Wits & Weights | Evidence-Based Fat Loss & Strength Training Over 40 cover art

Wits & Weights | Evidence-Based Fat Loss & Strength Training Over 40

Wits & Weights | Evidence-Based Fat Loss & Strength Training Over 40

By: Philip Pape Evidence-Based Nutrition Coach Strength Training & Fat Loss Expert
Listen for free

Wits & Weights is a strength training and nutrition podcast where in every episode I put a popular piece of fitness advice under the microscope, find the hidden reason it doesn't work, and give you the deceptively simple fix that does.

For skeptics of the fitness industry who are tired of following the rules and still not seeing results. If you've been lifting weights, tracking macros, and doing "all the right things" but your body composition hasn't changed, you're probably overcomplicating it. This is the strength training and fat loss podcast that shows you how to build muscle, lose fat, and achieve a real body recomp by focusing only on what the evidence actually supports.

Evidence-based fat loss coach Philip Pape brings an engineer's approach to strength training, nutrition, and metabolism. Instead of another generic program or meal plan, you get specific, science-based strategies for optimizing body composition, whether you're focused on building muscle, losing fat, or both. The focus is on strength training over 40, hormone health, perimenopause and menopause, and longevity.

You've seen the conflicting advice, even on other nutrition podcasts. One expert says cut carbs, the next says eat more. One says train six days a week, another says three is plenty. Building the body you want doesn't have to be this confusing or time-consuming. By using your wits (systems + identity-based behavior change) and lifting weights, you can build muscle definition, improve your physique, and maintain your results for life without rebound weight gain.

You'll learn smart, efficient strategies for movement, metabolism, muscle, and mindset, such as:
- Why fat loss matters more than weight loss for both your health and your physique
- Why all the macros, including protein, fats, and yes even carbs, are critical to body composition
- How just 3 hours a week of proper hypertrophy training can deliver better results than most people get in twice that time
- Why building muscle is the single most powerful thing you can do for metabolic health, longevity, and aging well
- Why perimenopause and menopause don't have to derail your progress when your training and nutrition are dialed in
- How shifting the way you think about fitness can unlock more physical (and personal) growth than any program alone

Looking for fat loss podcasts, nutrition podcasts, or strength training podcasts for women and men over 40? Wits & Weights brings the science-based answers without the conflicting noise. If you're ready to learn what actually works with evidence-based strength training and evidence-based nutrition, hit "follow" 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 (Docs Who Lift), Bill Campbell (exercise science researcher), Jordan Feigenbaum (Barbell Medicine), Holly Baxter (evidence-based physique coach), Laurin Conlin (physique coach), Lauren Colenso-Semple (nutrition researcher), Karen Martel (hormone optimization expert), Steph Gaudreau (women's strength and nutrition), Bryan Boorstein (hypertrophy coach)


Popular Topics Include: fat loss tips, hormone health, menopause tips and advice, creatine for women, peptides for women, metabolism optimization, hypertrophy training, longevity and healthy aging, nutrition myths, nutrition tracking, best protein powder selection, strength training over 40, women's fitness, perimenopause, menopause, lifting weights for fat loss, muscle building, body recomp, macros and nutrition tracking

© 2026 Philip Pape Exercise & Fitness Fitness, Diet & Nutrition Hygiene & Healthy Living Personal Development Personal Success
Episodes
  • 5 Signals That Your Body's "Off" Even When Your Labs Are Normal (Dr. Stephen Cabral) | Ep 476

    5 Signals That Your Body's "Off" Even When Your Labs Are Normal (Dr. Stephen Cabral) | Ep 476
    Jun 11 2026

    You’re lifting weights. You’re eating well. Your labs look “normal.” So why do you still feel exhausted, bloated, wired at night, moody, or like your body is aging faster than it should?

    Dr. Stephen Cabral helps us decode why fatigue, bloating, poor sleep, and mood swings can show up even when your labs look fine. We talk about the five signals your body sends through sleep, energy, digestion, mood, and skin, plus how they connect to hormone health, metabolism, inflammation, and recovery.

    You’ll learn why sleep comes first, how digestion can drain energy, why stress and gut issues can affect mood, and how to build a rhythm that supports evidence-based nutrition, lifting weights, and long-term wellness.

    Join Eat More Lift Heavy to build strength, lose fat, and learn what works for your body, 1 week at a time. Learn to eat more and lift heavy with confidence.

    Timestamps:

    0:00 – Five signals your body sends
    2:10 – Dr. Cabral’s personal health journey
    8:05 – Foundations before advanced protocols
    12:42 – Sleep as the first lever
    21:14 – Energy, cortisol, and daily rhythm
    27:44 – Digestion, bloating, and gut signals
    35:32 – Mood, inflammation, and overwhelm
    40:06 – Skin, hair, and biological age
    47:00 – The weekly rhythm reset action

    Episode resources:

    • Website: stephencabral.com
    • Podcast: The Cabral Concept
    • Facebook: @drstephencabral
    • Instagram: @stephencabral
    • YouTube: @stephencabral


    💪 Join Eat More Lift Heavy - a 26-week evidence-based strength training and fat loss program for lifters over 40 to build muscle, lose fat, and maintain your weight loss and physique (even in perimenopause and menopause)

    📱 Get Fitness Lab - AI-powered coaching app for evidence-based fitness and nutrition over 40. Real-time, personalized guidance that evolves with your data and lifestyle to help you build muscle, lose fat, and body recomp

    👥 Join our Facebook community - For adults over 40 who want to build muscle with strength training and lose fat with evidence-based nutrition. Support for lifting weights, hypertrophy, fat loss, and hormones.

