Stronger by Design for Women with Michelle MacDonald

What if cortisol isn't the reason you can't lose weight — and your metabolism isn't broken either?
Michelle MacDonald brings back nutrition scientist and coach Dr. Allan Bacon for a conversation that dismantles two of the most persistent myths circulating in women's fitness right now. 
Together they break down exactly what cortisol is actually doing in your body during exercise, why zone two cardio lowers cortisol for the rest of the day even though it raises it for two hours (and why no one selling you a supplement is going to show you that part of the graph), and why elevated cortisol simply cannot prevent fat loss when you're in a calorie deficit: because there's nothing left to store. 
They also dig into the landmark Pontzer research tracking resting metabolic rate in thousands of men and women from ages 20 to 63, including through the menopause transition, and what it actually shows about metabolism, muscle loss, and the claims being made by wellness influencers selling mushroom tea. 
Then they get practical, covering calorie tracking errors, raw vs. cooked food measurements, pre-planning meals, and the three things Dr. Bacon tells every client who has been doing everything right and still isn't seeing results. This episode is for anyone who has been told their hormones are working against them and is starting to wonder if there's a simpler explanation.
Favorite Moments*
- 2:10 What Cortisol Is Actually Doing — and What It Isn't
- 3:27 Cortisol Spikes During Exercise Are a Feature, Not a Bug
- 4:46 Zone Two vs. HIIT: Why Both Get Fear-Mongered for the Same Hormone
- 5:57 Cortisol Is Both a Fat-Storing and a Fat-Burning Hormone (and Supplement Sellers Only Tell You Half the Story)
- 7:57 Zone Two Cardio Raises Cortisol for Two Hours — Then Lowers It Below Baseline for the Rest of the Day
- 21:19 "If You Really Want to Spike Your Cortisol, Worry About Cortisol"
- 24:45 The Pontzer Research: Resting Metabolic Rate Doesn't Change From Age 20 to 63
- 28:14 The Swan Study's "Double Muscle Loss" Claim — What the Actual Numbers Look Like
- 36:30 Calorie Tracking Errors: The Average Person Is Off by 500 Calories a Day
- 40:26 Raw vs. Cooked: The Measurement Mistake Almost Everyone Makes
- 52:18 The Three-Part Audit for Anyone Who Isn't Seeing Progress
- 56:00 Motivation Is the Result of Action, Not the Cause of It
- 58:54 Why Intensity Becomes the Name of the Game After Newbie Gains Are Gone
- 59:57 Stretching Reduces Injury Risk 0 to 4%. Strength Training: Up to 69%

"If you really want to spike your cortisol, worry about cortisol. If you want to not spike your cortisol, learn when it works for you, when it works against you, get rid of the extra stress, and start progressing."
— Dr. Allan Bacon

About Dr. Allan Bacon:
Nutrition & Fitness Coach | Researcher
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drallanbacon/?hl=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8vX4qjwi9WTr5sIqxKAXeA
Dr. Allan Bacon is a nutrition scientist, researcher, and coach known for cutting through fitness misinformation without stripping away the nuance. He has collaborated with some of the most respected names in exercise science and brings both the research depth and the real-world coaching experience to show clients not just what the data says — but what it actually means for their training, their diet, and their results. He and his wife coach together and are regular voices in the evidence-based fitness space.

About Michelle MacDonald:
Michelle MacDonald is the creator of the FITNESS MODEL BLUEPRINT™ and host of the Stronger By Design™ podcast. Known globally for her transformation programs, Michelle empowers women to redefine aging through evidence-based strength training, nutrition, and mindset practices. Since 2012, she has coached thousands of women online, leveraging her expertise as a Physique Champion and ISSA Strength and Conditioning Specialist. She co-founded Tulum Strength Club and established The Wonder Women (TWW), inspiring countless transformations including her mother, Joan MacDonald (Train With Joan™). Michelle continues to lead the charge in women's fitness, launching the Stronger by Design™ fitness app in fall 2024.

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If this conversation gave you something to think about, subscribe so you never miss an episode. New conversations drop regularly, all built around the same goal: giving you the tools to take your health and performance seriously, for the long term.

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Stronger by Design Podcast
🎙️ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7uljSBX7oSNQWhDVutk29m

🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stronger-by-design-for-women-with-michelle-macdonald/id1677831398

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Connect with Michelle:
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michellemacdonaldofficial/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michelle.macdonald.yhhedonista
▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@michellemacdonaldofficial
🔗 Website: https://www.michellemacdonaldofficial.com/

What builds muscle... and what have we been getting wrong?

