Latest / Wits & Weights | Strength & Fat Loss Over 40 / 15 Evidence-Based Fitness Lessons for Building Muscle and Losing Fat Over 40 | Ep 400

Transcript

15 Evidence-Based Fitness Lessons for Building Muscle and Losing Fat Over 40 | Ep 400 · Wits & Weights | Strength & Fat Loss Over 40

• 0:01
  Philip Pape: 400 episodes of Evidence-Based Fitness means 400 opportunities to challenge what we think we know about building muscle and losing fat.
• 0:09
  Philip Pape: Today you're gonna hear 15 voices from the saga that is the Wits and Weights podcast, listeners, world-class strength coaches, evidence-based researchers, fellow podcasters, but most importantly, all my friends who have supported the show in some way.
• 0:24
  Philip Pape: What did they take away from 400 episodes?
• 0:27
  Philip Pape: How does that affect you when you strip away the distractions of the fitness industry and ask the question, what should I know and what should I do with my training and nutrition to get the result I want?
• 0:37
  Philip Pape: Welcome to episode 400.
• 0:39
  Philip Pape: Welcome to Wits and Weights, the show that helps you build a strong, healthy physique using evidence, engineering, and efficiency.
• 0:56
  Philip Pape: I'm your host, certified nutrition coach, Philip Pape.
• 0:59
  Philip Pape: And today we're gonna do something I've never done before because it is episode 400, and I've received 15 separate voice messages from people around the world who shared what this show has meant to them.
• 1:13
  Philip Pape: There's some questions, there's some stories, there's some shout-outs from listeners who transformed their physiques, to colleagues who've challenged me to be better, to guests who've shared their expertise so generously.
• 1:24
  Philip Pape: And I'm gonna add some of my thoughts, a little bit of commentary after each message, but mostly I'm letting their words speak for themselves, and I think you're really going to enjoy it as we together celebrate episode 400.
• 1:35
  Philip Pape: All right, let's get into it with the first message, which is from Jo S, and she is in the UK.
• 1:43
  Jo S.: Hi, this is Joe, listening from the UK.
• 1:46
  Jo S.: I'm a huge fan of the Wits and Weights podcast, and I look forward to the new episodes each time.
• 1:51
  Jo S.: Congratulations, Philip, on 400 episodes.
• 1:54
  Jo S.: Please keep going.
• 1:56
  Jo S.: Keep it coming.
• 1:57
  Jo S.: I absolutely love it.
• 1:58
  Jo S.: I'm a member of the Wits and Weights Physique University as well, seeing some great results.
• 2:03
  Jo S.: And for the first time, breaking through some of the old habits that have kept me stuck.
• 2:08
  Jo S.: So thank you, and thank you, Carol, as well, the other coach, for all of your great work on there.
• 2:13
  Jo S.: Keep going.
• 2:14
  Jo S.: Congratulations.
• 2:16
  Philip Pape: So that was Jo, and she's in Physique University, as she mentioned.
• 2:19
  Philip Pape: She's one of the very engaged members who is always asking questions when she gets stuck and trying to figure out how to move forward.
• 2:27
  Philip Pape: And I love how she mentioned breaking through old habits.
• 2:30
  Philip Pape: I think that is what systems thinking helps us do.
• 2:34
  Philip Pape: The habits could be very simple and we take them for granted.
• 2:37
  Philip Pape: Like you go to bed at 10:30 every night, and now you have to develop a system to get to bed at 10 every night.
• 2:43
  Philip Pape: I also like how she gave a shout-out to Carol, who is my other coach in Physique University, and she's going to have actually have a shout-out later on in the show.
• 2:51
  Philip Pape: And lastly, Joe is from the UK.
• 2:53
  Philip Pape: We actually have a lot of members and clients and listeners from all over the world, which is an amazing outcome of the digital world we live in and the ability to reach more people.
• 3:03
  Philip Pape: So thank you so much, Joe, for your message.
• 3:05
  Philip Pape: All right, the next one is Julia D from Germany.
• 3:09
  Julia D.: Hi, Philip.
• 3:10
  Julia D.: This is Julia from Germany speaking, you know who.
• 3:13
  Julia D.: Wow.
• 3:15
  Julia D.: First of all, congratulations to episode 400 of your podcast.
• 3:19
  Julia D.: This is huge.
• 3:20
  Julia D.: This is amazing.
• 3:21
  Julia D.: Oh my gosh.
• 3:22
  Julia D.: First of all, I've learned from you that why I've lost so much muscle over the past years and my my metabolism slowed down so much.
• 3:38
  Julia D.: And yeah, why I gained much more fat without eating differently.
• 3:45
  Julia D.: So yeah, I'm into protein now, and the right amount of protein.
• 3:50
  Julia D.: I learned so much about hormones for women after 40.
• 3:54
  Julia D.: I learned how important strength training is.
• 4:00
  Julia D.: I've done it before, but now I'm seriously committed and have regularly done it for several months now, which is the first.
• 4:08
  Julia D.: And wow, I loved your nerdy episode about what muscle tissue has for advantages as advantages.
• 4:19
  Julia D.: Because of that, I learned that more muscle tissue will seriously better my chronic health condition, which on the first glance has nothing to do with muscle muscle tissue or anything.
• 4:34
  Julia D.: So that's why I'm so committed to the strength training now, because I know in the long run my chronic condition will be better gradually.
• 4:44
  Julia D.: You motivated me to think about my physique with a much, much longer time frame over years, not weeks or even months.
• 4:56
  Julia D.: You motivated me to go into aggressive maintenance first.
• 5:02
  Julia D.: So in well, a little bit of head loss, but basically first a recomposition just to gain the first amount of muscle to later then be easier able to lose fat.
• 5:16
  Julia D.: Yeah.
• 5:17
  Julia D.: And I'm so looking forward to the cycle over the year with shredding fat in the summer season for to be, yeah, to have a bikini body, you know.
• 5:28
  Julia D.: And then enjoying all the holiday food in the winter season while also building serious muscle.
• 5:35
  Julia D.: This will be so much fun.
• 5:37
  Julia D.: I could say tons more, but just for the moment, I I also love your personality, I love your style, you're so empathetic, you're so client-centered, always respecting individual choices.
• 5:54
  Julia D.: And at the same time, you are so clear and you're so able to really condense complex information and highlight the main points.
• 6:06
  Julia D.: So, yeah, seriously, you should take money for your podcast because it's so valuable.
• 6:12
  Julia D.: Thank you so, so, so much, Philip.
• 6:15
  Julia D.: I hope there will be tons of messages which motivate you to go on with it because so, so many people need your advice with your personality and your style.
• 6:28
  Julia D.: Thank you so, so much.
• 6:31
  Philip Pape: Wow, and thank you so, so much, Julia.
• 6:34
  Philip Pape: I don't know where to begin.
• 6:35
  Philip Pape: That was so kind.
• 6:37
  Philip Pape: You basically explained the entire podcast journey in just a few minutes.
