How do I protect my retirement savings from a market crash?

For the portion of your savings you can't afford to lose, the tradeoff is growth potential versus protection. The stock market offers higher long-term growth but can drop right when you need the money. A protected-floor strategy takes the opposite side: it shields that slice of your savings from market losses, grows tax-deferred, and can provide a guaranteed income stream you can't outlive. This isn't about moving your investments or leaving your advisor - if you like what you're doing for growth, keep it. This is the protected floor that sits underneath it, doing the one thing market money can't: guaranteeing you won't run out. The tradeoff that makes those guarantees possible is a commitment period - commonly 10 years - during which pulling the money out early triggers surrender charges. That's what makes it a fit for money you've deliberately set aside for retirement and genuinely won't touch, and a poor fit for an emergency fund or anything you might need in the next several years.