Exercise and Health

[doneat54]

2 months into ER I am realizing that I am exercising more than I was when I was w*rking. Although I was playing racquetball twice a week before, my new regimen now includes taking our two dogs for 1-2 mile woods trails walks every weekday after lunch (at least). At least 2 days a week I challenge myself to "power walk" and use an app that tracks my distance and time and I try to keep over a 3mph pace on the wooded trails with some modest inclines. I also find that I am on my feet doing stuff more as opposed to my old j*b that had me sitting most of the day. No real surprise had I thought about it, but a good bonus methinks. I have not been denying myself much in the way of food and drink either, and I may have lost a pound or two already. Have others found themselves to be more active/exercising post ER?

 

[Walt34]

Have others found themselves to be more active/exercising post ER?

Absolutely. Exercise takes a big chunk of the time left over after you subtract out the necessities of sleep, cooking, eating, cleaning, working, maintenance, etc.

Having that chunk of 9+ hours freed up by retirement means it's a lot easier to find time for exercise.

 

[growing_older]

I had some time off (actually recovering from a health problem, instead of a retirement) and the extra time was immensely conducive to better exercise and fitness. I'm back at work, but missing my fitness regimen is another reason to push for FIRE.

 

[Ronstar]

I started retirement somewhat sedentary about 3 years ago. Started biking and hiking almost daily in April 2014 and ran through 2016. Now walking/hiking daily, lifting weights and biking. Retirement has provided the extra time to exercise more.

Down about 30 lbs since I retired. Have more time to eat healthier now. And I'm drinking 75 % less beer than I used to.

 

[RAE]

Having more time to devote to exercise/fitness is definitely one of the biggest benefits of my retirement. I tried to stay reasonably active before retirement, but it was a real struggle to do much during the week, after working and taking care of daily chores. Since retirement, I have time to walk the dog 2-3 times daily, plus kayak, garden, and a whole bunch of other things that keep me moving. The research showing how health deteriorates when you sit too much is really eye-opening, and provides enough incentive for me to keep moving as much as I can every day. Of course it helps a lot if you can find active things to do that you enjoy, and that hasn't been a problem for me.

 

[RunningBum]

I am definitely enjoying having more time to be active in retirement. I've finished 2 100 mile running races, something I don't think I would've had the time to train for while working.

 

[savory]

I was always active but the extra time has allowed me to do more. My one week bike touring trips have gone to 2 months. I took up ice hockey again. And some other great changes.

 

[street]

I have always been very active but never have been on any fitness program or such. I have been retired for 10 months and walk and hike everyday. I have a small ranch that I work on maintenance projects and keeps me moving. The funny thing is I get more walking and outside working in then I ever had but I added about 8 pounds since retiring. I eat health but the problem is I eat more and eat 3 meals a day that I didn't do while I was working. I need to lose the pounds but do you think some of the weight could be muscle from the hard work I do which I didn't before.

 

[RetiredGypsy]

I cant exercise with near the intensity that I used to, but just about every weekday I block out the same hour a day to work through some kind of workout. The weights have given way to exercise bands, and running has been replaced with a recumbent bike. I love exercise. I used to get up at 0430 and go to the gym or run when I worked 16 hours a day. I used to be first at the gym on the weekends.

Now I workout at home, but it's still a priority. I saw once a motivational poster that 1 hour a day was 4% of your time. Workout 5 hours a week, and that's 3% of your life dedicated to making 100% of it better. I can't think of a better ROI.

 

[Fedup]

I think I let a pretty sedentary life just a few years before I retired, on top of lack of sleep, I thought when I finally get to see my doctor he would tell me something is wrong. But after 4 months in Europe, walking 4-5 miles everyday, I came back with 10 lbs off. Had my annual check up and so far so good. No prediabetes, no high cholesterol, no high blood pressure. I now make a point to at least do more exercise everyday, it doesn't have to be strenuous either. Just enjoy life but get out more.
I think I might get a ping pong table to put in my garage so we can get some activities indoor in case it rains. It has been raining here a lot.

 

[donheff]

I retired 12 years ago. I had gone to the gym regularly for decades for weights but not much else. I was in decent shape but had slowly gained a pound a year for 30+ years. Soon after ER DW and I took up cycling and have made it a routine part of our life for a decade. Four years ago I got serious about the extra weight and knocked off 35 pounds which I have learned to maintain. Never stopped the weights. The only thing I really want to add is more walking but I have a hard time working up the interest. All this activity makes a big difference but the joints still ache a bit more with every year.

 

[Dawg52]

I certainly exercise more in retirement. Take the dog on walks twice a day, play golf 3-4 times a week and ride my bike everyday when at my coastal condo. I still have my couch potato days however. Which leads me to a question.......

On dreary rainy cold days when at my home in MS, I get very little exercise. I'm thinking about buying an indoor spin bike. As mentioned above, I really enjoy biking on the coast. The state park has a great nature biking trail that makes biking fun. At my home, there are not any designated biking trails other than hilly mountain bike riding. Not interested in riding on busy streets. I think I would really enjoy one as I can watch scenic biking videos while exercising. I have an old stationary bike handed down from my parents, but I want something that simulates a real bike ride. Here is the $64k question......any recommendations in the sub $500 range? Not wanting to spend $2k on a Peloton. I would consider more than $500 if worth it.

 

[misshathaway]

I've been retired 18 months. I always had a morning routine that included swimming, but added a noontime hour walk. Also while in the house, I do chores and errands in the morning, so it's not completely sedentary. I sleep 7 or 8 hours every night.

