How to Invest in Your Health to Protect Retirement Savings w/ Jenny Smith

0:05Welcome to the Wealthy After 40 podcast, the show for Gen X women and couples who are ready to ditch financial stress and feel confident about retirement. I'm your host, Dailene Higgins, money coach and retirement strategist to help you gain clarity and confidence with your money by creating a spending plan that aligns with your financial goals and dreams so you can spend intentionally, save consistently, and feel at peace about your future. Join me every week to understand your money, simplify your decisions, and take intentional steps toward the life you want.

0:50Welcome to the Wealthy After 40 podcast. I'm excited to introduce you to our guest today. This is Jenny Smith. She is a board-certified health and wellness coach passionate about helping women over 40 find calm in the chaos of perimenopause. She specializes in simple evidence-based lifestyle strategies to help women reduce anxiety, improve mood, and feel more like themselves during this often confusing season of life. Through her coaching, podcast, and educational content, Jenny empowers women to take control of their health with practical tools that fit into their everyday lives. Jenny lives in Arizona with her husband, their two kids, and two adorable fur babies who make sure she gets her daily walks in.

1:35When she's not coaching, you'll likely find her talking on the phone with a good friend, hiking the desert trails, or wandering through a local farmer's market with a coffee in hand.

1:44Jenny Smith:Welcome to the podcast, Jenny. So glad to have you here. Thank you so much, J-Lane. I'm excited to be here. Yeah, I'm excited to dive into this. And I just want to say, if there are any men listening, you'll totally get something out of this podcast as well, especially and also if your wife is dealing with this. Hopefully you'll get a little more understanding. But we are going to be talking about the health and wealth connections. And I'm so excited to have Jenny share her thoughts around these areas that we're going to discuss. So the first one is, Jenny, you say your health is your greatest asset.

2:20And I know assets are like homes and not really a car, but our retirement savings, we think about that, but your health, everybody's individual health. Yeah. Share with us your thoughts on that. Yeah.

2:34Jenny Smith:Right out of high school, going to college, getting a good job, finding this job, working so many years, saving for retirement to hopefully enjoy that retirement. But oftentimes we're not focused or emphasizing on how we're caring for ourselves. to be able to enjoy and take that time to really enjoy retirement and do the things that we love to do. So thinking about, gosh, if I can retire, I want to travel and I want to spend some time with my grandkids, or I want to take care of my grandkids and be a big part of their lives and running around with them, kicking the ball. But so many times, if we don't take care of ourselves, we may not be in a position to do those things.

3:20Jenny Smith:So without our health, nothing else really matters. Yeah, it is so true. When I met my husband and got past that, I was very young when I met him. But into our 30s and I was evaluating the differences between my parents and his parents. And now my parents were 12 to 15 years older, but honestly health and the way they got around, moved around, it was so much younger. And so, yeah, it's so important to take care of our health. Moving into chronic disease, the cost of chronic disease or the cost of health problems and why prevention is important. I was on threads today and somebody's like, I saw people will invest in nothing but everything but their health.

4:05And it was so interesting that I was like, oh, we're jumping in with Jenny. And it's like recognizing the connection of some of these things, like what is the cost of disease or chronic disease and why is prevention so important? Yeah.

4:21Jenny Smith:So I think just in our human design and personality and how we are, many of us are reactive versus proactive. So we tend to address things when something happens. So let's say we get a diagnosis and it's like, oh, I better start taking care of myself now. when actually the symptoms that come up for us happen years and years before. So it's just snowballs into this until it gets to a point where you can't ignore it anymore. So I don't know the stats on how much Americans spend on medical care. It's a lot of money. And yet we tend to be the most sick. It's like we spend all this money towards medical care.

5:01Jenny Smith:I think it's one in 10 have diabetes and then five out of 10 have two chronic diseases associated with. So if we don't get a handle on our health and start addressing it, then it leads to more health problems down the line. I work with a lot of people who are taking care of loved ones who are sick, who can't get around, who are really struggling financially to be able to pay for their medications. There is a popular medication out there that is almost everyone I talk to who who has cholesterol issues takes it and it's very expensive. And it's a matter of the money that we work so hard for all of these years, we're putting it towards the cost of care to go to the doctors, to go to the specialist, to get the treatments, to pay for the medications.

