WEBVTT - HEALTHY BODY, HEALTHY MIND 0:00:03.310 --> 0:00:06.850 Welcome to Rewirement with me, Angelica Bell, brought to you 0:00:06.850 --> 0:00:11.069 by Legal and General. If you're looking for inspiration, tips 0:00:11.070 --> 0:00:15.470 and empowering ideas for your someday, this series is your one- 0:00:15.470 --> 0:00:18.619 stop shop to make it happen. I'm bringing you real 0:00:18.619 --> 0:00:21.669 people's retirement stories so that whatever it is you have 0:00:21.669 --> 0:00:24.930 in mind or whatever your timeline, you can take action 0:00:24.930 --> 0:00:30.310 today for a brilliant colorful tomorrow. As you near retirement, 0:00:30.600 --> 0:00:33.300 you're probably looking forward to meeting some new goals and 0:00:33.300 --> 0:00:36.790 challenges, the things you didn't have time, money, or freedom 0:00:36.790 --> 0:00:39.699 for in working life. So how do you make sure 0:00:39.699 --> 0:00:41.860 you plan well and set the right goals for the 0:00:41.860 --> 0:00:45.510 right time? Our bodies are always changing and as we 0:00:45.510 --> 0:00:48.589 get older we need to adapt, make allowances and get 0:00:48.589 --> 0:00:52.479 a little savvy. The more you make it individual to 0:00:52.479 --> 0:00:56.060 you, the better it's going to be. Retirement is also 0:00:56.060 --> 0:00:59.100 a mental shift, especially if we've had a very structured 0:00:59.100 --> 0:01:02.860 or busy job and family life. So managing our minds 0:01:02.860 --> 0:01:06.630 with the right tools is also a powerful move. Today 0:01:06.630 --> 0:01:08.660 we're going to be chatting about how you can take 0:01:08.660 --> 0:01:11.310 great care of your mind and body and stay in 0:01:11.310 --> 0:01:14.880 shape to achieve everything you want. I'll be joined by Legal 0:01:14.880 --> 0:01:18.130 and General's Emma Byron, and Age- Well writer and health 0:01:18.130 --> 0:01:22.840 coach, Susan Saunders, to find out more. First up though, 0:01:23.190 --> 0:01:26.410 let's meet two people who've taken to their retirement lifestyle 0:01:26.410 --> 0:01:30.039 with different attitudes. Jill is a former teacher who lives 0:01:30.039 --> 0:01:33.959 with her husband and their sprocker spaniel in Leicester. She 0:01:33.959 --> 0:01:36.209 and her hubby are both keen runners and spend their 0:01:36.209 --> 0:01:40.039 free time doing community projects. She started by telling us 0:01:40.039 --> 0:01:41.640 about her switch to retirement. 0:01:43.209 --> 0:01:46.899 I taught for 35 years. I've actually taught in the same 0:01:46.899 --> 0:01:52.310 school for 35 years although I had a variety of roles. And I 0:01:52.610 --> 0:01:57.109 had a string of outstanding Ofsted inspections and I thought, " 0:01:57.110 --> 0:01:59.820 Well, I can only go down from that really." So 0:01:59.820 --> 0:02:03.120 I decided at the age of 57 that I would go. 0:02:03.970 --> 0:02:06.280 And it was very, very traumatic. The thought of it 0:02:06.280 --> 0:02:09.989 was just awful because that was to be my life. I've never 0:02:09.989 --> 0:02:14.310 known anything different. But I started to put plans in 0:02:14.310 --> 0:02:17.570 place before I actually retired. For the last year I 0:02:17.570 --> 0:02:21.200 went down to four days, and then I retired in the 0:02:21.200 --> 0:02:28.320 summer of 2011. And it was fine while all the 0:02:28.549 --> 0:02:32.299 youngsters were on holiday but when everybody went back to 0:02:32.299 --> 0:02:34.859 school, I thought I'd made an absolutely horrible mistake. 0:02:36.370 --> 0:02:39.850 But Jill's momentary panic didn't last long. Her husband was 0:02:39.850 --> 0:02:42.750 still working so she enrolled in a German course and 0:02:42.760 --> 0:02:45.709 took off to Austria for a few months, making friends 0:02:45.709 --> 0:02:48.719 along the way. She thinks that cutting down her day 0:02:48.720 --> 0:02:52.169 slowly made the biggest difference in her move to retirement. 