• 6:42
  Philip Pape: I love that you took information that is universal in terms of muscle mass, for example, and applied it to a chronic condition you have, knowing that these work no matter who you are.
• 6:54
  Philip Pape: It's just how it's personalized.
• 6:56
  Philip Pape: And that mindset shift to thinking over the longer term is fantastic.
• 7:00
  Philip Pape: Some people don't have very much patience, and that's one of the messages we preach here.
• 7:04
  Philip Pape: And of course, a bunch of other things you said I don't need to repeat because folks could hear that.
• 7:08
  Philip Pape: But at the end of the day, I think your words at the end really touched me the most about empathy and being client-centered and all of that.
• 7:16
  Philip Pape: I personally have gone through a journey over the years.
• 7:18
  Philip Pape: When I was younger in my 20s, I was not that way.
• 7:21
  Philip Pape: I didn't have much emotional intelligence at all.
• 7:24
  Philip Pape: I could be very rude, very defensive to people.
• 7:27
  Philip Pape: And those things don't always get called out on.
• 7:30
  Philip Pape: But when you reflect on yourself and then you see how you treat people and what a difference it makes, the opposite is true in terms of if you can really get into their shoes and understand where they're coming from and understand whatever question someone asks, there's no stupid question in this context, and that is a I truly believe that, but also understand where they're coming from.
• 7:49
  Philip Pape: There's a reason they're asking, there's something they're frustrated with, there's something that they're not getting.
• 7:53
  Philip Pape: And that question comes from a place of curiosity, and curiosity is what we're all about.
• 7:57
  Philip Pape: So those are my thoughts, Julia.
• 7:58
  Philip Pape: Thank you so much for the message.
• 7:59
  Philip Pape: I really, really loved it, and I hope the listeners did as well.
• 8:02
  Philip Pape: All right, so that was two listeners as well as two clients in Physique University.
• 8:07
  Philip Pape: Our next one is from Kevin Palmeri, who is a stand-up guy, a super guy in the industry.
• 8:14
  Philip Pape: He's actually the head of NextLool University, co-founder with Alan Lazarus.
• 8:18
  Philip Pape: And Alan was on the show, by the way, recently, actually last week.
• 8:22
  Philip Pape: But Kevin is a personal mentor and coach of mine.
• 8:25
  Philip Pape: He leads the team that edits this podcast.
• 8:27
  Philip Pape: They do the interview episodes.
• 8:29
  Philip Pape: I do the solo episodes, but they do the interview episodes, which are more complex with the video with multiple people and all that.
• 8:36
  Philip Pape: And so I'm going to let you hear his message, which also includes a question.
• 8:41
  Kevin Palmieri: Philip, my friend, 400 podcast episodes.
• 8:45
  Kevin Palmieri: That is truly amazing, my friend.
• 8:48
  Kevin Palmieri: I am so, so, so very happy for you, and I am so happy to see your success and your continued success.
• 8:55
  Kevin Palmieri: And probably more than anything, I am honored to see you help so many people.
• 9:01
  Kevin Palmieri: You are really, really helping a lot of people.
• 9:05
  Kevin Palmieri: And I hope you know that, and I hope you feel that, and I hope that you accept the recognition that you deserve.
• 9:12
  Kevin Palmieri: So super proud of you, my friend.
• 9:14
  Kevin Palmieri: And it's amazing to see you grow and help as many people as you are.
• 9:18
  Kevin Palmieri: I have a question for you.
• 9:19
  Kevin Palmieri: As somebody who is busy and growing a business, how often are you prioritizing fitness over other things?
• 9:28
  Kevin Palmieri: So when I get super overwhelmed, fitness is usually the first thing to go because it doesn't pay the bills, unfortunately.
• 9:35
  Kevin Palmieri: So sometimes I'll either skip a workout or I'll wake up two hours earlier than I should so I can get my workout in.
• 9:43
  Kevin Palmieri: What are your thoughts on that?
• 9:45
  Kevin Palmieri: And how do you prioritize and how do you choose?
• 9:49
  Kevin Palmieri: And then how do you live with whatever decision you make?
• 9:52
  Philip Pape: Kevin, my friend, thank you for the message.
• 9:54
  Philip Pape: Thank you for the message.
• 9:55
  Philip Pape: I always can count on you to challenge me to think about why I do things and where what the intention is behind it, but also I know it serves as a model for how others might think about similar challenges.
• 10:08
  Philip Pape: So the question you asked about how I prioritize my fitness, I think like any anchor habit that is the priority in your life, it be it's the first part of the stack.
• 10:24
  Philip Pape: And what I mean by that is if I were to plan out my week on a blank sheet of paper, number one, where does my training go?
• 10:30
  Philip Pape: Now, some people might say, Well, what about your relationship with your wife?
• 10:32
  Philip Pape: What about your kids?
• 10:33
  Philip Pape: What about your job and your business?
• 10:35
  Philip Pape: I'd say, Yeah, I'm gonna get those done.
• 10:38
  Philip Pape: But to me, fitness and in this case, strength training in particular is a catalyst for making all of those things way more productive to the point where I feel like the ROI is at least break-even, right?
• 10:53
  Philip Pape: And what I mean by that is the hour and a half I spend four or five days a week is paid back in spades by the productivity, the energy, the mindset, the consistency that I get with everything else.
• 11:05
  Philip Pape: Now that's not the case for everyone.
• 11:07
  Philip Pape: Some people, because of their schedules, because of how much they have to spend on other activities, may have to make other trade-offs like working out three days a week instead of four or five, or even just two days a week, or doing two a days that are small exercise snacks.
• 11:21
  Philip Pape: And these are a lot of the things we talk about on the show.
• 11:24
  Philip Pape: So I think it starts from saying, look, if this is a priority, how can I fit it into my week?
• 11:30
  Philip Pape: And then we're actually doing a challenge called the Strong Finish Challenge in Physique University, where we talk about having a minimum, a minimum viable habit, which I think is what your uh co your partner calls it, minimum viable habit, but also having a bailout strategy.
• 11:46
  Philip Pape: So if your optimal is to go into the gym four days a week, 90 minutes, your minimum might be three days a week for 30 minutes.
• 11:53
  Philip Pape: Your bailout might be a short 15-minute body weight workout two days a week, right?
• 12:00
  Philip Pape: So it's kind of having those different levels.
• 12:02
  Philip Pape: That that's how I would put it, Kevin.
• 12:04
  Philip Pape: And I will admit there are other things that are important to me that I've not done that to, and it shows.
• 12:09
  Philip Pape: In other words, sleep hasn't been as high a priority as I quote unquote should make it for myself, like training, and therefore it's suffered.
• 12:17
  Philip Pape: And I know that and I'm aware of that, and that's a thing that I can pop to the top if needed, if I need to double down.
• 12:23
  Philip Pape: So I hope that answers your question, Kevin.
• 12:25
  Philip Pape: Thanks for challenging me as always.
