Research shows the importance of strength training during GLP-1 weight loss / Shutterstock/Iam_Anuphone
International industry lobbying associations are calling for physical activity and strength training to be deeply integrated with GLP-1 treatment.
Five organisations – UK Active, the Health and Fitness Association, the HFA Foundation, AusActive, Exercise New Zealand and Fitness Industry Council of Canada – have joined forces following a multinational study which found that pairing GLP-1 therapy with regular structured exercise would improve long-term health outcomes, reduce downstream costs and generate positive economic returns across multiple countries.
Developed by FTI Consulting’s Center for Healthcare Economics and Policy, the white paper From Weight Loss to Lasting Value: Structured Exercise and the Economics of GLP-1 Therapy compares impacts of GLP-1 therapy as a standalone obesity treatment with GLP-1 therapy combined with exercise.
Adding structured exercise to GLP-1 therapy can help patients preserve muscle during weight loss; maintain strength, mobility, and bone health; keep more weight off over time; reduce weight regain after stopping medication and lower the risk of costly health events later on.
The trade associations are calling for structured exercise, including strength training, to be an essential part of obesity care and embedded into GLP-1 care models. They are also asking for patients to be supported to find qualified exercise professionals and fitness facilities and for referral pathways to be built between healthcare providers and qualified exercise professionals and fitness facilities and for outcomes beyond weight loss to be measured, such as long-term weight loss and economic value.
The analysis used a health-economic model adapted across Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and the United States. Across all five countries the analysis found that a combined approach supports improved long-term health outcomes, reduced healthcare costs, and produced positive economic returns.
Greta Wagner, interim president and CEO of the Health and Fitness Association and president of the HFA Foundation, says: “The health and fitness industry has long known that lasting wellness requires more than a number on a scale, it requires strength, function, and sustainable healthy life habits.
“This research confirms that exercise, especially strength training, helps patients sustain the benefits of GLP-1 treatment over time.”
Cameron Saunders, CEO of UK Active, says: “The evidence is clear and the bill for inaction is one that health systems cannot keep picking up. Our members are ready to be delivery partners – we have the facilities, the professionals and programmes to make it happen at scale.”
In the UK, combining regular exercise with GLP-1 therapy could generate an estimated £2.7bn in economic and societal value over 10 years and a 164 per cent return on investment, rising to 717 per cent and £13bn over 30 years.
For the US, the economic and societal value over 10 years was estimated at US$120bn and a 496 per cent return on investment, rising to 1,572 per cent and US$393bn over 30 years.
Estimates for Australia were A$182m in economic and societal value over 10 years and a 59 per cent return on investment, rising to 457 per cent and A$1.4bn over 30 years.
Canada could expect to generate C$3.5bn in economic and societal value over 10 years and a 105 per cent return on investment, rising to 526 per cent and C$17.9bn over 30 years.
For New Zealand: the figures were NZ$51m in economic and societal value over 10 years and a 27 per cent return on investment, rising to 306 per cent and NZ$592m over 30 years.
