The Aging Well Podcast

What if optimism isn't simply a personality trait, but a meaningful component of healthy aging? As we grow older, we inevitably encounter challenges that can test our physical health, emotional resilience, relationships, and sense of purpose. Yet research increasingly suggests that how we think about aging—and how we respond to life's challenges—may influence how well we actually age. In this episode of The Aging Well Podcast, Dr. Jeff Armstrong talks with bestselling author John Trauth about the relationship between optimism, healthy habits, resilience, and longevity. Drawing from his new book, Maintaining Optimism While Aging: How to Live Happily Ever After and Make Your Ever After Last Even Longer, John makes the case that a consciously cultivated positive mindset can become an important part of an individual's approach to health and longevity. They explore what optimism really means, how our beliefs about aging can shape our behavior and potentially our health, and why maintaining a positive outlook doesn't mean ignoring the very real challenges that accompany getting older. They also discuss the idea of creating your own personal "Blue Zone" by building daily habits and an environment that support vitality and well-being. Learn more at https://johntrauth.com/ Please, support The Aging Well Podcast by hitting the ‘like’ button, subscribing/following the podcast, sharing with a friend, and…. Tip Jar! All donations support this podcast to keep it going. https://paypal.me/theagingwellpodcast BUY the products you need to… age well from our trusted affiliates and support the mission of The Aging Well Podcast. (We receive commission on these purchases. Thank you.) The Aging Well Podcast merchandise | Show how you are aging well | Use the promo code AGING WELL for free shipping on orders over $75 | https://theagingwellpodcast-shop.fourthwall.com/promo/AGINGWELL Auro Wellness | Glutaryl—Antioxidant spray that delivers high doses of glutathione (“Master Antioxidant”) and the new Copper Tripeptide (GHK-Cu) | 10% off Code: AGINGWELL at https://aurowellness.com/agingwellpodcast Nutritional Biochemical Inc. (NBI) | Trusted supplement. NBI stands 100% behind the quality of their formulations and the science on which they’re based. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://shop.nbihealth.com/agingwell Jigsaw Health | Trusted supplements. “It’s fun to feel good.” | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://bit.ly/4ks3Y0O Berkeley Life | Optimize nitric oxide levels | Purchase your starter kit at a 15% discount | Use the promo code: AGINGWELL15 | https://berkeleylife.pxf.io/c/6475525/3226696/31118 Oxford Healthspan | Primeadine®, a plant-derived spermidine supplement | 10% off code: AGINGWELL | https://www.oxfordhealthspan.com/AGINGWELL KneeMo® | A smart device programmed to reduce your knee pain and keep you moving. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL15 for 15% off: https://thekneemo.com/ref/agingwell Prolon | The Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is a revolutionary five-day nutrition program scientifically formulated to mimic the effects of a prolonged water fast while still allowing nourishment - supporting the benefits of fasting without the challenges and risks that come from water-only fasts. | For the best available discount always use this link: https://prolonlife.com/theagingwellpodcast Fusionary Formulas | Combining Ayurvedic wisdom with Western science for optimal health support. | 15% off Code: AGINGWELL | https://fusionaryformulas.com?sca_ref=9678325.IHg5xYhdOzzke8Zr Dr Lewis Nutrition | Fight neurodegeneration and cognitive decline with Daily Brain Care by Dr Lewis Nutrition—a proven daily formula designed to protect and restore brain function. | 10% off code: AGINGWELL or use the link: https://drlewisnutrition.com/AGINGWELL

What if aging well is less about preparing for some future version of life and more about fully inhabiting the life we have today? Debbie Hunt, a retired clinical social worker, Air Force veteran, and author of Unlikely Hero, joins The Aging Well Podcast to explore resilience, grief, purpose, and the importance of not postponing the life we want to live. Drawing from her professional experience and her novel’s story of a woman rebuilding her life after sudden loss, Debbie offers a powerful perspective on what it means to move forward when life doesn't unfold as planned. Her “Tomorrow Isn’t Guaranteed” message invites us to reconsider how we respond to loss, change, and uncertainty—and how relationships, including intergenerational connections and the human-animal bond, can help us remain engaged with life. This conversation is ultimately about more than coping with