Investments and insurance go together like exercise and nutrition.

Let us consider the analogy of losing 20 pounds. You start working out 7 days a week. You’re killing it. Improving your strength, burning 1000 calories per day.

The problem: you’re not losing any weight. That’s because you are so hungry after working out every morning that you are ravenously devouring half your snack cabinet every day. You’re in a dreaded cycle known as calorie surplus. You’ve done everything you can to put in the work and are not getting the results you hoped for. Why? Because exercise is only half the battle.

At least one monthly edition of Men’s Health magazine is going to tease some iteration of the same headline: “Six-pack abs are not made in the gym. They are made in the kitchen.”

But imagine you took that at face value. Instead of doing any exercise, you over-indexed on nutrition. You’re in a calorie deficit, but you’re not gaining any muscle. This might work to lose the weight quickly, but the problem with this approach is that it doesn’t last. The mere thought of the mental devotion to sticking to this new dieting lifestyle is enough to drive people back to overconsumption. And that’s precisely why diets are temporary.

So, what’s the right approach to keep you lean and in shape?

Well, we all know this—it’s diet AND exercise. Even within those two foundational principles, we see a wide range of strategies.

HEALTH

And so it’s the same with income protection planning.

WEALTH

• Pillar: Investments
  • Foundation: Liquify assets to cover the bills for an identifiable period of time.
  • Strategies: high-yield savings account, reposition investments to dividend/bond ladder, home equity line of credit, drain retirement accounts (using hardship rule).

• Pillar: Insurance
  • Foundation: Use insurance policies to replace income.
  • Strategies: accelerate life insurance benefits, cash value from life insurance, sell/assign life insurance benefit to a third party, long-term care indemnity benefit, critical illness lump sum, disability insurance.

Blend these strategies like a smoothie and enjoy!

But it’s not quite that simple. Many financial advisors and fitness influencers lead with the same thing—growth. It’s tantalizing. It’s attractive. People want it. Investments and muscle growth both serve the ego, certainly. But they also serve an important purpose—longevity.

If you have more money, you can live your financial lifestyle for longer. And if you have more muscle, studies clearly show that you can live your physical lifestyle for longer.

Many people enjoy the act of working out just like they enjoy the act of investing, perhaps only second to the rewards earned from these ritual habits. In a word, both are about “gainz.” But the gainz are not forever. Investment gainz can be wiped out with the wrong financial habits, just like exercise gainz can be offset by poor eating habits.

The reality is that people want insurance about as bad as they want their daily dose of veggies. Just like proper nutrition fuels your body for activity, income is what provides ongoing investment capital. If you stop eating—or only eat junk food and sweets—you are no longer providing your body with the building blocks it needs to perform in the gym. That means there will be a noticeable backslide in your progress. You will get weaker as your body begins to burn your muscle to maintain metabolic function.

Similarly, a few years with lost income not only interrupts your investment progress, but you also still must fund certain parts of your lifestyle, and that means depleting your retirement account to make ends meet. DI is foundational to a broader financial plan. It replaces income, which means you get to maintain your lifestyle (metabolic function) in addition to funding your investment strategy (muscle growth). An inclusive approach to both health and wealth is required. A disciplined exercise routine, clean nutrition, a stable investment portfolio, and a disability income plan are going to keep your clients healthy, wealthy, and wise.