Alright, I get a ton of questions about this topic, so today it’s on like Donkey Kong.
Now, if you watched a good amount of the US Open this past weekend, you also got a steady dose of big pharma commercials.
Many of which were about…
Weight loss drugs.
Specifically, Ozempic (Wegovy and Rybelsus are the other two popular brand names, but Ozempic seems to be EVERYWHERE right now).
So, what exactly is this stuff they’re pushing?
It’s a semaglutide.
Semaglutide – an injectable medication for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, as an accompaniment to diet and exercise.
And of course, the use has been extended to assist in weight loss.
Here’s how it works:
- When we eat food, we produce GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide) which helps us release insulin and makes us feel full.
- When people take Ozempic, it mimics the natural effects of GLP-1, which helps them feel full without eating anything.
If you’re following along, you can obviously see how this story is going to end.
Anecdotally, from the people I personally know taking Ozempic, it seems to help a lot.
To a person, they’ve all lost weight.
BUT, they aren’t fit.
Which leads me to my biggest concerns after doing some research:
- Losing muscle. When we lose weight, especially quickly, we tend to lose muscle and bone density. It’s already a challenge to get enough protein on a healthy diet, so it’s darn near impossible to get enough when you’re essentially starving yourself.
- Long-term results – What happens after you stop taking the medication? Just like every appetite suppressant before this one, appetite’s return to normal. As do people’s eating habits.
Which leads us to the truth about fitness, weight loss, life changes, etc.:
Temporary actions create temporary results.
Whatever you do to lose weight is what you’re going to have to continue to do to keep it off.
And if it came in a bottle, everybody would be shredded.
I know it’s not sexy, but building the proper nutrition habits is how we achieve long-term success.
That is why we created the 18STRONG Diet Stack to guide you through the nutritional strategy that works for us.
It’s helped us lose fat, build muscle, and most importantly, life-long habits.
Now, I’m not your doctor.
If your doctor prescribes that you go on one of these latest “miracles”, do your research and decide if it’s the right thing for you – I know it has saved many a diabetic life.
For us golfers who just want to be fit, I tend to look to medication as the last resort.
Alright, that was a little longer than I anticipated, but I hope it helped shed some light.
STAY STRONG,
Jeff
PS – The 18STRONG Diet Stack is free, but don’t let the lack of cost or its simplicity fool you.
It has worked for countless golfers in our Crew.