73 Year Old Listener Doubles Sprinting Power in 4 Months (12-Minute Protocol) | Bonus Artwork

Wits & Weights | Evidence-Based Fitness & Nutrition for Lifters Over 40

Wits & Weights is a strength 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 fitness 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. 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

If you're ready to learn what actually works with evidence-based training and 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: hormone health, metabolism optimization, hypertrophy training, longevity and healthy aging, nutrition tracking, best protein powder selection, strength training over 40, women's fitness, perimenopause, menopause, muscle building, body recomp, macros and nutrition tracking

All Episodes

Wits & Weights | Evidence-Based Fitness & Nutrition for Lifters Over 40

73 Year Old Listener Doubles Sprinting Power in 4 Months (12-Minute Protocol) | Bonus

August 03, 2025 • Philip Pape, Evidence-Based Nutrition Coach & Fat Loss Expert

0:00 | 3:59

Join Physique University for just $27 a month to access our workshop on sprint training and receive a free custom nutrition plan using this exclusive listener link: http://bit.ly/podcast-new-wwpu

Today we're celebrating a huge win for 73-year-old listener Bruce @bruceandjantrain.

Bruce achieved impressive results following the sprint protocol discussed in Episode 293, increasing his power output by 78% in just 4 months and demonstrating the effectiveness of this time-efficient training approach for lifters. Age is no barrier!

Listen to the Sprinting for Lifters episode here:

7 Benefits of Sprinting to Lose Fat (And Why It Beats Cardio, Especially for Lifters!)

💪 Join Eat More Lift Heavy - A 6-month coaching program for lifters over 40 who are done collecting information and ready to have real human coaches watch their data and know what to focus on each week.

📱 Get Fitness Lab (exclusive 20% off) - The #1 adaptive fitness and nutrition app. Daily coaching, workouts, and biofeedback-based guidance to help you build muscle and lose fat over 40.

👥 Join our Facebook community - For adults over 40 who want to build muscle, lose fat, and stop following bad advice. Weekly Q&A threads, coaching insights, and real chat with other lifters.

👋 Ask a question or find Philip Pape on Instagram

Bruce's Sprint Training Journey

Philip Pape 0:00

Hey everyone, philip Pape here with a quick bonus episode because I wanted to share some results from a listener. His name is Bruce. You can find him on Instagram at Bruce and Jan Train. I'll include his link in the show notes. He's 72 years old, has been following the podcast for a while and also following the sprinting protocol that I talked about in episode 293, which, admittedly, I borrowed from Brad Kearns when he was on my show and his results are pretty darn impressive. Bruce is using a Wahoo Kickr smart trainer and tracking with Zwift, and before he started his sprint training, he was doing three to four rides per week, 20 to 30 minutes each, averaging around 100 to 115 watts in zone two, and if that doesn't mean anything to you, it's okay. We're going to talk about the improvement in a second. He started his sprint protocol on February 24th and these are 12-minute sessions including four all-out efforts with full recovery between each. Go check out episode 293. I'm going to link it in the show notes for the details on the protocol, but here's how he progressed February 24th, he was able to hit 363 watts of power. March 21st 422 watts. April 11th 473. June 6th 512. June 16th 583. And June 27th 646. So summarize, bruce went from 363 watts to 646 watts in just four months. That's a 78% increase in power output at the age of 72. And he says that he's plateaued recently, around 620 watts average in July and hit the 640s a couple of times, and his goal is 700. And honestly, bruce, if you're listening, I think you'll get there. The commitment that you have and the fact that this is a progression for you. And the best part is he says he's feeling great.

Philip Pape 1:58

Now, this is exactly what I talked about in episode 293. It's not just the sprint protocol, but it's really all the benefits as a lifter for sprinting. You don't need hours of cardio, you don't need hours of sprint training, you just need something very smart and very focused 12 minutes all out, four to eight sets of sprints with full recovery of 6x the amount of the work. And again, the whole protocol is explained there and if you haven't listened to episode 293, check it out. I talk about whether you're doing it on a bike, whether you're sprinting, all the anabolic benefits for you as a sprinter, especially for recovery, and if you want a deeper dive, if you want a deeper dive into the protocol, the benefits, how to do it. We actually did that in Physique University and if you go listen to episode 293, I talk about it there, but it was actually more expensive back then. We've made it way more accessible. It's 27 a month now and you're going to get a free custom nutrition plan if you use my exclusive link for listeners.

Simplicity Beats Complexity

Philip Pape 2:55

But really I wanted to just give a shout out to Bruce. Really nice work, man. Very solid progress. Keep it up. For everyone else listening, this is a great reminder that sometimes very simple, time-efficient approaches work best when you do them, when you stick to them, and the good thing about this kind of sprint protocol is it's easy to stick to. It doesn't have to be overcomplicated. Bruce didn't overcomplicate, he just did the work and that's it. That's it for this quick episode. Go listen to episode 293. If you want to try this for yourself and understand the benefits and the protocol, join Physique University. If you want the workshop we did on this, as well as all the other great resources there, for just $27 a month Until next time. Keep using your wits, keep lifting those weights and remember consistency beats complexity every single time. I'll talk to you on Monday.