0:02:53.120 --> 0:02:55.100 I think it's a mental thing. I mean, I'm sure 0:02:55.100 --> 0:02:57.380 I did five days worth of work in four days. 0:02:58.030 --> 0:03:00.810 It was just having a little bit of freedom and 0:03:00.810 --> 0:03:04.090 it gave me time to reflect on what the possibilities 0:03:04.090 --> 0:03:07.070 were for the future. I felt quite strongly that if 0:03:07.070 --> 0:03:09.850 I'd have gone from five days to nothing, it would 0:03:09.850 --> 0:03:13.130 have been a bigger shock to my system really. To 0:03:13.130 --> 0:03:18.169 me, retirement is a time of opportunity. It's a time 0:03:18.359 --> 0:03:21.079 to pursue things that you've not been able to pursue. 0:03:22.690 --> 0:03:27.290 And I think I am so lucky in that I'm 0:03:27.290 --> 0:03:31.260 very healthy and, of course, a retired teacher, we have 0:03:31.260 --> 0:03:34.339 enough money to do what we want to do. So 0:03:34.679 --> 0:03:37.120 we count ourselves very lucky, and we're not going to waste 0:03:37.140 --> 0:03:39.719 that time. We're going to just live it to the 0:03:39.720 --> 0:03:43.610 full really. I gave myself a structure when I came 0:03:43.830 --> 0:03:46.180 out of teaching, because I knew that it would be 0:03:46.180 --> 0:03:50.670 very easy to waste time. So the rule was, " This 0:03:50.670 --> 0:03:52.480 is my time and I'm jolly well going to be 0:03:52.480 --> 0:03:55.320 up at half past six, get dressed, get the hair 0:03:55.320 --> 0:03:58.030 done and that sort of thing, get out." But I 0:03:58.030 --> 0:04:01.270 worked on the principle that I wanted to do active 0:04:01.270 --> 0:04:04.380 stuff, but I also wanted to do stuff for my 0:04:04.380 --> 0:04:08.150 brain and I wanted to do some voluntary work, because 0:04:08.150 --> 0:04:10.570 I felt that I've been so lucky, it was important 0:04:10.570 --> 0:04:13.310 to give back. So I had a structure where I 0:04:13.310 --> 0:04:16.390 had fixed points on certain days that I always did certain 0:04:16.390 --> 0:04:19.880 things, but then I maybe had another day when I 0:04:19.880 --> 0:04:22.349 was completely free to do anything or another afternoon when 0:04:22.349 --> 0:04:23.460 I was free to do anything. 0:04:24.400 --> 0:04:28.299 When she returned from Austria, the opportunities flooded in. Jill 0:04:28.300 --> 0:04:31.360 was invited to help out at the local church. She 0:04:31.360 --> 0:04:34.659 continued her German lessons and signed up for evening classes 0:04:34.659 --> 0:04:37.580 in French. She soon realized that her diary had filled 0:04:37.580 --> 0:04:38.580 itself right up. 0:04:38.860 --> 0:04:41.020 I worked at an old people's lunch club on a 0:04:41.020 --> 0:04:45.099 Thursday. I refused to do anything before 10 o'clock in 0:04:45.099 --> 0:04:47.049 the morning because I wanted to be out running with 0:04:47.169 --> 0:04:51.900 the dog. And suddenly I realized I actually didn't have time 0:04:51.900 --> 0:04:54.189 to go to work. We have three days in the 0:04:54.190 --> 0:04:56.830 summer where we provide activities and we'd go on a 0:04:56.830 --> 0:05:00.089 trip and things like that. So I think I've probably 0:05:00.089 --> 0:05:02.010 got a wider circle of friends now than I ever 0:05:02.010 --> 0:05:05.659 had when I was teaching. I'm very different people. 0:05:06.740 --> 0:05:09.719 Jill had always turned to running and the outdoors as 0:05:09.719 --> 0:05:13.360 a relief from the pressures of teaching. But in retirement, 0:05:13.430 --> 0:05:16.089 it's become an even more vital hobby for her health 0:05:16.089 --> 0:05:16.909 and happiness. 0:05:18.390 --> 0:05:21.820 It's my life. I'm being honest. It's my life. I love it. I love the fact 0:05:21.820 --> 0:05:23.750 that I can eat anything I want. I don't have 0:05:23.750 --> 0:05:26.700 to worry what goes in my mouth. It's a friendship 0:05:26.700 --> 0:05:29.700 group with a running club and particularly with my other 0:05:29.700 --> 0:05:33.010 friend. But I think the problem is that because I 0:05:33.010 --> 0:05:35.539 do what I do, I don't fit in with people 0:05:35.539 --> 0:05:39.880 of my age. And I find that quite difficult sometimes. 