5:49Jenny Smith:And then if you get to a point where you are not able to do a lot of things independently, then it's hiring caregivers. And then do we transition into assistant living, skilled nursing facility? All of those are incredibly expensive and the cost can just be astronomical. We should certainly prepare for that time of our lives because we never know what could happen to us where we end up in a situation where we need some more support and more in-home care or maybe out of the home care. But we should also certainly take the money and invest in our health now, whether it's going to the gym, eating healthier foods.

6:25Jenny Smith:I hear oftentimes like healthy foods are so much more expensive than the other stuff. And I was like, it's not because when you eat some of that other stuff, you tend to be hungrier and then you want more of that food. And it's designed to entice us and crave us to want more of that food. So you can certainly do healthier food on a budget. Investing in your health in that sense is taking care of your body and not putting it off. I'll do that someday or I'll join the gym when I have more free time or I'll go for a walk. And oftentimes it's five, 10 minutes, whatever you have in your day to make time for you adds up, makes a huge difference.

7:05Yeah. There's two things that I hear. I'm going to travel in retirement or I can really take care of my body in retirement because I'll have the time. And I know when you're working, it is so hard, but recognizing what you can do and getting some of those things in place before. I know everybody is, okay, what can you do to start getting ready for retirement? Jenny, what are a couple things people can do right now that are most impact? And I know this is generalizing and it could be very different, but I'm sure there's two or three things you can say. If you can do X, Y, and Z, you're going to at least set up, set yourself up even better.

7:46Would you say those are? As far as lifestyle habits? Yeah.

7:50Jenny Smith:Okay. Sleep is number one. sleep is number one, prioritize it. Don't put it off, do what you can to get good quality sleep. Just not getting in the habit of let's say staying up for hours, watching Netflix. And then you realize, Oh my gosh, I need to go to sleep. I have to get up for work tomorrow. Really taking the time to set your sleep up for success. And that could look like cutting off food at least two hours before bed, because when you eat close to bed, I hear all the time, especially with so many of my clients is they get home late, they're rushing and they're eating really quickly. And then they go to bed.

8:33So it's doing your best to try to eat at least two hours before bed,

8:40Jenny Smith:because when you eat so close to bedtime, your body spends time digesting food and you don't get that rest and repair. Your body's not getting that rest and repair that it needs because it's busy digesting the food. So our bodies are uniquely designed to care for us, but we have to give it the environment for it to operate in a way that's gonna take care of us. Our body is our, it's everything. If we don't have a healthy body, then it's like I said, if our health is out of whack and not great, then so many other things are just not as important. And we don't know that until - It's so bad. Everybody gets held to sleep.

9:18What is something else that they could maybe focus on? Yeah.

9:23Jenny Smith:So if they're dialed in on sleep or that's not somewhere that they want to start, I would say start with nutrition and how you're feeling your body. I think that's super important. I talk about protein all the time with my clients. Protein is so important to help regulate our blood sugar, keep us satiated, help us sustain our muscle that we have. specifically women after age 35 we start to lose muscle mass and we have to work harder to maintain it and to build it and so having the protein and eating enough protein is super important for that and really getting good quality protein making sure that you have enough of it on your plate I worked with a client she's like I had two hard-boiled eggs and a sausage and I thought that's 20 grams.

10:10Jenny Smith:We need more. People don't realize how much we need. So we at least need about 30 grams of protein, which would be like the size of your palm, a size of a deck of cards, making sure that is a focal point on your plate. Also fiber, getting enough fruits and vegetables that will give you the energy that you need to be able to check off the things on your to-do list. We have so many things to do. And then we come home from work and we're like, I'm just so tired. And then I have to make dinner or I have to eat dinner. And that's why I think having meals prepped, taking some time over the weekend to prep your food so that you do come home and you have healthy meals ready to go.