Today I was opening the medicine cabinet to get a bandaid, noticed all of the various OTC remedies in it, and realized that I haven't needed any of them for months. Being free of traffic stress, irregular hours and sitting at a desk 8 hours a day has been a huge health bonus.

 

[mystang52]

I was active pre-retirement. I was a telecommuter in my penultimate j*b, so I had no problems maintaining my regimen. But in the 2 1/2 years at my last j*b, I was a commuter into NYC. That severely limited my M-F running opportunities.
I couldn't wait to ER for many reasons, one of them being I could run more frequently. So, since my ER I definitely got more active, and not just running.

 

[Chuckanut]

+1

Same here. Retiring = more exercise, better food, less stress. I'm down about 20 pounds and have kept it off for years.

 

[MRG]

Definitely more exercise and less of us(110 pounds less). We've both cut down on meds and several conditions went away!

I really appreciate the board and threads like this. Honestly when we started I didn't have a clue about what we should do for exercise. I have learned a tremendous amount from the group.

 

[6miths]

I would like to say that I am exercising more but the truth is that it is hard to compensate for all of the walking and standing I did at w@rk. I did start to bike more frequently and making a point to get out and walk but I have to admit that I was lucky to have had a j@b that had a high degree of activity involved. Playing more tennis and still playing hockey so not doing too badly. Weight pretty stable and normal BMI forever. Goal is to get a bit more muscle mass to combat the coming losses.

 

[Danmar]

Much more fit since ER. Workout virtually every day, strenuously. Spinning bike, elliptical, long bike rides, etc. Trainer twice a week for weights. Lost 20 lbs. Took up downhill skiing and biking. ER should be very good for your health if you do it right.

 

[Richard4444]

+1

Retiring = more exercise, better food, less stress. I'm down about 20 pounds and have kept it off for years.

+2 / Down 30 pounds and tossed out Blood Pressure meds.


Rich

 

[doneat54]

I certainly exercise more in retirement. Take the dog on walks twice a day, play golf 3-4 times a week and ride my bike everyday when at my coastal condo. I still have my couch potato days however. Which leads me to a question.......

On dreary rainy cold days when at my home in MS, I get very little exercise. I'm thinking about buying an indoor spin bike. As mentioned above, I really enjoy biking on the coast. The state park has a great nature biking trail that makes biking fun. At my home, there are not any designated biking trails other than hilly mountain bike riding. Not interested in riding on busy streets. I think I would really enjoy one as I can watch scenic biking videos while exercising. I have an old stationary bike handed down from my parents, but I want something that simulates a real bike ride. Here is the $64k question......any recommendations in the sub $500 range? Not wanting to spend $2k on a Peloton. I would consider more than $500 if worth it.

I would surely surf Craigslist. Exercise equipment is one of those things that goes for cheap because lots of people buy them and then don't use them.

 

[donheff]

I

On dreary rainy cold days when at my home in MS, I get very little exercise. I'm thinking about buying an indoor spin bike. As mentioned above, I really enjoy biking on the coast. The state park has a great nature biking trail that makes biking fun. At my home, there are not any designated biking trails other than hilly mountain bike riding. Not interested in riding on busy streets. I think I would really enjoy one as I can watch scenic biking videos while exercising. I have an old stationary bike handed down from my parents, but I want something that simulates a real bike ride. Here is the $64k question......any recommendations in the sub $500 range? Not wanting to spend $2k on a Peloton. I would consider more than $500 if worth it.

Do you have a decent bike? You can get a trainer that you put your bike on and a TV to watch. A good trainer works fine.

 

[Rambler]

I've been retired 4 years. I started running 5 years before retirement, at age 46. Retired st 51. Did not lose any weight when I started running. The last two years before retirement, I pounded out a little less than 900 miles per year. When I retired, I started out strong but ended up with a knee injury that dropped my annual mileage to about 500 that year. The next two years I was busy with construction and projects around the house and only got 650 or so miles per year. Last year, I got serious, finally, and clocked 1250 or so miles, ate better, and lost about 45 pounds, but I ended up with an ankle injury. This year, I'm struggling back from that and deliberately cut the mileage back about 20% and have been using the weights a bit more often. I'd like to shed another 10-15 pounds, but it has become pretty hard to drop any more. Besides that, if Bob Harper is going to have a heart attack and nearly die after all that work to remain healthy, maybe it isn't really worth it to avoid a cookie or two, or a piece of pie once a week.

 

[Dd852]

This has been one of the great pluses of ER. We run 9+ km a day, six days a week - I've lost weight yet eat as much as I like, all blood chemistry looking good and no more nagging from the doctor about starting statins. We run slowly (about 9 km an hour) and that's kept injuries down though my shin has been hurting for about a week. I've slowed the pace down even more which seems to help. But stress down, weight down, fun up. Work really got in the way of life!

 

[hesperus]

As a former athlete (high school & college skiing) it feels as if I have ALWAYS been training/exercising. But before retirement I was much more disciplined about it. Time constraints will do that, forcing me to focus and intensify my exercise regiment. But the open ended days of retirement can create an environment where I sometimes put things off. I still exercise regularly, but I'm just not as obsessed about it as when I was working or in school. But the stress is much less, and that is always a good thing

 

[Dawg52]

Do you have a decent bike? You can get a trainer that you put your bike on and a TV to watch. A good trainer works fine.

I do, but I leave it at my condo on the coast. Don't really care to haul it back and forth. Good idea tho.