The Truth About GLP-1 Weight Loss and Muscle Loss

00:00GLP-1 medications produce real weight loss, but 40% of that weight loss comes from muscle, not fat. And remember, muscle is medicine. Muscle is longevity. It is the most powerful tool your body has for long-term metabolic health. Any approach that does not protect and build it is leaving the most important variable out of the equation. What's going on, everyone? Hey, you guys. Welcome back to another episode of The WarriorBabe Show with your host, Nikkie Stott.

00:36And today, we're just going to kind of get right into it. I'm going to talk about something that I think is arguably one of the most important conversations that is happening right now in women's health, in the fitness space. And it's a conversation that is not being handled, honestly enough, in my opinion, by the people who should be having it. So in this episode, I want to specifically talk about GLP-1 medications, weight loss injections.

01:09I've talked about Ozempic before and gone down like my viewpoint and opinion in a previous episode a while back. But I want to bring it back here because I specifically want to really hone in on what these medications are doing to your muscle mass. Because this is the piece of the conversation that is being almost completely overlooked or ignored. And as someone who has been in the fitness space for over a decade now has worked with over 21,000 women on metabolism, metabolism repair, hormones, your body composition, building muscle, long-term health.

01:48It's just on my heart. Like I have this, I have a perspective on this that I just don't want to continue to keep quiet on about anymore. And I want to just lean in even more heavily. Maybe what I talked about before in the previous episode on like my opinion around this topic. And before I even go like any further, before we really dive into it, I'm not here to guilt or to shame anyone. For those of you guys that have been on or used or trying to come off these medications, that's not what this episode is about.

02:24I just truthfully want to bring education information to you guys. For those of you that are either considering it on it or coming off of it. Like because there are women in my community who are one of those buckets or in one of those buckets. And I respect your decision. I understand why. And I'm not here to judge the choices that you've made. But I just want to give you information that maybe you weren't aware of or like your prescribing doctor very likely didn't give you this information. I'm just hoping that like for anybody of where you are in those buckets, you're considering them, you're on them, you're coming off of them.

03:01I just hope that you leave this episode being a little bit more educated and informed, which will help make your decisions on what you need to do wherever you are in those buckets. Because the muscle loss conversation around the GLP-1s is not happening loudly enough in this space and it needs to be. So I want to lean into that with you guys today. First, I just want to talk like high level, like what these medications were originally meant to do and how they're like exploding into this weight loss category.

03:33These weight loss injections, these GLP-1s that you're hearing about everywhere, they were originally developed for people with type 2 diabetes and to manage type 2 diabetes. And they've somehow become widely prescribed for weight loss. And what they do is they work by mimicking a hormone that slows down the gastric emptying, dramatically reduces appetite. It creates this effect in our brain with our brains like hunger and reward signaling.

04:04And it significantly quiets food noise for most people who take them. And then the result is because of these things happening, people are significantly eating less. And like their desire to eat, it just quiets. And when you are eating significantly less, you are going to lose weight. Okay? Yes. The scale is going to go down. Your photos are going to look different. You are going to see clothes fit differently and feel clothes fit differently.

04:36And for people that are dealing with obesity and like the serious health complications that come with that, like cardiovascular risk, like blood sugar dysregulation, like metabolic disease, the weight loss these medications produce is real and is significant for those people who need it. And I'm not disputing that. So I just want to make that known. What I want to talk about is what I just said is what's happening underneath of that weight loss that nobody is putting a label on.

05:08Because yes, that scale going down. Yes, that's the photos looking different. Yes, clothes fitting differently. Yes, you are losing weight. But there's a huge difference between the scale going down and fat being lost that are not the same thing. And that distinction right there is everything on what I want to dive in with you guys on. Specifically, the muscle loss, right? Like, and giving you guys data and research on what myself, what are my team at Worry Bay, what this like, what we're actually like reading and looking into

05:41and trying to navigate how to help more women who are in this season of life because it is so loudly happening in the space. Okay, so the information that I want every woman on or considering a GLP-1 medication to have is I need you to hear this because it's not something most prescribing physicians are walking their patients through. Look, this data, this research that's out there is, there's a specific GLP-1, like there's like trial data, right?

06:14And there's been multiple clinical analysis on this. It is showing consistently that a significant portion of weight loss on these medications is not fat. Meaning, the weight that you are losing on these medications is not actually fat loss. So when you step on the scale and you see the scale going down, it's not fat. What it is, is it's lean body mass, aka also known as muscle.

06:46And so some of these, depending on these analysis, some of them are estimating up to 40% of total weight loss on GLP-1 medication is coming from lean muscle mass rather than your fat tissue. So let me just go a step further and put that in real numbers so that it lands a little bit better for you guys. If a woman loses 30 pounds on a GLP-1 medication, that means if it's 40%, up to 12 of those pounds may be muscle, not fat.

