Treat Retirement Like a Job: Exercise Every Day!

 

In preparation for retiring, I read a lot of books and articles. I know people most prepare by making sure they have enough money. However, I wanted to make sure my brain would stay healthy. There are quite a few studies that say retirement can be bad for your brain health!

I drilled down a bit to understand why this might true, and the problem is that once people are retired, they may lack motivation to challenge themselves, continue to learn and grow, or push themselves out of their comfort zone.  All of these things are good for our brain and not doing them can lead to mental health issues.

I also read over and over again, that one primary key to health, both physical and mental health, is to exercise!  In the TED talk I included in this blog post Wendy Suzuki talks about how exercise actually helps our brain grow!

I treat my own retirement like a "job" where my product is "me." Unlike a traditional job, where our measure of success is mostly about money, in retirement, my measure of success is health and happiness. I've been very aware of what keeps me healthy and happy and (good employee that I am) I'm dedicated to putting practices in place to optimize that, even when especially when it pushes me out of my comfort zone.

In retirement, I consider getting exercise every day a big part of my "job."  For "Type A" people like me, this means I'm going to do it, even if I don't feel like it.  I consider it a responsibility to myself and to my "customers" (these would be all the people I interact with).  When I'm happy and healthy, I know I'll be a better person and have better relationships.

I, of course, find exercises that I enjoy, like dancing and hiking, and then I find ways to do them with other people who enjoy them (even during Covid, there were creative ways we could virtually join others.) (BTW, socialization is another thing that's important for brain health!)

The great thing about not having to work at a traditional job is that now I have more time and freedom to set my own schedule! Even though I don't always feel like exercising, I know how important it is to health and happiness, and that even pushing myself to do something that's uncomfortable will keep that brain strong!

So, as the Nike slogan goes, Just Do It!

What's your favorite kind of exercise? How do you make it fun?