lol, at 28 I was still around 70-80k in debt from university.
It took a few years but 5 years later I've paid off my debts and have 40k in savings finally. Still can't really afford a car (IMO, maxing out my TFSA comes first) and still renting as cheaply as possible. Sure I'm behind some, but I know people in their 50s with 0 savings. I figure if I keep working my current job for 3-4 years I'm pretty much set for life (in my region anyway) in terms of savings. Maxed out TFSA plus with the housing prices in the Maritimes I can legit just buy a house cash if I save up a couple of years. After that it's smooth sailing with minimal expenses for the rest of my life. Maybe not a life of luxury but I don't want that anyway.
Point is, it takes some time to get started but once you start accumulating money it grows pretty fast. I found paying off debt exponentially more difficult and stressful. At 25 I thought I would be in debt the rest of my life and never own a thing. Just a few years later I realize how easy it is to get ahead by being frugal and putting away money instead of spending it. I'm looking to FIRE between 45-50 at max. Honestly I'm so frugal I could probably RE at 40 but I'm not in that big of a rush.