People Who Use GLP-1s Are Exercising Less, Study Finds

Despite the fitness industry’s calls for exercise to be prescribed alongside weight-loss drugs, Fitbit data found that daily movement declined after starting GLP-1s

A new study is bringing further attention to the need for physical activity combined with obesity treatment like GLP-1 medications.

The rapid weight-loss that often arrives alongside a GLP-1 prescription can often come with an undesirable side effect: muscle loss. 

But despite that reality, data from the National Institutes of Health’s All of Us Research Program, which links participants’ electronic health records with their Fitbit activity data, revealed that overall movement decreased from starting the treatment.

Researchers looked at 753 adults with obesity who started a GLP-1 medication with enough wearable-device data for analysis, with an average age of 52.7 years. Daily steps decreased from 5,047 to 4,487 steps per day, and moderate-to-vigorous activity fell from 28 to 22 minutes per day after beginning a GLP-1, on average.

Moreover, the study found no evidence that weight loss from these medications led to increased physical activity.

“While many assume that weight loss leads naturally to increased physical activity, our study suggests otherwise,”lead author Dr. Sajana Maharjan said. “The findings in our study reinforce that exercise cannot be optional for people taking these medications. People need targeted interventions that encourage physical activity alongside medication for obesity.”

Top voices in the fitness and wellness industry are looking to increase those targeted interventions while working alongside healthcare professionals, in an effort to prevent losing that vital lean mass — essential for longevity, metabolism and functional well-being.

Highlighting that urgency, major international organizations from the U.S., U.K., Australia, New Zealand and Canada recently published a white paper supporting not only the health benefits of exercise — especially strength training — for GLP-1 users, but also reduced subsequent costs and positive economic returns across multiple countries.

The white paper underscored previous sentiments expressed by the trade bodies, which released a statement earlier this year calling on governments, health systems and international institutions to ensure that treatment plans utilizing drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy are supported by lifestyle interventions including physical activity and nutrition.

However, the findings may not paint the entire picture of how GLP-1s are impacting the fitness and wellness industry. Recent findings suggested that gym memberships are rising among GLP-1 users, with the growing market potential encouraging operators to up their weight-loss integrations by incorporating in-house clinics and partnership referral programs.