0:05:40.640 --> 0:05:46.169 People 65, well, 67 now, are not necessarily into running, skiing 0:05:46.169 --> 0:05:49.900 and cycling and swimming. So I really value the friendships 0:05:49.900 --> 0:05:55.120 I've got with the running people. So running's incredibly important to me, 0:05:55.169 --> 0:05:59.150 really is. Now, I'm a lot more leisurely about it. I 0:05:59.150 --> 0:06:02.279 have a running friend who I run with. She's also retired 0:06:02.400 --> 0:06:04.839 and we run four times a week. We go out 0:06:04.839 --> 0:06:06.990 very early in the mornings and we run across the 0:06:06.990 --> 0:06:09.080 fields. And if we want to stop and look at something, 0:06:09.320 --> 0:06:11.820 we stop and look at something. But we also do 0:06:12.270 --> 0:06:15.529 the odd race, part run, 10 Ks, half marathons, that 0:06:15.529 --> 0:06:18.189 sort of thing. But he's not serious like it used to 0:06:18.190 --> 0:06:21.289 be. I used to be looking at my watch and thinking, " 0:06:21.289 --> 0:06:24.039 Can I knock 10 seconds off here?" I really don't 0:06:24.039 --> 0:06:27.969 care now. We just love to be outside. We've got 0:06:27.969 --> 0:06:31.039 a big garden. Obviously we've got a dog. It's the 0:06:31.039 --> 0:06:32.979 sort of dog that if you don't give it at 0:06:32.979 --> 0:06:35.200 least seven miles a day, it'll tear the house up. 0:06:35.380 --> 0:06:38.320 So we're out with the dog. It doesn't matter what 0:06:38.430 --> 0:06:41.560 the weather's doing, we're out. In the summer I'm never 0:06:41.560 --> 0:06:43.900 in the house. I've always got my shorts on and I'm 0:06:43.900 --> 0:06:46.409 not sitting. It's really, really important. And we're lucky where 0:06:46.409 --> 0:06:49.050 we live because we've got really nice countryside. 0:06:49.580 --> 0:06:52.179 In fact, after years of longing for a dog, Jill 0:06:52.180 --> 0:06:54.609 spent her leaving gift from the school on a sprocker 0:06:54.609 --> 0:06:59.529 spaniel puppy. Her criteria: a dog that could run. Jill 0:06:59.529 --> 0:07:02.119 and her husband switched their holiday schedule so they could 0:07:02.120 --> 0:07:04.760 spend the summer traveling in the UK with their pooch. 0:07:05.289 --> 0:07:08.140 They now take their holidays in the winter months, that's 0:07:08.140 --> 0:07:11.910 because, age 58, they tried out skiing or running on 0:07:11.910 --> 0:07:14.210 skis as they put it. And it now lets them 0:07:14.210 --> 0:07:15.829 see the world in a different way. 0:07:15.830 --> 0:07:19.150 Of course, the moment the skis went on, we were absolutely hooked. 0:07:19.450 --> 0:07:22.470 Loved every minute of it. We are ski bums now, 0:07:22.470 --> 0:07:26.950 basically. We go three times a year and we just 0:07:27.620 --> 0:07:31.460 ski. It's great. And we go to Scandinavia so we can 0:07:31.460 --> 0:07:33.720 downhill and we can cross country ski as well. 0:07:34.290 --> 0:07:37.540 So what's Jill's advice for anyone looking for a healthy 0:07:37.540 --> 0:07:39.060 balance in retirement? 0:07:39.580 --> 0:07:43.050 First of all, look after yourself, keep your weight down, 0:07:43.760 --> 0:07:47.720 eat healthily, don't drink too much, have everything you want, but 0:07:47.760 --> 0:07:51.819 just be sensible about it. I would say to people, 0:07:51.860 --> 0:07:55.440 have a variety of activities. So you might have something 0:07:55.440 --> 0:08:00.489 physical, something that you use your brain, something social. And 0:08:00.489 --> 0:08:03.739 also, as I said to you before, have fixed points 0:08:03.739 --> 0:08:05.860 in the week where you have to get up and 0:08:05.860 --> 0:08:08.770 you have to do things and then other points in 0:08:08.770 --> 0:08:11.860 the week where you can, basically, please yourself. I think 0:08:11.860 --> 0:08:14.790 that probably would be the best advice. But the important 