10:49Jenny Smith:Just put it on a plate. I always have a protein source prepped, non-starchy vegetables, a healthy fat, even starchy vegetables. I put it all on a plate and I heat it up on those nights where I don't have a lot of time. So there's ways to get nutritious meals in. You just have to take some time to prepare for those. But when you are sleeping well and you're rested and when you are fueling your body with what it needs, you have energy. You have energy to do things and it's only going to lead to better health.

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12:14Yeah, I love that. So you touched on meal prepping. So before we dive into that, I want to share what I did when I was working. I still do it now because thinking of meals is so difficult for me. I literally pick three meals a week. We have leftovers three more days. And then the one day off, we do either pizza, we do eat out once, or we do pancakes sometimes. And we just do that on our weekend. It's very easy for us. And that's been successful for me. And I think that's really finding out what you need to do. So let's talk about meal prepping, meal planning. like some tips and tricks and maybe somebody can find something here.

12:58Cause I know working, getting home at five or six, you literally don't want to cook. What are some ideas you'll have?

13:04Jenny Smith:Yeah. I like how you said pancakes because we have Brenner occasionally too. So looking for a day of the week that you can spend one or two days a week. So you're not in the kitchen for hours. I like to look at different recipes that I've been wanting to try. I like how you said, I only choose three meals and that gets us through the week. I think that's really helpful. It's harder when you have a bigger family. It's harder when you have younger kids because they don't want to eat a lot of what we want to eat. However, if you take the time to plan it and have the meals written down, then go to the store, you gather all the ingredients.

13:45Jenny Smith:And what I tend to do is I will prep my protein sources and chop up my veggies and either cook and bake them first so that I have them. And then that way I do mason jar salads all the time because that will keep them fresh for a really long time. And then I just kind of throw that in a bowl, top it with some protein, and then I have a balanced meal. You can cook potatoes ahead of time too, so you don't have to spend time cooking that. You can cook rice. Getting an instant pot, I think that's like a pressure cooker. So quick and easy, so many meals. And I use the computer all the time where I'll go, give me an Instapot recipe for lasagna.

14:25Jenny Smith:And they'll come up with 10 choices to choose from. Usually the top one's the best one and go from there. Having tools in the kitchen, an air fryer so you don't have to turn your oven on, that usually cooks things really quickly. I always buy frozen vegetables and I just pop them in the microwave. It's quick and easy to have the vegetable side. Also, if you don't like meal prepping, if you're just like the kitchen is not my place, I don't like it. If you have the extra funds and you have the money, and I don't know how this goes with some of the things that you talk about with retirement planning, but it's helpful to hire out and have somebody do that for you.

15:05Jenny Smith:There's a lot of companies that will meal prep now, healthier foods. They also accommodate diet restrictions, anything that you might need to stay away from, whether it's dairy or gluten or anything like that, you could find lots of companies that will do the meal prepping for you and save you time. Yeah, that is so smart. Yeah. Usually my perspective on quote spending money, it's not about if I can do it, it's where do you want to spend your money wisely? It's like recognizing where you really value spending your money because you may not want to spend time there. It doesn't work out. I think that's very important, but then knowing, okay, it means I'm going to work harder on the other side where I can save money.

15:45I think the trade-offs, which is a conversation I had today with a client, are so important. And so investing in your health, if that means hiring somebody to cook for you or bake for you, you can bulk, buy in bulk. That's also another thing.

15:59Jenny Smith:Thank you. I failed to mention that. Doubling recipes, freezing some for another time, soups freeze really well, just double tripling recipes and saving it for later. There are ways get the help. You can hire local college kids that are maybe in chef academy or something that needs a part-time job. They come in once a week and they help you chop vegetables or put your meals together. So all you have to do is throw it in the oven. Where there's a will, there's a way. It is. Some people just don't love to cook and maybe they need to be shown different ways or how to make it easier. I know over the years I've learned, oh my gosh, this is a much easier a way to do what I've been doing.

