This is one thing continually overlooked when people bring up trade careers.

I agree, it's solid (and for me) fun & gratifying work. I really enjoyed my time in the field and wouldn't trade it for anything.

If it's a skilled trade you can make more money than a lot of recent college graduates as well.

But to your point, it WILL absolutely chew your body up over time and construction sites are an exceptionally dangerous work environment. You can do everything right and some asshole not paying attention can cause life changing injuries to occur.

My advice for anyone looking at going into the trades is to get a few years under your belt, get some certifications and then find your way into an office management position.