0:08:14.790 --> 0:08:16.510 thing is your health, isn't it? If you look after 0:08:16.679 --> 0:08:22.119 yourself, everything else is possible. What I found has been 0:08:22.120 --> 0:08:25.960 so good with retirement is that I've mixed with such a wide 0:08:25.960 --> 0:08:28.310 range of people that I didn't do when I was at 0:08:28.310 --> 0:08:31.929 work. I mix with the dog walkers, there's the church people, 0:08:31.929 --> 0:08:34.939 there's the old people. I mentor some of the youngsters 0:08:35.220 --> 0:08:39.040 at the church who are doing GCSEs and stuff like 0:08:39.040 --> 0:08:42.469 that. There's a whole range of people that I probably 0:08:42.480 --> 0:08:46.430 never would have mixed with before. So that's really important. 0:08:46.809 --> 0:08:50.160 It broadens your horizons. And even if it doesn't work out, having a 0:08:50.309 --> 0:08:54.130 plan is important. And I think, as well, giving back. We are so 0:08:54.130 --> 0:08:58.640 lucky to have what we have that it's important to 0:08:58.970 --> 0:09:02.969 give back to society. My husband does community driving. I 0:09:03.000 --> 0:09:08.319 work with the old people. It's fulfilling for us, but 0:09:08.319 --> 0:09:10.829 it's also giving back to society, which I think's really, 0:09:10.829 --> 0:09:15.219 really important because we've had, and we have, such fantastic lives. 0:09:15.959 --> 0:09:19.179 Jill is such a powerhouse and a fun person to 0:09:19.179 --> 0:09:22.990 listen to. Her energy is so contagious and it definitely 0:09:22.990 --> 0:09:25.010 made me want to lace up my running shoes and 0:09:25.010 --> 0:09:27.240 get going. I love how she had to pick a 0:09:27.240 --> 0:09:32.120 dog that could keep up with her in retirement. Right. 0:09:32.370 --> 0:09:35.530 Let's hear from Peter now. He's also a big runner. 0:09:35.949 --> 0:09:39.670 After a diverse career in engineering and then journalism he 0:09:39.670 --> 0:09:41.870 now enjoys sharing his skills for the good of his 0:09:41.870 --> 0:09:46.369 community. He's also an artist and all round inquiring mind. 0:09:46.800 --> 0:09:48.880 He was really honest with me about just what a 0:09:48.880 --> 0:09:52.020 big role the mind plays in keeping healthy after the 0:09:52.020 --> 0:09:56.800 day job ends. Peter, it's lovely to talk to you 0:09:56.800 --> 0:10:00.339 today. I'm really interested to know about your career and 0:10:00.339 --> 0:10:03.319 your experience of retiring because I know you've had a 0:10:03.319 --> 0:10:04.109 great life, haven't you? 0:10:04.380 --> 0:10:10.410 Yeah. And I've had that interesting life, basically. So I quit 0:10:10.410 --> 0:10:14.339 becoming a civil engineer and started working as a journalist, 0:10:14.890 --> 0:10:20.670 throwing away all my previous education and just taking a 0:10:20.670 --> 0:10:25.000 punt at something totally new. For, well, more than 20 0:10:25.000 --> 0:10:29.559 years, basically, I got made redundant and I and another 0:10:29.559 --> 0:10:33.920 journalist set up a news website, sold the company and 0:10:34.040 --> 0:10:35.959 two years later retired. 0:10:37.449 --> 0:10:40.940 So obviously you're not one to shy away from risk 0:10:41.260 --> 0:10:44.940 because you seem to have had lots of different turns and twists in your life? 0:10:45.030 --> 0:10:48.030 That's what life has taught me, that you should grab 0:10:48.030 --> 0:10:51.410 opportunities when they arise. And if you've got your heart 0:10:51.410 --> 0:10:53.400 in it, it'll all work out okay, basically. 0:10:54.480 --> 0:10:58.459 Hm. So you've had a fulfilled working life and obviously 0:10:58.459 --> 0:11:01.650 you managed to sell off your company, which ... Did that 0:11:01.770 --> 0:11:03.300 mean you could pay off your mortgage? 0:11:03.309 --> 0:11:03.349 Oh, yeah. 0:11:03.980 --> 0:11:05.370 Did it mean you could live comfortably? 0:11:05.429 --> 0:11:05.739 Yes. 0:11:06.000 --> 0:11:06.900 Are you in a good position? 