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
Great podcast. I’m sort of doing a weight challenge at the moment – more for accountability – but there are so many people, both men and women, who are shocked at their ability to lose weight simply by doing resistance training at least 3x week, eating their required level of protein as well as at least 10k steps a day.
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Chief Nutrition replied:
Totally! And well done! We highly recommend that anyone needing to lose weight try without medications first. Unless they are ill and need such medications.