“If you haven’t got your health, you haven’t got anything,” warns the The Six Fingered Man from ‘The Princess Bride’ to the King of Guilder, prior to heading down to start Wesley on “the machine.”👰🖐️👑
It’s one of my favorite movies. If you haven’t seen it, I’d invite you to check it out. Then, make watching it part of a yearly ritual so you really get the lines down and can pull out an applicable quote at your next dinner party.
But I digress….🙃↕️👎
I’ve been spending a lot of time lately trying to educate myself about how money works; finances, investing, 401k’s, IRA’s, cryptocurrency, etc. Essentially, how one builds wealth. Admittedly, I’m late to the party.
So whatever wealth building strategy we employ, we understand that, in most cases, we’ll regularly designate a % of our income towards building our wealth. 💸 💰🤑
The basic idea is that over time, the money compounds and grows, thus allowing one to reap the rewards of this discipline and diligence in the future.
For many, the goal is a comfortable retirement. 🥅🧸✨
Here are some interesting statistics regarding retirement:
If we retire at age 65, we have a 76% chance of living another 10 years, a 38% chance of living another 20 years, and a 5% chance of living another 30
years.🔥📅🌱
For ease, let’s just say that MOST of us will live an additional 15 years after retirement.
So, basically, for the first 81.25% of our time on this earth, we’re diligently working and saving for our last 18.75% of our time on this earth. 🌎🛰️🐘
And for most rational and responsible people, this is the correct move.
But isn’t it also safe to say that these last years, for many, may not be our most vibrant years? Many have worked so hard the first 80% of their lives, haven’t “invested” in their health, and are now not able to enjoy the things they thought they’d have all this time to enjoy at this stage of their lives. 👔🧑⚕️
Take travel. Many sacrifice traveling during their vibrant years so they can “see the world” when they retire.
They fail to understand that travel requires one to have a certain amount of stamina and strength. ✈️💪🦍Slugging luggage through an airport, going through security, and getting your luggage in the upper compartment of the airplane is not a task for the weary.
Maybe travel isn’t your thing. Maybe your thing is gardening. I think we can all agree that gardening also requires a baseline level of vibrancy. Pulling weeds and moving dirt around ain't for the weak! 🥕💩😊
The strength, stamina, and vibrancy required to live an active life in retirement is something that must be invested in now.
One does not have health and vitality because they are lucky or by chance. 🍀🥠
One must invest time and money towards the pursuit of wellness.
If we don’t move our body, our body will fall apart. If we don’t put healthy food in our body, our body will succumb to inflammation and the dis-ease process will set in. 🦠✨🥘
Unfortunately, we also need to supplement this healthy diet with vitamins and minerals as the soil doesn’t contain all the nutrients it had in the past and we simply cannot get all the nutrients we need from food anymore.
For example, Vitamin D is something ALL of us need to be supplementing with regularly. We synthesize this nutrient from the sun, and we simply don’t get adequate exposure to the sun for at least 6 months out of the year. ☀️🌤️🌥️
It’s also why so many of us struggle with colds, flus, and other things starting with “C” during the winter months; lack of Vitamin D.
We also periodically need some form of regular bodywork. We need healing hands on the body. Yes, this is also a crucial aspect to health. ❤️🩹
I had a client recently ask me, “Tonnie, why can’t I just do this for myself?”
“Great question!”, I responded. 🙋👽
“You have fantastic tools, Jane. I know you are super proactive with your health. You eat well, stretch and move, and I know you meditate and work at your mental health game.
“But sometimes we just aren’t able to fully adapt to the constant physical, chemical, and mental/emotional stress that’s coming at us. 🔥😞🥺
“We all need a helping hand. The bodyworker can use their healing modality to help the person in ways they are not able to help themselves.”
Moving your body requires time. Eating healthy food, taking supplements, and getting bodywork costs money. 💸🥗💆
But it is an investment that not only pays off in the future, but it pays off NOW. Daily. Moment to moment.
It’s an investment that pays off for the entirety of your life, not just that last 18% of your life. ❤️🧾
I am dedicating this week’s blog post to discussing health as wealth, but I really think The Six Fingered Man just kinda said it all.
If you haven’t got your health, you really haven’t got anything. 🧑⚕️🧑⚕️
If you would like a helping hand with your health and vitality, consider getting on the schedule for one of our awesome services! CLICK HERE!