Lyrically, "Against the Wind" centers on growing older, and finds Seger confronting his memories and yearning for the simplicity of past times. It returns to familiar nostalgic territory for Seger; he characterized "Wind" as the final part in a trilogy of sentimental songs, following "Night Moves" and "Brave Strangers". During an interview, Seger said that "Against the Wind" came about from his days as a high-school cross country runner. He described the song as "about trying to move ahead, keeping your sanity and integrity at the same time." A writer at Billboard described "Against the Wind" as "a mid-tempo folky tale of young love featuring pretty piano backing"; Seger references a "Janey" in the opening lyrics of the song; this refers to Janey Dinsdale, with whom he had a long-term relationship from 1972 until 1983. In Rolling Stone, Seger elaborated on the song's meaning: In the tune, Seger second-guesses his career choice, particularly aspects of touring, which he describes as "moving eight miles a minute for months at a time." He mulls that he may have "lost [his] way," focusing too much attention on "breaking all of the rules that would bend." It famously includes the line "Wish I didn't know now what I didn't know then", which Seger later admitted bothered him for a while in a grammatical sense. The song "ends with a renewed determination to keep going"; as the song begins its outro, Seger concedes he is "older now, but still running against the wind." Its tone has been described as reflective and bittersweet. New York Times columnist Jon Pareles once characterized "Against the Wind" as a song about "crumbling hopes and the recognition of limits," while music critic Maury Dean considered its topic "all the burdens we'll ever have to face." Robert Hilburn, writing for the Los Angeles Times, described the song a "heartfelt expressions of the search for innocence and integrity in a world where both qualities seem in short supply." Though no music video was made for "Against the Wind" at the time of its release, a lyric video commemorating its fortieth anniversary saw release on YouTube in 2020. The clip showcases its songwriting atop "classic Seger imagery — animated horses, motorcycles, and vast American highways." Commercial performance "Against the Wind" was issued as the second single from its titular album in April 1980. Seger had no interest as to which songs were released