In this episode of Stronger By Design, Michelle MacDonald sits down with exercise science researcher Max Coleman, MS, to separate evidence from internet fitness myths.
A respected researcher, coach, and educator, Max earned his master's degree under renowned hypertrophy researcher Dr. Brad Schoenfeld and is known for translating complex exercise science into practical, real-world advice. Through his social media channels, he makes the latest research accessible while helping lifters focus on what truly matters.
Together, Max and Michelle unpack the three variables that drive muscle growth: effort, progression, and training volume, while explaining why concepts like training to failure, progressive overload, and optimal volume are so often misunderstood.
You'll learn:
Does every set need to go to failure?
How many sets are enough to build muscle?
The biggest misconception about progressive overload.
How to know if you're training hard enough.
How little training is needed to maintain muscle.
Why progress photos may be your best measurement tool.
Practical strategies for building muscle when time is limited.

Favorite Moments
1:34 The 3 Things That Actually Build Muscle
3:30 Do You Really Need to Train to Failure?
8:17 How to Know If You're Actually Training Hard Enough
10:59 The Progressive Overload Mistake Almost Everyone Makes
14:16 Why Building Muscle Is Supposed to Feel Uncomfortable
20:25 Why Adding Weight Every Week Isn't Progress
21:31 Progress Photos Beat the Scale Every Time
24:25 How Many Sets Does It Actually Take to Build Muscle?
26:57 The Shocking Truth About Maintaining Muscle
29:30 Can You Really Maintain Muscle in Just 30 Minutes?
35:21 The Smarter Way to Bring Up Lagging Muscle Groups
39:43 The First 3 Things to Fix If You're Not Growing
41:18 Fitness Is Simple... But It's Not Easy
42:08 Why You Probably Are Making More Progress Than You Think 

Whether you're new to lifting or you've been training for years, this conversation will help you cut through the noise, train with confidence, and focus on the principles that actually produce results.

GUEST: MAX COLEMAN, MS
Max Coleman is an exercise science researcher, educator, and strength coach specializing in muscle hypertrophy and resistance training. He earned his M.S. in Exercise Science from Lehman College under the mentorship of renowned hypertrophy researcher Dr. Brad Schoenfeld and is pursuing doctoral studies in exercise science. Max is known for translating complex scientific literature into practical, evidence-based guidance through his popular social media content, helping lifters and coaches better understand what the research actually says about building muscle, training volume, effort, progression, and exercise selection.
Follow Max Coleman
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coleman.et.al/

HOST: MICHELLE MACDONALD
Michelle MacDonald is the creator of the FITNESS MODEL BLUEPRINT™ and host of the Stronger By Design™ podcast. Known internationally for her evidence-based approach to women's fitness, Michelle has coached thousands of women since 2012 through strength training, nutrition, and mindset. She is a Physique Champion, ISSA Strength and Conditioning Specialist, co-founder of Tulum Strength Club, and founder of The Wonder Women (TWW). Michelle is also recognized for helping inspire the remarkable transformation of her mother, Joan MacDonald (Train With Joan™), and continues to empower women to redefine aging through science-backed fitness education and coaching.

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If this conversation gave you something to think about, subscribe so you never miss an episode. 
New conversations drop regularly, all built around the same goal: giving you the tools to take your health and performance seriously, for the long term.
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Stronger by Design Podcast
🎙️ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7uljSBX7oSNQWhDVutk29m

🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stronger-by-design-for-women-with-michelle-macdonald/id1677831398

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Connect with Michelle:
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michellemacdonaldofficial/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michelle.macdonald.yhhedonista
▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@michellemacdonaldofficial
🔗 Website: https://www.michellemacdonaldofficial.com/

What if the menopause industry isn't failing women but instead  it's deliberately targeting them?
Michelle MacDonald sits down with scientist, physician, and Selfority founder Dr. Sarah Berg for a conversation that pulls back the curtain on how a $15 trillion industry is built on the gap between what women need and what medicine has historically given them. 
Together they unpack why midlife women have become the most targeted consumer demographic in wellness, how the "natural" hormone narrative that exploded after the 2002 WHI study opened the door for an entire compounding market, and why so many women are making major health decisions at 3am while sleep deprived and algorithmically cornered. 
They also dig into the science of the placebo effect including why supplement companies deliberately build their packaging around the same 4 to 8 week window that research shows produces maximum placebo response and what it means to advocate for yourself in a space designed to exploit your vulnerability. 
This is an episode for every woman who has ever wanted to optimize her health and found herself wondering whether she's being helped or just sold to.

