Y’all have heard the popular saying “Black don’t crack.” when it comes to external signs of aging with our people. But are you aware of any commonly held beliefs in the community about aging well from the inside out during retirement? Some of us live day to day, often paycheck to paycheck, fighting age-accompanying illnesses of disabling diseases like diabetes, hypertension, heart trouble, glaucoma, and losses of various types. We push through; we ignore symptoms because nobody has time for that [like going to the doctor to get checked out or dealing with being sick, as if busyness would excuse us from illness]. But even with the necessary means, we fail to create real wealth, leave long-term legacies, or sufficiently invest in ourselves, body, mind, heart and soul, for more time to spend with our loved ones. There may come a time when we either choose to stop hustling or have to stop due to illness if we have not prepared.
Retirement can seem like a far-off fairy tale that we may not get to experience or know of few people who have. But what if you make it to retirement age and your financial planning pays off? Will you be well enough to enjoy it? The best way to plan for a future with a health span the same length as your life span is to keep it moving once you’ve retired.
Many of us want to retire and if we are among those who are blessed financially and physically able to retire after decades of working and planning for it, we have no idea what it could look like for us. Here are ten exciting ways to keep it moving, stay active during retirement, and help you create a positive picture of possibilities for life in your golden years.
Keep your mind active
1. Read
Try to continue to keep your mind active by reading. If reading for the sake of reading is not your thing, then think about joining a group of sisters or brothers for a book club: part reading and part socializing. Find one at your local public library, bookstore, Eventbrite, or even Facebook for a virtual group meeting. If none of these suits your fancy and you’re still not satisfied, go on and start your own.
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2. Learn
Volunteer to help someone else or participate in an activity where you have to learn something new. Think of activities like driving a Meals-on-Wheels route and learning the way to and the ways of those you are delivering to or joining a choir and learning new music. Teach or tutor something you are an expert in. Or learn a new hobby like bridge, get a new spades partner, learn chess, take a cooking class, or learn a new language.
Keep your mind active and moving by learning what’s new in your area of expertise. The local senior center or community center, community college continuing education programs, gym, United Way, or, best of all, word of mouth from your sistas, homeboys, neighbors, or similarly situated and interested former colleagues or faith friends can also help guide you where you want to go.
3. Serve
Ask those you know who are in the know for ideas and opportunities to give back by volunteering, mentoring, or maybe even a part-time gig. Your perspective would be one of coming to “work with ya’, not for ya’” as a key distinction. For pay or pro bono, a part-time paid or strictly volunteer role may be the perfect niche for you to fill on your terms---you can afford to be choosy; the experience you had while working could mean a new chapter for you after you’ve stopped.
Former teachers are in demand to substitute teach. The Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) offers business advice and mentorship to people in small businesses. And the possible opportunities only end with your creativity. Negotiate your time because your experience is the most invaluable asset you bring to the table.
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RELATED: The Basics of Planning for Your Retirement
Keep your body functioning
1. Exercise
Keep it moving and keep it fun: walk, run, swim, hike, do yoga, skate, play basketball, golf, tennis, dance, or partaking in any other sport you enjoy that feels more like fun than duty can keep your body moving and in shape. Keeping it fun will help you stick to it. Just be sure you check with your doctor first.
RELATED: Staying Fit During Retirement: 4 Valuable Tips
2. Check-ups
Be sure to get regular check-ups even if you feel fine. Make an annual physical and yearly vaccinations as routine as celebrating your birthday.
3. Eat well for good health
It’s not about quantity, it’s all about the quality. You may love eating a “meat and three” soul food sampler of all of your family faves with some warm peach cobbler and lemon pound cake on the side and a big glass of icy cold sweet tea to wash it down, but your high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar make you take a step back before your first taste.
Learn to re-make a healthier version of these heart attack classics on the road to obesity or only eat them in moderation or on special occasions. These health concerns affect our community more than others. Try a Meatless Monday or (Baked) Fish on Friday to cut down on highly salted and fried food or red meat. Get a journal and write down or keep notes on your phone of what you eat, when, and why (how you feel). Eat to live, not live to eat.
4. Computer skills
Don’t let the information superhighway leave you behind. Get more computer savvy. Everything requires computer skills in the twenty-first century. From scanning and paying for groceries, to paying bills or using your cell phone to communicate via talk, text, photo, video, recording, or email. It includes making an appointment to see your doctor or renewing your prescriptions. Even finding a book in the library requires basic computer skills.
Embrace this by taking a class, getting a guide, or finding a patient, a knowledgeable mentor who can orient you to what you need to know. Then practice by incorporating the knowledge you have acquired in the above and other practical and creative ways.
5. Travel
Is there one place, foreign or domestic, that you have always wanted to visit? Plan a trip! If you are new to travel, start small and local, then spread your wings and branch out. Go alone or make it a girls’/guys’ trip. Or, if you are less adventurous, take a cruise or join a tour group with the help of a (rare to find these days, but highly recommended to use) travel agent who can get you from door to door and back again, considering every detail and safety precaution.
Be the best you can be for those who matter most to you
1. Keep socially active and engaged
Sometimes you have to be the one to reach out first. Keep a calendar and fill the days with those you would like to check on or plan an outing with (for example, lunch and a movie; aqua-aerobics and a smoothie), those you call or communicate with more frequently, and routine friends and extended family that fall somewhere in between. If your social calendar is more empty calendar space than folks to fill it with, work on getting involved in some of the other mentioned activities and expanding your social circle to include the new people you meet.
2. Reach out, get out, and show out
Now you’re ready! Put all your new and exciting retirement activities on your calendar and add the people you meet to your contact list. You might even feel like in retirement you are busier than you were when you were working.
To head off any feelings of overwhelm, feel free to take it slow and scale it back if it becomes too much. Just do you and be your own best self in this new chapter of your life: your (hard-earned, well-deserved) retirement. Make it what you want it to be, but don’t be afraid to step out of your lane and try something new from time to time.
