The 3 Best Ways To Take Care Of Your Health When You Retire – Your health is important at any age, but when you get to the age to retire it takes on added importance. This is the age when there are more aches, pains, and trips to the doctor. To properly enjoy retirement requires staying in tip-top health. If you are in poor health then your retirement is not going to go as planned. It will be difficult to do the things that you enjoy and those trips to the doctor may start bringing bad news.

The best way to reduce the risk of this happening is to take care of your health as you approach your retirement years. Although there is no way to stop the aging process, we can do things to slow it down considerably. As long as you have a plan then you can take steps that will help you hold onto your health. In this article, we will give you several tips on how to do just that.

1 – Get plenty of sleep

Getting enough sleep is one of the biggest factors when it comes to staying healthy. It is the chance for the body to repair the damage it receives over the course of the day. Without enough sleep, your immune system doesn’t have a chance to strengthen and rebuild. This is why improving your sleep should be the first step.

Look into replacing your bed with one that is more modern. The best adjustable bed frames are definitely the way to go when you hit retirement age. This is because you can customize the bed to give you the perfect posture for sleeping. If you are a back sleeper then you can raise your head slightly to keep the pressure off of your neck.

Raising the head will also allow you to get out of bed more easily since it can raise you up to a sitting position. Then you swing your legs over the side of the bed to gently stand up. This reduces the risk of straining your back or falling when getting up.

There is also the problem with swelling of the feet called edema. When you have an adjustable bed you are able to raise your feet to keep the swelling down. This will allow you to walk better the next day and be able to stay more active.

2 – Get active

Another way to keep your immune system working at its peak is to be as active as possible. By moving about you are able to keep the blood circulating so it can bring much-needed nutrients to all of your body. This allows your immune system to stay strong and prevents many illnesses from developing.

Being active can look much different to different people. There is not a single way that is what everybody should be doing. For some, being active can mean going to the gym a few days per week. For others, it can simply be going for a walk every morning with the dog.

The important thing is to understand what your body needs and then find the activity that best suits it. For instance, if you have joint pain and find you are in discomfort doing many everyday things, then yoga is going to help you a lot with that. It stretches the tendons and ligaments so that there is less pain in your joints when you move around.

It is also a good way to reduce inflammation in the body so that you are in less pain and can do more of your common activities.

Core strength is also very important since it is what allows you to do so many of your common movements every day. It is also responsible for your balance and ability to react to being off balance. Since falls are a major risk factor for seniors, maintaining your core strength should be a priority.

It is essential that you have an exercise or activity routine that keeps you from living a sedentary lifestyle. Sitting around will lead to a higher risk of blood clots, diabetes, and a host of other problems. You don’t have to over-exert yourself but you do need to be moving around.

3 – Eat a balanced diet

A core pillar of health is diet. When you eat the foods that will give you the right nutrients then you are improving your immune system and can fend off a lot of ailments. There are some keys to making sure that you get the right nutrients and minerals, however.

As you age, your body requires different types of food. There are some basics that have to be met but the balance is going to be different as your body changes. You will also be eating less than you used to so pay attention to what you’re eating since you will have a harder time eating the right foods when your portions are smaller.

Get plenty of Omega 3 so you can keep your mental capacity at its peak since this is an area where many seniors struggle. Fish like salmon is a great source of this fatty acid as are some meats and vegetables.

Calcium is also important since bones start becoming brittle. Make sure to get plenty of dairy in the form of milk and cheese to be able to get enough calcium for your bone strength.

Eating mainly vegetables and fruits with some nuts and grains is the best way to make sure that you are eating a balanced diet. Meat should be eaten sparingly with more of an emphasis on proteins coming from fish and legumes.

Conclusion

Prevention is always the best medicine so make sure that you are taking an active role in maintaining your health. Go to the doctor for regular checkups before you get sick so you can take steps to prevent it from happening. Make it a goal to surprise your physician when you visit by being as healthy as possible.