Within 2 years of my ER, I lost those extra 30 pounds and was able to toss away my blood pressure meds for good ! Stress takes a number of good years away for sure.
Good for you. No. Make that, great for you. A person's health is of utmost importance. Losing weight after retirement seems to be a common theme.
I'm 56 and still working. I'll retire sometime between tomorrow and 3 years from now when I reach my DB pension's full retirement age. A year ago I made a casual list of planned retirement activities. It wasn't a bucket list so much as a mechanism to engage my mind in a retirement lifestyle (e.g., Ernie Zelinski Get-a-Life Tree). On my list was "Lose 30 Pounds." I had been 30 pounds overweight for the past 10 years, shortly after beginning a new and more stressful position at my workplace.
Immediately after making the list, however, I was motivated to up front my retirement plans and prematurely lose the weight. I lost 50 pounds during the past year - most of it during the first 3-4 months. After losing the first 30 pounds, I decided to keep going and "touch" my college weight.
I've always been very physically active/fit and metrics like BP were never a problem (although my BP did drop by 10% following the weight loss). However, my total cholesterol had been inching up to the upper end of normal for the past 10 years (HDL and LDL also becoming borderline). In fact, cholesterol was slightly above normal 1.5 years ago. It was cut nearly in half following the weight loss and associated diet change. My triglycerides dropped even more.
Although work is extraordinarily stressful, I've never let it significantly interfere with my overall health or lifestyle enjoyment. I'm in control of my life. However, it is acknowledged that some people experience exceptional improvements once the job is no more. If retirement is what it takes, go for it.
Ironically, I have some concerns about maintaining my fitness and health
after I retire. There is a synergy between exercise and work. I commute to work by bicycle and go running everyday at lunch (except Thursday's, when it is a long walk). Exercise is imbedded in the daily work routine and also serves as a stress reduction mechanism. I don't believe a drop in fitness will be a problem after retirement but the possibility still causes me to pause and go hmmm.