Favorite Moments
1:35 Why Women Over 50 Are a $15 Trillion Target
3:21 The Group Text Is the New MLM
7:41 How the 2002 Hormone Scare Built the Compounding Market
9:42 Bioidentical Hormones: What the Word Actually Means
13:34 The Placebo Study That Should Make You Rethink Every Supplement You've Bought
15:27 Why Supplement Packaging Says "Wait 4 to 8 Weeks" and It's Not an Accident
17:38 The 2002 Sham Knee Surgery That Proves the Brain Is the Most Powerful Drug We Have
24:44 The DUTCH Test: What It Is, What It Can't Do, and Why It Often Leads to a Supplement Stack
29:38 Drunk Buying at 3am: Sleep Deprivation, Algorithms, and the Menopause Marketing Machine
35:32 Why Your Jeans Stopped Fitting - The Estrogen & Visceral Fat Connection
41:36 Skinny Check vs. Frailty Check: The Reframe Women Actually Need
46:34 What's Coming: The $24 Billion Menopause Research Bill and Medical School Curriculum Change

"They're taking it because they're getting humbled relentlessly by the story that their bodies are broken. And so they're not even looking at the big levers." ~ Dr. Sarah Berg

GUEST: DR. SARAH BERG
Founder, Selfority | Principal Scientist, Unbiased Science
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/selfority/
Website: https://www.selfority.com/
Dr. Sarah Berg is a physician-scientist and fierce advocate for evidence-based communication in women's health. As a Principal Scientist with the Unbiased Science team, she brings clinical expertise and a sharp eye for predatory marketing to one of the most underserved areas in medicine. Through Selfority - a name she built to say "self priority" out loud - she is on a mission to make sure women have the information they actually need to make informed decisions about their health, not just the information someone is trying to sell them.

About Michelle:
Michelle MacDonald is the creator of the FITNESS MODEL BLUEPRINT™ and host of the Stronger By Design™ podcast. Known globally for her transformation programs, Michelle empowers women to redefine aging through evidence-based strength training, nutrition, and mindset practices. Since 2012, she has coached thousands of women online, leveraging her expertise as a Physique Champion and ISSA Strength and Conditioning Specialist. She co-founded Tulum Strength Club and established The Wonder Women (TWW), inspiring countless transformations including her mother, Joan MacDonald (Train With Joan™). Michelle continues to lead the charge in women's fitness, launching the Stronger by Design™ fitness app in fall 2024.
==========================================================
If this conversation gave you something to think about, subscribe so you never miss an episode. New conversations drop regularly, all built around the same goal: giving you the tools to take your health and performance seriously, for the long term.
==========================================================
Stronger by Design Podcast
🎙️ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7uljSBX7oSNQWhDVutk29m
🎙️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stronger-by-design-for-women-with-michelle-macdonald/id1677831398
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Connect with Michelle:
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michellemacdonaldofficial/
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michelle.macdonald.yhhedonista
▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@michellemacdonaldofficial
🔗 Website: https://www.michellemacdonaldofficial.com/

What if the peptide your favorite influencer is swearing by has never once been tested in a human clinical trial?
Michelle MacDonald sits down with drug development scientist Leigh Baxt, PhD  for a conversation that cuts straight through the wellness peptide industry.
Together they break down how drugs actually make it from an idea to FDA approval, why 99% of them never do, and what it means that the peptides flooding your social media feed are, in most cases, sitting at the very earliest stage of that process with almost no human data behind them. 
This episode digs deep into BPC-157 specifically, examining why the science raises serious red flags, and what informed consent actually sounds like when a clinician is promoting something with this little evidence. 
This information is essential listening for women who want to take charge of their health, cut through the marketing noise and make truly informed decisions.
Favorite Moments
1:57 The Staggering Failure Rates Behind Every Drug You've Ever Taken
3:07 From Idea to FDA Approval: What the Process Actually Looks Like
5:28 BPC-157: Why the Red Flags Are Hard to Ignore
12:49 Stacking Peptides & the Drug Interaction Problem Nobody Talks About
16:30 When Clinicians Become Marketers
22:21 How to Use ClinicalTrials.gov to Check the Evidence Yourself
28:22 The Patent Myth That Peptide Promoters Keep Repeating
"I want people to be informed. I want them to understand what data does and doesn't exist. Most importantly, I want them to be able to differentiate data from marketing — because even the most seasoned scientists can get sucked in." 

