GLP-1 Doesn’t Make Exercise Obsolete. It Makes Strength Training More Important.
GLP-1 weight-loss drugs have become fucking massive.
So of course, naturally we’ve now reached the next stage of the process:
Everyone wants to sell you some shit to go with them.
This week Reuters reported that Nestlé is developing products specifically aimed at the growing number of people using GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy.
Products aimed at things like nutritional adequacy and maintaining muscle during weight loss.
Which means I’m assuming we’re approximately six months away from walking into Tesco and being confronted by:
GLP-1 MUSCLE PRESERVATION PROTEIN YOGHURT™
Now with added collagen!
Only £4.99!
Probably in a tiny little pot!
But underneath the inevitable marketing circus, there is actually an important conversation we need to have.
Because GLP-1 medication can be incredibly useful.
Weight loss can improve health.
But losing weight isn’t the same thing as becoming fit, strong, or physically capable.
And medication doesn’t make exercise obsolete.
If anything, it makes having a proper conversation about strength training even more important.
First: I’m Not Anti-GLP-1
Let’s get this out of the way before somebody gets angry on Facebook and say oh my god, you’re just a trainer that thinks this is ruining your business and feels like it’s a cheat way of doing things.
I’m not anti-Ozempic.
I’m not anti-Wegovy.
I’m not anti-Mounjaro.
And I’m certainly not going to tell someone they should simply have “more willpower” instead.
GLP-1 medications can be extremely effective tools for the right person when they’re prescribed and monitored properly.
If someone has spent years struggling with obesity and medication helps them improve their health, I’m not going to stand in the corner clutching a kettlebell shouting:
“THAT DOESN’T COUNT!”
Of course it counts.
But the medication does one job.
It doesn’t do all the jobs.
Weight Loss And Fitness Aren’t The Same Thing
Unfortunately, this is where we’ve got ourselves into trouble for decades.
We’ve treated body weight as though it’s the final score.
Lost three stone?
Success.
Scales haven’t moved?
Failure.
This is what fat clubs have built their entire business plan on.
Except there’s a fuck tonne your bathroom scales can’t tell you.
Can you climb stairs comfortably?
Can you carry heavy shopping?
Can you get yourself off the floor?
Can you walk five hundred miles?
Can you lift your suitcase?
Can you play with your grandchildren?
How strong are you?
What’s your cardiovascular fitness like?
How much muscle have you maintained?
Those things matter.
Particularly as we get older.
And none of them automatically improve simply because the number on the scales gets smaller.
When You Lose Weight, You Don’t Only Lose Fat
This bit needs some nuance.
When people lose substantial amounts of weight, particularly relatively quickly, the weight lost isn’t exclusively body fat.
Some lean tissue is usually lost too.
And “lean mass” isn’t exactly the same thing as muscle — it includes things such as body water and other non-fat tissues — so the internet headlines screaming that GLP-1s are EATING YOUR MUSCLES aren’t helpful either.
But preserving muscle and physical function during weight loss is still something worth taking seriously.
Especially if you’re already getting older.
Because we’re already fighting a gradual age-related decline in muscle and strength.
There has been some research presented this year (2026 if you’re reading this at some point in the future, and if you are, then welcome to my ramblings) which looked at activity data from people before and after they started GLP-1 medication.
You might assume that as people became lighter they’d naturally start moving more.
But we know what that does, don’t we (tell me you’ve done some bullshit training in the 90s and 2000s without telling me you have)
That unfortunately, is not what researchers observed.
Average daily steps actually fell.
Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity fell too.
Now, that’s not proof that GLP-1 medication causes people to become less active.
There could be plenty going on.
Side effects.
Existing joint pain.
Behaviour.
Lifestyle.
And this was observational research rather than a controlled experiment.
But it does kill off one rather convenient assumption:
Losing weight doesn’t automatically make you active.
You still have to do the active bit.
Strength Training Enters The Game
This is where picking heavy shit up and putting it back down becomes rather useful.
During weight loss, your body is receiving a fairly obvious message:
We need less of us.