0:11:06.980 --> 0:11:10.260 Yes. Yeah. So I didn't have a mortgage and it 0:11:10.260 --> 0:11:14.900 just so happened that my parents were selling their house 0:11:14.900 --> 0:11:17.870 in Cornwall, so we bought it and that's it. So 0:11:17.870 --> 0:11:19.609 that's where I'm living now, basically. 0:11:19.990 --> 0:11:21.559 How did you feel about retiring then? 0:11:21.829 --> 0:11:25.990 To start off with, I wanted to give something back. 0:11:25.990 --> 0:11:28.420 I've always felt as though I've been very lucky in 0:11:28.420 --> 0:11:34.849 life. So I started off by ( a) helping a local 0:11:34.850 --> 0:11:39.410 charity here that provides holidays for families with disabled children. 0:11:39.829 --> 0:11:43.050 As a journalist, I help them with all the marketing 0:11:43.110 --> 0:11:45.770 side of things. And then at the same time as 0:11:45.770 --> 0:11:51.109 that, I volunteered to mentor teenagers that were in trouble 0:11:51.110 --> 0:11:55.770 in Cornwall. So I spent, I think it was about four years, going 0:11:55.770 --> 0:11:59.900 to see teenagers and trying to help them with their 0:12:00.089 --> 0:12:04.219 problems. I wanted to take up art. I'd given up 0:12:04.219 --> 0:12:07.609 art when I was at school when I was 13. 0:12:08.069 --> 0:12:13.040 So I started going to some evening classes. Used to 0:12:13.040 --> 0:12:16.040 count the days when I could go back there for 0:12:16.040 --> 0:12:20.619 my once a week evening session. And then I was 0:12:20.620 --> 0:12:23.780 looking at the students thinking how lucky they were. And 0:12:23.780 --> 0:12:26.369 I hope they realize how lucky they were. And then 0:12:26.370 --> 0:12:29.400 it occurred to me that I could go there myself 0:12:29.400 --> 0:12:31.809 and do a degree, which is what I ended up 0:12:31.809 --> 0:12:34.240 doing. So I did a part- time degree,- 0:12:34.250 --> 0:12:34.251 Okay. 0:12:34.251 --> 0:12:36.809 ... ended up getting a first. 0:12:36.929 --> 0:12:40.910 Of course, you did. You don't seem like somebody who 0:12:40.910 --> 0:12:42.970 would do things for health. And I like that about you. 0:12:43.240 --> 0:12:49.219 Well, funny enough, when I was a teenager, I remember 0:12:49.949 --> 0:12:53.359 getting quite depressed and saying to my mother I felt 0:12:53.360 --> 0:12:56.829 like that. And she said ... Well, she quoted something in 0:12:56.829 --> 0:13:03.360 French, (foreign language) " You should cultivate your garden," which, basically, 0:13:03.360 --> 0:13:07.559 means keep yourself busy. And that's what I do with 0:13:07.559 --> 0:13:12.250 my life. I've been happy because I've kept myself doing 0:13:12.280 --> 0:13:15.879 things. So while I've been doing all the art stuff 0:13:15.880 --> 0:13:20.209 and all the stuff with the charities and volunteers, I've 0:13:20.209 --> 0:13:25.270 also kept physically busy as well. I volunteer, I dive 0:13:25.270 --> 0:13:25.790 and I run. 0:13:25.790 --> 0:13:30.730 Ah, so you run. So do you run races or is it just get out there and 0:13:31.179 --> 0:13:32.040 see how far you get? 0:13:32.370 --> 0:13:35.579 The charity I was working with got a place in 0:13:35.579 --> 0:13:39.490 the London marathon. I did my first marathon in four 0:13:39.490 --> 0:13:42.360 hours, six minutes. So I trained for the next one. 0:13:42.360 --> 0:13:45.100 And so the next time I did it, I was 0:13:45.309 --> 0:13:49.339 70 years old and I did it in three hours, 51/ 0:13:49.360 --> 0:13:54.730 50 something, just under 3: 52. And when I finished, it 0:13:54.730 --> 0:13:58.390 looked as though I was 10th, but by the time other, some 0:13:58.790 --> 0:14:02.420 slower starters, had finished, I was actually 13th. But still. 0:14:02.610 --> 0:14:05.069 We're not going to quibble over three places because it's 0:14:05.069 --> 0:14:09.069 still incredible. So is the outdoors a big part of 0:14:09.069 --> 0:14:10.030 your experience of retirement? 