Wits & Weights | Fat Loss, Nutrition, & Strength Training for Lifters
For skeptics of the fitness industry who want to work smarter and more efficiently to build muscle and lose fat. Wits & Weights is one of the best fitness podcasts for evidence-based nutrition and fitness strategies. We cut through the noise and deconstruct health and fitness with an engineering mindset to help you develop a strong, lean physique without wasting time. Evidence-based nutrition coach Philip Pape explores efficient strength training, nutrition, and lifestyle strategies to optimize your body recomp and metabolism. Whether you're focused on weight loss, muscle building, or both, you'll get simple, science-based, and sustainable info from an engineer turned lifter (that's why they call him the Physique Engineer). This show serves both women's fitness and men's health goals, with special attention to strength training over 40 and hormone health. From restrictive fad diets to ineffective workouts and hyped-up supplements, there's no shortage of confusing information out there. Getting in the best shape of your life doesn't have to be complicated or time-consuming! By using your WITS (mindset and systems!) and lifting weights efficiently, you can build muscle, lose stubborn fat, and achieve and maintain a lean physique through sustainable body recomp. We bring you smart and efficient strategies for movement, metabolism, muscle, and mindset. You'll learn: - Why fat loss is more important than weight loss for health and physique - Why all the macros (protein, fats, and yes even carbs) are critical to body composition - Why you don't need to spend more than 3 hours in the gym each week to get incredible results with proper hypertrophy training - Why muscle (not weight loss) is the key to medicine, obesity, and longevity - Why age and hormones (even in menopause) don't matter with the right lifestyle - How the "hidden" psychology of your mind can unlock more personal (and physical) growth than you ever thought possible, and how to tap into that mindset If you're ready to separate fact from fiction, learn what actually works with evidence-based training and nutrition, and put in the intelligent work, hit that "follow" button and let's engineer your best physique ever! Popular Guests Include: Mike Matthews (author of Bigger Leaner Stronger), Greg Nuckols (Stronger by Science), Alan Aragon (nutrition researcher), Eric Helms (3D Muscle Journey), Dr. Spencer Nadolsky (Doc Who Lifts), Eric Trexler (Stronger by Science), Bill Campbell (exercise science researcher), Jordan Feigenbaum (Barbell Medicine), Andy Morgan (Ripped Body), Karen Martel (hormone optimization expert), Steph Gaudreau (women's strength and nutrition), Bryan Boorstein (hypertrophy coach) Popular Topics Include: hormone health, metabolism optimization, hypertrophy training, longevity and healthy aging, body positivity, best protein powder selection, strength training over 40, women's fitness, men's health, muscle building, body recomp, macros and nutrition tracking
Episodes
Join the 3-Week Strong Finish Challenge to end the year stronger while everyone else backslides. Get coaching, accountability, custom nutrition plans, and strength training templates to maintain progress through the holidays. Kickoff call Monday, December 8 at 5pm Eastern, challenge starts Wednesday, December 10:
https://live.witsandweights.com
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If your fat loss strategy involves eating "perfectly clean" and you find ...
Join the 3-Week Strong Finish Challenge and get direct coaching to lose fat and build muscle through Christmas and New Year's while everyone else backslides:
http://live.witsandweights.com/
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You have 3 weeks left in 2025. Are you going to waste them "surviving" or actually make progress, lose fat, and build muscle?
Most people treat the final 3 weeks of the year like a throwaway, needlessly gaining weight, losing ...
Get Fitness Lab (20% off for listeners), the #1 coaching app that adapts to YOUR recovery, YOUR schedule, and YOUR body. Build muscle, lose fat, and get stronger with daily personalized guidance:
https://bit.ly/fitness-lab-pod20
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Have you ever wondered if your skeleton can actually support the muscles you work so hard to build? Or how bone density affects the way you lift weights, lose fat, and build muscle for long-term strengt...
Join the 3-Week Strong Finish Challenge to build strength training momentum and end 2025 strong instead of waiting until January. Kickoff call December 8th at 5pm Eastern. Get direct coaching, the flexible framework, holiday nutrition strategies, and travel workout templates you need to protect your metabolism through the holidays:
https://live.witsandweights.com
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If you're trying to lose weight by focusing on diet, cardio...
Get your free 14-Day Rapid Start Fat Loss Guide to set up your nutrition and strength training for effective fat loss without extreme restriction or guesswork:
https://witsandweights.com/fatloss
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If you're tracking food, stepping on the scale, pushing hard in the gym, but hitting a wall with fat loss, this episode is for you.
Maybe scale isn't moving, or you're making panicked decisions like slashing calories or ...
Ready to go beyond standard cholesterol panels and track what actually matters? Get your comprehensive performance bloodwork analysis at witsandweights.com/bloodwork (code VITALITY20 for 20% off)
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What if your blood work is missing the markers that truly predict long-term cardiovascular health? Can you build muscle, lose fat, and stay strong after 40 without risking your heart? And which biomarkers, hormones, and peptides actually ...
