In Good Company Podcast: Age Better

What kind of exercise do you actually need to age better?
In the final part of our conversation, registered dietitian, trainer, and wellness coach Cassie Dimmick breaks exercise into practical categories, including daily movement, cardiovascular activity, high-intensity training, strength, mobility, balance, and recovery.
Cassie explains why walking is valuable but may not address every part of healthy aging, why strength and functional movement become increasingly important over time, and how maintaining the ability to stand, move, balance, and get off the floor can protect independence.
We also discuss how people can safely return to exercise after years of inactivity, why random workouts can lead to frustration or injury, and why it is never too late to begin. As Cassie reminds us, no one else can take ownership of our health for us, and waiting for the perfect time often means continuing to wait.
Watch Part 4 of our conversation with Cassie Dimmick and discover how small, consistent actions can help you build a stronger and more capable future.
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Does Medicare pay for long-term care? What about Medicaid? And what happens if you or a parent can no longer safely live at home? Long-term care can be one of the most confusing—and expensive—parts of aging. Many families don't start thinking about it until they're suddenly forced to make decisions. In this episode of In Good Company: Age Better, we break down what families should know about Medicare, Medicaid, long-term care insurance, estate planning, and preparing for the possibility of long-term care.

Are smartwatches, glucose monitors, fasting plans, and gut-health products helping us become healthier, or are they sometimes creating more confusion?
In Part 3, registered dietitian and wellness coach Cassie Dimmick explores how personal health technology can provide valuable information without allowing numbers to take over your life. We discuss wearables, glucose responses, VO2 max, probiotics, fermented foods, gut health, and the importance of understanding what your data can and cannot tell you.
Cassie also examines intermittent fasting, including why research performed primarily on men or inactive participants may not apply equally to women and active adults. The conversation concludes with a balanced discussion about alcohol, moderation, and why health research is not always as simple as a headline makes it appear.
Watch Part 3 of our conversation with Cassie Dimmick and learn how to use health information as a tool rather than another source of anxiety.
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GLP-1 medications and peptides have become some of the most talked-about tools in modern health and weight loss. But what do we know, what are we still learning, and what should people consider before beginning?
Registered dietitian and wellness coach Cassie Dimmick shares a balanced perspective on the potential benefits and concerns surrounding these rapidly growing trends. She explains why losing weight is not the same as building health, how inadequate nutrition can lead to muscle loss, and why bone health and long-term function matter more than simply becoming thinner.
Cassie also discusses the importance of professional guidance, evaluating health influencers, recognizing conflicts of interest, and finding qualified experts who can help you focus on what matters most for your body.
Watch Part 2 of our conversation with Cassie Dimmick for a thoughtful look at GLP-1s, peptides, wellness marketing, and the challenge of knowing who to trust.
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PART 1: Nutrition Without the Noise What should you actually eat to feel better, stay strong, and age well? Registered dietitian, trainer, and wellness coach Cassie Dimmick joins us to cut through the overwhelming amount of nutrition advice competing for our attention. From carnivore, keto, vegan, paleo, and Mediterranean eating to protein, supplements, lab testing, and food sensitivities, Cassie explains what the research shows and why there is no single diet that works for everyone. We also discuss how restrictive advice and questionable testing can create unnecessary fear around food, and why sustainable health begins with understanding your own body, habits, goals, and medical needs. Watch Part 1 of our conversation with Cassie Dimmick and learn how to approach nutrition without fear, confusion, or another quick fix. Subscribe to In Good Company for more honest conversations about health, wellness, and aging better. #InGoodCompanyPodcast #AgeBetter #CassieDimmick #AchievingYourBest #RegisteredDietitian #HealthyAging #Nutrition #Wellness #Fitness #Exercise #StrengthTraining #GutHealth #IntermittentFasting #GLP1 #HealthEducation #FunctionalFitness #HealthyLifestyle #SpringfieldMO #Ozarks #Podcast

