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As couples plan for retirement, there is a helpful checklist they ought to consult to make sure they have enough money to maintain their accustomed lifestyle after they quit working.

By Richard Satran, TODAY contributor

Its the impossible dream to many people: coming up with enough money to retire well. But Fidelity investments has come up with a new strategy to figure out if you are saving enough and not just making it a race to The Number.

The Number, of course, is the total you need to assure an adequate retirement. For some of us its like those medical charts telling you the optimal weight for your height. Great, but how do I get there?

For the savings-challenged, Fidelitys Number is still daunting: You will need to have saved eight times your final salary by age 67 if you want to maintain a lifestyle similar to the one you have had while working, the company's planners figure. But Fidelity says its easier to get to the peak if you think of it as a series of manageable milestones through life.

To reach the 8x altitude, Fidelity says, here are check-down markers for getting to the golden peak at the right time:

Seems easier than climbing to the 8x level all at once, right? Thats the idea. If you follow the rule of thumb, your savings along with Social Security will likely deliver 85 percent of your ending salary until you reach age 92.

These savings targets offer a rule of thumb to help employees get engaged in retirement planning by making it simpler and more achievable, said James M. MacDonald, president of workplace investing at Fidelity Investments.

Fidelity admits the rule of thumb might not work in all situations. But it offers a plan for millennials, gen-Xers and baby boomers increasingly skeptical that they will ever be able to retire.

Excerpt from:
Retirement made easy: Here's the magic number