3434: [Part 1] How to Build a Wellness Investment Plan by Kathy Robinson of Athena Wellness on Lifestyle Planning

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[00:00:30] This is Optimal Health Daily. How to Build a Wellness Investment Plan. Part 1 by Kathy Robinson of AthenaWellness.com. And I'm your host and personal narrator, Dr. Neal Malik. Hey there, happy middle of the week Wednesday and welcome to another edition of Optimal Health Daily where I read some of the best blogs covering health and fitness kind of like an audiobook and always with a bit of my commentary at the end.

[00:00:55] Now, something I always do, on Wednesdays I like to share a little bit of inspiration with you. So with that, since today is Wednesday, here we go. Quote, Life doesn't get better by chance. It gets better by change. Anonymous. Alright, before we get to it, today's post is a bit longer than what I typically narrate. So whenever that happens, I'll read the first half today and then finish it up for you tomorrow.

[00:01:23] Alright, now with that, let's get right to part 1 as we optimize your life. How to Build a Wellness Investment Plan. Part 1 by Kathy Robinson of AthenaWellness.com. For 59 years, I didn't think about aging. But lately, it's been on my mind a lot. The reason why I've been thinking about aging?

[00:01:49] I don't feel like the 60-year-old that I am. And that got me curious. We can't stop the aging process, but we can age well and actively. So today, we'll take a look at what it means to live vibrantly in our 50s, 60s, and beyond, how we can change the aging paradigm, and specific wellness investments you can make to continue to live with vitality. Aging has long been associated with decline and dependency.

[00:02:16] That's because the conventional models we have are based on inactive, sedentary lifestyles that lead to frailness and diminishing capacities. But it doesn't have to be that way. Case in point, my father died last year, a few months short of his 102nd birthday. Now, you may have an image in your head of what this elderly man might look like, but he was often mistaken for a man in his 80s, even after he turned 100.

[00:02:44] He was a rock star at his retirement home, where he stayed active and engaged until his passing. When I share this story, people tell me I must have good genes. But my father's mother died from a brain aneurysm in her 40s, and his father died of heart disease in his early 50s. My dad outlived his parents by more than 50 years. It set him apart from his peers. His community was filled with people, some two or three decades younger, who relied on walkers and wheelchairs to get around,

[00:03:14] while he was striding ahead to hold the door for them. How did he do it? His lifestyle choices. My father was a man of moderation, and those choices have shaped my own wellness practices and the work I do today. So just like my dad, we can live longer, stay engaged, and contribute for many years to come. But how do we invest in our well-being for the long term? First, let's take a look at what it means to live vibrantly in midlife and beyond.

[00:03:45] I have to state for the record that it took me a while to follow in his footsteps. I started my career on Wall Street, and let's just say I followed the mantra at the time of, work hard, play hard. It lasted until that lifestyle began taking a toll when I was in my mid-30s. I was sitting behind a desk, gaining weight, and becoming unhealthier by the day. That's when I made the decision to change my lifestyle habits. Fast forward a few decades to earlier this year.

[00:04:13] I'm about to take a big hiking trip in the Canadian Rockies and thought it would be a good idea to get a checkup before I went, because I was going to be in a place so remote that if anything happened, I'd need to get medevaced out. I made an appointment with a new physician who was recommended by a friend. Once I filled out the paperwork, the barrage of tests began. All the necessary samples collected along with a bone density test and an EKG. The doctor, who I had never met before,

[00:04:43] walked in and summed up his medical opinion with four words. You're bad for business. What he meant was, there are no drugs to prescribe and no further tests to schedule. I share that story to let you know that even if you've played hard as I have in the past, the investments you make in your wellness do pay off. So there's no shaming here. Meet yourself where you are and celebrate any investment you make. There's no one right way to do this,

[00:05:12] only the right way for you. So, how do you want to live? My guess is that you'd like to age actively instead of sedentarily, and there's a simple process to work toward that wellness intention. Identify your options to create a strategic portfolio approach to your wellness. Select the specific lifestyle actions you can take to increase your vitality. Build in a periodic review so you can assess the effectiveness of your investment.

[00:05:41] And, make adjustments to increase your enjoyment. Because if it's not fun, chances are it won't be sustainable. To build your personalized wellness investment portfolio, start with your wellness investment options. Here are four categories to consider, and specific areas you can incorporate into your wellness portfolio. One, physical.

[00:06:05] This includes nutrition, movement, mobility, balance, flexibility, strength, endurance, breath capacity, and sleep. What's the most pressing area that you can give some love? Two, mental. This includes cognitive function, stress management, financial well-being, life engagement opportunities for growth, and your overall mood. How can you keep yourself functioning, exploring, and optimistic?

[00:06:35] Three, social. This includes family, friends, and colleagues, emotional well-being, purpose, and community. What role would you like to play in your social structure that would bring value? And four, spiritual. This includes connection to something greater than yourself, such as faith, flow, creativity, possibility, and our natural world. How can you reinforce your inner peace and connection to the greater universe?

[00:07:05] That may seem like an overwhelming menu of options and a lot to incorporate into your already busy days. But here's a pro tip. You can cover the areas that are most important to you by focusing on a few activities. Let me give you an example. Hear that on tomorrow's episode. You just listened to part one of the post titled, How to Build a Wellness Investment Plan, by Kathy Robinson of AthenaWellness.com,

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[00:09:30] Just go to Indeed.com slash podcast right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.com slash podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire? This is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs. Dr. Neal Malik here with my commentary. I want to repeat a key question that today's author, Kathy Robinson, asked us in today's article.

[00:09:57] Kathy asked us to think about how we'd prefer to age. Do we want to age actively or do we want to age sedentarily? Sometimes we're so trapped in the present and overwhelmed by what we have to deal with day to day that we don't take a moment to really think about the future. We may tell ourselves things like, if I can just make it until my next paycheck, then I'll start eating nutritiously again. Or, this is my busiest time of year. I just need to get through this.

[00:10:26] Then I'll get back to having a regular exercise program. But as we know, those days never come. It's always busy. There will always be a reason we can't get started on our health habits right away. So here's what we need to do. Stop for a moment. For just two minutes, if it's safe to do so, close your eyes and imagine what you look like when you're in your 70s, 80s, and beyond. What are you doing? How do you spend your time? Are you happy? What's making you happy?

[00:10:55] As today's author, Kathy, said, you're probably not imagining yourself sickly and lying in bed. You're probably imagining a version of you that's active, happy, and maybe enjoying retirement. So now the question is, what can you do today that's going to help you get to that happy and healthy future you? I bet you know the answer. Now you just need to start. But how? How are you going to start?

[00:11:24] Well, you'll have to hear that on tomorrow's episode. So that'll do it for today. Thank you so much for listening. And of course, we'll finish up the rest of this post tomorrow. So I'll see you there where your optimal life awaits.