# 011. The #1 Thing Nobody Told You About Aging Well

An episode of [Becoming Her with Melissa Thompson](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1887828685), 29 Aug 2026, 15 min.

Audio: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2605054/episodes/19719780-011-the-1-thing-nobody-told-you-about-aging-well.mp3

Send me a text 💌 93% of Americans are metabolically unwell. Not sick enough to be treated — but not well either. And most of us have no idea it's happening until it's already gone too far. I didn't either. Until my lupus diagnosis forced me to start asking different questions. This episode is about metabolic health — what it is, why it matters more than almost anything else for how you age, and why nobody's talking about it the way they should be. In this episode: • Why the things you used to take for granted — good sleep, easy weight loss, steady energy, stable mood — are all connected to your metabolic health • What AMPK is and why it's called your body's metabolic master switch • Why 93% of Americans show signs of metabolic dysfunction — and why most don't know it yet • The fasting insulin test your doctor probably isn't ordering — and why it could change everything • The traffic light analogy: why we wait until red to act when the yellow light is already on • How my lupus diagnosis became the catalyst for everything I now believe about prevention • Why we're not anti-aging — we're pro aging well, living well, and longevity • How gut health, sleep, stress, insulin, and mood are all connected through metabolism • Introducing Bellame's EVIA ritual — longevity from the inside out Timestamps: 0:00 – The Metabolic Health Crisis 0:47 – Welcome to Becoming Her + Longevity 1:46 – AMPK and Your Metabolism 3:59 – How Lupus Sparked a Mission 4:34 – Introducing the Evia Ritual 5:34 – Gut Health Reset Approach 6:26 – Aging Well — Not Anti-Aging 7:40 – Prevention and Listening to Your Body 9:34 – The Fasting Insulin Test and the Yellow Light 10:47 – Why a Beauty Brand Is Talking About Metabolic Health 11:43 – My Personal Vitality Journey 14:03 – The Becoming Question The Becoming Question: What does vitality actually mean to you — and what would change in your daily life if you made longevity a priority starting today? Connect: @melissathompson.19 Watch/Listen: bellame.com/becomingher You are not late. You are not behind. You are not finished. You are in the making. Stay in the making.

## Transcript

[0:00] SPEAKER_00: The issue is that about 93% of the Americans in research studies show are metabolically not well.
[0:11] SPEAKER_00: They have metabolic dysfunction or advanced signs of that.
[0:15] SPEAKER_00: It's about sleeping better, feeling better, aging better.
[0:19] SPEAKER_00: Even more recent studies have come out about Alzheimer's and metabolic health, especially after being diagnosed with lupus.
[0:27] SPEAKER_00: It's become mine as well.
[0:29] SPEAKER_00: I have been so excited to continue collaborating on bringing something to market.
[0:36] SPEAKER_00: We're not against aging, that's anti-aging.
[0:39] SPEAKER_00: We're about aging well, living well, longevity, life, feeling good.
[0:47] SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Becoming Her.
[0:49] SPEAKER_00: I'm Melissa Thompson.
[0:51] SPEAKER_00: This is a podcast about lifelong evolution.
[0:54] SPEAKER_00: For the woman who knows she's not finished, not behind, not late, just in the making.
[1:02] SPEAKER_00: And that's exactly where you're supposed to be.
[1:06] SPEAKER_00: Wellness is finally beginning to understand that the foundation of it all is longevity.
[1:15] SPEAKER_00: I've long been fascinated by cultures that have such vitality to them.
[1:22] SPEAKER_00: You might have heard of the blue zone people, the blue zone cultures, the Mediterranean, different areas where they've really studied diet, but living longer, of course, and longevity and vitality.
[1:38] SPEAKER_00: Not just living longer, but living well longer.
[1:43] SPEAKER_00: And it all comes together.
[1:46] SPEAKER_00: So much of what's happened in our society with health and wellness in the last few years, with GLP1s, whether you agree with them, whether you love them, whether you never want to talk about them, what is beautiful is it got people talking about how your metabolism works.
[2:05] SPEAKER_00: And there are four major pathways to longevity.
[2:09] SPEAKER_00: One of them being the AMPK.
