The Fiscal Physical Retirement Podcast
Smart Retirement Planning. Straightforward Advice.
Welcome to The Fiscal Physical Retirement Podcast, the show built for professionals and pre-retirees who want clarity, confidence, and control over their financial future. Hosted by Aaron Hoisington and retirement planner Ryan Nelson, founder of Alchemy Wealth Management and author of Your Fiscal Physical, this podcast delivers practical advice, expert insights, and real conversations about retirement readiness, tax-efficient investing, and long-term wealth strategies.
Whether you're five years from retirement or just starting to get serious about your financial goals, each episode simplifies complex financial topics into clear, actionable steps. No jargon. No fear. Just the guidance you need from a trusted financial advisor serving Nevada and beyond.
If you’re looking for a retirement podcast that’s approachable, insightful, and worth your time, this is it.
Subscribe now and get your Fiscal Physical. Your retirement health depends on it.
Episodes
133 episodes
The Gold Standard Explained: What It Was and Why It Ended
The gold standard shaped money for generations, then disappeared. In this episode, Ryan explains what the gold standard actually was, how it tied a country's currency to a fixed amount of gold, and why the United States ultimately moved away from ...
Are We in a Recession? Separating the Headlines From History
Recession fears make for scary headlines, but how worried should you actually be? In this listener-question episode, Ryan tackles whether the economy is in a recession and how today's picture differs from the 2008 financial crisis.He and A...
3 People Who Shaped Money in America: Hamilton, FDR, and Bogle
A handful of people quietly shaped the money system we all use today. In this episode, Ryan tells the stories of three of them: Alexander Hamilton, who built America's financial credibility and credit; Franklin Roosevelt, whose New Deal gave us So...
Money Myths Debunked: 3 Common Beliefs That Hold You Back
Some of the most common money beliefs are flat wrong, and they quietly hold people back. In this episode, Ryan and Aaron break down three of the biggest: that investing is just gambling, that you should always pay off debt as fast as possible, and...
How to Prepare Financially for a Layoff Before It Happens
The best time to prepare for a layoff is before it ever happens. In this episode, Ryan walks through a step-by-step plan to get financially ready, starting with your survival number, the bare-minimum amount your household needs to cover each month...
Money in Your 20s: What I'd Do Differently If I Started Over
If you could restart your financial life at 22, what would you do differently? In this episode, Ryan answers that honestly, and the takeaways work for anyone who wants to build wealth, not just recent grads.His list is refreshingly simple:...
Is the Middle Class Getting Squeezed? Wages vs. the Cost of Living
Is the middle class really getting squeezed, or is that just a headline? In this episode, Ryan looks at what has actually happened to middle-class buying power over the past few decades and why housing has become the single biggest pressure on mos...
The Paper Ceiling: Why Degree Requirements Are Changing in Hiring
The paper ceiling is the invisible barrier that keeps qualified workers without a college degree from being considered for jobs they are fully capable of doing. Ryan explains how it compares to the glass ceiling, which typically involves race or g...
BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street: Do They Really Own the Market?
BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street manage trillions of dollars, but they do not own the market. Ryan explains what asset managers actually are: intermediaries who run funds on behalf of investors. When you put money into a Vanguard index fund, ...
Pre-Retirement Checklist: What to Do in the Year Before You Retire
A 64-year-old listener planning to retire in about a year asked Ryan for a practical checklist. Ryan's answer covers eight areas: gather all your data first, including pensions from multiple states and any old retirement accounts; get clear on you...
Quarterly Earnings Reports Explained: What the Numbers Actually Mean
Every publicly traded company is required to release its financial results every quarter. Ryan explains the four numbers investors pay attention to: revenue (total sales), earnings (what is left after expenses), profit margins (a measure of effici...
Financial Advisor Disclosures Explained: What the ADV Tells You
Every registered investment advisor is required to send clients an annual ADV and privacy policy. Ryan explains what these documents actually contain: how the firm charges fees, what services it provides, any conflicts of interest, background info...
US Tax System Explained: How Progressive Tax Brackets Work
This episode revisits how the progressive tax system works and layers in the specific 2026 updates most relevant to retirement savers. Ryan explains progressive brackets using plain-language examples so listeners understand that earning more money...
Medical Debt Explained: Why It's Different and How to Handle It
Medical debt is different from every other kind of debt because it is not planned. Ryan frames it as one of the big five debt categories, alongside mortgage, car, credit card, and student loans, but points out that no one wakes up choosing to incu...
Nonprofit Explained: What "Nonprofit" Actually Means
Nonprofit does not mean the organization makes no money. Ryan explains what it actually means: there are no shareholders, so any surplus stays inside the organization instead of going to owners or investors. Nonprofits can charge fees, sell servic...
Monte Carlo Simulation Explained: How Retirement Plans Use Probability
A Monte Carlo simulation runs thousands of hypothetical market scenarios against your retirement plan to calculate a probability of success. Ryan explains what that probability actually means: the percentage of simulated scenarios in which you do ...
Bankruptcy Explained: Chapter 7 vs Chapter 13 and What Gets Wiped
Bankruptcy is a legal process that can wipe out certain debts, restructure others, and stop collection activity while you get back on solid ground. Ryan explains the two types most people encounter: Chapter 7, which moves faster and can eliminate ...
3 Money Decisions That Changed America: FDIC, Gold, and 401(k)s
Some of the financial rules Americans live by today were shaped by decisions made decades ago. Ryan covers three of the most consequential: the creation of FDIC deposit insurance in 1933 after the Great Depression, the US leaving the gold standard...
FDIC and NCUA Explained: How Your Bank Deposits Are Insured
FDIC and NCUA insurance protect the money you keep in banks and credit unions up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution, per ownership category. Ryan explains what is covered, checking accounts, savings accounts, and CDs, and what is not, incl...
Cost of Living Explained: CPI, COLA, and Your Personal Inflation
Cost of living is what it costs to pay for housing, food, transportation, healthcare, and everything else you need day to day. Ryan explains how it differs from person to person, why the government's Consumer Price Index is a standardized basket t...
Mortgages 101: How Home Loans Work and What to Watch Out For
A mortgage is the loan you use to buy a home, and the home itself is the collateral. Ryan breaks down the four components of a mortgage payment, principal, interest, taxes, and insurance (PITI), and explains the difference between 15-year and 30-y...
Annual Financial Checkup: What to Review Every Year
An annual financial checkup is one of the highest-leverage habits you can build. Ryan walks through a practical six-part framework: reviewing your spending, checking cash flow and savings rates, evaluating debt, looking at retirement accounts and ...
Bull vs. Bear Markets Explained: What They Mean for Investors
A bull market is a period of rising prices and investor optimism, typically defined as a 20% gain from a recent low. A bear market is the opposite, a 20% drop from a recent high, marked by falling prices and caution. Ryan explains what drives each...
Short Selling Explained: How Shorting a Stock Works and the Risks
Short selling is how investors bet that a stock will go down instead of up. In this episode, Ryan explains the mechanics in plain English: you borrow shares, sell them, and hope to buy them back later at a lower price, pocketing the difference.
Ponzi Schemes Explained: How They Work and How to Spot Them
A Ponzi scheme is a fake investment program that pays earlier investors using money from new ones. Ryan traces the history from Charles Ponzi in the early 1900s through Bernie Madoff, explaining why these scams look legitimate, at least at first, ...