In this post we’re talking about GLP-1-based weight loss medications and weight training.

That includes drugs such as Wegovy and Ozempic, along with Mounjaro (tirzepatide), which works on both GLP-1 and GIP receptors.

If you’ve followed me for a long time, you might remember me talking about these medications on Instagram as far back as 2017. Even then, it was becoming clear that this new generation of weight loss drugs had enormous potential.

Some people within the fitness industry consider them a “cop out” for hard work.

I don’t.

For the right person, these can be very useful. They can make losing a substantial amount of weight far more achievable, and for some the health benefits are life-changing.

But there’s one part of the conversation which seems to get badly mangled: what should you actually do while taking them?

I’ve seen people advised to simply become less active and let the medication do everything. Others have been told that changing their eating habits no longer matters, because the drugs will keep them in check. And, bizarrely, I’ve seen the importance of maintaining muscle mass dismissed because “the goal is weight loss”.

That last one particulary bothers me.

So consider my article an attempt to steer you safely around that particular fucktacular shitnado of ass — the answer is YES YOU SHOULD focus on building healthy eating habits, and YES YOU SHOULD lift weights while using a GLP-1 medication.

Heck, I’d argue that resistance training becomes even more important when losing a significant amount of weight.

When body weight comes down, we don’t lose exclusively body fat. Some lean tissue is usually lost too. Current research suggests this also happens during weight loss with GLP-1-based medications, which is why researchers increasingly recommend resistance training alongside adequate protein intake to help preserve muscle and physical function. (1, 2, 3)

And that matters because the goal shouldn’t simply be to make the number on your bathroom scales smaller — you want to lose fat while keeping as much useful muscle as possible.

That’s where the weights come in.

However, there’s an important catch.

One of the major reasons these medications work so well is that they can dramatically reduce appetite. That makes maintaining a calorie deficit much easier — but it can also mean you’re eating considerably less food than you were before.

So this probably isn’t the ideal time to suddenly decide you’re going to train like an Olympic athlete six days per week.

Instead, train smart.

For most beginner-to-intermediate trainees, I’d start with 2–3 full-body resistance-training sessions per week, somewhere around 30–60 minutes each. That gives you plenty of opportunity to progressively train the major muscle groups without turning every gym visit into an endurance event. Current clinical guidance likewise recommends strength training around 2–3 times per week while using GLP-1 weight-loss medication. (4)

You can always do more if your fitness, recovery, food intake and medical situation support it. Likewise, somebody struggling with nausea, fatigue or very low food intake may initially need to do less.

The important thing is that your programme is something you can recover from and repeat consistently.

That gives us three things I care far more about than simply doing loads of exercise:

• Good performance during exercise
• Adequate recovery between sessions
• Consistency over the long term.

And consistency is where the results come from.

Interestingly, I currently have 285 members using GLP-1-based medications while following workout programmes on this website.

Reach Your Peak has become the most popular choice among them.

The original programme includes six training days per week, but quite a few of these members have independently stripped out the cardio-only sessions. That leaves them with three full-body weights workouts on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

And I actually think that’s a cracking way to use it.

Because remember:

The goal isn’t merely to lose weight.

It’s to lose the body fat you don’t want while doing everything reasonably possible to retain the muscle you do.

The scales becoming lighter is nice.

Looking fucking awesome is better.