Training Through Injury and Adversity Without Losing Progress (Anthony Bryan) | Ep 415

Get Fitness Lab (20% off through January 2), the #1 fitness app that adapts to YOUR recovery, YOUR schedule, and YOUR body. Now available for iPhone (with Apple Health integration!) and Android. Build muscle, lose fat, and get stronger with daily personalized guidance.

—

Are injuries holding back your body recomp goals? How do you keep lifting weights when strength training never feels perfect?

I sat down with Anthony Bryan, a Guinness World Record holder and double world champion in para athletics, to unpack what nutrition and fitness look like when you are never at 100%. 

Anthony trained his entire life with left-side paralysis after a childhood stroke, and his approach to strength training, recovery, and mindset applies to anyone dealing with injury, aging, fatigue, or stalled weight loss. 

We discussed auto-regulation, unilateral training, and why evidence-based fitness matters more than chasing perfect workouts. Anthony shares how to adapt lifting weights, manage recovery, and stay consistent when motivation dips. This conversation connects strength training, metabolism, and long-term muscle building in a way that supports longevity and sustainable progress.

This is Wits and Weights at its core. Evidence-based training that works in the real world. Tune in to learn more.

Today, you’ll learn all about:

0:00 – Training when not at 100%
2:46 – Do limitations build resilience?
3:51 – Proving doctors wrong
10:46 – Support systems and belief
12:39 – Reframing no pain, no gain
20:22 – Adapting lifts with injuries
27:36 – Unilateral training benefits
33:37 – Auto-regulation and recovery
39:31 – Sleep, hydration, performance

Episode resources:

• Anthony Bryan on Instagram: @thenolimitsathlete 
• YouTube: @antbryanfitness 

Support the show

📱 Get Fitness Lab - Philip’s science-based AI app for fat loss, muscle building, and strength training for people over 40. It adapts to your nutrition, recovery, and training to improve body composition without guesswork.

🎓 Try Physique University - Evidence-based nutrition coaching and strength training to help you lose fat, build muscle, and master your metabolism with support and accountability (free custom nutrition plan with code FREEPLAN).

👥 Join our Facebook community - Free fat loss, muscle building, and body recomposition strategies for adults over 40 who want practical, science-backed fitness guidance.

👋 Ask a question or find Philip Pape on Instagram