• 12:26
  Philip Pape: I'm gonna go to the next message, which is from Pam Sherman.
• 12:30
  Philip Pape: And guys, Pam was just on the last episode of the podcast for the Women Over 50 QA, and I've known her for a while.
• 12:35
  Philip Pape: She's a trainer, coach, uh amazing woman in the space.
• 12:39
  Philip Pape: And I'm gonna play her message for you now.
• 12:41
  Pam Sherman: Philip, Pam Sherman here.
• 12:43
  Pam Sherman: I am so excited to be part of your journey.
• 12:46
  Pam Sherman: It's been amazing to be a guest on your podcast, to be a guest on your Facebook group.
• 12:51
  Pam Sherman: You are awesome.
• 12:53
  Pam Sherman: I know a lot of people in our well health and wellness space, and I resonate with you so much.
• 12:59
  Pam Sherman: You're my people.
• 13:00
  Pam Sherman: You try to keep it simple, you try to keep it easy while doing so much research.
• 13:05
  Pam Sherman: I know you want what is best for your audience.
• 13:08
  Pam Sherman: You want to give them the truth about what works and what doesn't work.
• 13:12
  Pam Sherman: You and I have both struggled.
• 13:14
  Pam Sherman: We've both struggled with our weight, with our workouts, we've done everything wrong.
• 13:17
  Pam Sherman: And now we're on the other side, so we can help as many people as possible get on top of their nutrition, know the right way to eat fuel for their workouts or for weight loss or just for a healthy life.
• 13:30
  Pam Sherman: I am so happy that Karen Martell introduced us because I you are one of my very favorite people in this space.
• 13:37
  Pam Sherman: Congratulations again on 400 episodes, and thanks for having me be a part of this journey.
• 13:43
  Philip Pape: Thank you, Pam.
• 13:44
  Philip Pape: And you are also one of my favorite people.
• 13:46
  Philip Pape: And yeah, you know, Karen Martell is a through line on this podcast.
• 13:50
  Philip Pape: Um, her ears are are burning.
• 13:52
  Philip Pape: You guys she's gonna be featured in a little bit.
• 13:54
  Philip Pape: And yeah, she brought us together, but we've kept it going from episode 190 when you were on, where we talked about why women over 50 need strength, health, longevity to yesterday's episode or earlier this this week's episode about some QA questions on protein training, all of that.
• 14:12
  Philip Pape: And really, at the end of the day, I just love to hang around people who are always learning, who are improving, who show that age is definitely not a factor when it comes to your health, that we could get after it and yes, help help each other and help others make an impact.
• 14:26
  Philip Pape: And I hope those of you listening to the show feel like this show helps you and guests like Pam having been on the show help you, and that you are sharing with others the message and sharing them this, sharing them this podcast so that they can learn as well.
• 14:38
  Philip Pape: All right, our next message is from someone who probably needs no introduction.
• 14:42
  Philip Pape: So I'm gonna let it speak for itself and then give my thoughts afterward.
• 14:46
  Eric Helms: Philip, my man, just want to say thank you so much for what you do with Wits and Weights.
• 14:51
  Eric Helms: Educating the public and other trainers and other professionals to be more effective at helping others is a huge service.
• 14:59
  Eric Helms: And there's so much pseudoscience, misinformation, and unfortunately disinformation out there that we need more voices and leaders in this space, making evidence-based information clear, understandable, and interesting.
• 15:11
  Eric Helms: It's always a pleasure to be on.
• 15:13
  Eric Helms: And I look forward, if you'll have me, from coming back on Wits and Weights.
• 15:17
  Eric Helms: Keep doing the thing, man.
• 15:18
  Eric Helms: You're crushing it.
• 15:19
  Philip Pape: And that means a lot coming from Eric.
• 15:21
  Philip Pape: Just so you guys know, some of the backstory here.
• 15:23
  Philip Pape: You know, Eric is one of the authors of Muscle and Strength Pyramids, which is one of the things that I read back in the 2019, 2020 timeframe that was a catalyst for me learning more about evidence-based fitness, you know, with the the pyramids themselves, that whole idea of adherence as the foundation, sustainability, and then building up from there of what's most to least important is crucial when it comes to making this work for you.
• 15:51
  Philip Pape: But I also like the idea of making evidence-based information clear and interesting.
• 15:55
  Philip Pape: We've had Eric on for three episodes so far 72, 121, 391.
• 16:01
  Philip Pape: And the first time I asked him to be on, I was completely surprised because I was just getting started.
• 16:05
  Philip Pape: And then I realized, hey, there's a lot of generous folks out there who, you know, they're not like untouchables.
• 16:11
  Philip Pape: They're they're real human beings who we can reach out to and talk to and just have good conversations with and you know, develop friendships and networks over the years.
• 16:20
  Philip Pape: So, Eric, your message really does mean a lot to me, truly.
• 16:23
  Philip Pape: You're definitely going to come on the show again.
• 16:25
  Philip Pape: Keep doing what you do, keep contributing to the research, but also the conversation.
• 16:30
  Philip Pape: And I, for one, will always be on your side in this battle.
• 16:33
  Philip Pape: All right.
• 16:34
  Philip Pape: The next message is from Jen Trepik.
• 16:36
  Philip Pape: Jen was on the show, episode 337.
• 16:39
  Philip Pape: She hosts Salad with a side of fries.
• 16:41
  Philip Pape: Such energy and passion for this.
• 16:44
  Philip Pape: We really hit it off, and you know, we've collaborated on some other things, been talking business behind the scenes, and she's definitely my kind of person.
• 16:50
  Philip Pape: And I'm gonna let her message speak for itself.
• 16:53
  Jenn Trepeck: Your podcast friend and colleague Jen Trepik from Salad with a Side of Fries.
• 16:57
  Jenn Trepeck: Huge, huge congratulations on 400 episodes.
• 17:02
  Jenn Trepeck: Believe me, I know that is no small feat.
• 17:06
  Jenn Trepeck: I'm so excited for you and all that you do for your clients, your members, your community, your listeners.
• 17:15
  Jenn Trepeck: You are truly changing lives.
• 17:17
  Jenn Trepeck: It is an honor to know you and to call you a friend and a colleague.
• 17:21
  Jenn Trepeck: Congratulations again.
• 17:23
  Philip Pape: Jen, thank you so much.
• 17:24
  Philip Pape: I always love messages from fellow podcasters because you really get it when it comes to the business side of this, not only as a coach, but podcasting itself.
• 17:33
  Philip Pape: And what a, I'll say pleasant grind it can be, right?
• 17:36
  Philip Pape: That's the way I'm gonna put it.
• 17:37
  Philip Pape: It's one of those things that takes time to really build the momentum.
• 17:41
  Philip Pape: And I appreciate you calling me a friend and doing this collaboration together.
• 17:46
  Philip Pape: And for those listening, Jen is gonna be on the show again pretty soon.
• 17:49
  Philip Pape: It might be in the new year.