[2:13] SPEAKER_00: It's basically the master switch for your metabolism.
[2:16] SPEAKER_00: So when you think metabolic health and you think about all the things that it affects within your system, it is so much more than just weight.
[2:25] SPEAKER_00: It's about sleeping better, feeling better, aging better.
[2:29] SPEAKER_00: Even more recent studies have come out about Alzheimer's and metabolic health, that by the year 2050, we're going to have double the amount of Alzheimer's cases.
[2:43] SPEAKER_00: That's very significant because at this point in our moment of time of understanding health and wellness, they're realizing in Alzheimer's specifically that so much is contributed back not just to aging, but to metabolic health.
[3:03] SPEAKER_00: And so much research has gone into understanding what all this combination does for your body.
[3:10] SPEAKER_00: When you think about the AMPK master switch and how that affects your entire body, you might ask yourself, gosh, I used to really need to understand.
[3:23] SPEAKER_00: I used to be able to sleep so well.
[3:26] SPEAKER_00: And oh, I used to be able to lose weight like that.
[3:29] SPEAKER_00: Used to have more energy, I used to be in a better mood.
[3:33] SPEAKER_00: All kinds of things that come to play.
[3:36] SPEAKER_00: And a lot of that has to do with your metabolic health.
[3:41] SPEAKER_00: The issue is that about 93% of the Americans in research studies show are metabolically not well.
[3:52] SPEAKER_00: They have metabolic dysfunction or advanced signs of that.
[3:57] SPEAKER_00: So many factors contributing to it.
[3:59] SPEAKER_00: So it's become a passion of mine to learn more and more, especially after being diagnosed with lupus.
[4:05] SPEAKER_00: I research and look at everything.
[4:07] SPEAKER_00: But in talking to doctors and chemists who have made this their life passion, it's become mine as well.
[4:15] SPEAKER_00: I have been so excited to continue collaborating on bringing something to market that can address so many things besides just the typical, I want to look better, I want to feel better, but understand why and what changes that.
[4:34] SPEAKER_00: At Bellamy, we are so excited to be able to introduce a ritual of Evia, the science of living well.
[4:44] SPEAKER_00: And it's all about having products that, as we've always gone with our brand, beauty from the inside out, and this truly is longevity from the inside out.
[4:55] SPEAKER_00: It's something I'm just beyond passionate about because I've witnessed the difference for me.
[5:01] SPEAKER_00: I have had a hard time sleeping, for example, and being able to address that through metabolic health has been amazing.
[5:10] SPEAKER_00: It's incredible to want to go to sleep at night.
[5:12] SPEAKER_00: We're always tired, but so many times we're not able to get a good night's sleep.
[5:17] SPEAKER_00: Those kind of things are changing for me, but I'm even more excited about how we can help serve others through these beautiful products that recognize metabolic health as the center of so much.
[5:33] SPEAKER_00: And then in addition to it, you look at things like prebiotic being the true foundation of your gut, making sure that you're healthy every single day.
[5:45] SPEAKER_00: Probiotics when needed.
[5:47] SPEAKER_00: There's so much marketing hype out there.
[5:50] SPEAKER_00: And when we look to develop products, we didn't want it to be another Me Too product.
[5:56] SPEAKER_00: And we didn't want to sell people things they didn't need.
[6:00] SPEAKER_00: And the truth is, in probiotics, you need it to reset.
[6:04] SPEAKER_00: Maybe you went on a cruise and you indulged a little too much on spirits and food.
[6:10] SPEAKER_00: Maybe you just got done with antibiotics or somebody had a colonoscopy, or you got really sick or real stressed.
[6:17] SPEAKER_00: So more of a reset and for your gut health, and then combine with metabolic wellness.
[6:23] SPEAKER_00: It all comes together so beautifully, but beyond a product is what it does.
[6:29] SPEAKER_00: And the passion behind the wellness industry that we're entering into because healthy aging is everything.
[6:38] SPEAKER_00: I believe personally that the line of anti-aging is slowly slipping away.
[6:45] SPEAKER_00: We want to age gracefully.
[6:47] SPEAKER_00: We want to look and feel the best that we can.