07:21And then, yeah, she's lighter on the scale. Yeah, her before and after photos look different. Yeah, her body composition looks different. But the actual ratio of muscle to fat that determines her metabolism, her strength, her hormone health, her long-term health results. Now, they may not have improved nearly as much as the weight loss suggests. People think, I lose weight and I'm going to be healthier.

07:52But being on these medications, you're not just losing fat, you're losing muscle. And so in some cases, in some of these analyses and some of these trials, those things, metabolism, her strength, her hormone health, her long-term health results overall in general, they've actually probably measurably have gotten worse because she's losing muscle. And to even draw it in more specifically for the women that are part of our community or in Warrior Babe, you guys have heard me say this before, muscle mass is something women naturally lose with age.

08:25So when you're in your 30s, you lose roughly up to 3% to 8% of muscle mass per decade without intentional intervention. That just happens. And that rate accelerates significantly after menopause. So for women in their 40s and their 50s, which is a significant portion of women currently using these medications, losing additional muscle on top of just age-related muscle loss, that is not a small side effect.

08:59It is not something to be ignored. Like, it is a compounding problem with real long-term consequences for your metabolism, for your bone density, for your health, for hormonal health, for your strength, for foundational strength, functional strength. Like, less muscle mass means, you guys know that I've said this, I've leaned into this with episodes in the past, it means a slower resting metabolic rate, which means when the medication stops, and for most women, I mean, I was talking to one of the members on the team,

09:33it's like the doctors are telling people that they're going to have to be on these for the rest of their life. Do you know how expensive that is? Like, most women, it does stop eventually. Whether it's by choice, whether it's because of the cost, whether it's because of the side effects that one is enduring being on this medication, no matter what, now I'm going off to a rant, but you have less muscle, which means a slower metabolic rate, which means when you stop these medications, the body is burning fewer calories at rest than it was before the drug was ever even started.

10:09So the appetite comes back, but the calorie burning capacity has decreased. And then that's why the weight returns. And it's going to return often faster and in greater amounts than it was lost by being on these medications. Quick break. If you're finding this episode helpful so far, it would mean a lot if you could hit pause for just a second, leave a quick rating or a review or share it with someone who could benefit from it. Your support helps more women discover these tools to build muscle,

10:41lose fat and feel confident. Thank you so much for being a part of this journey with me. There is a study too that was read within 12 months of stopping a GLP-1 medication, participants have regained an average of two thirds of the weight that they had lost. Because it's two thirds within a year. It's like literally history just repeating itself, just in this new form of drug medication that is out there for women to lose weight.

11:14It's like we're doing the 1960s and 70s and 80s and 90s all over again. It's just this is the new thing happening. The new drug. I'm just going to say this out loud. The women who come to me, come to Warrior Babe after stopping these medications are not just dealing with weight gain. They are dealing with a metabolism that is running slower than it was before they started the drug. They have less muscle than they had before. They have more fatigue. They have more hormonal disruption.

11:46And the feeling that they are starting from a worse off position than they were before they began entirely consumes them with the feet before they even try to start this more, you know, sustainable, on track, proper nutrition, proper strength training, X, Y, and Z, which is literally just the answer. Guys, I know everybody wants to lose weight and they want to lose weight fast, but do we really have to do it the means of what this drug is doing to our bodies?

12:18And like what I just named with what I see women dealing with when they come to us after being on these medications, that's a trap that nobody warned them about. They don't warn them about losing muscle and their metabolism being far worse than them, than where they were when they started the drug, or experiencing more fatigue or hormonal disruption or anything like that. And that's why I want to talk about this stuff with you guys today.

12:53Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause? It's time to take control. If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle loss, Warrior Babe is here for you. At Warrior Babe, we've helped over 18,000 women just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle, and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid testing and more. Imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results and results that last.

13:27Look, don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warriorbabe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation. That's warriorbabe.com forward slash apply. All right, let's get back to the show. And like, so when I was getting ready to prepare to talk to this episode, it's like, well, I'm sure people were like, why? Like, for me, at least, I'm like, why is this happening?

13:59Like, my mind spirals. Like I just said, it's like, we are just doing what we did years ago. And what you women that are 40, 50, and 60 years up grew up in that diet culture. It's just on repeat. I mean, they do say history repeats itself. So naturally, like, why does this happen? And then why isn't the medical community making this, like, this centerpiece of every GLP-1 conversation? Like, the muscle loss happens for a reason that is completely consistent with everything we know about nutrition and body composition.

14:31It's not mysterious. Like, the medications suppress appetite so dramatically that most people are not eating enough protein to preserve their muscle mass. They're eating significantly less overall. And when your overall intake drops without, like, you intentionally or deliberately prioritizing your protein, we know muscle loss is going to follow every time. I've talked about this across multiple episodes.