    👋 Ask a question or find Philip Pape (evidence-based nutrition coach) on Instagram & thanks for making us one of the best fat loss and nutrition podcasts for adults over 40! 🙏
    Show More Show Less
    52 mins
  • Sometimes More Is More (The Sedentary Lifter Problem) | Ep 475

    Sometimes More Is More (The Sedentary Lifter Problem) | Ep 475
    Jun 8 2026

    You lift weights 3-4 days a week, you hit your protein, you sleep well, and the muscle you've built still isn't showing.

    For a lot of lifters over 40, the highest-leverage change is something else... how much you move the rest of the day, through a combination of steps, getting up frequently, NEAT, and a little cardio.

    The advice that you're overtraining and need to do LESS to recover more is the right advice for some lifters but wrong for others, and the difference comes down to... context!

    Learn why a lifter who trains hard but sits most of the day stays stuck, how non-exercise activity and total daily movement shape your metabolism, and what recent step-count research says about the dose-response curve for adults over 40.

    We cover the constrained energy expenditure model and where it actually applies, the role of movement during perimenopause and menopause, and a simple way to audit your own week to find the lever that's holding back your fat loss and body recomp.

    Enroll in Eat More Lift Heavy, the 26-week coached program where adults over 40 learn to pull the right levers (training, nutrition, and daily movement) to lose fat, build muscle, and manage their physique for life.

    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Overtraining vs. the sedentary lifter
    4:45 - When "less is more" is correct
    7:00 - The lifter who trains hard but sits all day
    10:30 - NEAT and the 4 components of metabolism
    13:00 - Steps and the dose-response curve
    16:00 - Constrained energy model of calorie burn
    17:45 - How to audit your week
    20:05 - Adding steps before cardio
    22:15 - Adding light cardio sessions
    23:30 - Movement breaks every 30 minutes
    24:56 - Movement during perimenopause and menopause
    28:30 - Bonus: 30-second movement audit

    Episode Resources:

    • Get MacroFactor (the app referenced for tracking expenditure) and use code WITSANDWEIGHTS for a 2-week free trial
    • The 20-Minute Fix for Menopause Belly Fat


    💪 Join Eat More Lift Heavy - a 26-week evidence-based strength training and fat loss program for lifters over 40 to build muscle, lose fat, and maintain your weight loss and physique (even in perimenopause and menopause)

    📱 Get Fitness Lab - AI-powered coaching app for evidence-based fitness and nutrition over 40. Real-time, personalized guidance that evolves with your data and lifestyle to help you build muscle, lose fat, and body recomp

    👥 Join our Facebook community - For adults over 40 who want to build muscle with strength training and lose fat with evidence-based nutrition. Support for lifting weights, hypertrophy, fat loss, and hormones.

    👋 Ask a question or find Philip Pape (evidence-based nutrition coach) on Instagram & thanks for making us one of the best fat loss and nutrition podcasts for adults over 40! 🙏
    Show More Show Less
    31 mins
  • Brain Aging and Barbells (How Lifting Weights Slows Cognitive Decline) | Ep 474

    Brain Aging and Barbells (How Lifting Weights Slows Cognitive Decline) | Ep 474
    Jun 4 2026

    Can lifting weights slow how fast your brain ages?

    A new study used brain scans to measure exactly that. The results show that resistance training is a uniquely beneficial tool for brain health that works through different pathways than cardio.

    Lifting weights can make the brain test younger on functional MRI, and the benefits may keep compounding even long after you train.

    Learn what brain age measures, why the prefrontal cortex matters for Alzheimer's and cognitive aging, the muscle-to-brain signaling system activated by strength training, and how heavy lifting compares to moderate intensity for protecting the brain after 40. Plus a quick self-check for strength-related dementia risk, especially after 40.

    Enroll in Eat More Lift Heavy, the 26-week coached program where adults over 40 build the nutrition and training skills to lift heavy, build muscle, lose fat, and stay strong and sharp for decades.

    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Lifting weights and brain aging
    0:47 - Dementia risk and strength training over 40
    3:58 - Aerobic exercise and the hippocampus
    6:00 - Prefrontal cortex and muscle signaling
    7:48 - Recent study and brain age scans
    10:21 - Brain age gap and dementia risk
    11:30 - Results across both lifting intensities
    13:12 - Myokines, irisin, and BDNF
    16:57 - How to build skills for lifting weights
    18:30 - Lifting protocol for brain health
    20:45 - Entry points for new lifters
    24:15 - Grip strength and dementia risk


    💪 Join Eat More Lift Heavy - a 26-week evidence-based strength training and fat loss program for lifters over 40 to build muscle, lose fat, and maintain your weight loss and physique (even in perimenopause and menopause)

    📱 Get Fitness Lab - AI-powered coaching app for evidence-based fitness and nutrition over 40. Real-time, personalized guidance that evolves with your data and lifestyle to help you build muscle, lose fat, and body recomp

    👥 Join our Facebook community - For adults over 40 who want to build muscle with strength training and lose fat with evidence-based nutrition. Support for lifting weights, hypertrophy, fat loss, and hormones.

    👋 Ask a question or find Philip Pape (evidence-based nutrition coach) on Instagram & thanks for making us one of the best fat loss and nutrition podcasts for adults over 40! 🙏
    Show More Show Less
    28 mins
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
All stars
Most relevant
Easy to grasp and teaching is directed towards the listener and not just a group of jacked guys having a conversation between themselves like you not there.

Just want I was looking for.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.