Flatbed work, for sure, places a much greater level of physical requirement on a person. I know for a fact that it is hard to predict how long someone is going to remain physically fit, regardless of their occupation.
Case in point, I'm 42 and have spent most of my working life in an occupation that did not require any heavy lifting or even light manual labor. I get rear ended a few weeks ago in my POV and get the classic whiplash injury, so part of the deal is that I get a head and neck MRI. The MRI shows evidence of disk degeneration in a couple of my cervical vertebrae. A slight herniation and the pain can be blamed on the accident, but the degeneration is the result of just getting old. Disk Degeneration Disease sounds terrible, so I ask my internist buddy if this means that I've got something really abnormal going on and he just laughs and said that he was younger than me when his lumbar vertebrae went to pot. I remember him wearing a brace for about a year when he was in his thirties. And he is a guy who is in good shape, excercises, but has never had an occupation or hobby that has caused him to tear up his back. I guess that all people experience back deterioration as they age and an xray or MRI will show up with something.
I assume that a flatbedder should learn the tricks to work smarter, not harder and that avoiding accidents and falls is the key. I don't see how it can be predicted how long someone could work an occupation as long as they meet the physical standards going into the job. I realize, there are some people that you can just tell that they aren't going to cut it, but that is sort of a different topic....
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