• 17:50
  Philip Pape: She has a new book, and I wanted to come in, have her come on and talk about a specific topic that I think is gonna resonate really hard with all of us.
• 17:56
  Philip Pape: But I'm gonna leave it at that.
• 17:58
  Philip Pape: You guys keep following the podcast for when Jen comes back on.
• 18:00
  Philip Pape: Jen, it's awesome to know you, and we're definitely gonna be in touch.
• 18:04
  Philip Pape: So, our next guest who sent in, I shouldn't say guest, our next listener slash colleague, slash friend who sent in a message.
• 18:12
  Philip Pape: His name is Sam Brake Gia.
• 18:14
  Philip Pape: And I was actually on his show, Mike's Tamillion.
• 18:17
  Philip Pape: He is the co-founder of Podwritten, but he actually explains all of this in the message, and it's kind of an interesting, I'll say, origin story that we went through that I think you'll find pretty cool from a behind-the-scenes perspective.
• 18:28
  Sam Brake Guia: Hi, I'm Sam BreakGear, and I am the co-founder of Podwritten and the host of Mike's Samillions.
• 18:33
  Sam Brake Guia: I first connected with Philip in June 2024 in what seems like very unusual circumstances because I sent him a cold pitch suggesting a guest and he rejected it.
• 18:46
  Sam Brake Guia: Now, most people might assume an interaction like that wouldn't lead to a friendship or multiple collaborations.
• 18:51
  Sam Brake Guia: But I think really early on we saw that how we approached the situation really set us apart from most people.
• 18:58
  Sam Brake Guia: So my method of pitching guests and Philip's thoughtful uh handling of this inbound recommendation really created a foundation for an unlikely friendship because we saw that we both do things differently than than most people are in our industry.
• 19:11
  Sam Brake Guia: And from the start I could tell that Philip had taken so much time to carefully review my pitch and provide thoughtful feedback.
• 19:18
  Sam Brake Guia: And that attention to detail really made him stand out.
• 19:22
  Sam Brake Guia: And I was so appreciative of the insights and feedback that he shared.
• 19:26
  Sam Brake Guia: I could see that there's a reason why he was so successful in creating wits and weights and what made it a standout show.
• 19:34
  Sam Brake Guia: And he would make a fantastic guest for my podcast, is what I thought.
• 19:40
  Sam Brake Guia: And that's when I invited him on.
• 19:43
  Sam Brake Guia: We had a great chat, I really enjoyed it.
• 19:45
  Sam Brake Guia: It was so much fun.
• 19:46
  Sam Brake Guia: And he could see also that I wasn't a typical podcast booking agent, so I'm not in the business of just getting my clients anywhere and everywhere, but I really want to focus on getting them on specific shows since then.
• 19:59
  Sam Brake Guia: I booked multiple right fit clients or guests on wits and weights, and he's also been a key guest on two of my podcast episodes, and I really love those episodes.
• 20:10
  Sam Brake Guia: I'd even argue uh that Philip potentially has better knowledge around podcast growth and podcast marketing than most podcast marketing professionals you'll find online.
• 20:21
  Sam Brake Guia: I also love the fact that he's super easy to collaborate with, he has a really positive attitude all the time whenever we interact.
• 20:28
  Sam Brake Guia: He's very responsive, he's super open to feedback and encourages it wherever possible.
• 20:33
  Sam Brake Guia: And I am really surprised as well by his analytical skills.
• 20:37
  Sam Brake Guia: I'm not surprised, but impressed.
• 20:38
  Sam Brake Guia: And that's definitely something I see coming through from his engineering background.
• 20:43
  Sam Brake Guia: So, yeah, I'm really grateful to be a part of this wits and waste journey, and I can't wait to see where the podcast and Philip go next.
• 20:49
  Sam Brake Guia: Here's to another 400 episodes.
• 20:51
  Sam Brake Guia: Keep up the amazing work, Philip.
• 20:54
  Philip Pape: Sam, thank you for that message.
• 20:55
  Philip Pape: I'm glad the listener can hear a little bit of you and this behind-the-scenes business stuff when it came comes to guest pitching.
• 21:03
  Philip Pape: Guys, Sam did reach out to me.
• 21:05
  Philip Pape: The guest wasn't a great fit, but because we had a cordial conversation and he was interested in the show and the audience and how he could help, it came through as very genuine and honest.
• 21:18
  Philip Pape: And those are the kind of people I'm so gravit, I so gravitate to, and that's why we still have a connection to this day.
• 21:23
  Philip Pape: And it has led to other things.
• 21:25
  Philip Pape: You don't, you guys don't hear about all this directly on the show.
• 21:27
  Philip Pape: I don't talk about it maybe enough.
• 21:29
  Philip Pape: But one of those was other having other guests come on the show and also talking about tactics and strategies behind the scene related to podcast growth and marketing.
• 21:39
  Philip Pape: The whole analytical thing, you know, doesn't just apply to fitness in my case.
• 21:42
  Philip Pape: You guys know I'm an engineer, love to do things behind the scene.
• 21:45
  Philip Pape: He had actually asked me to record a clip about how I use, I think it's overcast for podcast advertising.
• 21:52
  Philip Pape: And so if you kind of check out these other shows of Sam's that I was on, you can hear some of that behind the scenes.
• 21:58
  Philip Pape: But definitely another 400 episodes.
• 22:00
  Philip Pape: I feel like just as the years fly by, the episodes fly by, Sam, and it's totally doable.
• 22:06
  Philip Pape: Uh back at episode 200 or 100, that would have sounded insane, but that's kind of how this thing goes.
• 22:11
  Philip Pape: And I appreciate you and I'm grateful for everything you've done for me.
• 22:14
  Philip Pape: Let's continue to make it happen and do things from the heart and from the soul and really keep pushing positivity into the world, is the best I can put it.
• 22:24
  Philip Pape: Thank you, Sam.
• 22:25
  Philip Pape: Moving on, we have somebody that you guys will know.
• 22:28
  Philip Pape: He's been on the show several times.
• 22:30
  Philip Pape: Brandon DeCruz is a world-class physique coach, host of the Chasing Clarity podcast.
• 22:35
  Philip Pape: And let me tell you, this guy is also so, so generous.
• 22:39
  Philip Pape: He will reach out if you reach out to him and is just passionate about the industry, the science, helping people reach their goals.
• 22:47
  Philip Pape: Again, truly from the heart.
• 22:49
  Philip Pape: Again, these are the types of people I just love to be around in their orbit.
• 22:52
  Philip Pape: So have a listen to his message.
• 22:55
  Brandon DaCruz: What's going on, guys?
• 22:56
  Brandon DaCruz: This is Brendan Cruz of the Chasing Clarity Health and Fitness Podcast.
• 23:00
  Brandon DaCruz: I just want to take a moment to congratulate my friend Philip Pape on hitting episode 400 of the Wits and Weights podcast.
• 23:06
  Brandon DaCruz: That is no small feat, my man.