Resistance training gives it another message:
We still need this muscle.
That’s a simplification of some physiology, but it’s a useful way of thinking about it.
Strength training gives muscle a reason to stick around.
And importantly, we’re not just interested in preserving tissue.
We’re interested in preserving function.
Being strong.
Being capable.
Being able to actually use the smaller body you’ve worked so hard to achieve.
That’s why exercise recommendations around GLP-1 treatment increasingly include resistance training rather than simply telling people to “move more.”
Protein Matters Too
And this is where the food industry has spotted an opportunity.
People taking GLP-1 medication often eat considerably less because appetite is reduced.
Great.
That’s partly why the drugs work.
But if you’re eating much less food, it becomes increasingly important that what you do eat delivers what your body needs.
Protein.
Fibre.
Vitamins and minerals.
Enough overall nutrition.
And yes, protein can help support muscle maintenance.
But….
Eating protein and actually using your muscles are not interchangeable.
You cannot drink a protein shake while sitting on the sofa and expect your quads to think:
“Fanfuckingtastic, apparently we’re required after all.”
Protein gives you the building materials.
Resistance training gives your body a reason to use them.
You want both.
Don’t Let GLP-1 Nutrition Become The Next Wellness Circus
There’s a genuine nutritional issue here.
Which means there is also a glorious commercial opportunity, where someone just sees £ in front of their eyes.
And whenever those two things meet, marketing departments start rubbing their hands together.
We’re going to see:
GLP-1 protein products.
GLP-1 vitamins.
GLP-1 supplements.
GLP-1 meal replacements.
GLP-1 muscle support.
GLP-1 gut support.
GLP-1 hydration.
GLP-1 recovery.
Probably GLP-1 fucking socks eventually.
Some products might be useful.
But sticking “FOR GLP-1 USERS” on the front doesn’t suddenly give a yoghurt magical properties.
You still need food.
Protein.
Fruit and vegetables.
Fibre.
Micronutrients.
Fluids.
A reasonably balanced diet.
None of those things were invented alongside the GLP-1 meds.
Don’t Waste The Opportunity
Don’t think:
“Brilliant. Now I don’t need to exercise.”
Think:
“Brilliant. Now let’s use this opportunity to build the body I actually want to live in.”
Get stronger.
Build or preserve muscle.
Improve your cardiovascular fitness.
Walk more.
Work on your balance.
Build confidence.
Learn what decent nutrition looks like when your appetite is lower.
Because the ultimate goal shouldn’t just be becoming a smaller human.
It should be becoming a healthier and more capable human.
Especially After 40, 50, and 60
This matters even more to the people I spend most of my time coaching.
Because as we age, muscle becomes increasingly precious.
We want enough strength to keep travelling.
Enough muscle to keep carrying things.
Enough fitness to keep exploring.
Enough balance and coordination to keep moving confidently.
Enough physical reserves for when life inevitably decides to throw some shit at us.
If GLP-1 medication helps somebody lose excess body fat and improves their health…
Superb.
But let’s not celebrate losing 20kg while completely ignoring whether they’re becoming weaker along the way.
The scales are only one measurement.
The Medication Is A Tool
That’s what GLP-1 medication is.
A tool.
A bloody great big sledgehammer for some people.
But still a tool.
It doesn’t lift weights for you.
It doesn’t walk the dog.
It doesn’t improve your balance.
It doesn’t make your heart and lungs fitter.
It doesn’t teach you how to eat well.
And it doesn’t magically create the physical capacity you want in your 60s, 70s and 80s.
That’s still your job.
So, use the medication if it’s appropriate for you and your healthcare team recommends it.
Enjoy the benefits.
Lose the weight you need to lose.
But while you’re doing it…
Lift something.
Walk somewhere.
Eat enough protein and nutritious food.
Build some fitness.
And don’t confuse becoming lighter with becoming stronger.
Because Ozempic, Mounjaro, and all the other do not make exercise obsolete.
It makes getting the rest right even more important.
