Targets a stripped-down number by assuming a minimal, deliberately frugal budget — often just covering essentials. That gets you to financial independence with a smaller portfolio, at the cost of less room to absorb an unexpected expense or a bad market stretch early in retirement.

🇵🇹 A realistic lean budget varies a lot within Portugal — living in Lisbon or Porto typically costs more than double what it does in the interior, so the lean number that makes sense depends heavily on where you plan to live once financially independent.