GLP1 medications have changed the landscape of weight loss.
For many people they reduce appetite, minimise food noise and make it easier to stay in a calorie deficit without the constant mental battle that usually comes with dieting. For healthcare workers, busy parents and anyone running on low time and low energy, that can be life changing.
But there is a part of the conversation that often gets missed.
Weight loss is not the same as fat loss.
When body weight drops quickly, the body does not only lose fat. It also loses muscle. And if nothing is done to protect that muscle, the proportion lost can be significant.
This matters more than most people realise.
Muscle is not just about appearance or performance in the gym. It plays a central role in metabolism, joint health, injury risk, functional independence and long term weight maintenance. It is what allows you to move well, stay strong through life, and feel capable in your own body.
Without a strength training stimulus, the body has no reason to hold onto muscle while weight is coming down. The system becomes very efficient at shrinking overall. That might look like progress on the scales, but underneath it can mean reduced strength, less resilience and a slower metabolic rate over time.
This is often why people describe feeling weaker, more tired, or sluggish as weight drops quickly.
There is also the longer term picture to consider.
Muscle is protective. It supports joints, improves insulin sensitivity, helps regulate blood sugar and supports bone density, particularly for women as they age. Losing large amounts of it during a weight loss phase makes it harder to maintain results and increases the likelihood of weight regain once medication stops.
Strength training changes that trajectory.
It tells the body that muscle is needed. We want the weight loss to come predominantly from fat tissue, not lean muscle tissue. It supports posture, reduces pain, improves confidence and keeps the body resilient.
It also helps people feel more in control of the process.
GLP1s can reduce hunger, but they do not teach the body how to be strong, resilient or physically confident. Strength training is the answer. It gives structure and builds trust in movement again. It reinforces the idea that this is not just about getting lighter, it is about getting healthier.
Strength training alongside GLP1 use creates a more balanced approach. It protects lean tissue, supports metabolism and helps shape a body that feels capable rather than just smaller.
For most people this does not mean hours in the gym. It means consistent, well structured resistance training a few times per week. Enough to give the body a reason to stay strong while everything else is changing.
Weight loss medications can be a powerful tool. But they work best when paired with habits that protect long term health.
