Ahead of his 250th game against Hawthorn at Etihad Stadium on Friday night, the Blues superstar revealed he drew inspiration from the efforts of fellow veterans like teammate and Heath Scotland and St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt.
Judd, who will turn 30 in September, said he wasn’t looking beyond his current contract, which will expire at the end of next season, but didn’t discount the idea of playing "well into" his thirties.
"There's certainly a lot of players around the League who are playing really good footy well into their thirties, so you’d be silly to wipe out anything," he said at Visy Park on Thursday.
"You look at Nick Riewoldt, who’s had a tremendous year this year after having a few niggles last year, and plenty of players at our club – Heath Scotland, who won the (best and fairest) last year as a 32-year-old.
"I think age is just one factor. You've got to remain open to the future."
Judd said relinquishing the Carlton captaincy had both mentally refreshed him and been healthy for the playing group.
He said he is also enjoying the game as much as ever, and still regards it as "a special thing" that shouldn’t be taken for granted.
The relief of winning, Judd said, is "hard to replicate elsewhere in your life".
The dual Brownlow medallist insists he doesn’t know how much longer he will play, but said it was "really important not to wish away the present".
And he is hopeful of being around long enough to help the Blues have a tilt at a premiership.
He admitted that in recent times he has wondered whether he would ever be part of a Carlton side that was a serious contender.
"It's something I spent a lot of time thinking about a couple of years ago," he said.
"I almost had a bit of an obsessive nature (about it). But you do your best, you work hard with the group and what will happen will happen. To dwell on it is a bit of a waste of energy.
"When you’re younger, you spend your whole footy life just looking to what's coming next. I've still never sat down to watch any of the grand finals at West Coast. There's no doubt that later on in your career you do spend a bit more time acknowledging events and milestones."
He is "certainly hopeful" of adding another premiership to the one he achieved at West Coast in 2006.
Carlton star Chris Judd celebrates the round four win over West Coast with Blues fans. Picture: AFL Media
Judd cited the Sydney Swans premiership side of 2005 – which beat the Eagles in the Grand Final that Judd won the Norm Smith Medal – as an example of how things can change quickly.
"If you’re not living in hope of having some success, there's not a lot of point in being around the place," he said.
"In 2005 at West Coast, I think we played Sydney in round seven or eight and beat (them) by 10-odd goals. I remember thinking after that game just how much they were struggling.
"That was when (AFL CEO) Andrew Demetriou came out and said they were playing a terrible brand of footy, and the whole footy world really hit them hard. And you fast forward 16 weeks and they've won the flag.
"Things can turn really quickly, but a lot of things need to go right for that to happen.
"Certainly we live in hope that success isn’t too far away, but we acknowledge that there's still a long way to go."
Since he arrived at Carlton, Judd hasn't played in a winning side against Hawthorn. In fact, the Blues haven’t beaten the Hawks since round six, 2005, losing their subsequent nine clashes.
However, Judd said the Blues were now better at playing against counter-attacking teams like Hawthorn, and is confident they can "give it a good shake".
He said their best footy was "as good as anyone" but their lapses ensured they were still adrift of the top teams. But he said "it's not incomprehensible that we can get there pretty quickly".
He said the fact experienced pair Nick Duigan and Jeremy Laidler remained in the VFL was an indication of the club's growing depth and lack of injuries.