0:14:10.980 --> 0:14:14.439 Yeah. We have phenomenal views of the sea from this 0:14:14.439 --> 0:14:16.910 house. If I look out this window, I can see 0:14:16.910 --> 0:14:21.080 an island and a lighthouse, and we've got a big 0:14:21.080 --> 0:14:23.850 garden so I do a lot of gardening. I learned 0:14:23.850 --> 0:14:27.119 to dive when we arrived in Lu and I've dived 0:14:27.120 --> 0:14:30.290 in all sorts of places around the world, including the Great 0:14:30.290 --> 0:14:33.420 Barrier Reef and the Red Sea and places like that. 0:14:33.420 --> 0:14:37.950 Lovely. But you've got such a positive mental attitude to 0:14:37.950 --> 0:14:41.460 retirement. And was that the case at the beginning? And has it changed? 0:14:41.460 --> 0:14:46.100 So I'd launched a startup and I was really tired 0:14:46.100 --> 0:14:49.490 and I wanted to stop. And also I had all 0:14:49.490 --> 0:14:51.290 these other things I wanted to do. 0:14:51.660 --> 0:14:53.810 Are there any moments in your retirement that stand out for you? 0:14:54.960 --> 0:15:00.460 I ran in the Olympic torch relay in 2012, and 0:15:00.470 --> 0:15:06.260 that was an amazing experience. It was like being parachuted 0:15:06.260 --> 0:15:11.600 into the best ever party, basically, because I was surrounded by 0:15:11.600 --> 0:15:16.729 people willing me on, basically. It was a fantastic experience. 0:15:17.260 --> 0:15:20.900 10 years ago I was diagnosed with bowel cancer. So 0:15:20.900 --> 0:15:24.670 I had a really major operation at that stage. And, 0:15:24.670 --> 0:15:27.970 in fact, I did all my running of marathons after 0:15:27.970 --> 0:15:31.660 I'd had that operation. So, I guess, that's another thing 0:15:31.660 --> 0:15:32.739 that really stands out. 0:15:33.500 --> 0:15:34.840 You've got some resilience there. 0:15:35.920 --> 0:15:40.649 I'm 75 now. I've had a really great ride, basically. 0:15:40.860 --> 0:15:42.880 I don't want to die, but hope when I do 0:15:42.880 --> 0:15:46.989 die, I can look back on it and think I 0:15:46.990 --> 0:15:48.440 spent my time well. 0:15:48.820 --> 0:15:51.820 And what do you think it was about your work life that 0:15:51.820 --> 0:15:55.600 helped you make such a success of your retirement and 0:15:55.600 --> 0:15:56.590 your positivity? 0:15:57.040 --> 0:16:01.180 Being prepared to chuck up my profession as a civil 0:16:01.180 --> 0:16:07.070 engineer and take a gamble worked out and just showed 0:16:07.070 --> 0:16:11.760 to me that when opportunities arise, you should grab them, 0:16:11.820 --> 0:16:16.300 basically. And retirement is just one big opportunity. 0:16:17.080 --> 0:16:19.759 So what's your advice for a healthy retirement? 0:16:19.859 --> 0:16:23.870 Somebody told me this when I first retired, " You need 0:16:23.870 --> 0:16:28.379 to have a balance between three things: the physical side, 0:16:28.900 --> 0:16:32.330 the mental side, and then the third thing really is 0:16:32.479 --> 0:16:36.290 a social side, develop a social network. I'd always worked 0:16:36.290 --> 0:16:39.630 so hard. I didn't really have a big social network, 0:16:39.680 --> 0:16:43.690 but when I come here I've joined a running club 0:16:44.140 --> 0:16:47.729 and I've really put my roots down here and I think 0:16:47.880 --> 0:16:50.770 that's also a very key part of retirement. 0:16:53.720 --> 0:16:56.460 You don't have to run marathons in retirement or have 0:16:56.460 --> 0:16:59.690 thousands of hobbies to be happy. It's just about finding 0:16:59.690 --> 0:17:02.680 the right healthy balance of activities for you. I do 0:17:02.680 --> 0:17:05.720 love Peter's advice about doing something for the body, something 0:17:05.720 --> 0:17:08.980 for the mind and something for the community. A fantastic 0:17:08.980 --> 0:17:12.570 balance. Now, let's get some expert ideas on things you 0:17:12.570 --> 0:17:16.030 can try in your retirement from the best independent learning 0:17:16.030 --> 0:17:19.250 to sensible advice on getting active. I'm joined by Legal 0:17:19.250 --> 0:17:24.230 and General's Emma Byron and health