15:03It's what happens in significantly, insignificant, when you're not eating enough and you're in a calorie deficit without having adequate protein. This is what happens in the body. It just burns muscle alongside fat because it has to find fuel somewhere. The difference with the GLP-1 is that the appetite suppression is so powerful that people often generally cannot even eat more, especially protein, which is already filling to begin with. And it requires demand and real effort to consume in adequate amounts. When you already have, you know, people already have, there's already people struggling to get in enough protein.

15:36And then women on one of these medications who can barely already finish a small meal is, is not then thinking about, oh, I need to hit 130 grams of protein. She's just trying to eat something, anything. And then the strength training piece, which is the other half of this muscle preservation and you making sure that you're holding onto the muscle mass that you're losing as you continue to age, that falls away too. When you're already eating very little, when your energy is already low, your motivation to train then becomes low.

16:08And nobody is handing you, you know, this prescription to also do resistance training and focus on a protein target while you are taking these medications. Like why in a broader perspective in the medical community, why is it's not making this a lot of conversation? I mean, I'm sure many thoughts and minds go to money. It's a grab. That's just how insurance and things like that work.

16:40The system works. But I think it also comes down to how the outcomes are being measured. Weigh loss is the metric. And fat loss and muscle loss both show up as weight loss on the scale. So if the number is going down and certain health markers are improving, then from a medical or clinical standpoint, then the medication is working. But what I think is missing here is a huge level of attention because it's very nuanced.

17:11But having DEXA scans, having lean mass tracking, having nutritional coaching. And that's like, if you think about it, most prescribing practices simply do not have that kind of infrastructure to even provide in the first place. So that's why it's happening. And that's why the medical industry is also why nobody's saying anything about it. Because it's based off of, well, if people are losing weight, then it must be working. The weight loss is the metric.

17:42But they're clumping in together muscle loss and fat loss. Makes sense, right? So I told you this episode was going to be a very opinion forward and a bit direct. So let me continue just to be direct. I am not anti-GLP1. I am not telling you that these medications are evil and they suck. Or that most women who use them are taking the easy way out. Because I feel like that is unfair. And it ignores the genuine complexity of what many women are trying to navigate when it comes to their health.

18:20I said earlier that I respect and understand where people are coming from when they are considering or on this drug. But I'm hoping that the information I'm sharing with you today comes across in a way that is just more educational in a sense. Because here, I will say this clearly. As someone who has spent years studying and coaching the female body composition, GLP-1 medications prescribed without having a mandatory nutrition and strength training protocol

18:51are just, in my opinion, an incomplete intervention. Prescribing a medication that causes significant calorie restriction without simultaneously requiring somebody to prioritize protein and resistance training is, in my opinion, setting that woman up for a body composition outcome that is far worse than the scale is ever going to suggest or tell someone. Yeah, you can lose 40 pounds on one of these medications and end up metabolically worse off than when you started.

19:25If that weight loss came with significant muscle loss and a slower metabolism and no strength training foundation to support the body that you have now, you are far worse off than where you started before you were taking the medication. The women most affected by this are the ones who are already in the most vulnerable position. They already have low muscle mass. They're experiencing hormonal changes from menopause or perimenopause. They have a history of yo-yo dieting that had already compromised their metabolic rate or their metabolic health.

20:00These are the women who need to be building muscle the most. And that medication without the right support around it makes it harder. It makes it more complicated and doesn't make it easier. You know where I stand on this clearly, right? So my philosophy is, and it hasn't changed, is muscle is medicine. Muscle is the organ of longevity. That's what Dr. Gabriel Lyon says. It is the most powerful metabolic tool a woman's body has.

20:33It literally is what determines how efficiently you burn fat, how well you regulate your blood sugar, how strong your bones are, how well you age, and any type of intervention, whether it be a drug or diet or otherwise, that does not account for preserving and building muscle is leaving the most important variable out of the equation. The more muscle, Dr. Gabriel Lyon says this too, the more muscle mass you have on your body as you age,

21:05you literally add more years to your life. And I want you to know if you've been on a GLP-1, if you've come off of one, like this is all fixable, but it requires a completely different strategy than what most women are getting from the people that are prescribing these things. So non-negotiables when it comes into putting it into play, whether you're on a GLP-1, whether you recently stopped one, whether you're considering one, this is what I would recommend.

