My situation is probably different from most people who began making real money fresh out of college: I was in academia until the age of 35, making peanuts and paying off exorbitant student loans incurred as an undergraduate.

As someone who was not free of student loans until 2008, I have really only been in the position to put (max) money into 401(k) plans for 13 years. I was able to max-out for 4 years (2006-2010) but had to liquidate (with penalties) for unexpected expenses.

Several of those 13 years were spent working for myself or at short-term engagements with start-ups where a 401(k) was not on the table.

Presently, my maximum contribution is $26,000/year (I get to "catch up" because I am over 50). That represents a very large percentage of my take-home, so I forego it except for the match part.

As for what items/activities would take the hit, the first one is the personal training and coaching. The second one is home repairs on a 100+ year-old house, and that's not optional. The unexpected roof replacement was $16,000. The new HVAC will be $10,000. The "little things" that are a few hundred to a thousand dollars do add up. And so on. We could finance those or pay them off, and we choose the latter. Cars don't matter: 10+ year-old Hondas that never break down and are paid for.

Yes, more money tucked away for later in life would make things easier: no argument. That said, we both plan on continuing to work - if you asked me what I'd do all day if I suddenly got rich, I'd say "ride my bike more" - and so we gamble in the sense of optimizing physical fitness at the expense of future income.