• 23:08
  Brandon DaCruz: It's been an absolute pleasure being a guest on your show multiple times, going all the way back to episode 58 and watching how much you've grown the platform since then.
• 23:16
  Brandon DaCruz: You've done an incredible job consistently putting out high-quality, evidence-based information while making it engaging, relatable, and actionable for your audience.
• 23:24
  Brandon DaCruz: And let's be honest, you've got the best podcast intros in the business.
• 23:27
  Brandon DaCruz: Congratulations again, my friend.
• 23:29
  Brandon DaCruz: Forget episodes is a milestone that reflects your dedication, consistency, and genuine passion for helping others become the strongest, healthiest versions of themselves.
• 23:36
  Brandon DaCruz: I'm proud to know you and to have been part of your journey.
• 23:39
  Philip Pape: I really appreciate that, Brandon.
• 23:40
  Philip Pape: And for the listener, you know, folks like Brandon taking the time to do these messages really speaks a lot for the type of person they are.
• 23:48
  Philip Pape: And Brandon was on episodes 58, so that was the early days, 99, and then recently 354, you know, so spanning three years been on the show watching this platform grow, but I've also seen him do more and more in the space with his podcasts.
• 24:03
  Philip Pape: We've done Q ⁇ A's together.
• 24:05
  Philip Pape: He's, as far as his craft as a physique coach, if you follow him, say on Instagram, you will see just a constant uh reminder of how he helps one person after another from physique competitors to everyday people just trying to improve their bodies, their health, their longevity, their strength, all of that.
• 24:22
  Philip Pape: And Brandon, I really do appreciate your friendship.
• 24:24
  Philip Pape: I wish I could have you on more.
• 24:25
  Philip Pape: Honestly, like there's so many folks that I love that we, you know, we could have them on, but then I would never make any other episodes.
• 24:31
  Philip Pape: So uh and I really enjoy the QA we did not long ago.
• 24:35
  Philip Pape: So hope, hopefully, listeners get to check that out.
• 24:37
  Philip Pape: We'll throw all this stuff in the show notes for all these guests.
• 24:39
  Philip Pape: It's gonna be an extravaganza.
• 24:41
  Philip Pape: But again, thank you, Brandon, so much for everything you do and the expertise you bring.
• 24:46
  Philip Pape: All right, our next two, I'll say listeners slash former clients slash friends slash current team members are Carol Hanshu and Alan Friedman.
• 24:57
  Philip Pape: I'm gonna play them back to back.
• 24:59
  Philip Pape: Actually, no, I'm gonna play Carol's, then I'm gonna give a little commentary and then Alan's.
• 25:02
  Philip Pape: Carol is, she's a friend, she's a former client, she's now a personal trainer and nutrition coach.
• 25:08
  Philip Pape: She has her own business, but she's also helping us in physique university as an assistant coach in that business.
• 25:13
  Philip Pape: So she's all over the place helping everyone, but especially women over 40, hormones, thyroid issues.
• 25:20
  Philip Pape: She has a lot of personal experience there.
• 25:22
  Philip Pape: And she is so kind, genuine, but also really intelligent and helpful when it comes to helping clients get through specific issues.
• 25:31
  Philip Pape: When we have our two-on-one coaching calls in Physique University, she's right there helping you solve your problems and get the next step.
• 25:38
  Philip Pape: So I'm gonna let player message and you guys can judge for yourself.
• 25:42
  Carol Hanshew: Philip not only helped me achieve my fat loss goal, but working with him also inspired me to give my own certification as a nutrition coach and personal trainer.
• 25:52
  Carol Hanshew: Philip is the real deal.
• 25:54
  Carol Hanshew: He's honest, sincere, and will always do his best to get to the bottom of any problem or challenge you might be facing.
• 26:02
  Carol Hanshew: It's an honor and privilege to work with him, and I'm excited to celebrate this 400th episode.
• 26:09
  Philip Pape: And Carol, the honor and privilege is all mine.
• 26:12
  Philip Pape: Just so the listener knows, Carol has justified all the odds in terms of, you know, chronic health issues and hormones and really getting the strong fit body composition that she's going for.
• 26:25
  Philip Pape: And she's really a role model to people.
• 26:26
  Philip Pape: And you can hear how, you know, she's soft-spoken, but she is so honest and sincere herself.
• 26:32
  Philip Pape: I know those are the words you used.
• 26:33
  Philip Pape: She's also really a whiz when it comes to cooking and recipes and meal planning and groceries and all that fun stuff on the food side that I joking, I joke with her that like those are the things I don't like to think about as much, which sounds odd for a nutrition coach, but you know, we all have our strengths.
• 26:49
  Philip Pape: And anybody who's working in our community, whether it's in our free Facebook group, which you can join anytime, you'll see Carol there, or in Physique University, where she's putting up all sorts of wonderful content.
• 26:59
  Philip Pape: And now she's helping us get ready for the strong finish challenge next month, will appreciate immediately, you know, her the way she thinks very compassionately, empathetically, but also specifically.
• 27:12
  Philip Pape: You know, she she even has a little bit of that engineering mind in her, even if she won't admit it or maybe she will, to really just go after the problem, use numbers, use data, use logic, but also use some creativity and empathy along the way.
• 27:25
  Philip Pape: So, Carol, it's a pleasure to have you on my team.
• 27:27
  Philip Pape: And I'm glad people got to hear a little bit from you today.
• 27:30
  Philip Pape: And those who work with you get to experience that all the time.
• 27:33
  Philip Pape: So thank you, Carol.
• 27:35
  Philip Pape: All right, and as promised, our next one is from Alan, who is also a friend of mine, former client, and he's on the team.
• 27:41
  Philip Pape: And I will play his message now.
• 27:43
  Allan Friedman: Hi, I'm Alan.
• 27:44
  Allan Friedman: Before I listened to Philip, I was driven by the low calorie, low-carb mindset.
• 27:48
  Allan Friedman: Philip has taught me that food is a tool used to be used in conjunction with strength training and overall activity, with the end result being overall health, and that daily food consumption is not something to be judged, but looked at as a variable to affect change.
• 28:05
  Allan Friedman: Philip has assisted me to observe that my body does respond to changes in nutrition and how I adapt to changes in my strength training.
• 28:15
  Allan Friedman: Philip has helped me through my journey by encouraging the establishment of goals across the long term so I can see the big picture and where I'm going.
• 28:23
  Allan Friedman: Thank you, Philip, for your work with wits and weights and your wise content in the fitness industry.
• 28:29
  Philip Pape: Thank you so much, Alan, for the message.
• 28:31
  Philip Pape: Now, again, for the listener, Alan, you can see is very soft-spoken.
• 28:34
  Philip Pape: I'm very much attracted to people who are kind, are empathetic, are helpful, have nothing but positive energy in wanting to help people, and they've all gone through gone through their own struggles.
• 28:46
  Philip Pape: I encourage you to go way back and listen to episode 77.
• 28:49
  Philip Pape: Alan was on as a guest talking about how after bariatric surgery, he finally found optimal health, optimal strength over 60.