[6:51] SPEAKER_00: We're living longer, but are we living well longer?
[6:55] SPEAKER_00: And the answer to that has been no.
[6:58] SPEAKER_00: So many diseases and illnesses that are not treated until they're a problem everywhere now.
[7:06] SPEAKER_00: The research is clear and doctors are really embracing preventative measures.
[7:13] SPEAKER_00: Many have for a long time.
[7:15] SPEAKER_00: But the medical field as a whole, when you think of prescriptions, you think of things that we go to the doctor for, and here's a painkiller.
[7:23] SPEAKER_00: They'll write a prescription for.
[7:25] SPEAKER_00: I mean, for me personally, when I was trying to figure out what was going on, I was given whatever I wanted.
[7:32] SPEAKER_00: And the truth is, why?
[7:34] SPEAKER_00: Why more band-aids?
[7:35] SPEAKER_00: Why things to just cover stuff up?
[7:37] SPEAKER_00: Why not approach it from a holistic standpoint?
[7:41] SPEAKER_00: When you look at the comparison of heart attacks in our world, even in the US, it's not that you look and you're, you know, back in the day, doctors didn't go, okay, how can we just teach more doctors how to do more heart surgeries?
[7:57] SPEAKER_00: Doctors started to adapt, understanding that there were preventative ways so that people wouldn't have as many heart attacks.
[8:05] SPEAKER_00: And we're seeing the same hold true when it comes to metabolic health, amongst many other things.
[8:10] SPEAKER_00: And it gives me hope.
[8:12] SPEAKER_00: It makes me even more passionate about the work that we've been doing with labs, chemists, and doctors to bring something to market to so many that need something with transparency and substance.
[8:27] SPEAKER_00: It's a beautiful thing to watch because so many times, even with metabolic wellness, when we know that it sits in the middle of your gut and everything is talking to each other, we know that nothing in our body is happening in a silo.
[8:43] SPEAKER_00: It's all connected and everything's speaking to each other.
[8:46] SPEAKER_00: So when you really look at that and how exciting it is to understand that you can catch things before it happens.
[8:54] SPEAKER_00: If we know that, for example, your circadian rhythm and how you sleep at night is also, you know, reactive to your metabolic health when you know that your energy is reactive to your metabolic health.
[9:10] SPEAKER_00: When you know your weight, your insulin, your energy, your stress, so much is related to your metabolic health.
[9:18] SPEAKER_00: It's not just aging.
[9:20] SPEAKER_00: And to understand that we can have deeper control into what happens, I think that it's not just for what we're doing, but the whole world that this is going to make a beautiful difference.
[9:34] SPEAKER_00: Metabolic health alone, they are now looking at indicators that most blood tests don't test for in general.
[9:42] SPEAKER_00: There's a test, for example, called a fasting insulin test.
[9:46] SPEAKER_00: I've been through five million blood tests, especially in the last few years, and never was that ever ordered.
[9:53] SPEAKER_00: It's a very inexpensive test that you get done.
[9:57] SPEAKER_00: It's not your A1C, it's not all the deeper ones that tell you there's already a problem.
[10:02] SPEAKER_00: It's almost like you're think of it coming to a traffic light, and you're coming up to the light, and you see you see it's you know, it goes from green to yellow.
[10:13] SPEAKER_00: It's to start slowing down, right?
[10:15] SPEAKER_00: The same with this.
[10:16] SPEAKER_00: That number is to start paying attention.
[10:19] SPEAKER_00: But unfortunately, most medicines out there and prescriptions written deal with it once it's surpassed that.
[10:28] SPEAKER_00: Even though the yellow light's going on, it's not until you get to the red that we begin to do something about it.
[10:35] SPEAKER_00: So I'm just excited.
[10:36] SPEAKER_00: I'm excited for our world.
[10:38] SPEAKER_00: I'm excited to really continue to bring more transparency to an issue that I believe everybody's dealing with at one point or another.
[10:47] SPEAKER_00: So why would a beauty brand care so much about metabolic health?
[10:51] SPEAKER_00: Although we're beauty and wellness, the truth is they're all interconnected.