aging. It is about choosing to live with intention, connection, and purpose while we still can. Learn more at https://debrahunt.com/ Please, support The Aging Well Podcast by hitting the ‘like’ button, subscribing/following the podcast, sharing with a friend, and…. Tip Jar! All donations support this podcast to keep it going. https://paypal.me/theagingwellpodcast BUY the products you need to… age well from our trusted affiliates and support the mission of The Aging Well Podcast. (We receive commission on these purchases. Thank you.) The Aging Well Podcast merchandise | Show how you are aging well | Use the promo code AGING WELL for free shipping on orders over $75 | https://theagingwellpodcast-shop.fourthwall.com/promo/AGINGWELL Auro Wellness | Glutaryl—Antioxidant spray that delivers high doses of glutathione (“Master Antioxidant”) and the new Copper Tripeptide (GHK-Cu) | 10% off Code: AGINGWELL at https://aurowellness.com/agingwellpodcast Nutritional Biochemical Inc. (NBI) | Trusted supplement. NBI stands 100% behind the quality of their formulations and the science on which they’re based. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://shop.nbihealth.com/agingwell Jigsaw Health | Trusted supplements. “It’s fun to feel good.” | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://bit.ly/4ks3Y0O Berkeley Life | Optimize nitric oxide levels | Purchase your starter kit at a 15% discount | Use the promo code: AGINGWELL15 | https://berkeleylife.pxf.io/c/6475525/3226696/31118 Oxford Healthspan | Primeadine®, a plant-derived spermidine supplement | 10% off code: AGINGWELL | https://www.oxfordhealthspan.com/AGINGWELL KneeMo® | A smart device programmed to reduce your knee pain and keep you moving. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL15 for 15% off: https://thekneemo.com/ref/agingwell Prolon | The Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is a revolutionary five-day nutrition program scientifically formulated to mimic the effects of a prolonged water fast while still allowing nourishment - supporting the benefits of fasting without the challenges and risks that come from water-only fasts. | For the best available discount always use this link: https://prolonlife.com/theagingwellpodcast Thrive25 | Your personal longevity advisor | https://www.thrive25.com/early-access?via=william-jeffrey Fusionary Formulas | Combining Ayurvedic wisdom with Western science for optimal health support. | 15% off Code: AGINGWELL | https://fusionaryformulas.com?sca_ref=9678325.IHg5xYhdOzzke8Zr Dr Lewis Nutrition | Fight neurodegeneration and cognitive decline with Daily Brain Care by Dr Lewis Nutrition—a proven daily formula designed to protect and restore brain function. | 10% off code: AGINGWELL or use the link: https://drlewisnutrition.com/AGINGWELL

GLP-1 medications have changed the conversation around weight loss, appetite, and obesity—but they have also raised important questions about nutrition, muscle health, and what it really means to live well. In this episode, Dr. Jeff Armstrong and co-host Corbin Bruton discuss the science behind GLP-1 medications, the concept of "food noise," and why reducing appetite doesn't automatically create healthy habits. They explore the importance of resistance training, adequate protein intake, and cultivating a lifelong relationship with food that supports both health and human flourishing. Please, support The Aging Well Podcast by hitting the ‘like’ button, subscribing/following the podcast, sharing with a friend, and…. Tip Jar! All donations support this podcast to keep it going. https://paypal.me/theagingwellpodcast BUY the products you need to… age well from our trusted affiliates and support the mission of The Aging Well Podcast. (We receive commission on these purchases. Thank you.) The Aging Well Podcast merchandise | Show how you are aging well | Use the promo code AGING WELL for free shipping on orders over $75 | https://theagingwellpodcast-shop.fourthwall.com/promo/AGINGWELL Auro Wellness | Glutaryl—Antioxidant spray that delivers high doses of glutathione (“Master Antioxidant”) and the new Copper Tripeptide (GHK-Cu) | 10% off Code: AGINGWELL at https://aurowellness.com/agingwellpodcast Nutritional Biochemical Inc. (NBI) | Trusted supplement. NBI stands 100% behind the quality of their formulations and the science on which they’re based. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://shop.nbihealth.com/agingwell Jigsaw Health | Trusted supplements. “It’s fun to feel good.” | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://bit.ly/4ks3Y0O Berkeley Life | Optimize nitric oxide levels | Purchase your starter kit at a 15% discount | Use the promo code: AGINGWELL15 | https://berkeleylife.pxf.io/c/6475525/3226696/31118 Oxford Healthspan | Primeadine®, a plant-derived spermidine supplement | 10% off code: AGINGWELL | https://www.oxfordhealthspan.com/AGINGWELL KneeMo® | A smart device programmed to reduce your knee pain and keep you moving. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL15 for 15% off: https://thekneemo.com/ref/agingwell Prolon | The Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is a revolutionary five-day nutrition program scientifically formulated to mimic the effects of a prolonged water fast while still allowing nourishment - supporting the benefits of fasting without the challenges and risks that come from water-only fasts. | For the best available discount always use this link: https://prolonlife.com/theagingwellpodcast L-Nutra Health | The medical division of L-Nutra, focused on helping people manage and potentially reverse chronic health conditions, like type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, insulin resistance, and obesity, using personalized, lifestyle-based programs grounded in evidence, not prescriptions. | Use this link: https://l-nutrahealth.com/theagingwellpodcast Thrive25 | Your personal longevity advisor | https://www.thrive25.com/early-access?via=william-jeffrey Fusionary Formulas | Combining Ayurvedic wisdom with Western science for optimal health support. | 15% off Code: AGINGWELL | https://fusionaryformulas.com?sca_ref=9678325.IHg5xYhdOzzke8Zr Dr Lewis Nutrition | Fight neurodegeneration and cognitive decline with Daily Brain Care by Dr Lewis Nutrition—a proven daily formula designed to protect and restore brain function. | 10% off code: AGINGWELL or use the link: https://drlewisnutrition.com/AGINGWELL

What does it mean to grow older in a culture that often treats aging as something to resist? What happens when we begin to see elderhood not simply as a period of decline, but as an unexpected new chapter filled with opportunities for reflection, reinvention, humor, and growth? In this episode of The Aging Well Podcast, we welcome actress and playwright Kathryn Grody to discuss her one-woman show, The Unexpected 3rd: A Radical, Rollicking Rumination on the Optimism of Staying Alive. Written and performed by Grody and presented as part of George Street Playhouse’s 2026–27 season, the production explores the surprises, contradictions, challenges, and possibilities of entering elderhood. Drawing on her career in theater and her own reflections on growing older, Kathryn invites us to consider how aging changes our sense of identity, our relationships, and our understanding of what makes life meaningful. We’ll explore the role of humor in navigating life's transitions, the tension between cultural expectations and personal experience, and the possibility of approaching later life with curiosity rather than fear. Our conversation will also consider a central question in transformative aging: How do we continue becoming who we are, even as our bodies, circumstances, and priorities change? Join us for a thoughtful and spirited exploration of elderhood, creativity, and the radical optimism of staying alive. Please, support The Aging Well Podcast by hitting the ‘like’ button, subscribing/following the podcast, sharing with a friend, and…. Tip Jar! All donations support this podcast to keep it going. https://paypal.me/theagingwellpodcast BUY the products you need to… age well from our trusted affiliates and support the mission of The Aging Well Podcast. (We receive commission on these purchases. Thank you.) The Aging Well Podcast merchandise | Show how you are aging well | Use the promo code AGING WELL for free shipping on orders over $75 | https://theagingwellpodcast-shop.fourthwall.com/promo/AGINGWELL Auro Wellness | Glutaryl—Antioxidant spray that delivers high doses of glutathione (“Master Antioxidant”) and the new Copper Tripeptide (GHK-Cu) | 10% off Code: AGINGWELL at https://aurowellness.com/agingwellpodcast Nutritional Biochemical Inc. (NBI) | Trusted supplement. NBI stands 100% behind the quality of their formulations and the science on which they’re based. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://shop.nbihealth.com/agingwell Jigsaw Health | Trusted supplements. “It’s fun to feel good.” | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://bit.ly/4ks3Y0O CariSpray | Hydroxyapatite Oral Spray | Subscribe and save. Use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://www.carispray.com?sca_ref=12537607.Vpi3sJfipuxL Berkeley Life | Optimize nitric oxide levels | Purchase your starter kit at a 15% discount | Use the promo code: AGINGWELL15 | https://berkeleylife.pxf.io/c/6475525/3226696/31118 Oxford Healthspan | Primeadine®, a plant-derived spermidine supplement | 10% off code: AGINGWELL | https://www.oxfordhealthspan.com/AGINGWELL KneeMo® | A smart device programmed to reduce your knee pain and keep you moving. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL15 for 15% off: https://thekneemo.com/ref/agingwell Prolon | The Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is a revolutionary five-day nutrition program scientifically formulated to mimic the effects of a prolonged water fast while still allowing nourishment - supporting the benefits of fasting without the challenges and risks that come from water-only fasts. | For the best available discount always use this link: https://prolonlife.com/theagingwellpodcast Fusionary Formulas | Combining Ayurvedic wisdom with Western science for optimal health support. | 15% off Code: AGINGWELL | https://fusionaryformulas.com?sca_ref=9678325.IHg5xYhdOzzke8Zr

What if some of the limitations we associate with aging are not inevitable consequences of getting older, but expectations we have learned to accept? In this episode of The Aging Well Podcast, Dr. Jeff Armstrong explores with physical therapist and neuroplasticity expert Dr. Mike Studer how our beliefs about aging can influence the way we behave, the choices we make, and ultimately the outcomes we experience. From assumptions about older drivers and runners to expectations about independence, exercise, and physical capability, the beliefs we hold about aging can quietly become self-fulfilling. Dr. Studer shares his framework of Autonomy, Belief, and Choice—the ABCs of decision-making in wellness and healthcare. Autonomy gives us the space and freedom to choose, belief allows us to gather information and form an opinion, and choice enables us to commit to a direction that is consistent with what we believe. The conversation examines the difference between doing something because we have to and choosing it for ourselves, the relationship between belief and the placebo effect, and why the same stressor can be experienced very differently depending on whether we perceive ourselves as having agency. Ultimately, this is a conversation about whether aging well begins not simply with what we do, but with what we believe is possible—and whether we believe we still have the autonomy to choose it. Learn more and connect with Mike at: email: [email protected] Website: www.mikestuder.com Instagram and YouTube: @mikestuderdpt Please, support The Aging Well Podcast by hitting the ‘like’ button, subscribing/following the podcast, sharing with a friend, and…. Tip Jar! All donations support this podcast to keep it going. https://paypal.me/theagingwellpodcast BUY the products you need to… age well from our trusted affiliates and support the mission of The Aging Well Podcast. (We receive commission on these purchases. Thank you.) The Aging Well Podcast merchandise | Show how you are aging well | Use the promo code AGING WELL for free shipping on orders over $75 | https://theagingwellpodcast-shop.fourthwall.com/promo/AGINGWELL Auro Wellness | Glutaryl—Antioxidant spray that delivers high doses of glutathione (“Master Antioxidant”) and the new Copper Tripeptide (GHK-Cu) | 10% off Code: AGINGWELL at https://aurowellness.com/agingwellpodcast Nutritional Biochemical Inc. (NBI) | Trusted supplement. NBI stands 100% behind the quality of their formulations and the science on which they’re based. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://shop.nbihealth.com/agingwell Jigsaw Health | Trusted supplements. “It’s fun to feel good.” | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://bit.ly/4ks3Y0O Berkeley Life | Optimize nitric oxide levels | Purchase your starter kit at a 15% discount | Use the promo code: AGINGWELL15 | https://berkeleylife.pxf.io/c/6475525/3226696/31118 Oxford Healthspan | Primeadine®, a plant-derived spermidine supplement | 10% off code: AGINGWELL | https://www.oxfordhealthspan.com/AGINGWELL KneeMo® | A smart device programmed to reduce your knee pain and keep you moving. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL15 for 15% off: https://thekneemo.com/ref/agingwell Prolon | The Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is a revolutionary five-day nutrition program scientifically formulated to mimic the effects of a prolonged water fast while still allowing nourishment - supporting the benefits of fasting without the challenges and risks that come from water-only fasts. | For the best available discount always use this link: https://prolonlife.com/theagingwellpodcast Dr Lewis Nutrition | Fight neurodegeneration and cognitive decline with Daily Brain Care by Dr Lewis Nutrition—a proven daily formula designed to protect and restore brain function. | 10% off code: AGINGWELL or use the link: https://drlewisnutrition.com/AGINGWELL