• 28:57
  Philip Pape: And he will be the first guy to reach out and say hello, ask how I'm doing, ask about my kids, ask about anything, but but also he gives and he helps.
• 29:07
  Philip Pape: He helps with the business, he helps with the coaching, he does so many things behind the scenes.
• 29:13
  Philip Pape: Sometimes I forget how much he's doing.
• 29:15
  Philip Pape: And Alan, I'm very, very grateful to you for that.
• 29:18
  Philip Pape: And I know it comes from the heart.
• 29:19
  Philip Pape: You're just a true, truly wonderful guy.
• 29:22
  Philip Pape: And for the listener, what's neat about Alan is he he kind of jumped onto this pretty early when Wits and Weights came out and reached out and said, Hey, I love the show.
• 29:30
  Philip Pape: I'm kind of I'm learning some things.
• 29:32
  Philip Pape: And he kind of learned along with me as I was creating the podcast.
• 29:36
  Philip Pape: And we've bounced ideas off each other a lot, including ideas for the for the app I had the new app I have coming out, wouldn't have been what if what it was if it wasn't for being able to brainstorm with Alan.
• 29:46
  Philip Pape: So never underestimate the power of people and friends and being able to connect.
• 29:53
  Philip Pape: And if you're an entrepreneur or even if you're not, anybody can become a really important part of your life.
• 29:59
  Philip Pape: When you least expect it.
• 30:01
  Philip Pape: You know, uh he went from a listener to a client to a team member.
• 30:05
  Philip Pape: He's a moderator in our Facebook group.
• 30:07
  Philip Pape: And I mean, we're pretty much just friends.
• 30:08
  Philip Pape: Yeah, I coach him, he helps me.
• 30:10
  Philip Pape: You know, we don't like keep a tally.
• 30:11
  Philip Pape: It's just let's lift each other up and upward spiral the heck out of our lives and those of others, and that's how we change the world.
• 30:20
  Philip Pape: All right, so I thought it would be fun for the next message to be another friend of mine who has a little bit of a different style and is still just as, I'll say, helpful and important to me in my life, whether he wants to admit it or not, whether he's rolling his eyes right now, or getting ready yet again to send me an inappropriate reel that he knows I'm gonna completely laugh at and appreciate that he sent it to me.
• 30:44
  Philip Pape: Here he is, my friend, my lifting buddy, Tony.
• 30:48
  Tony P.: This is Tony, client and friend of Phillips.
• 30:50
  Tony P.: The reason I'm a listener to the Wits and Waits podcast is that it's a refreshing break from typical social media fitness content that either tries to pad the pockets of the hosts, build their ego, or regurgitate content.
• 31:03
  Tony P.: Philip has been consistent with his very open-minded, understanding, directed approach, whether he's talking macros, barbells, or cardio.
• 31:10
  Tony P.: He'll never tell you what to do, only give options.
• 31:14
  Philip Pape: Thank you, my man.
• 31:15
  Philip Pape: And I think I have you fooled because the whole purpose of the show is to pad my pockets and to build my ego, but I haven't been able to do that yet.
• 31:22
  Philip Pape: So the fallback is, I guess, to put out the best content I can, and that's what I try to do.
• 31:27
  Philip Pape: And I appreciate you saying that.
• 31:29
  Philip Pape: But also, again, to the listener, Tony's a guy that I can go back and forth and brainstorm on, get philosophical, really get deep on topics and talk about everything from engineering to craftsmanship to philosophy to lifting, of course, to the science to the bros, to everything in between, to politics, really anything goes.
• 31:48
  Philip Pape: And I appreciate you know your openness to hear me out, but also, like you alluded to in your message, lean into that flexibility, that personalization that comes along for the ride, even though there are solid principles in place.
• 32:02
  Philip Pape: And by the way, Tony was on way back in episode 115, talking about our time working together when he was a client, where he lost 15 pounds of body fat, 8% body fat, is big into barbell training, really talked about the whole process of a mini cut that I think you're gonna find interesting.
• 32:18
  Philip Pape: So go check out episode 115 for that.
• 32:20
  Philip Pape: All right, next up we have a listener, Gabelou M from Mexico.
• 32:26
  Gabilu M.: Hi, wits and weights.
• 32:28
  Gabilu M.: I am Gabelou Mireles.
• 32:29
  Gabilu M.: I'm from Mexico, and I am a listener and fan of this amazing podcast.
• 32:34
  Gabilu M.: Congratulations on this incredible anniversary.
• 32:38
  Gabilu M.: I am such a fan of everything you share.
• 32:41
  Gabilu M.: This podcast is my companion.
• 32:44
  Gabilu M.: Every morning that I wake up at 4 30 a.m.
• 32:48
  Gabilu M.: It's the first thing I listen to, and it just pumps me up for my workout.
• 32:53
  Gabilu M.: I love learning everything that there is to learn about working out, but how to make it really effective for each and every one of us.
• 33:04
  Gabilu M.: Thank you so much for all your hard work, for sharing all this information with all over the world, and I hope you have an amazing, amazing podcast for many, many years.
• 33:15
  Philip Pape: Wow, you guys are really encouraging me to go on with this.
• 33:18
  Philip Pape: And I wasn't planning on stopping anytime too soon, trust me.
• 33:21
  Philip Pape: But Gabby Lou, I love how you listen to it at 4:30 in the morning.
• 33:24
  Philip Pape: I don't know if you listen to them the day they come out, but I do set it to release at 4 a.m.
• 33:29
  Philip Pape: And I've toyed with should I do that later?
• 33:31
  Philip Pape: And I'm like, no, I know there's people that go to work out in the morning uh early, and maybe it's something that they like to have.
• 33:37
  Philip Pape: So I really appreciate hearing from you.
• 33:38
  Philip Pape: And guys, I connected with Gabby Lou recently on Instagram.
• 33:41
  Philip Pape: If you go to my Instagram at Wits and Waits, definitely give me a follow there if you don't already.
• 33:45
  Philip Pape: But she reached out and I always respond.
• 33:47
  Philip Pape: I usually send audio messages, we go back and forth.
• 33:49
  Philip Pape: It's a fun place to connect.
• 33:51
  Philip Pape: And so, Gabby Lou, I appreciate the loyalty and the you know, being a fan of the show and reaching out again.
• 33:57
  Philip Pape: And I hope this reaches you as well.
• 33:59
  Philip Pape: Maybe you're working out right now and go after it.
• 34:01
  Philip Pape: All right, thank you so much for the message.
• 34:04
  Philip Pape: The next message is from somebody you guys might know again on the business side, also in the coaching space.
• 34:10
  Philip Pape: His name is the Mike Milner, host of the Mind Over Macros podcast.
• 34:16
  Philip Pape: He is also a long-term nutrition coach of Pop and is a business coach.
• 34:21
  Philip Pape: He actually has helped me a lot with email marketing, with ads, with things like that from an authentic perspective, not a you know, cold sales, sleazy type of marketing that we none of us like when it comes to fitness coaches, but more of an authentic be yourself, explain what it is, be transparent approach.