21:37And these are non-negotiables from a body composition standpoint, from a muscle preserving standpoint. A non-negotiable number one, I wonder if how many of you guys are going to get it because I've talked about it so much. Protein first, every single day. No exceptions. Okay, on a GLP-1, I know your appetite is pressed. I know eating feels like it's a chore some days. Protein still has to come first. Before carbs, before fat, before anything else that you put on your plate,

22:08put on protein. And if that fills heart out of the gate, then lean on like liquid or salt proteins, like Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, protein shakes, bone broth. That protein is a primary defense against muscle loss. There is no workaround. A non-negotiable number two, I wonder if you guys are going to be able to get this one too. Strength training. Consistently. And you don't need to be in the gym for three hours, six, three hours a day, five, six days a week.

22:39Three to four focus sessions per week of just focusing on compound, progressive strength training is the minimum to having the ability to meaningly preserve muscle mass during the weight loss that these medications produce. Literally walking away from being prescribed these, you should have a protocol of proper nutrition and a proper strength training protocol to be following. And cardio does not listen to me. I'm saying strength training. I mean, pick up the dumbbells,

23:11pick up the barbells. I'm not saying cardio. Cardio does not preserve muscle. Cardio has real value. Don't get me wrong on that. Cardiovascular health, stress management, but it does not send the signal to your muscle that it needs in order to maintain and to grow. Only resistance training, only strength training does that. So you need to prioritize it. And then I would say a non-negotiable number three is track your body composition, not just your weight. So push for DEXA scans or in-body measurements

23:41that show you your lean mass versus your fat mass at baseline and throughout your time on the medication and after. That is a non-negotiable. So track your body composition, not just your weight, strength training, prioritize your protein. Number four is have a plan for what comes after. And this is a conversation that almost nobody is having about these medications and I feel like it's probably the most important one. Like what happens when you stop? Because most women do stop eventually.

24:11They stop by choice. They stop because of cost. They stop because of side effects. Because the prescription ends. Even though some doctors are saying you have to be on this forever, that's crazy. And if you have not built a nutritional foundation and a body composition that can actually sustain itself without appetite suppression, then the weight loss is going to come right back. As I said, two-thirds of weight loss returns within 12 months for the women who didn't maintain a behavioral change with these medications.

24:43The women who can keep the results, who use the medication, they've built the habits. They've prioritized protein. They had a strength training foundation. They had the metabolic health that was supported along the way. Okay? But majority, that's like a very small percentage of individuals. You need to be prepared with a plan on what to do when you're done. Having a strong nutritional foundation and a strength training protocol to follow. So,

25:14in all of the conversation that I have with you guys today, to sum it up, on everything that we covered, GLB-1 medications produce real weight loss. But, 40% of that weight loss comes from muscle, not fat. That's crazy, you guys. Just let that sink in, please. And then, remember, muscle loss slows down your metabolism. It can leave you better, or it can leave you worse off than where you were before

25:44when you started it because now you have metabolic health that has been disrupted, blood sugar dysregulation. You're, you're, you're now not burning, you're burning fewer calories than you were before. Because when the medication stops, your appetite is going to return and now the body is burning fewer calories than it was before. And that's why the weight comes right back. But I want you guys to know it's fixable. But you need it with the right strategy. You need protein, first, every day, strength training consistently, body composition, data, DEXA scans, in-body scans,

26:14not just scale weight. And remember, muscle is medicine. Muscle is longevity. It is the most powerful tool your body has for long-term metabolic health. Any approach that does not protect and build it is leaving the most important variable out of the equation. So I hope that you are walking away from this episode today bringing more awareness awareness to this drug, having more knowledge to what it's doing, and considering

26:45if it is the right path for you or not, knowing that if you have to lose weight, there is a much better way to foundationally go around about it than jumping on a medication that could leave you worse off than where you started. guys, I'm just going to add this in here. There are women inside of our community who have, who are on this right now and coming off and they're being supported by our coaches with the right nutritional and strength training protocol. There are women who are considering

27:15going on it that were having these real dialogues inside of our community. There's women who are navigating exactly this. And they're doing the work, they're having the hard questions, they're asking the hard questions, they're building the foundation that actually lasts. So if you want to surround yourself with more of this information and be a part of a community of women who are leaning on each other to make sure that they are being held accountable or having the right insight on the decisions that they're making, our community is completely free.

27:46And it's full of women in your exact season of life of this is where you are. And I'm biased opinion, but it's also one of the most real spaces on the internet for this type of conversation. So I'm going to put that link in the show notes that's there. Click it, join our community free. And then I just ask that you share this episode with a woman who is on either other medications or harassment or is considering it because I promise you that she needs to hear this. I love you guys and I hope that you guys were able to take away

28:16some stuff in this episode. Muscle is the most important thing. Remember that as you continue to age. Okay, I'll see you guys in the next episode. Peace out. Hey, really quick before you go, I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you, take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all of the difference. Helping more women discover the tools they need to transform the fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path

28:47of someone else's journey. Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much.

This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.