Your early retirement years matter most. How to balance health, spending and enjoyment while you still can

That reality may come as a shock for many. Your investments may keep growing in retirement, and your income may remain stable. But your most active, flexible and energetic years — often called the “go-go” years — are limited by biology, not money.

Through this lens, retirement isn’t only about finances: It’s also about timing. Making thoughtful choices early in retirement can help you enjoy the years when you’re healthiest, most mobile and most able to say yes to new experiences.

With that in mind, here are ways to adjust your retirement plan to make the most of those early years — while still protecting your long-term security.

Prioritize experiences early

In retirement, every spending choice comes with a trade-off. Money used for one thing — whether that’s travel, family time or personal interests — usually means less available funds to put toward something else in the future.

That’s why many retirees choose to prioritize experiences over possessions. Physical activity tends to be easier and more enjoyable earlier on while you’re more mobile. As time passes, some of these opportunities naturally become harder to pursue.

Research conducted by Interac shows that spending money on experiences often brings longer-lasting happiness and satisfaction (68%) compared with buying material items (58%) (2).

By planning for more travel, gatherings and meaningful activities early in retirement, you can make better use of your most active years without giving up long-term financial stability. It’s not about spending recklessly, but rather about spending intentionally.

Optimize for life, not your bank balance

A lot of retirement advice focuses on stretching every dollar, cutting costs and delaying spending or collecting government benefits or investment returns for as long as possible. While that can protect your finances, it can also push enjoyment too far into the future.

For example, you can defer collecting your Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS) until age 70 to receive the maximum benefit (3). For each month you delay your OAS past age 65, your pension amount increases by 0.6% — or 7.2% each year — making your payments 36% higher than they would be if you collect at 65 (4). However, while that strategy can make sense on paper, it can come at a cost if waiting means missing out on your healthiest, most flexible years.

As author Bill Perkins argues in his book Die With Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life: “People who save tend to save too much for too late in their lives. They are depriving themselves now just to care for a much, much older future self — a future self that may never live long enough to enjoy that money (5)."

The idea isn’t to stop saving or ignore risk — it’s to recognize that time and health are limited resources just like your money.

A more balanced approach aims to protect long-term security while allowing room for meaningful moments earlier in retirement.

Invest in healthcare

You can’t stop aging, but you can influence how well you age. Investing in your health early in retirement can help extend the years you’re active, independent and able to indulge in life.

According to Health Canada, regular exercise is one of the most effective tools for maintaining health (6). Strength training, walking and balance exercises can reduce the risk of injury, falls and chronic illness. Even modest, consistent activity has been linked to better long-term health outcomes.

Your diet matters, too. Eating well can help manage blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar, which lowers the risk of serious health issues later in life (7). Small changes — like cooking more at home or focusing on consuming whole foods — can have a significant effect over time.