• 34:40
  Philip Pape: So here's his message.
• 34:41
  Philip Pape: Thank you for sending this in, Mike.
• 34:43
  Mike Millner: Hey, what's up, Phillip?
• 34:44
  Mike Millner: Just want to drop a quick message and say congrats on 400 episodes.
• 34:48
  Mike Millner: It's a huge accomplishment from one podcaster to another.
• 34:51
  Mike Millner: I know what it takes to be that consistent and disciplined, and I just appreciate the work that you're doing.
• 34:56
  Mike Millner: I think our industry needs more people like you who put out true, valuable content and keep doing your thing.
• 35:03
  Mike Millner: And let's, you know, let's do 400 more episodes, as I'm sure you will, and well beyond that.
• 35:08
  Mike Millner: Thanks for all the work that you're doing, and we'll talk soon.
• 35:11
  Philip Pape: Thanks for that shout-out, Mike.
• 35:12
  Philip Pape: And from one podcaster to another, I know how challenging it is to keep that going, but it's also a lot of fun because I know, I mean, you're really good at this of bringing up very current topics from questions and problems that come up in your audience.
• 35:27
  Philip Pape: Literally, the day before you're like, let me get on the horn and record a podcast about it.
• 35:31
  Philip Pape: So, guys, go to episode 123.
• 35:33
  Philip Pape: Again, one of one of our classics at this point, since we're we're at 400 now, it was about the hidden barriers holding you back.
• 35:40
  Philip Pape: Mike is all about psychology.
• 35:41
  Philip Pape: I've learned a lot about behavior and psychology from him, not how to manipulate people, but how to better reach people and connect with them, which I think is so, so important in this industry.
• 35:50
  Philip Pape: So thank you again, Mike.
• 35:51
  Philip Pape: All right, we've got two more messages.
• 35:53
  Philip Pape: The next one is for another listener who I connected with recently, Alana.
• 35:58
  Philip Pape: And what's cool about her message and her experience is she took a very specific episode I did about a specific protocol or approach and applied it and had the results that I talked about.
• 36:09
  Philip Pape: And she did it.
• 36:10
  Philip Pape: She tried it out.
• 36:11
  Philip Pape: She's like, let me see if this works, and she did.
• 36:13
  Philip Pape: So here is Alana's message.
• 36:15
  Alana Van Der Sluys: I just wanted to give a shout out to Phil because I listened to his episode about the weekend diet, which I thought was super interesting.
• 36:24
  Alana Van Der Sluys: And I was just about to go into my second cut, and I tried the weekend diet.
• 36:29
  Alana Van Der Sluys: I did it exactly the way he described it.
• 36:32
  Alana Van Der Sluys: He had a lot of studies to back it up, and it was basically, you know, eating a little bit less during the weekdays and eating more at maintenance on the weekends during a cut to give yourself a little bit of a reprieve.
• 36:44
  Alana Van Der Sluys: And it was by far the better cut out of the two that I had.
• 36:49
  Alana Van Der Sluys: I had amazing results, and I have Phil and his research to thank for that.
• 36:54
  Alana Van Der Sluys: So thanks, Phil.
• 36:56
  Philip Pape: And thank you, Alana.
• 36:57
  Philip Pape: And I hope you don't mind me sharing your other Instagram handle, your business handle, which is at Freedom with Food and Fitness on Instagram.
• 37:03
  Philip Pape: And I will say Alana wasn't pushing the fact that she's a coach or anything.
• 37:07
  Philip Pape: She literally just wanted to add value and say, hey, I listened to this show about the weekend diet.
• 37:11
  Philip Pape: I did it, and it seemed to work really well.
• 37:13
  Philip Pape: And if you're not sure what she is talking about, it's episode 324, and it's based on research that shows that a weekend refeed where you're dieting during the week and then you eat up to maintenance during the weekend might have a slight advantage for muscle mass retention during fat loss and also making you feel better and recovered.
• 37:31
  Philip Pape: So, Alana, thank you so much for doing that, for trying it.
• 37:34
  Philip Pape: I wish anybody listening who hears something that they think might help them would go ahead and take that action, document the results, and send me a message on Instagram at wits and weights.
• 37:45
  Philip Pape: And whether I share it on the podcast or not, we'll have a conversation.
• 37:48
  Philip Pape: And if it worked for you, I really would love to hear it.
• 37:50
  Philip Pape: Maybe it didn't work for you, and you can let me know that as well.
• 37:52
  Philip Pape: It's all good data.
• 37:54
  Philip Pape: And that brings me to the final message.
• 37:56
  Philip Pape: Last, but as they say, definitely not least.
• 37:59
  Philip Pape: And this is someone you are going to recognize because we've collaborated for a while.
• 38:03
  Philip Pape: She's been on the show several times.
• 38:04
  Philip Pape: I was on her show when she had a podcast.
• 38:06
  Philip Pape: Now she's a huge YouTube star, doesn't have a podcast anymore, but that's intentional.
• 38:11
  Philip Pape: And we all we all know and love this woman in the space.
• 38:14
  Philip Pape: Her name is Megan Dahlman, and here's what she has to say.
• 38:17
  Megan Dahlman: Well, Philip, Megan Dahlman here, and it's crazy to think that you have reached 400 episodes.
• 38:24
  Megan Dahlman: That's nothing short of a remarkable feat.
• 38:28
  Megan Dahlman: When, you know, in the fitness and health industry and nutrition, we all know that it is so hard just to show up every single day and make those decisions on a daily basis to take care of our body.
• 38:41
  Megan Dahlman: And your consistency and dedication to simply producing a top-notch podcast shows how great of a coach you are.
• 38:52
  Megan Dahlman: So much of being a healthy person is being just consistent with the basics and producing, publishing a podcast.
• 39:03
  Megan Dahlman: It's nothing short of just being consistent with those basic things.
• 39:07
  Megan Dahlman: And I know that all the work that you've put into the show has reached thousands and thousands of individuals, and it's helped encourage them to take care of their health, to show up, eat, eat good, nutritious, robust meals, and be strong and healthy and just march forward every year into a healthier version of themselves.
• 39:31
  Megan Dahlman: So we all greatly appreciate just all of your dedication, inspiration, and just energy that you bring to this space.
• 39:42
  Megan Dahlman: So can't wait to see where the next 400 episodes take you.
• 39:46
  Megan Dahlman: Hopefully you'll have me on the list.
• 39:48
  Megan Dahlman: I'd love to come back.
• 39:49
  Megan Dahlman: It's been always fun to share with your audience.
• 39:52
  Megan Dahlman: And but but boy, we're all just cheering you on, and we we just appreciate all the work that you've put into the Wits and Weights podcast.
• 39:59
  Megan Dahlman: Keep up the good work.
• 40:00
  Megan Dahlman: We'll be in touch.
• 40:02
  Philip Pape: Megan, Megan, Megan, thank you so much.
