Did retirement improve your health?

8 years and counting!

Weight up a bit but sleeping a lot better/later

Most importantly, stopped being an a-hole executive type and started being who I really am...a pretty nice person (or so I"m told!).

As another posted, ER IS a healthy place to be.
 
RunningBum said:
I agree. I consider exercise expenses more of a necessity than a luxury.
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I consider my membership to the rec center where I use the pool 5-6 days a week some of the best money I spend each month. I don't worry about categorizing it, just try to get my money's worth by using it.

In my 2+ years of retirement I've only had one cold and while working probably had 2-3 per year. I attribute it to less stress and lots less exposure to others who may be sick.
 
Yes, my health improved after ER. Weight came down, blood pressure is now in the normal range, blood test numbers all improved. I changed my diet at about the same time I ER'd, and that helped a lot also. I exercise much more now too (walk twice a day with the dog, plus other stuff). Stress has come down too, partly because I now do everything at my own pace, instead of rushing around like a maniac to get things done each week. There is no doubt that ER has been good for my health.
 
exercising at home

Amethyst, we joined a gym for a while until we narrowed down what we would really use. Then we bought a treadmill for home. About $800--we used it for about 21K miles before we wore it out. :dance: No question--we immediately bought another one. I won't say I adore it, but we would no more do without it than without a refrigerator. (At least it counteracts some of the stress eating at work!) I've gotten on it at 1 am, DH most mornings at 5, times when no gym is open. Good luck!
 
palomalou said:
Amethyst, we joined a gym for a while until we narrowed down what we would really use. Then we bought a treadmill for home. About $800--we used it for about 21K miles before we wore it out. :dance: No question--we immediately bought another one. I won't say I adore it, but we would no more do without it than without a refrigerator. (At least it counteracts some of the stress eating at work!) I've gotten on it at 1 am, DH most mornings at 5, times when no gym is open. Good luck!
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Let me be sure I understand you correctly.You and your wife put 21,000 miles on your treadmill. So if it is all running/jogging, at a pretty good clip of 8mph, you two together spent 2625 man hours on this machine? You should be honored at some special fitness congress in the White House, and your story put on All Bran packages.

How long did this take, as in months or years?

Much congratulations on your discipline and resolve!

Ha
 
I am retired over 5 years and my health certainly improved. Lost 20 lbs, strenuous workouts almost every day, BP now 115/75, cholestrol and all other blood tests are great. Retirement can certainly be good for your health.
 
how long it took...

About 15 years---some time off for surgery, but yes. But perhaps it's even more, because I just divided it out for two people, 300 days/year and only came up with 2.3 miles/day. That makes sense because I usually do 3.5, and spouse more like 4.5. He runs 6.5 mph, I just walk up slopes at 3.3. (I'm also a couple of years older ;) In any case, well worth the $$. I may not look like my dreams, but when I multiply out the calories (app. 200x300 days/yearx15 years) out by that amount of time...imagine if I HADN'T burned them!
 
palomalou said:
About 15 years---some time off for surgery, but yes. But perhaps it's even more, because I just divided it out for two people, 300 days/year and only came up with 2.3 miles/day. That makes sense because I usually do 3.5, and spouse more like 4.5. He runs 6.5 mph, I just walk up slopes at 3.3. (I'm also a couple of years older ;) In any case, well worth the $$. I may not look like my dreams, but when I multiply out the calories (app. 200x300 days/yearx15 years) out by that amount of time...imagine if I HADN'T burned them!
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Also, not only the weight not gained, but huge metabolic benefits to your health quite apart from the weight issue.

Most of all what impresses me is the tenacity displayed by both of you.

Did you machine require much maintenance over this time? What make and size is it? It must be a gym quality machine.

Ha
 
haha said:
Did you machine require much maintenance over this time? What make and size is it? It must be a gym quality machine.
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Good question, and one that someone seriously considering beginning a long term exercise program should contemplate.

We have a Precor elliptical that gets a lot of use, and has, thus far, required zero maintenance; the "your name here" model we owned prior to that was almost constantly waiting for the repairman's arrival.

Some years back, after buckling the wheel, (too much pressure applied), of an exercise bike someone had given me, I went to a large sports outlet for a replacement.......the salesman asked how often would I use it, to which I replied "every day"....he directed me to a solidly built, no frills, Schwinn, saying that "Most of this stuff is built for people who don't exercise, and you'll break the other bikes in no time at all".......true dat.
 
Nemo2 said:
Good question, and one that someone seriously considering beginning a long term exercise program should contemplate.

We have a Precor elliptical that gets a lot of use, and has, thus far, required zero maintenance; the "your name here" model we owned prior to that was almost constantly waiting for the repairman's arrival.

Some years back, after buckling the wheel, (too much pressure applied), of an exercise bike someone had given me, I went to a large sports outlet for a replacement.......the salesman asked how often would I use it, to which I replied "every day"....he directed me to a solidly built, no frills, Schwinn, saying that "Most of this stuff is built for people who don't exercise, and you'll break the other bikes in no time at all".......true dat.
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Absolutely. To me comfort and durability are high on the list when you go to buy an exercise machine. That is why when I bought a rower I went for the Concept2, instead of any of the other brands. In 820 km over 7 months, all I have to do is clean the slide with a Simple Green spray every few sessions, and oil the chain q 6 months. I don't use it everyday, because I also like to do outdoor walking, and on a day that I walk more or less continuously for 5+ miles, I usually do not row. On of my sons bought a cheaper machine, and although it hasn't broken, it is so uncomfortable and noisey that they do not use it much.