coach, Susan Saunders. Susan, 0:17:24.230 --> 0:17:26.940 tell me about your mission to Age- Well because you've 0:17:26.940 --> 0:17:28.159 published a book all about it, haven't you? 0:17:28.159 --> 0:17:32.729 That's right Well, published two actually. I was co- author of 0:17:32.730 --> 0:17:35.879 a book called " The Age- Well Project, and then at the 0:17:35.879 --> 0:17:38.530 end of last year, I wrote a book by myself 0:17:38.600 --> 0:17:41.939 called The Age- Well Plan. And, yes, I am absolutely 0:17:42.070 --> 0:17:46.330 passionate about helping people to age. Well, I think we 0:17:46.330 --> 0:17:48.720 can all change the way we age. 0:17:49.399 --> 0:17:51.780 So as a health coach, how do you approach the needs 0:17:51.780 --> 0:17:54.300 differently for people in later life? Is it ever too 0:17:54.300 --> 0:17:57.369 early or too late to start? I feel I know what 0:17:57.369 --> 0:17:57.929 you're going to say. 0:17:57.970 --> 0:18:00.889 Yeah. It's never too early and it's never too late. 0:18:02.119 --> 0:18:06.740 Everybody's individual, of course, and everybody has very different requirements, 0:18:06.740 --> 0:18:10.010 but it's really a case of working out where you 0:18:10.010 --> 0:18:14.770 are now, evaluating what you want and working out what 0:18:14.770 --> 0:18:17.100 you want the future to look like. How's it going 0:18:17.100 --> 0:18:20.149 to feel? What are you going to be doing? That 0:18:20.149 --> 0:18:23.600 applies to health as much as to finances. What is 0:18:23.600 --> 0:18:25.760 the way forward? What you want it to feel like? 0:18:25.760 --> 0:18:28.249 And then working out the steps to get there. 0:18:28.859 --> 0:18:30.540 Now, to write a book about it, you must have thought, " 0:18:30.899 --> 0:18:33.990 This is needed and people need to hear this." So 0:18:33.990 --> 0:18:37.270 what was it that motivated you to write about this? 0:18:38.800 --> 0:18:43.980 My own journey to aging well started nearly 20 years 0:18:43.980 --> 0:18:46.840 ago. I was 36. I was working full time as 0:18:46.840 --> 0:18:49.780 a TV producer. I had a baby and a toddler 0:18:50.139 --> 0:18:53.649 and my mother was diagnosed with dementia and so I 0:18:53.649 --> 0:18:57.139 became a carer as well. So I had to juggle 0:18:57.139 --> 0:19:00.639 all those balls, which was very, very difficult. And what 0:19:00.639 --> 0:19:04.379 made it more poignant was that as a teenager myself, 0:19:04.379 --> 0:19:06.759 I had watched my mother do that for her mother. 0:19:06.760 --> 0:19:10.129 So I was conscious of a pattern. I was conscious 0:19:10.129 --> 0:19:13.909 that I wanted to do everything I could to reduce 0:19:13.909 --> 0:19:17.470 my risk of dementia and age- related diseases. And I 0:19:17.470 --> 0:19:23.090 started researching and reading endless papers, which are published on 0:19:23.090 --> 0:19:27.609 this subject. And it's all so confusing. You're constantly being told, " 0:19:27.830 --> 0:19:31.310 Drink coffee. You'll live forever." " Don't drink coffee. You'll die." 0:19:31.600 --> 0:19:34.379 And I just wanted to really work out a middle 0:19:34.379 --> 0:19:39.740 way and work out what would work for me. I 0:19:39.740 --> 0:19:43.699 was so busy. I didn't have time for weird wellness 0:19:43.700 --> 0:19:48.290 retreats or making a hundred juices or whatever. So I 0:19:48.290 --> 0:19:49.990 had to work out what would fit into my life. And then when 0:19:50.480 --> 0:19:53.060 I started blogging about it with a friend, we just 0:19:53.060 --> 0:19:56.199 found that there were so many other people in the 0:19:56.200 --> 0:20:00.869 same boat who just wanted knowledge without having to follow fads. 0:20:02.399 --> 0:20:04.850 So, basically, it's a book about things you can eat, 0:20:04.850 --> 0:20:08.460 things you can do just to make that process easier 0:20:08.460 --> 0:20:11.100 or is it just to be conscious about the fact 0:20:11.100 --> 0:20:13.899 that as you get older your body changes? 