Today’s post is a guest post from fellow blogger Joseph Chiweshe, a physician and blogger who shares about the connections between health and personal finance.

The connection of our health and finances is undeniable. They provide the basis for the freedom and ability to do the things we love in our day to day lives, and if either is out of balance it seems like that’s all your mind is preoccupied with.

There are three mindsets in which, if you are intentional in both your money and your health, will help assure that both your health and your money are running smoothly. Today I’ll talk about those three mindsets and how you can utilize them to be physically and financially fit.

Being Conscientious

How conscientious would you say you are? Conscientious in the sense that you consider yourself to be more often than not, deliberate or intentional in both your thoughts and your actions. It is important to be organized and deliberate in activities that lead to good health and good finances. The more conscientious you are the more organized you will be with your budget and your health. 30 minutes is a great place to start being deliberate with small actions that will build with consistency.

• Be deliberate to get 30 minutes of moderate aerobic activity at least 5 days per week and at least 2 days a week of muscle-strengthening.
• Meet yourself where you are at, it can be a simple 30 min walk, in your house, around the block, in your building, wherever is most comfortable for you becuase it all adds up.
• Use those 30 minutes of activity to engage in developing your future time perspective and retirement goal clarity.
• Exercise helps you think more clearly and effectively.

Future Time Perspective

How about being future oriented? Do you set aside time to think about your future time perspective? This encompasses your hopes and dreams for your financial health and your personal health. As much of life is an art of hope, my hope for you is that you set aside a portion of your day to be future oriented in order to set realistic goals, achieve them, and set the next one in line.

• Become actionable in your hopes and plans for your future, both are equally important.
• Stretch yourself with your future state for 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 years from now.
• That’s 5 time spans for the 5 days per week you engage in aerobic activity.

Retirement Goal Clarity

And thirdly, how defined is your retirement goal clarity?  Whether you are fresh out of college or counting down the last few months, we all know at some point, retirement will come but few of us could articulate clearly what that goal is and looks like.

A common response of what people hope to do in retirement is usually get some rest and relaxation and travel, both very wonderful things. If retirement is so wonderful, then why is it that there are estimates from studies that as many of 40% of retirees’ experience clinical depression, and six out of ten admit to a decline in health.

Traveling and staying active are great goals, but are goals that are much more likely to materialize if you have clarity around what they will look like and how you will achieve those goals. What places do you plan to visit, what would those visits cost in today’s dollars and with inflation, how will you pay for those trips (building frequent flier miles, setting aside a travel fund) are all part of the process.

If you have a plan for your financial health and physical health, the chances of continuing to enjoy a high quality of life for years to come are greatly increased. So make sure to stay invested in both your finances and your physical health by being conscientious, future oriented, with clear goals.

Bio:

Joseph Chiweshe, MD, MPH is a Physician in Preventive Medicine and founder at www.medschoolfinancial.com; a site on the business of health and personal finance, connect with him @ChiwesheMD and by signing up for the newsletter.  

 

*Image Credit: Neff Conner via Flickr