[10:56] SPEAKER_00: You look at healthy aging, not anti-aging, and how that affects the rest of your body.
[11:03] SPEAKER_00: It is so insightful to understand how it's all connected.
[11:09] SPEAKER_00: Why?
[11:10] SPEAKER_00: Because it's not about not aging.
[11:12] SPEAKER_00: We're all aging from the second we're born.
[11:15] SPEAKER_00: Every single day we begin aging.
[11:17] SPEAKER_00: We're not against aging.
[11:18] SPEAKER_00: That's anti-aging.
[11:20] SPEAKER_00: We're about aging well, living well, longevity, life, feeling good.
[11:28] SPEAKER_00: That is so important in preventative medicine, but in everything that you do during the day, from what you put on your face to what you consume, to how you take care of your body and listen to your body.
[11:43] SPEAKER_00: I know for me personally, I have been in the pursuit of finding things that continue to heal me from within.
[11:53] SPEAKER_00: Maybe not heal everything, but being able to give my body what it needs.
[11:59] SPEAKER_00: And I happen to have something that never goes away, lupus.
[12:03] SPEAKER_00: But how I treat my body is so critical for feeling good overall.
[12:10] SPEAKER_00: For me, once I started really understanding the connection between metabolic health and, of course, all the things we want to age well, to look as good as we can, to feel as good as we can, other things started to come into play.
[12:23] SPEAKER_00: When you start sleeping at night again, that is life-changing.
[12:27] SPEAKER_00: Now to realize it had to do with my metabolic health, that was like a light bulb moment for me.
[12:32] SPEAKER_00: Because when I think back to my 20s, I could sleep in till 2 p.m.
[12:39] SPEAKER_00: the next day if I wanted to.
[12:40] SPEAKER_00: Your body reacted different.
[12:42] SPEAKER_00: You could lose weight, you could feel better, you could have the energy.
[12:46] SPEAKER_00: And so while certain things like metabolic health can also be helped with lifestyle, it really is all about what you're willing to do, to live your life with vitality.
[13:01] SPEAKER_00: That's all I want.
[13:02] SPEAKER_00: And that's what I want for others.
[13:04] SPEAKER_00: For me, it's a continued journey of understanding my body, but also understanding that in wellness and longevity, it's about feeling beautiful in the skin you're in.
[13:17] SPEAKER_00: I don't want to go back to my 20s.
[13:20] SPEAKER_00: I embrace every year.
[13:22] SPEAKER_00: There used to be a stigma with getting older.
[13:24] SPEAKER_00: And now they say, well, you know, this year is now the new this decade, and everybody's trying to be a different age.
[13:31] SPEAKER_00: But no, I actually think people are embracing where they're at more than we ever have.
[13:37] SPEAKER_00: And I'm excited to be part of that.
[13:40] SPEAKER_00: I love the age that I'm at.
[13:42] SPEAKER_00: It's a blessing.
[13:43] SPEAKER_00: Every year that passes, it's one more year that God's blessed me to be with my family on this earth.
[13:49] SPEAKER_00: And I plan to live it to the best that I can and do everything that I can to not only look as good as I feel inside, but to feel as good as life should treat me.
[14:03] SPEAKER_00: Now a becoming question for you.
[14:05] SPEAKER_00: When you think about the future decades to come in your life, what does vitality and longevity mean for you?
[14:12] SPEAKER_00: What would make your heart smile if you were watching your future self?
[14:18] SPEAKER_00: Remember, you're not late.
[14:19] SPEAKER_00: You're not behind.
[14:21] SPEAKER_00: You're not finished.
[14:23] SPEAKER_00: You are still in the making.
[14:25] SPEAKER_00: Keep becoming.
[14:26] SPEAKER_00: Thanks for being here.
[14:28] SPEAKER_00: If you know someone who needs to hear this, send it to them.
[14:31] SPEAKER_00: And if this resonated with you, comment down below.
[14:35] SPEAKER_00: I'd love to keep this conversation going.
[14:37] SPEAKER_00: Make sure to follow along on YouTube and Instagram for daily updates.
[14:42] SPEAKER_00: You can find everything in the description.
[14:44] SPEAKER_00: See you next time.

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