— Leigh Baxt, PhD
GUEST: LEIGH BAXT, PhD - DRUG DEVELOPMENT SCIENTIST

Instagram | LinkedIn
Leigh works in early-stage preclinical drug development, the phase where 90% of ideas fail before they ever reach a human. Her work focuses on understanding whether promising biological mechanisms can actually be turned into safe, effective therapeutics. She volunteers her expertise with the Unbiased Science team to help the public understand how medicines are made, why the vetting process matters, and how to tell the difference between data and marketing.
CONNECT WITH MICHELLE
Website | Instagram | YouTube | Facebook | X
About Michelle:
Michelle MacDonald is the creator of the FITNESS MODEL BLUEPRINT™ and host of the Stronger By Design™ podcast. Known globally for her transformation programs, Michelle empowers women to redefine aging through evidence-based strength training, nutrition, and mindset practices. Since 2012, she has coached thousands of women online, leveraging her expertise as a Physique Champion and ISSA Strength and Conditioning Specialist. She co-founded Tulum Strength Club and established The Wonder Women (TWW), inspiring countless transformations including her mother, Joan MacDonald (Train With Joan™). Michelle continues to lead the charge in women's fitness, launching the Stronger by Design™ fitness app in fall 2024.

Where to Watch/Listen:
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Leave a rating for this podcast with one click.
Nothing in this video or podcast constitutes medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your health or fitness routine.

What if the reason your lifts, runs, or rotational power feel off has nothing to do with motivation—and everything to do with pelvic floor coordination?
Michelle MacDonald sits down with pelvic health and performance specialist Rachel Selman for a conversation that bridges the gap between rehab and real athletic training. Together, they explore how the pelvic floor functions in loaded movement, why Kegels alone are not enough, and how women…especially midlife female athletes, can progress from foundational control to strength, rotation, deceleration, and power. Rachel breaks down the role of breath, pressure, thoracic rotation, hip internal rotation, and movement coordination in a way that is practical, evidence-based, and immediately useful. This episode is especially valuable for women interested in Women’s Health and Fitness, a stronger Fitness Mindset, and long-term Personal Growth in how they train and move.

Favorite Moments
1:47 The Pelvic Floor Is a Dimmer Switch, Not an On/Off Button
6:00 "Strength Gives Permission to Soften"
19:57 The Four-Phase Progression: Control, Function, Strength, Power
36:13 Once a Month: The Pelvic Floor Check-In Protocol for Symptom-Free Athletes

"Strength gets permission to soften. If I strengthen a muscle that's overactive, what I actually notice is that it will follow by softening." – Dr. Rachel Selman

GUEST: DR. RACHEL SELMAN, PT, DPT, CERT-DN, CSCS, CPSS, TPI CERTIFIED
Website | Instagram | LinkedIn | Synthesis App
Full Guest Bio:
Dr. Rachel Selman is a pelvic health and performance specialist who helps women connect pelvic floor function to strength, movement, and athletic performance. Her work focuses on practical, evidence-informed strategies that go beyond traditional pelvic floor training, helping women improve coordination, stability, and confidence in everything from lifting and running to everyday life. She is known for making complex pelvic health concepts accessible and relevant for active women, coaches, and athletes.
CONNECT WITH MICHELLE
Website | Instagram | YouTube | Facebook | X
Full Michelle Bio:
Michelle MacDonald is the creator of the FITNESS MODEL BLUEPRINT™ and host of the Stronger By Design™ podcast. Known globally for her transformation programs, Michelle empowers women to redefine aging through evidence-based strength training, nutrition, and mindset practices. Since 2012, she has coached thousands of women online, leveraging her expertise as a Physique Champion and ISSA Strength and Conditioning Specialist. She co-founded Tulum Strength Club and established The Wonder Women (TWW), inspiring countless transformations including her mother, Joan MacDonald (Train With Joan™). Michelle continues to lead the charge in women's fitness, launching the Stronger by Design™ fitness app in fall 2024.

Where to Watch/Listen:
Website Apple Podcasts Spotify YouTube
Leave a rating for this podcast with one click