As time goes on, you may start to wonder about life after retirement. You dream of the days you no longer slog into the office to work from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. You count down the days until your farewell party and prepare to share the picture of your final time clocking out. However, you may also have some concerns that creep up. 

While many have financial concerns and want to ensure their social security benefits, the biggest concern with aging for most is the fear of not being able to do the things they used to do when they were younger. There are solutions though, that can keep you active and ready for your retirement years in the US. Here is what we at Peerfit Move suggest. 

Set Goals and Actively Work on Them

The first and best place to start with any plan is the drawing board. What are your hopes for this new time? What are the concerns that you have? What have you always wanted to do but never felt like you had the time to do it? Jot down all of those ideas and start creating plans and goals that you would like to achieve. 

However, you don’t want to just set any goal, because some may be unattainable or unrealistic. Unfortunately, not everyone is going to be able to cross going to the moon off their bucket list. 

The types of goals that you should be setting are SMART goals. SMART stands for

• S - Specific
• M - Measurable 
• A - Attainable
• R - Realistic
• T - Time-Bound

A goal such as “I want to go to space” is not considered SMART because it can be very broad. What part of space do you want to visit? How are you going to get to space? How long is it going to take you to get there? When creating goals for retirement, you want to make sure it is manageable and something you could potentially do. 

Maintain Your Social Circle

Scrolling through Facebook to see what your old high school classmates are up to or staying connected with your online game-night buddies is not maintaining a social circle. If you went out with friends for dinner and drinks a couple of nights a month, continue to do that. Establish a routine with your friends or find a new hobby for you all to explore. Don’t fret about falling into senior citizen stereotypes.

Humans are naturally social creatures and that innate need should be maintained. Peerfit Move can assist you with our resources around social health. Working out with friends and like minded people can grow your circle and build your own support system. Social health is hard to navigate on your own sometimes, so Peerfit Move is a great resource to utilize.

Look Over All Aspects of Your Health

Remember, being healthy is not just having an absence of disease. Health encompasses physical, mental, and social wellness. While physical activity is crucial to maintaining your overall physical health, you don't want to neglect your mental and social wellness. 

The Center for Disease Control estimates that 20% of people 55 or older have some form of mental illness. Mental health conditions that impact people more as they age include anxiety and depression. Create a health plan that will tackle all aspects of your health.

If you want to feel healthier, create an exercise plan. If you’ve always been curious about traveling the world, start researching options. If you do nothing, it could lead to more or worsening physical and mental health problems. 

Exercise Regularly

Having a regular exercise routine is one of the best ways to both stay physically, mentally and socially healthy, but also remain aware of your body and how it is functioning. Even low-effort exercises such as aerobics or strength training hold major health benefits.

Keeping up a fitness routine can help alleviate some of the fears of losing your health. You can even incorporate exercise into your health plan with Peerfit Move. Consider joining a group of older adults who do a specific kind of workout together! Yoga, swimming, aerobics, and more are great ways to keep up physical activity. It’s time to explore what Peerfit Move can do for you as you prepare for an exciting new chapter!