What would it take to put healthcare decisions back into the hands of patients and clinicians?
In Part 2, Emma Freer returns to discuss potential solutions to the growing influence of private equity, insurance conglomerates, pharmacy benefit managers, and other corporate middlemen in American healthcare.
Emma outlines policy reforms designed to prevent financial owners from controlling clinical decisions, staffing levels, pricing, and other choices that directly affect patient safety and quality of care. She also discusses efforts to protect hospitals and nursing homes, reduce conflicts of interest, eliminate unnecessary prior authorization, and make it more financially possible for independent practices to survive.
The conversation also examines what corporate ownership can look like in dentistry, hospice, home health, and other areas of care. Emma and the hosts discuss how patients may receive unnecessary treatment in one setting while experiencing dangerous under-service in another, all depending on which approach produces the greatest financial return.
Emma argues that decades of healthcare corporatization have failed to lower costs, improve quality, or strengthen public trust. She also shares practical steps patients and families can take, including asking questions about ownership, raising concerns with trusted clinicians, and seeking independent providers when possible.
Part 2 closes with a deeper look at administrative costs, unequal reimbursement, insurance middlemen, the pressures facing independent providers, and why meaningful structural reform may be necessary to build a system that works for patients, families, and healthcare professionals.
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Who is really making decisions about your healthcare: your doctor, your insurance company, or a corporation focused on shareholder returns?
In Part 1, Emma Freer joins In Good Company: Age Better to examine how corporate consolidation, private equity, and insurance conglomerates have reshaped American healthcare. Emma is a Senior Policy Analyst for Healthcare at the American Economic Liberties Project, where she studies the consequences of concentrated corporate power across the healthcare sector.
Emma explains how healthcare shifted away from independent, clinician-led practices and toward increasingly powerful corporate systems. She also discusses how this transformation can influence clinical decisions, raise costs, reduce transparency, and make it harder for healthcare professionals to provide the care they believe patients need.
The conversation explores Medicare Advantage, the moral injury experienced by clinicians, and the difficulty patients face when trying to determine who actually owns their doctor’s office, nursing home, pharmacy, or healthcare agency. Emma also explains why independently and clinician-owned providers may be placed at a disadvantage when families cannot easily compare ownership models.
Part 1 also looks at the pressures that lead independent providers to sell, the short-term profit model behind many private equity acquisitions, and the need for greater transparency and stronger protections for patients, clinicians, and local communities.
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In Part 2 of our conversation with Congressman Eric Burlison, we move beyond the problems facing American healthcare and explore the policies, technology, and market forces that could shape its future. Congressman Burlison discusses the growing consolidation of healthcare providers, hospitals, nursing homes, and other local businesses under large corporations and private-equity firms. He explains why he believes excessive regulation can unintentionally favor larger organizations, create barriers for independent providers, and reduce competition within local communities. The conversation also turns to Burlison’s Great American Health Care Plan, a comprehensive healthcare reform proposal developed with his congressional staff. He shares the goals behind the legislation, the organizations supporting it, and why advancing the bill has become one of his leading priorities in Congress. Later, Burlison draws on his background as a software engineer to offer his perspective on artificial intelligence. He explains how AI could transform medical diagnosis, expand access to expert information, improve consumer transparency, and change the way people work. He also addresses concerns about inaccurate medical advice, cybersecurity, government regulation, autonomous vehicles, and whether the marketplace can develop safeguards as quickly as the technology evolves. We also examine food and supplement labeling, independent product testing, and how future AI tools could help consumers identify ingredients, allergens, misleading health claims, and products that better fit their individual needs. It is a wide-ranging conversation about healthcare reform, competition, innovation, transparency, and the difficult balance between protecting consumers and allowing new ideas to develop. #InGoodCompanyPodcast #AgeBetter #EricBurlison #HealthcareReform #HealthcarePolicy #PatientChoice #HealthSavingsAccount #HSA #PriceTransparency #HealthcareCosts #PreventiveHealth #HealthyAging #RuralHealthcare #MissouriHealthcare #PrivateEquity #HealthcareConsolidation #IndependentHealthcare #AIInHealthcare #ArtificialIntelligence #FoodTransparency #Medicare #Medicaid #DirectPrimaryCare #Congress #Missouri #HealthcareInnovation

What would it take to put patients, not insurance companies, employers, or government bureaucracies, back in control of their healthcare? In Part 1, U.S. Representative Eric Burlison joins In Good Company: Age Better to explain why he believes America’s healthcare system spends too much while giving patients too little choice. He introduces his proposed Great American Healthcare Plan and discusses how expanding Health Savings Accounts could allow more Americans to control where their healthcare dollars go. Burlison outlines proposals that would allow HSA funds to cover insurance premiums, direct primary care, gym memberships, personal training, healthy groceries, and other preventive-health expenses. He also discusses raising contribution limits, giving employers a simpler way to support workers’ healthcare, and helping people save for long-term care, in-home assistance, and future medical needs. The conversation also explores upfront price transparency, greater authority for pharmacists, and whether the FDA should reconsider which medications truly require a prescription. It is a detailed discussion about affordability, prevention, personal responsibility, and what patient-centered healthcare reform could look like. Watch Part 1 and hear Congressman Burlison’s vision for giving Americans more freedom, information, and control over their healthcare. #InGoodCompanyPodcast #AgeBetter #EricBurlison #HealthcareReform #HealthcarePolicy #PatientChoice #HealthSavingsAccount #HSA #PriceTransparency #HealthcareCosts #PreventiveHealth #HealthyAging #RuralHealthcare #MissouriHealthcare #PrivateEquity #HealthcareConsolidation #IndependentHealthcare #AIInHealthcare #ArtificialIntelligence #FoodTransparency #Medicare #Medicaid #DirectPrimaryCare #Congress #Missouri #HealthcareInnovation

In this deeply personal episode of In Good Company, Kim Therriault, Director of Haven Hospice, opens up about her own health journey, the fear and uncertainty that came with diagnosis, and the faith that has carried her through some of the hardest moments of her life. For years, Kim has walked alongside patients and families facing serious illness, grief, and end-of-life care. Now, she shares what it feels like to be on the other side of that experience, not only as a healthcare leader, but as a wife, mother, woman of faith, and hospice nurse who understands suffering in a profoundly personal way. This conversation is honest, emotional, and full of hope. Kim reflects on what her journey has taught her about surrender, strength, prayer, family, purpose, and the gift of every single day. Her story is a reminder that even in the valley, there can be peace. Even in uncertainty, there can be faith. And even in the hardest seasons, life can still be filled with meaning, love, and grace. #InGoodCompany #HavenHospice #KimTherriault #HealthJourney #FaithAndHealing #HospiceCare #HopeInHardTimes #ChristianFaith #Caregiving #HealthcareHeroes #LifeAndFaith #HospiceNurse #StrengthAndGrace #PurposeInPain #OzarksHealthcare