TL;DR: GLP-1s aren't a miracle or a disaster
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They work on your brain, not just your stomach: They slow digestion and boost insulin, but the real trick is the gut-brain axis, dialling down hunger and recalibrating your reward system, so the doughnut stops feeling worth it.
- "Ozempic face" is from under-eating, not the drug: You lose muscle and bone because you stop eating enough.
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Stop the drug and the weight roars back: Around 67% regain weight within a year. It's built for obesity as a chronic disease.
- It's not for slightly overweight 20-somethings: For the genuinely obese, the benefits hugely outweigh the risks. For everyone else, eating well and training do the same job.
Dr Sam Zand is a double board-certified physician and Medical Director of Evolve Longevity Clinic, specialising in obesity, regenerative and longevity medicine. He works with high performers to optimise their health, body composition, energy and lifespan through highly personalised medical protocols, helping them achieve more than just a longer life. His mission is to help people live with greater strength, vitality, resilience and performance for years to come because he believes decline is not an inevitable part of ageing.
Dr Zand is also a certified Obesity Physician, which is why we invited him to chat about GLP-1s, the new generation of weight-loss medications including Ozempic, Mounjaro, Wegovy and Retatrutide, and their role in today's society.
We cover:
- GLP-1 medications – what they are, how they work, and their potential side effects.
- Why GLP-1s don't work for everyone and whether it is possible to out-eat them.
- The issues of muscle loss, "Ozempic face" and becoming skinny-fat, and how to prevent them.
- The effects of GLP-1s on the brain and their use in combating addiction.
- GLP-1 microdosing and the effects of long-term use.
This episode is for anyone curious about GLP-1 weight-loss medications. We explore how these drugs work, their effects on weight loss, body composition, appetite, brain function, inflammation and metabolic health, as well as the biggest questions surrounding their long-term impact on muscle mass, health, performance and longevity.
Links:
Instagram:
Dr Zand Instagram.com/doctor.zand
Evolve clinic: instagram.com/evolve.longevity
I started taking Reta about two months ago to assist with perimenopausal weight gain which I tried everything to shift, eg workout everyday including doing runs up to 20km most weeks and weight training and also tried fasting but nothing worked, I have lost 4kg so far, I am the lightest I’ve been in years. Sugar cravings have eased. So far its been great for me.
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Chief Nutrition replied:
Hi Pam. That’s great news! Just make sure you do plenty of strength training and meet your protein requirements. I personally have almost 2g per kg/bw per day. If you just run a lot and don’t do weights and eat enough, you are most likely going to lose muscle, and it can also impact your bones. I’m speaking from a personal experience. Vee