Thanks for info. I'm a fan of Huberman podcasts and have watched many over last couple of years.
Good to hear that.
Just to hit on some of your insights:
Social - I tend to be quite socialble but only 1 on 1 or small groups. Large groups exhaust me and cause anxiety (someone coined the term "intimate extrovert"). In fact I probably reach out to friends and family to get together equal to more than they reach out to me. Don't think this is much an issue, but I am happiest with frequent social time (like 2-3x a week meet ups with friends and family seems about my sweet spot for socialization).
Nice. Looks like things are going well here.
Health - Is say I'm ok here,, I sleep well, eat a moderately healthy diet, and unless work issues arise I generally try to maintain a lifestyle to provide low stress daily existance when in my control as I'm prone to anxiety easily, usually do to being forced to do too much in too short a timeframe. I don't run a good "2 minute drill" to use a football analogy. I do at least 1-2 hrs. of "on my feet" physical chores and projects each day. Also while I've been out of work, I've been helping with home improvement related projects for some elderly family members, so at least a few times a week I have scheduled time to go over to their houses to help them out with things. I could be do more cardio exercise (which I hate doing) and strength training seems to be very inconsistent.
Sounds like you've already got a strong sense of self awareness and confidence built up over the years, while understanding the best environments that you flourish in.
Because cardio seems less enjoyable for you, one potential implication is that, since you're unlikely to be doing this habitually, you may gain tangible benefits from doing more of it.
Depending on your invididual circumstances, it may be useful to add another reason to do cardio exercise:
How does exercise help ease anxiety?
- Engaging in exercise diverts you from the very thing you are anxious about.
- Moving your body decreases muscle tension, lowering the body’s contribution to feeling anxious.
- Getting your heart rate up changes brain chemistry, increasing the availability of important anti-anxiety neurochemicals, including serotonin, gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and endocannabinoids.
- Exercise activates frontal regions of the brain responsible for executive function, which helps control the amygdala, our reacting system to real or imagined threats to our survival.
- Exercising regularly builds up resources that bolster resilience against stormy emotions.
Millions of Americans report having an anxiety disorder. Evidence shows engaging in any sort of physical activity is one of the best ways to ease symptoms of anxiety. Regular activity is best, but ...
www.health.harvard.edu
Regular cardio can also lower your blood pressure:
A recent study comprising a decade’s worth of datasets found that anyone can lower their BP with regular aerobic exercise, whether their BP is normal, or they’re prehypertensive or hypertensive.
Examples of cardio exercise to lower blood pressure include:
Cycling
Running
Walking
Hiking
Rowing
Shadowboxing
Dance Cardio
Swimming
The American Heart Association recommends getting at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity each week. But if you’re brand new to exercising, you’ll want to slowly build up to that goal, rather than immediately diving into hours of exercise at once.
If you want to lower your blood pressure, exercise should be part of your plan. Experts explain the best exercises to lower blood pressure.
www.onepeloton.com
The link between anxiety, blood pressure, cardio and your original question, which seems to relate to languishing, may not be straightforward at first glance. That said, there is evidence to link them together in more indirect ways. To put it simply:
More cardio -> better health, less anxiety -> greater energy and openness -> more capacity to explore new ideas and try out new things.
Other forms of movement and exercise, such as resistance training, stretching, massage, etc (depending on what suits your personal circumstances) will complete the overall training package.
Purpose / hobbies - For hobbies, it seems over the course of my life I have a 10 year shelf life on passion for a hobby. Then I lose passion for it and move on to something new that I get very passionate /excited about. I've juggled maybe 2-3 hobbies earlier in life that I was really into, but I'd say the last 2-3 years, I haven't really found a new passion just yet. So in retirement I'm thinking that I need to schedule at least 1-2 times a week (maybe 1/2 day each?) to volunteer or work part time for something I'm passionate about. Just don't know specifically at this time. For work, what I have experience at and what I'm good at, not really very enjoyable and I wouldn't want to do it as a 1099 or LLC post-retirement. Try to find hobbies that my wife and I both enjoy. Travel is definitely our greatest passion and planning trips really is fun for me, I'll spend countless hours over months preparing. Costs and ability to get leave from work throw a wrench into this as a regular thing. With good health in early retirement, I'd love to travel with my wife at least 3-4 times a year (5-10 day vacays each time) to somewhere interesting and new. Perhaps doing some mission work could kill 2 birds with one stone here?
Solid reflections. Seems like you'll have a lot of time to consider and plan some more adventures and missions or more meaningful paid work in the coming years. If you're about to start a new job, the coming weeks may give you an opportunity to try something out before you get back into work mode.
This site shows some examples of how travelling and a Christian mission could be combined:
Reach tens of thousands of Christian volunteers through Mission Finder. We offer free and paid advertising to Mission Organizations.
missionfinder.org
^ I have no affiliation with this site, just sharing something I found.
Again health and ability to do this in 10-15 years would be the primary roadblock.
This is a LONG time frame to look ahead and plan for. With that in mind, I'll come back to the point about health, because even if you find some activities now, your abilities, motivations, and opportunities may change after a decade.
Above all,
enhancing and maintaining a reasonable level of wellbeing will be the foundation underlying all other future pursuits. If you can prioritise your physical health, mental fitness, and daily energy on a consistent basis, you'll be able to work out the things to do when the time is right (i.e. when you can start taking concrete action steps).
I hope these post are useful for inspiring some ideas for you. All the best.