16:37And so really educating yourself, maybe taking a chef's class of some just to learn so that you can do it really super easy.

16:45Jenny Smith:Okay. So another thing to talk about, especially with most people who are working nine to fives, whether that's exactly the hours or not working corporate, missing work due to doctor's appointments costs time and money. It's those follow-ups that always get you right. You go in for the one thing and then they're like, okay, I need you to go this test and then follow up here and then this and this. Can you talk more about that? It's, yeah, it's missing work. It's not wanting to get behind or feeling like you're not doing your job because you have these health problems. It's just goes along the lines of what are we doing this for?

17:26Jenny Smith:And it's if we're, we're working nine to five and so many of us and I, so many of us are in a job that we don't like impact our health and how we're feeling and making sure that if you're having to miss work and you're ending up on disability and things like that, that's, that is so much time away from the things that you want to be doing. And I think it's important to look at your job. And this is something that I think is so hard for so many people because they're like, I've been in this job for so many years and I can't leave because I have to work up until this date because this is when I'm going to retire and get my pension.

18:06Jenny Smith:Really comparing it and looking at the pros and cons because if it's really taking a toll on your health, then is that job worth it to continue staying and what can you do in addition? And sometimes maybe it's even talking to your boss. I have a client right now who loves her job, but it has gotten so overwhelming because people quit and they're like, she'll do it. She'll take on this. She's been getting it done. And so oftentimes if you're doing it and you're getting it done, they think, oh, she can do this or he can do this. We'll just keep giving him this. So communicating with your work, communicating with your employer, letting them know I am overwhelmed.

18:48Jenny Smith:My health is taking a toll. I'm missing work because of stress. They say that the number one reason for emergency room visits is stress-related issues. I believe it. And I know that people who are listening to this podcast can certainly relate to that. So if you feel like you're in a position where you can't really talk to your employer, you must prioritize ways to reduce stress in your life, whether that's taking a break from your desk and going for a short walk, whether that's plugging into a meditation at night, whether it's taking five deep breaths when you're in a dreaded zoom meeting and you're bored to tears.

19:26Jenny Smith:Oh my gosh. Just take a deep breath. Just take a deep breath. Inhale peace. Exhale stress and worry. There's so many things. Getting outside in the sunshine is so healing. It's proven to help us ground and reduce stress in our body. So anything that we can implement that doesn't take a lot of time, that doesn't require a job change, can really help calm your mind and body. and so that you're not so stressed out that you burn out and you end up in the emergency room? Stress is huge. And sometimes stress is very quiet. I think the ones we're aware of, if we can control those, the other ones can benefit it as well.

20:08I know a lot of my listeners and even yours as well, you're looking at caring for your aging parents or you will be if you have not already. I was carrying, I was keeping everything in sync and working with all my siblings, we were doing it, but the stress really damaged my health. And I'm somebody who really takes care of myself. And so it's like recognizing stress can come in so many ways, be prepared for those areas that you can't control. Cause I'm not going to turn my parents over to somebody else, just keep my stress under whack. Right. So taking care of all of those other things.

20:43Jenny Smith:And also you mentioned something important. There are so many people who are caring for their aging parents and it is extremely stressful. It's really hard to see your parents like that and to have to manage appointments, manage their affairs. Even if you're not caring for aging parents and you are so overwhelmed at work or you have a lot on your plate, who can you ask and who can you go to for help? That's why it's if you come home and let's say you work in nine to five, then you have to go take your kid to their soccer game or the weekends you have plans for like you're taking care of parents and you're, I just have time to prep for myself.

21:24Jenny Smith:That's when you would ask for help and find out what are ways for somebody to come in and help you so that you can free up some of your time so you can do some things for you. I think it's so important to make time for the things that bring us joy and fill our cup and make us feel good. Yeah, it is so true. I currently have a girlfriend going through a situation and I'm like, you've got to remember to ask for help. And it's even if you can get an hour reprieve somewhere, right? Hopefully every day, but if not every day, as many days as you can. It is so helpful. Jenny, this has been such a good discussion.