📲 Try Fitness Lab with 20% off through Black Friday
My new AI coaching app that adapts to real life, like Thanksgiving. Instead of rigid meal plans or "stay on track" guilt, you get intelligent coaching that accounts for holiday meals, your actual biofeedback, and helps you enjoy family time while maintaining momentum toward building muscle and losing fat over 40.
👉 http://witsandweights.com/app
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Worried that Th...
🎯 Join the 3-Week Strong Finish Challenge (Kickoff December 8)
Get structured support through the hardest weeks of the year. Get a 3-week personal roadmap, custom workouts for travel, daily accountability check-ins, and meal/recipe plans for every holiday scenario:
👉 https://live.witsandweights.com - Includes FREE custom nutrition plan (with code FREEPLAN)
🛌 Try Cozy Earth cooling sheets
Temperature-regulating bedd...
Someone unfollowed the show after saying they were "grossed out" by AI in fitness. Apparently I'm now part of the evil AI empire. 🤷♂️
But their reaction reveals a fundamental misunderstanding about what AI can actually do when it's built on evidence-based principles rather than generic junk content scraped from the interwebs.
Discover why rejecting AI without understanding it is dogmatism, not skepticism. Learn ...
Get Fitness Lab, the #1 coaching app for people over 40 that adapts to YOUR recovery, YOUR schedule, and YOUR body. Build muscle, lose fat, and get stronger with daily personalized guidance. https://witsandweights.com/app
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Are you over 40 and trying to stay muscular, lean, and strong, but PSA tests and prostate fears leave you confused? Worried that one elevated PSA could derail your strength training with an unnecessary biopsy?
In...
Download Fitness Lab (live now for iPhone!) – Get AI-powered nutrition analysis, daily guidance, and adaptive strength training that responds to your biofeedback. Like a physique coach in your pocket.
Built for adults over 40 who want sustainable fat loss and muscle building without guesswork. Get 20% off through Black Friday at http://witsandweights.com/app
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We compare traditional calorie and macro tracking with a pattern-based app...
Fitness Lab is an innovative, game-changing AI coach that adapts to your patterns, turns data into daily actions, and helps you LEARN about yourself and the science behind everything.
From periodized programs and form checks to one-photo nutrition and biofeedback, the goal is less stress but more progress.
Designed for building muscle and losing fat over 40, here's exactly how it works:
- Quick onboarding pe...
Get early access to Fitness Lab before the official launch! Join my email list at witsandweights.com/email (if you’re already on just reply and ask for the “secret link”)
Get Cozy Earth bamboo-derived sheets (use code WITSANDWEIGHTS for 20% off) that regulate temperature for better sleep and recovery
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Even if your tracker or workout/nutrition app logs everything, it still can’t tell you WHAT to do when progress stalls.
We dig into th...
Get early access to the app AND the Black Friday pricing by joining my list (if you're already on my list, ask for the “secret link”):
https://witsandweights.com/email
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Get a first look at Fitness Lab, my new AI coaching app that turns your daily signals into clear guidance on food, training, recovery, and progress.
Built for lifters over 40, it adapts plans in real time with low-stress tracking, meal pattern analysis, conv...
Join the early access list for my new Fitness Lab app, the #1 adaptive training and nutrition app that evolves with your progress, recovery, and lifestyle so you can build muscle and lose fat over 40 with science-based AI coaching:
https://witsandweights.com/email
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400 episodes and 4 years of challenging the fitness industry's myths and proving that building muscle and losing fat doesn't require complicated protocols ...
Join the early access list for my new Fitness Lab app, the #1 adaptive training and nutrition app that evolves with your progress, recovery, and lifestyle so you can build muscle and lose fat over 40 with science-based AI coaching:
https://witsandweights.com/email
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Struggling to build muscle or lose fat after 50, even though you’re lifting weights and eating protein? Think your metabolism or hormones are to blame? You’re not al...
Join the early access list for my new Fitness Lab app, the #1 adaptive training and nutrition app that evolves with your progress, recovery, and lifestyle so you can build muscle and lose fat over 40 with science-based AI coaching:
https://witsandweights.com/email
Get Cozy Earth's temperature-regulating bamboo sheets that help you sleep deeper and recover faster from training. 100-night trial, 10-year warranty. Get 20% off ...
I've been building something for the few months. Something that's going to change how you approach building muscle and losing fat after 40.
I'm not telling you what it is yet.
But if you want the first preview tomorrow, join my email list at https://witsandweights.com/email
More coming this week.
📱 Get Fitness Lab - Philip’s science-based AI app for fat loss, muscle building, and strength train...
Want to build your fitness meta-skills? Join Physique University and get a FREE custom nutrition plan using code FREEPLAN at:
https://physique.witsandweights.com/
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Why do so many people who know how to lift weights, track macros, and prioritize recovery still struggle to stay consistent long term? How do you design a fitness system that actually survives the chaos of real life? And what hidden “meta skills” separate lifelong ...
Get your free Strength Training for Hormone Health guide at witsandweights.com/free to learn how to structure your training to support healthy hormone levels as you age, applying the principles from this episode.
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Every week there's new advice about training. Train to failure. Don't train to failure. Do more volume. No, you're overtraining. Meanwhile, you're stuck making zero progress because nobody's telli...
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