0:20:14.600 --> 0:20:18.050 I think, first of all, it's about being conscious about 0:20:18.050 --> 0:20:20.820 what's happening. And, as I said, what do you want from 0:20:20.820 --> 0:20:24.649 your own life? But when we started, I really thought 0:20:24.649 --> 0:20:27.179 it was just about food, it was just going to 0:20:27.179 --> 0:20:29.669 be about what we ate. And then as we researched 0:20:29.879 --> 0:20:33.479 more, I realized there's so many other things which are really 0:20:33.480 --> 0:20:36.659 important. It's not just what you eat. It's exercise, how 0:20:36.659 --> 0:20:40.759 you move, how well you sleep, is really critical. Social 0:20:40.760 --> 0:20:47.720 engagement, mental stimulation in whatever form that might be and 0:20:47.720 --> 0:20:50.649 the environment in which you're aging. All those things are 0:20:50.840 --> 0:20:51.810 really critical. 0:20:52.200 --> 0:20:54.310 Well, as we're hearing, being healthy in retirement is a 0:20:54.310 --> 0:20:58.450 multifaceted idea. And, I guess, it's very individual too. So, 0:20:58.460 --> 0:21:01.480 Emma, what are some of the angles people should consider 0:21:01.480 --> 0:21:02.580 when they're thinking ahead? 0:21:02.820 --> 0:21:05.910 Yeah, clearly, it is very individual. We know people live 0:21:06.080 --> 0:21:08.369 a lot longer these days, but that's not everyone. We're 0:21:08.369 --> 0:21:10.869 not all an average person. So when we look at 0:21:11.090 --> 0:21:14.830 average life expectancy, that's not necessarily going to be used. 0:21:14.830 --> 0:21:17.320 So it's going to be very dependent on people's health. 0:21:17.320 --> 0:21:19.429 Do they smoke? Do they drink? All of those things. 0:21:19.429 --> 0:21:22.320 So even when you're planning for your retirement, trying to 0:21:22.320 --> 0:21:24.369 work out how long are you going to live and how long you 0:21:24.369 --> 0:21:27.300 need to finance your life for is a very difficult thing 0:21:27.300 --> 0:21:29.950 to do. And people make the mistake often of looking 0:21:29.950 --> 0:21:33.320 to their parents as an indicator of that. So none 0:21:33.320 --> 0:21:35.869 of us like thinking about death, but let's think about it in 0:21:35.869 --> 0:21:37.960 a more positive way. I think the other thing is 0:21:37.960 --> 0:21:41.169 about, it's not just living a longer retirement, it also needs 0:21:41.169 --> 0:21:43.030 to be a happy retirement, and it's going to be very 0:21:43.030 --> 0:21:46.479 different if you're fit active and healthy, versus if you 0:21:46.840 --> 0:21:50.129 require significant care needs. We could live for a very 0:21:50.129 --> 0:21:51.900 long, long time and you want to make sure that you're 0:21:52.439 --> 0:21:54.679 going to have the finances to support you in that 0:21:54.679 --> 0:21:58.100 and that you're fit and healthy as well so you can enjoy it as much as anything else. 0:21:58.639 --> 0:22:01.619 Yeah. Well, security and financial peace of mind play no 0:22:01.619 --> 0:22:04.220 small part in our mental wealth being, whatever state we're 0:22:04.389 --> 0:22:06.929 at, you just feel calm. But how can people on 0:22:06.929 --> 0:22:11.310 a lower budget maximize this, especially if they are wanting 0:22:11.369 --> 0:22:14.130 to experience lots of things in older life but be well? 0:22:14.439 --> 0:22:16.129 Everyone wants to know that they're going to have enough 0:22:16.129 --> 0:22:19.330 money to pay the bills and the basics. So I always 0:22:19.500 --> 0:22:21.830 like to think of that. What do you need at 0:22:21.830 --> 0:22:25.260 bare minimum to survive and live a happy life? And there's 0:22:25.260 --> 0:22:27.970 lots of different ways, depending on your income, your wealth, 0:22:28.429 --> 0:22:31.909 how that will be supported. So most people will be 0:22:31.919 --> 0:22:33.919 able to get a state pension. So make sure you 0:22:33.919 --> 0:22:36.350 understand how much that is. Is that enough to cover 0:22:36.350 --> 0:22:40.070