As we age, two things inevitably play on our minds: health and wealth. How can we keep illness at bay and will we have enough money to retire comfortably?
Standard Life are experts at helping people plan their financial futures, and Cancer Research UK are dedicated to saving lives by focusing on preventing, diagnosing and treating cancer. This year the two are coming together, with Standard Life the headline partner of Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life, which raises funds for research into this disease which affects so many of us.
Whether you’re planning on running in Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life, wondering how your retirement plans are shaping up, or simply wanting to take more care of yourself in midlife, here are a few top tips:
1. Give yourself a money MOT
Go online and complete Standard Life’s brilliant Financial Health Check Tool to get a fresh insight into your finances and tips for how to improve them.
It covers everything from everyday money to savings, investments and retirement – and will help you reappraise your finances, and work out if you’re in good shape for the future.
Check what your financial future looks like with Standard Life’s Financial Health Check Tool
2. Break those bad habits … and pick up some new ones
When we’re young we often feel immortal, and assume that bad habits like smoking and drinking too much won’t harm us.
But as we reach midlife, and the aches and pains start to set in, we realise just how important good health is. So, as smoking and drinking alcohol can cause cancer, strokes, heart disease and much, much more, cut down and try to say goodbye to them for good.
It’s wise to think about prevention. Learn more about the symptoms of cancer – have a look at Cancer Research UK’s useful list here – so you can spot any changes to your body fast, and get them checked out.
3. Review your investments
If you have money in savings accounts, check to see if you are taking advantage of the best interest rates, if not, you may want to consider moving your money elsewhere.
If you have stocks and shares, be aware that the market can go up as well as down, so make sure that you are happy with the level of risk associated with your investment choice.
4. Find your fitness passion
Staying physically active can help keep you healthy. Not only does it improve your mood, it can reduce your risk of major illnesses, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and cancer.
Standard Life’s Gail Izat, second right, and friends at a Cancer Research UK Race for Life
And it can lower your risk of early death by up to 30pc (1). So find something you love – why not try pilates, swimming, geocaching or even paddleboarding?
5. Improve your pension plan
Track down any ‘lost’ pensions you have – if you can’t remember, Standard Life’s partner Raindrop has a free lost pension finding service you can use – click here to try it.
And if you’ve got a workplace pension, your employers will pay a minimum of 3% of your qualifying earnings, but it’s worth asking if they’ll pay more as this could help increase its value. Employees can often pay in more too, so check this as well.
6. Keep your brain active
Doing new activities and learning new things helps keep your brain active. Studies show that this might help or even delay the onset of dementia as well as improving your overall well-being.
Little changes can make a big difference. So start that fitness class you always wanted to, try new recipes or do puzzles and read books before bed.
Keeping your brain active makes a huge difference, so read a book or do a crossword puzzle
7. Bring your pensions together
Bringing all your pensions together means you can easily see how they’re performing and helps you cut down on admin. Combining pensions won’t be right for everyone, but it’s worth checking if it’s right for you.
Standard Life can put them all into one plan free of charge – click here to find out how – and you’ll be able to start, stop or change your payments at any time while managing them online or in their app.
(1) Benefits of exercise – NHS
Sounding the horn to begin the Race for Life in her native Edinburgh this June will be an incredibly special moment for Gail Izat.
Because in the past six years, the 55-year-old has beaten cancer not once but twice, so she really understands the importance of raising money to fund vital research.
And she also understands the camaraderie Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life fosters amongst those taking part.
‘Wonderful support’: Gail Izat says attending Races for Life boosts her morale
‘I’ve come through cancer twice thanks to life-saving treatment,’ says Gail, managing director of Standard Life.
‘As I recovered, I found events like Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life offered a chance to meet people whose lives have also been touched by cancer.
‘It offered a wonderful support and a sense of community.’
Keen runner Gail was diagnosed with breast cancer in summer 2019 after noticing changes to her breast.
She remembers: ‘I was stunned. I couldn’t believe I had cancer. I decided just to go and do my afternoon meetings – I knew that if I phoned my husband to tell him what was going on I’d have to face it too.’
That night, she told him and her cancer journey really began: surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy followed.
By April 2020 her ordeal was over – but in December 2022, a mammogram revealed the worst: it was back. More surgery and chemo followed.
‘But I was lucky,’ she says. ‘They’d caught the cancer early and I got through it thanks to the amazing support I had from my family and my Standard Life colleagues.’
Being a member of the cancer survivors’ club has taught her an important life lesson: ‘It’s important to live for the moment but also to think of the future.
‘I feel passionate about Standard Life’s work as we make a positive difference. We support people to think about how they can be kind to their future selves by pension planning and through long term savings.’
It’s time to Race for Life!
Gather your friends and lace up your trainers…it’s time to Race for Life!
This glorious life-affirming event run by Cancer Research UK is now in its 32nd year and being celebrated in towns and cities throughout the UK all summer.
Since it started, over 10m people have run, jogged and walked the 3k, 5k or 10k course, or completed the Pretty Muddy obstacle course, raising millions for vital research.
Life-affirming event: Race for Life is in its 32nd year and more than 10m of us have run it
This research has helped save over a million lives from cancer in the UK since the mid-1980s* and helped develop over half the world’s essential cancer drugs
It contributed to the HPV vaccine, which is expected to prevent 90pc of cervical cancers in the UK, and the hormone therapy abiraterone that gives men with advanced prostate cancer more time with their friends and family.
And many, many more.
Thanks to Race for Life, more Brits than ever get to enjoy a healthy retirement…and that’s why the fantastic event is being sponsored by retirement savings and income experts Standard Life.
CEO Andy Curran explains: ‘Over the past 200 years, millions of customers have trusted Standard Life to look after their pension and retirement needs, and we know that as we get older, physical health is as important as financial health.
Race for Life, which is sponsored by Standard Life, raises millions for Cancer Research UK
‘By continuing our sponsorship of Race for Life, we feel that we can work towards a future where people live longer healthier lives, free of cancer.’
So get your pals together, get fundraising and get entering!
*cruk.org/millionlives
Provided by Phoenix Life Limited, trading as Standard Life. For full details, visit standardlife.co.uk. For new and existing customers. Combining pensions won’t be right for everyone. Money invested is at risk.’
