this country. This is kind of where I always have been, I find exercise to be a loathsome and boring chore, a necessary evil that gets in the way of things I would rather be doing.

Same for me, I hate exercise for exercises sake. I always have to make it a side effect of something necessary or fun I'd rather be doing - commuting by bike, mountain biking, standup paddling or windsurfing etc.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#466

Programming requires deep thought and concentration. Are you sure the issue isn't simple distraction? I'm 62 and I feel like the major thing that has changed in 35 years for me is the crazy amount of unrelated things (youtube, HN, phone notifications, you name it) constantly competing for my attention. When I was in my 20's I would literally sit in near-silence working for 10-12 hours at a time. Nothing would interru…

Thats a really good point. In a similar way the number of available technologies gets bigger and bigger as we age, more choices, more to know and more things to fiddle with.

Decades ago the whole MSDOS machine was mine and my tools were an editor, C compiler and linker. Now you need to know a much larger number tools, frameworks and environments before you write a single line of code.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#467
post #333

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Would you mind sharing the routine, or a general outline of how you approached weight lifting from “zero” to “one”? I’m approaching 36 and haven’t lifted anything in 10+ years. But reading sentiments like this is motivating me to start again. I’m just scared honestly - my body has atrophied quite a bit the last 4-5 years at minimum

You might look into a trainer for a few sessions. I'm in a similar situation, and just getting back into lifting with a set of at-home weights. Thankfully, one of my company benefits is an in-house trainer who you can sign up with for a few remote sessions. She's putting together a plan for me, then will do a few zoom calls to make sure I'm doing the exercises right, and hopefully that'll take care of things. Years a…

+1, I highly recommend getting a personal trainer for a few sessions. They can even do remote video sessions outside of signing up for a gym. A good trainer can recommend exercises that provide just the right amount of challenge - not too low that benefits aren't there, and not too high that the difficulty makes you quit (this is a problem with gym group classes).

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#468
post #3

Is the current API under test? Your number #1 priority with any port or major refactor is getting the current implementation defined and under test, so any replacement can be tested against the same tests. Once you've done that you should have a solid foundation and understanding of what the API actually does . In getting it under test, you'll also build up better mental models of which parts are actually separate an…

Is the current API testable? So many times I've taken ownership of code that requires an active connection to a database to even be up and running. Changing the code so it's testable usually changes the code so much it is very hard to have confidence it works the same way as the original implementation.

My old company lived and died by its instrumentation of DAU (daily active users). We would try to refactor the code to an IoC pattern with DI but invariably we'd get blamed for a downturn in the numbers - but never lauded if the reverse was true. It was a losing game - we finally had to get management to commit to the modernization (never, ever say "rewrite") and power through the days of low DAU.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#469

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Personal anecdote: I'm around the same age as OP and until recently also felt like my thinking was slowing down over the years. I went for many years without an exercise habit. About 5 months ago I started lifting weights. The transformation has defied all my expectations and the biggest unexpected benefit is that my mind has become sharper, faster and more focused. I essentially feel like I've reversed a decade's wo…

Anyone have experience comparing weight lifting vs other forms of exercise? Curious of how cardio vs weightlifting compares for example. I have heard a lot of podcasts talking about some psychological benefits from low heart rate cardio that are difficult to replace with other forms of exercise, for example. Call me a wimp but I find DOMS can be a little distracting haha.

I find DOMS kicks in after taking a week off from my lifting routine or when I switch the routine altogether. As long as I keep a week between working the muscle group, DOMS isn't a thing.

When I do expect DOMS to kick in, I drop weights to 50% my max sets (usually dropping weight vs reps). This makes me "somewhat sore" the following day but no more than that. I also put an emphasis on sleep, "clean" nutrition and supplement with electrolytes. Works really well for me.

As for low intensity cardio, I feel it's good for me, but I have to say it can be a struggle to keep it low. The feeling of "I want to push harder" can sometimes be overwhelming.

Re: Ask HN: I'm 40 and feel my mental ability declining. Programming seems harder.

#470
I'm 39. I don't feel like my coding ability is declining, but my ability to give a shit when people keep reinventing the wheel and repeating past mistakes is declining extremely quickly.

It's not that I can't code, it's that work is just making me not want to code. I'd rather put time into playing fighting games while my fingers still work, if anything XD

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