Quick Wits: Stress-Free, Guilt-Free Holiday Meals (and Happy Thanksgiving!) 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

Quick Wits: Stress-Free, Guilt-Free Holiday Meals (and Happy Thanksgiving!)

November 23, 2023 • Philip Pape

0:00 | 4:34

For my friends in the U.S., Happy Thanksgiving!

Ready to conquer the holiday feast without compromising your nutrition goals?

If you've ever felt overwhelmed by the abundance of food choices in a big holiday meal, tune in to today's episode of Quick Wits.

We will equip you with the strategies needed to navigate the food avalanche that typifies holiday meals. I will guide you through a stress-free approach to indulging in abundant holiday meals and decode the psychological aspect of holiday feasting.

Have you ever felt guilty for overindulging during the holidays? We tackle this and more for a guilt-free, stress-free holiday season.

---

“Quick Wits” are short, 3-5 minute episodes between full episodes to give you an actionable strategy or hit of motivation.

These mini-episodes give you practical advice on fitness, training, and mindset based on my everyday experience with clients that you can implement right away.

If you enjoy these bonus episodes or have feedback on how to make them better, just send me a message on IG @witsandweights or hit me up in the free Wits & Weights Facebook community.

💪 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

Philip Pape 0:00

If you've ever felt overwhelmed by the abundance of food choices during holiday meal, stick around for today's episode.

Philip Pape 0:06

If you're listening in the US when the episode comes out, happy Thanksgiving. And if you're not, it's okay. This is still relevant to you when it comes to those big holiday meals, those big parties. So stick around for today's episode of Quick Wits. Welcome to the Wits and Weights podcast. I'm your host, phillip Pape, and this twice a week podcast is dedicated to helping you achieve physical self-mastery by getting stronger, optimizing your nutrition and upgrading your body composition. We'll uncover science-backed strategies for movement, metabolism, muscle and mindset, with a skeptical eye on the fitness industry, so you can look and feel your absolute best. Let's dive right in Again. If you're listening on Thursday and it is Thanksgiving in the United States, I wish you the best, the most enjoyable holiday. Wherever you're listening, whenever you're listening, this episode is still highly relevant.

Philip Pape 1:02

If you've ever felt overwhelmed by all those food choices, by the big holiday meal For Thanksgiving in the US, this can include so many foods, from the turkey and stuffing to the sides, to the mashed potatoes and gravy, desserts, baked goods, pie, you name it. It is a feast and what we want to do is have a stress-free, flexible approach. I don't want to keep this short, but it really comes down to this one meal is not going to break or make make or break your nutrition goals. When we have a flexible approach, it means you can enjoy a meal or two meals or a week of meals, and always continue from the next meal on track with whatever your plan was as for the meal itself, unless you've done some advanced planning or you've shifted your calories or protein and some of those other advanced strategies we often talk about. Let's say it's here, you're listening to this podcast, you're driving over to your relatives' house for the Thanksgiving dinner. What do you do? Well, first you could just enjoy yourself. Do nothing, track it if you want. Later on, it doesn't matter so much. Based on the first thing I just said, you can always start again tomorrow. But if you want to have a little bit more control over your choices for the dinner, start with protein, start with protein-rich foods, and there's nothing more protein-rich than turkey.

Philip Pape 2:20

Turkey's a wonderful aspect of Thanksgiving when you are trying to keep protein high. It's delicious. I personally love the dark meat and I love the skin as well. But whatever it is, prioritize protein. You can sample a bunch of different foods, so you get a little of everything and I'm sure you'll easily fill up your plate that way, rather than having giant portions of different things. And always stay hydrated. Just drink water before, drink water during, drink water after. It's up to you if you're going to enjoy alcohol or not, but avoiding the alcohol would allow you to enjoy more other things. So it's a little trade-offs like that that go a long way.

Philip Pape 2:51

The last thing is the psychological aspect. This is a special occasion. It's okay to indulge a little bit. The key here is enjoy the meal without guilt and then just get back to it the next day.

Philip Pape 3:02

Be present Thanksgiving especially for those familiar with the holiday, it's really not just about the food, is it? It's about the quality time with loved ones. It's about being present in the moment, expressing gratitude, and all of that can reduce your stress. It's about the experience of being with people. You might find that the eating really isn't that big a portion of it.

Philip Pape 3:21

The older I get, I find that a lot of the time at Thanksgiving is really spent talking with family, hanging out, maybe watching football, maybe playing outside, going for a walk, and then, yeah, we have our meal, but it's just one meal. There's only so much you can eat in one meal. So Thanksgiving in these big holidays, they don't have to be stressful, they don't have to derail your goals. If you have a flexible and a mindful approach, you can enjoy these feasts without guilt. Your time is what matters, not just one meal. So go out and enjoy a stress-free holiday. Thank you for tuning in to another episode of Wits and Weights. If you found value in today's episode and know someone else who's looking to level up their wits or weights, please take a moment to share this episode with them and make sure to hit the follow button in your podcast platform right now to catch the next episode. Until then, stay strong.