HEALTH SPEND

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Your health is important. Physical ability is a foundational element of many of life’s greatest moments.

Going for a hike, strolling along the beach, exploring a new city, and speeding to your next terminal/gate all require you to be able to walk quickly and effectively.

Driving to visit family/friends, visiting a national park, and flying in a plane to see another country will require you to be able to sit for protracted periods.

In many cases, life requires physical effort. These activities may seem easy or insignificant to a young person who can accomplish any of these tasks without thought.

This is the danger though. Without intentional effort and focus, physical wellness can slowly fall away (“Everything Compounds”) over time. What you don’t track and maintain can dissipate or even disappear altogether.

Unfortunately, it is easy to be preoccupied or distracted by other parts of life. Many people entirely ignore physical well-being, taking for granted the physical ability to do anything they choose to do. We often do not take notice of our capacity to use the mind and body until we are limited in doing so.

Neglecting your health can be detrimental. Any amount of money cannot save you if your health deteriorates and keeps you from fulfilling the dreams you had for retirement.

This means that any amount of money to maintain your physical well-being and an active lifestyle is probably worth it.

Being in good health pairs perfectly with being in good financial condition.

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Framework

Healthcare costs will always be on an upward trajectory. From a purely financial perspective, any lack of physical well-being in the present could be extremely costly in the future.

Overall, it is estimated that healthcare costs will increase 5.1% per year for the next decade.

Is it possible for relatively small, incremental expenses (e.g., a gym membership, buying healthy food, purchasing exercise equipment) now to decrease the likelihood of incurring any large, healthcare-related expenses (e.g., surgeries, prescriptions, etc.) later in life?

Spending on your health now goes beyond money. It will require a good bit of time and dedication too. There is no guarantee it will be easy, just the opposite in fact.

I recently watched a clip of Chris Pratt discussing a fitness transformation for a role in a movie. Pratt went from overweight, lovable Andy Dwyer on Parks and Recreation to a shredded Navy Seal in The Terminal List.

His explanation of life after a fitness transformation was stunningly simple. “Eating each day was fun but the times between I felt like crap. Now, eating is boring, but in the time between I feel great.” (watch the full Youtube clip here)

All health/wellness related commitments are similar. Eating will be mostly boring, working out will be mostly difficult, and prioritizing wellness will be demanding. The rest of the time throughout each day can be more productive and rewarding.

The small deposit or investment today may not be fun, but the entirety of your life is in the balance. The rest of life can be fun and fulfilling.

Reasons for Health Spending

1 - Increasing productivity in your everyday life

It should come as no surprise that the healthiest people also seem to be the most productive people. When you are in control of your body, it becomes easier to stay in control of other areas of life.

It is difficult to describe the focus and mental clarity that comes from a clean, healthy lifestyle. The long list of benefits are often cited, but most people never get the chance to experience any of them.

Many large corporations create incentives and programs for employees to improve health. Do corporations typically spend money without an ROI? Healthy employees are an asset to a company so the executives are willing to spend actual dollars to incentivize the employees to go for walks or eat healthier meals.

If corporations are willing to spend money on behalf of their employees, you should be willing to spend money on your own behalf!

Good health is inextricably tied to productivity. Healthy habits are a flywheel that make the rest of life easier, more productive, and more enjoyable.

2 - Improving (and possibly extending) time with family and friends

Each day with family and friends is a blessing.

Instead of sedentary visits, imagine a set of circumstances where you are able to adventure through life with those closest to you. There might be hikes and vacations, spontaneous errands, and simply fun activities where you are able to relish the time spent together.

In a way, prioritizing your own health is choosing to prioritize your family.

When you are unhealthy, especially in the later stages of life, undo stress is created for not only you but your family too. Your deteriorating health can quickly create an undue burden for your family.

In taking care of your mind and your body, you prioritize the future. As you choose to prioritize the future, you will improve and possibly extend the time you spend with your family and friends.

3 - Decreasing long-term health care costs

A healthy lifestyle can go a long way in reducing expensive care.

There are medications/prescriptions that can quickly wipe out extensive savings. Excessive visits to the doctor or an extended hospitalization are a drain on your nest egg.

Sometimes, the hospital bills or the associated costs can be just as detrimental as the hospital stay or illness itself.

It is widely accepted that taking preventative measures can drastically decrease your overall risk for a number of expensive, critical illnesses.

4 - Avoiding or reducing the risk for disease

Your genetic makeup is clearly important, and there is a degree of luck when it comes to contracting many of the debilitating illnesses/diseases.

The good and simultaneously bad news - there are elements within your control. Your choices and lifestyle are impactful when it comes to the probability of contracting/encountering certain diseases. Your habits today will have an effect on your long-term health.

The specific cause may vary. Too little activity? Too much food? Not enough sunshine? An excessive amount of stress?

The prudent person does everything within their power to press any advantage and minimize any risks. Investing in your health today means that you are proactively fighting any difficulty or disease you might encounter in the future.

5 - Steering clear of fatigue and regret

Although we do not typically gauge health through any side effects we experience, there are admittedly detrimental effects in living an unhealthy lifestyle.

The effects of poor health can be readily apparent. You may experience increased fatigue, be irritable, and have a wistful disposition. Any zest for life is entirely absent, and you are emotionally and physically exhausted.

Everyone would avoid these traits/characteristics if possible. It would be a no-brainer.

Now, imagine that you achieve financial success in every way. Your retirement looks as though it should completely surpass any of your prior expectations.

It seems as though you’ll travel more, be able to spend more, and generally do anything you would like to do with little or no concern about money.

This wonderful outcome seems to be inevitable, but then you begin to physically break down. Your years of not prioritizing your health finally catch up to you. None or few of your dreams are realized. Your savings are used for up, not for travel but for healthcare costs.

In this scenario, the regret you would likely experience would be overbearing.

Daniel Pink discusses how regret affects us in his book The Power of Regret: How Looking Back Moves Us Forward. His main thesis is centered around aggregating moments of regret and how those events/times feel in hindsight.

By utilizing backcasting, it becomes clear the scenario about finances and health could create immense regret.

You’ll be better off avoiding any regret entirely and prioritizing your health now. Your future self will thank you for ensuring you’ll be able to enjoy all that you have hoped for and dreamed about.

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TL;DR

Your health will prove to be just as important as your financial condition.

A large nest egg and plentiful income in retirement is great, but it can be fully enjoyed when accompanied by a healthy retiree.

Investing in your health isn’t easy, but it could be the best effort, time, and money you’ll ever spend.

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What do you do to prioritize your health? What spending has been most useful in allowing you to do so?

Check out Dan Go on LinkedIn for some great content/thoughts about health.