Your Precor sounds very good.

Ha
 
Our first treadmill was just a ProForm from Sears, higher-end of the line but by no means. We bought a service contract with it which meant they came out annually, lubricated the belt, and I think we went through three motors during those 15 years. It finally reached the point that we dropped the service contract and decided when it next needed something big, we'd just replace it. So we did.
 
It seems to me that the flip side of the original topic (which is a good one) could be "did having to work deteriorate your health?". It also seems to me that the usual answer is "yes" (my answer too!). The key phrase, though, may be "having to work", as lots of people are working as they want after ER, and how/when they want.
 
Chuckanut said:
...Has anybody else have health benefits that have been documented by medical tests?
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Here's my list...none documented

- Doctor saw me (by chance) several months after FIRE and asked me if I had "w*rk done" (plastic surgery) to my face without telling him. I had not yet told him that I voluntarily resigned :LOL:. His opinion was that I looked 10 years younger.
- Upper body RSI issues very managable instead of chronic pain, no need for deep tissue massage, chiropractor, and periodic PT
- No longer need Prilosec unless eating spicy food, used to take it daily
- Weight has been relatively stable, but I am now in better physical shape than when trapped behind a computer all day
- Mental outlook so much better, i.e no more dreading the next day
- Eating habits somewhat improved but not perfect :blush: and never will be ;)
- Skin tone all over is much improved
 
Although retirement is still in the future, I'm on a 5 month sabbatical from my academic job--kind of like a "practice run." The key element for me is time. I've dropped 10 lbs due to having the leisure to exercise daily, plan meals, shop, and prepare meals. The downside (I guess) is realizing how much time all these things really do take to do them well.
 
Yes, we had the same experience. I had high blood pressure, gastric reflux, benign prostate hypertrophy, and high cholesterol. I also have chronic arthritis and had cataracts but these were surgically corrected here along with a detached retina. The cataracts were caused by my being put on extremely high doses of Liptor which never fixed my cholesterol problem. Actually I had normal total cholesterol but my HDL was nearl y zer so all of it was LDL. I also had a horribly high stress job wotrking with biological warfare agents at high levels as aerosols in a containment laboratory wearing a space suit with power respirators. That rig weighs something like 30 pounds and the fan unti sits just on your lower back. It was also a high noise area and you can't sit in the suit for long and have no back support as it blocks the fan unit. Then lifting 50-75 pound anesthetized monkeys to do surgery. On top of that was managing a large research group of civilian PhD scientists in a hostile command climate. Then having a retarded colonel martinet try and tell me and my group our jobs when he has no experience. Anyway, I retired away from that to a relatively peaceful environment here in Hungary. Subsequently all of my health issues disappeared except for the BPH and arthritis. The BPH is a lot less though so I believe I can avoid surgery indefinitely. However, I can fully say that it was the job that was killing me as I still fly back to the US to work for a week or so and by the end of the week my blood pressure is back up. Here I exercise daily and we eat wholesome foods. Nothing here has preservatives or additives and nearly all foods in Hungary are organically grown. Plus we drink only mineral water (bottled or free from our local mineral water springs, it is even carbonated), and wine which is locally grown and excellent. We have moved away from eating meat and only have pork or sausages once a week. Otherwise it is chicken or turkey. The chicken here has almost no fat but very tasty. There is also a breed of pig here without cholesterol although it is expensive. Then there is a lot of wild boar which is also not very fatty but tastes well. We do eat fish about 4 times a week for dinner and have cold smoked salmon for breakfast which we prepare ourselves. The Norwegian salmon is excellent and about $6 a pound so we buy whole fish and cut up steaks, make fish soup from the remainders and cold smoke about 3 pounds at a time for snacks. Then all the fruits here are locally grown thus are seasonal unlike the US. But, we do get things like oranges and bananas which are imported either from Cypress, Greece, or Israel. BUt, I swim daily (we have a swimming pool or we can swim in Lake Balaton 5 minutes away walking), I go mountain biking or hiking every day in our huge national park bordering our village, snowboard in the Winter (the Alps are 2 hours away), or I cross country ski in the same nearby forest. I am buying a catamaran for sailing on the lake next week which is another energetic sport. So, at least for our health retiring to Hungary was the best thing we could do. I also spend about 2-4 hours a day gardening and we grow a lot of our own vegetables. Neighbors also grow wine and fruit so we get a good supply of healthy stuff from friends. I also get salami but while that is tasty it isn't all that healthy. Mostly we avoid Hungarian cooking which is awfully fatty (a large amount of deep fried stuff). The Hungarian diet is pretty awful for one's health and may explain why men only live to 56. But, they drink a lot of Palinka (most home brewed) as well which is really nasty stuff. I avoid it like the plague. Also, we have no window screens nor air conditioning which is typical in Europe. We have very clean air and a constant breeze from the North. Really, if you avoid Hungarian cooking and Palinka, it is perhaps the healthiest place on Earth.
 
Wow! Thanks for sharing this! Just reading it I think lowered my BP a bit! It sounds like you figured out the changes that were needed and went after them in a big way. VERY inspiring!
 
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