Exercise does much more than strengthen your body—it can also improve your mood, reduce stress, and help you build meaningful social connections. In this episode of Retirement Made to Order, Lee Gale shares how regular physical activity became a powerful tool for managing stress and maintaining emotional well-being. Whether you enjoy the camaraderie of a gym, a walk through your neighborhood, or time outdoors with friends or your dog, Lee encourages viewers to find an activity they enjoy and make movement a rewarding part of everyday life after 50.
Lee Gale Gruen is a regular Podcast contributor for The Transitions Network. She is an actress, author, speaker, and blogger. She focuses on how retirees can customize their retirement to fit their own personalities, interests, and comfort level.
WEBSITE: https://leegalegruen.com
EMAIL: gowergulch@yahoo.com
BLOG: “Reinventing Yourself in Your Retirement Years”:https://leegalegruen.wordpress.com
BOOKS ON AMAZON.COM:
“Reinventing Yourself in Your Retirement Years: Find Joy, Excitement, and Purpose After You Retire” https://tinyurl.com/33x9vmcx
“Adventures with Dad: A Father and Daughter’s Journey Through a Senior Acting Class” https://tinyurl.com/5d3yycjw
Click to see Full Transcript
Lee Gale Gruen (00:00.984)
Hello, welcome or welcome back to my podcast Retirement Made to Order. We all know or have heard or suspect that exercise is good for us. It keeps you fit, toned, firm. I started exercising years ago at a gym because I had lower back pain. Boy has it helped with that. But I found a hidden benefit in the
It helps with my stress level and when I’m feeling down. I’m a type A personality and always on the go, doing lots of things, trying new stuff. However, even if you’re a type B, we all have stress. It’s life’s little gift to us for the privilege of being alive. So think about enrolling in a gym. Start out slowly, doing what you can.
It’s not a contest. There are no winners and losers. You don’t have to beat that person next to you doing their Jack Lalane impression. Exercise for me seems to work best in a group situation. I guess I like to be among fellow sufferers. That’s why I go to a gym. Also, the music in the background helps to motivate me.
If it’s too expensive to join a gym or you don’t like the regimen, then get outdoors and start walking. That doesn’t cost anything. Or do your power walk at your local mall. It’s safe, interesting, and free with air conditioning thrown in at no extra charge. Replicate the musical accompaniment of a gym by listening through earbuds.
On your favorite technology device. It’s too boring, you say? Find some friends to walk with. You can socialize as you go. I have a group of friends who walk twice a week at the beach. No friends, you say? Check out meetup.com, M-E-E-T-U-P.com, and find a group of walkers in your area.
Lee Gale Gruen (02:26.07)
Many of them walk at the local malls. What about your dog? It needs walking and loves it most when it’s you on the other end of the leash. When did dog walker become a profession? Why aren’t you walking blondie or Milo or Boo Boo yourself? Think of it as dog owner bonding, with exercise thrown in as a bonus.
When I had a dog and walked her in my neighborhood, I encountered neighbors I had never met before, all walking their pooches. As an aside, dogs sniffing each other is also a perfect icebreaker for their owners to get to know one another. If you don’t have a dog, one sniffing your crotch is an opportunity to start a conversation with its human.
You just might make a new friend. Then you could walk together and get some conditioning and socializing. You can’t miss your daily daytime dose of well, insert your favorite soap opera here. Record it and watch it in the evening. Use the daylight hours to be out there exchanging your stress and depression.
For some rays and a physical tune-up. I’m Le Gail Gruen. I hope you’ll visit me again here on my podcast, Retirement Made to Order, hosted by the Transitions Network. I will be posting new podcasts each week. Feel free to contact me if you want to comment on any of my podcasts.
You’ll find my email address in the information that follows or in the description section at the beginning of each of my podcasts, along with links to my website, my blog, and my two books available on Amazon.com. Goodbye for now.