• 40:04
  Philip Pape: I mean, you're one of the ones in the space that I just truly honor our friendship and our ability to collaborate on the things that the listener cares about so much and values, not just in the nuts and bolts of training, which obviously you have a lot of expertise in, but your point about consistency.
• 40:24
  Philip Pape: And when you do something for a long time with a system in place and you've developed a habit, you develop a routine, it's not that it's automatic, right?
• 40:33
  Philip Pape: You still have to do it.
• 40:34
  Philip Pape: It still can be hard.
• 40:35
  Philip Pape: It still takes trade-off sometimes, sacrifice, but it's almost inevitable because you've set things up that way.
• 40:43
  Philip Pape: And that's kind of where everybody wants to get.
• 40:45
  Philip Pape: I appreciate what you've done for us on the show.
• 40:47
  Philip Pape: You've been on multiple episodes, three so far, 149, 217, and the recent one 349.
• 40:53
  Philip Pape: And it's always a blast.
• 40:54
  Philip Pape: I mean, there are definitely some guests who I have a rapport with.
• 40:57
  Philip Pape: You're one of those.
• 40:58
  Philip Pape: And I really, really appreciate you giving the shout-out here and spending time, as always, with our listeners to teach us and help us become better.
• 41:06
  Philip Pape: All right.
• 41:07
  Philip Pape: I don't want this episode to go longer than it needs to be.
• 41:09
  Philip Pape: There you have it.
• 41:10
  Philip Pape: That was 15 messages from around the world, from around time, with again the saga, the epic that is wits and weights, 400 episodes strong with many, many more to come.
• 41:20
  Philip Pape: And lots of things really stood out for me.
• 41:22
  Philip Pape: I'm not going to repeat my commentary, but a few things just in general.
• 41:25
  Philip Pape: One is the international reach.
• 41:27
  Philip Pape: It's so cool to hear people from the UK, from Germany, from Mexico, obviously from the US.
• 41:32
  Philip Pape: And we have listeners from, I think, well over 100 countries.
• 41:35
  Philip Pape: I don't remember.
• 41:35
  Philip Pape: I didn't haven't checked in a while, but that's just really cool.
• 41:38
  Philip Pape: That's just amazing.
• 41:39
  Philip Pape: Secondly, is all of these transformations that people get by actually taking action on this information.
• 41:45
  Philip Pape: I'm a big podcast listener myself.
• 41:48
  Philip Pape: And I've I've heard things through osmosis that I'll say, hmm, that's interesting.
• 41:52
  Philip Pape: Why don't I try that out?
• 41:54
  Philip Pape: And so you have, you know, Julia with her chronic condition, Alana with a weekend diet, Carol, you know, was a client, now she's a coach.
• 42:01
  Philip Pape: Like all of these things that are happening, I'm so proud and happy to have been a part of with all of you, with the listeners, with my colleagues, with my friends, all of that.
• 42:08
  Philip Pape: And that leads me to the mission.
• 42:10
  Philip Pape: The mission, cutting through the BS, challenging the nonsense in the industry, making evidence-based information more clear, more interesting, hopefully entertaining in a way.
• 42:19
  Philip Pape: And that's what I set out to do because this industry, yeah, it's full of people, like Tony said, patting their pockets, building their egos, regurgitating the same tired contest content.
• 42:29
  Philip Pape: And it's full of amazing people who have it in their heart to help people and do it in a way that is just aligned with who they are.
• 42:37
  Philip Pape: And if they haven't a business in the process doing that, then they should be rewarded for that.
• 42:42
  Philip Pape: That's my, but that is a good form of capitalism, the one where everybody's aligned and it's a win-win for everyone.
• 42:48
  Philip Pape: And then lastly, you know, Megan talked about consistency.
• 42:50
  Philip Pape: Yes, the podcast is being consistent with the basics, but also is taking care of your health and your dedication to showing up, like Brandon mentioned, the engineering mindset applied to the content creation, but also your fitness system and continuous improvement.
• 43:07
  Philip Pape: So, what do I want you to take away from this, be besides everything else I hope we've taken away, is that the 400 episodes is about something that's become, I think and I hope a lot bigger than just me.
• 43:20
  Philip Pape: I'm a person, but it's I wouldn't have done it without having all of you listen and provide feedback and share it and challenging me and helping me challenge conventional wisdom and treating people like adults who can think critically and make informed decisions.
• 43:36
  Philip Pape: And it's about the community as well, like the community of podcast listeners, our Facebook community, physique university clients.
• 43:43
  Philip Pape: Like to me, it's just one big giant happy family.
• 43:46
  Philip Pape: Not all of you know everybody.
• 43:48
  Philip Pape: I know a lot of you, which is awesome.
• 43:50
  Philip Pape: Like, I feel like it's a big family, even colleagues, even guests who've been on the show, even business partners, you know, Eric, Pam, Jen, Brandon, Kevin, Sam, Megan, all of all these great people who push the evidence-based approach forward.
• 44:03
  Philip Pape: So this show exists because of that.
• 44:05
  Philip Pape: It just wouldn't have existed, you know, 400 episodes ago it didn't exist.
• 44:08
  Philip Pape: Now it does.
• 44:09
  Philip Pape: That is mind-blowing to me.
• 44:11
  Philip Pape: It's the questions you send, it's the episodes you share, it's the reviews you leave, it's the transformations you achieve and tell me about.
• 44:17
  Philip Pape: And yeah, I'm proud of 400 episodes, but I'm even more excited about the next 400 because we are just getting started.
• 44:26
  Philip Pape: So I've given you a lot of resources already throughout the episode, like other episodes to check out.
• 44:31
  Philip Pape: I'm not gonna pitch you anything now.
• 44:33
  Philip Pape: All I'm gonna ask is that you let someone else know about the podcast.
• 44:37
  Philip Pape: It doesn't have to be this episode, because honestly, if you've never heard the podcast, this might be a little much and it isn't really exactly the same type of uh format as or most of our episodes.
• 44:46
  Philip Pape: But share an episode that you did like, you know, share one of the ones mentioned on the show or a timestamp or whatever, and then tag me, let me know, reach out to me on Instagram, whatever makes sense.
• 44:55
  Philip Pape: And to everyone who sent a message for this episode, thank you, thank you, thank you.
• 44:59
  Philip Pape: To everyone who's been listening, whether it's all 400 episodes or just this is your first one, thank you to my friends, to my colleagues, my assistant coaches, every guest who shared their expertise, thank you.
• 45:11
  Philip Pape: Here's to the next 400 episodes.
• 45:13
  Philip Pape: Until next time, keep using your wits, lifting those weights.
• 45:17
  Philip Pape: And remember that just like building a podcast takes all the things we talked about today, so does building an impressive and healthy physique.
• 45:25
  Philip Pape: It's consistency, it's evidence, it's systems that actually work.
• 45:28
  Philip Pape: This is Philip Pape, and I'll talk to you next time here on the Wits and Weights podcast.