Get Your Retirement Portfolio in Fighting Shape

Wake up calls are never pleasant, but this one was particularly harsh: Over the course of just nine trading days in late January and early February, U.S. stocks dropped 10% as investors fretted over a government report showing higher than expected wage inflation. The plunge wiped out stock market gains for the year and chalked up one of the swiftest corrections in recent decades.

Investors tried to settle back into the dream world that dominated recent years, where stocks kept hitting new highs, volatility was at record lows and there was barely a hint of inflation. But the alarm bells kept ringing. In late March, fears of a trade war between the U.S. and China sent stocks skidding again. And while stocks plunged, the bonds that form the core of many retirees' portfolios didn't live up to their safe-haven reputation. The Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond index fell sharply during the stock market downturn and ended the first quarter down 1.5%.

Are you awake yet? Good. It's time to get up and whip your portfolio into shape for the challenges to come, which may include more wild market swings, higher inflation and lower returns.

That doesn't mean you should abandon your thoughtfully constructed investment mix and yank money out of stocks. But it does mean that you should