We spend decades preparing for retirement, focusing on superannuation balances, investments, and whether we will have enough financially to stop working and enjoy life. But there is another part of retirement planning that is rarely discussed.

Our health.

For many people, particularly women navigating the midlife transition, the years leading up to retirement are also the years when significant changes begin to happen in the body. Energy shifts, metabolic health changes, cardiovascular risk increases, and menopause can affect both quality of life and the ability to remain in the workforce.

Financial capital helps fund retirement. Health capital determines how much of that life we are actually able to live.

In this article, I explore why health should be considered a core part of retirement planning, and why building that foundation during midlife may be one of the most important investments we can make for the years ahead.