I buried a mate last year. He was 61
Fit. Healthy. Never smoked. Never drank to excess or over experimented with exotic drugs.
He spent the last 10 years “playing it safe, staying healthy, gentle excersize, eating right” — no risks, no adventures, no big moves.
One morning he got up, went for a stroll, ate muesli, read the news, and never got up again. The doctor called it a heart attack.
I call it death by safety. That’s when I realised something brutal: Playing it safe after 60 isn’t protecting you — it’s killing you faster. Welcome to “Stay Dangerous” — the second pillar of Mangod.
What “Stay Dangerous” Really Means After 60 doesn’t mean being reckless.
It means refusing to live like a man who’s already halfway to the grave. It means keeping your edge when everyone around you is telling you to slow down.
Here’s what staying dangerous looks like for men our age:
1. Health That Doesn’t Suck
Stop trying to walk 5000 or more steps a day like an old age pensioner and start lifting heavier shit. Start slow. You can still build muscle. Just make sure you are up to it. You know how to stay healthy but do you really still have 2 sugars in your coffee? Your doctor might be your friend. He can give you an overall status of your health so take the advice. But he is paid to sell you drugs like statins and other lifelong medications. My dad died at 82. Good long life. He was on 12 pills a day by then. But his advice to me was, son, they gave me statins and I lost muscle and then my blood sugar went up. So now I was a diabetic so they gave me more pills for that. Then my kydneys got f’ked so they gave me pills for that. Then my red blood cells went haywire so I got pills for that. His belief was the combination of prescrition drugs lead to an overall decline in his health. Your doctors practice is a business. Pills thrills and bellyache. Just research the pills and drug ineractions. I’m not saying don’t take them. I’m saying research the drugs you are prescribed. Know the side effects. Your health is yours. Take control. Not all doctors advice is right. Get a second opinion. Hey, the last Queen of Engalnd was, apparently, a devotee of homeopathic medicine. Learn about that stuff. Your type 2 diabetes can be fixed with Metformin (or similar). I reversed mine by losing 15 kilos with diet and excersize. Perhaps you can too. Its your body. Just be smart. But then again, you could die tomorrow.
The goal isn’t to live longer — it’s to stay strong enough to actually enjoy the years you have left.
2. Money Moves and That Requires Balls
The safest investment is often the slowest death.
If you do not have enough to retire on than start a side hustle. If you are reading this then you have probably been bombarded with get rich quick schemes on Facebook. They don’t work but you have always had this idea. You know it’s brilliant. If you don’t move now, well you know that answer.
Negotiate that deal everyone says is too risky. Just don’t blow all your’e wedge.
If you have money then Invest in something that actually excites you instead of parking everything in a term deposit and watching inflation eat it alive.
Of course, you may be broke. That’s OK, you could always start a page like this one. It doesn’t cost much and you might find that some people might start asking you for help and then you can make some extra money. Just make a start.
3. Adventure & Edge
if you are able:-
Ride the motorbike. Or get one. Just make sure the seat height is under 30 inches.
Surf the bigger wave. But get fitter first.
Book the trip. Book the experience. Its OK to go it alone. Follow my “Stay Relevent” post and you will never be alone.
Ask her out. Scary, just do it.
Say the thing everyone else is too scared to say. Do the stuff they say you can’t do.
4. In Relationships
Stop being the nice, safe, agreeable old guy. I feel sorry for the man that has given up. Perhaps the wife controls the shots. She buys all your clothes. You have no say. Once you were in control.
Be honest. Be direct. Be dangerous in the way you love and lead. The Dangerous Truth, the moment you choose safety as your main priority, your soul starts dying long before your body does. I’ve seen too many men become ghosts while they’re still breathing. Don’t be one of them. Stay in the game. Staying dangerous isn’t about being stupid.
It’s about being fully alive. Your Move This week is to do one thing that scares you a little. Start by lifting a little heavier than last month. Maybe, buy some new togs. (I covered this before and got a lot of flack from a lot of men who are happy for their wife to clothe them. If you’re OK with that, Thats OK)
Make that phone call you’ve been avoiding.
Book the trip you keep putting off.
Tell someone the truth you’ve been swallowing. Then come back here and tell me in the comments: What’s one dangerous thing you’re going to do this week?
Stay Relevant.
Stay Dangerous.
Teach the Boys.
Let’s keep the fire burning.