Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Once a month we answer Barbell Medicine Plus subscribers’ questions on the Direct Line. This is a free look at June’s episode. We start with GLP-1 drugs and muscle: why DEXA overstates the loss, what resistance training actually does, and whether creatine is worth taking. Then whether bulking and cutting does anything the scale can’t already tell you, how to get real benefit from one training hour a week, and what happens to your muscle, strength, tendons, and bone when you take time off, including why muscle memory brings it back faster than you built it.
What we cover:
• GLP-1s and muscle: the DEXA problem, resistance training, and creatine
• Bulking vs cutting vs just maintaining, and a health-first way to choose
• Training on one hour a week: the least that still moves the needle
• How fast you lose muscle when you stop, and why it comes back fast
The full two-hour episode and every back episode are on Barbell Medicine Plus, which can bundled with Premium. Resources and full references below.
Timestamps
0:00 Intro + GLP-1 and the DEXA muscle-loss myth
3:00 Do GLP-1s spare or waste muscle?
8:03 Does creatine help on a GLP-1?
10:45 Does bulking and cutting do anything?
13:18 Health first: when to lose fat before gaining
22:30 Training on one hour a week
36:22 How fast you lose muscle when you stop
43:19 Muscle memory: why it comes back
48:25 The full episode on Plus
Resources
• Barbell Medicine coaching and templates: barbellmedicine.com
• barbellmedicine.com/shop/subscriptions/plus-podcast-subscription
• barbellmedicine.com/shop/subscriptions/barbell-medicine-premium
• Signal book pre-order: barbellmedicine.com/shop/learning/signal
•
barbellmedicine.com/blog/glp-1-muscle-loss
barbellmedicine.com/blog/creatine-on-ozempic-does-it-prevent-muscle-loss
barbellmedicine.com/blog/novice-intermediate-advanced-strength-training
Lundgren JR, et al. Healthy Weight Loss Maintenance with Exercise, Liraglutide, or Both Combined (S-LITE). N Engl J Med 2021;384:1719-1730. nejm.org · NEJMoa2028198 (nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa2028198)
T-REX trial: tirzepatide with or without resistance training (Univ. of Western Australia). Preliminary. ANZCTR ACTRN12623001236684 (https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=385806)
Creatine + GLP-1 pilot (Univ. of Saskatchewan). Ongoing, results expected 2027. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT07625202 (clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07625202)
Momma H, et al. Muscle-strengthening activities and lower risk/mortality in major non-communicable diseases. Br J Sports Med 2022. PubMed 35228201 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35228201/)
Wall BT, et al. 2014. Immobilization and disuse muscle atrophy (quadriceps −3.5% at 5 days, −8% at 14 days). PubMed 24168489 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24168489/)
Gaffney CJ, et al. 2021. Grip strength loss with short-term arm immobilization. PMC8107283 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8107283/)
Farthing JP, et al. 2009. Cross-education and preservation of the immobilized limb. PubMed 19150859 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19150859/)
Marusic U, et al. 2021. Bed rest: strength loss outpaces size loss. PMC8325614 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8325614/)
Yoshihara, et al. 2023. Sepsis-associated muscle wasting (−26% in a week). PMC10003568 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10003568/)
Warren GL, et al. 2017. Strength loss and recovery after muscle injury (meta-analysis). PMC5214801 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5214801/)
Hortobágyi T, et al. 1993. Short-term detraining in strength athletes. PubMed 8371654 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8371654/)
Gavanda S, et al. 2020. Training cessation in previously untrained adolescents. PMC7241623 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7241623/)
Lovell DI, et al. 2010. Detraining strength loss in older adults. PubMed 20140683 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20140683/)
Mujika I, Padilla S. 2001. Physiology of detraining (review). PubMed 11474330 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11474330/)
Smith K, et al. 2003. Two years of training, then detraining, in older adults. PubMed 12955872 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12955872/)
Staron RS, et al. 1991. Detraining and muscle cross-sectional area in women. PubMed 1827108 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1827108/)
Ivey FM, et al. 2000. Detraining across age and sex. PubMed 10795719 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10795719/)
Taaffe DR, et al. 2009. Training and detraining in older adults. PMC2756799 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2756799/)
Grgic J, et al. 2022. Muscle size loss with detraining (meta-analysis). PubMed 36360927 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36360927/)
Bosquet L, et al. 2013. Detraining effects on strength and power. PubMed 2334705...
Once a month we answer Barbell Medicine Plus subscribers’ questions on the Direct Line. This is a free look at June’s episode. We start with GLP-1 drugs and muscle: why DEXA overstates the loss, what resistance training actually does, and whether creatine is worth taking. Then whether bulking and cutting does anything the scale can’t already tell you, how to get real benefit from one training hour a week, and what happens to your muscle, strength, tendons, and bone when you take time off, including why muscle memory brings it back faster than you built it.
What we cover:
• GLP-1s and muscle: the DEXA problem, resistance training, and creatine
• Bulking vs cutting vs just maintaining, and a health-first way to choose
• Training on one hour a week: the least that still moves the needle
• How fast you lose muscle when you stop, and why it comes back fast
The full two-hour episode and every back episode are on Barbell Medicine Plus, which can bundled with Premium. Resources and full references below.
Timestamps
0:00 Intro + GLP-1 and the DEXA muscle-loss myth
3:00 Do GLP-1s spare or waste muscle?
8:03 Does creatine help on a GLP-1?
10:45 Does bulking and cutting do anything?
13:18 Health first: when to lose fat before gaining
22:30 Training on one hour a week
36:22 How fast you lose muscle when you stop
43:19 Muscle memory: why it comes back
48:25 The full episode on Plus
Resources
• Barbell Medicine coaching and templates: barbellmedicine.com
• barbellmedicine.com/shop/subscriptions/plus-podcast-subscription
• barbellmedicine.com/shop/subscriptions/barbell-medicine-premium
• Signal book pre-order: barbellmedicine.com/shop/learning/signal
•
barbellmedicine.com/blog/glp-1-muscle-loss
barbellmedicine.com/blog/creatine-on-ozempic-does-it-prevent-muscle-loss
barbellmedicine.com/blog/novice-intermediate-advanced-strength-training
Lundgren JR, et al. Healthy Weight Loss Maintenance with Exercise, Liraglutide, or Both Combined (S-LITE). N Engl J Med 2021;384:1719-1730. nejm.org · NEJMoa2028198 (nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa2028198)
T-REX trial: tirzepatide with or without resistance training (Univ. of Western Australia). Preliminary. ANZCTR ACTRN12623001236684 (https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=385806)
Creatine + GLP-1 pilot (Univ. of Saskatchewan). Ongoing, results expected 2027. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT07625202 (clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07625202)
Momma H, et al. Muscle-strengthening activities and lower risk/mortality in major non-communicable diseases. Br J Sports Med 2022. PubMed 35228201 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35228201/)
Wall BT, et al. 2014. Immobilization and disuse muscle atrophy (quadriceps −3.5% at 5 days, −8% at 14 days). PubMed 24168489 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24168489/)
Gaffney CJ, et al. 2021. Grip strength loss with short-term arm immobilization. PMC8107283 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8107283/)
Farthing JP, et al. 2009. Cross-education and preservation of the immobilized limb. PubMed 19150859 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19150859/)
Marusic U, et al. 2021. Bed rest: strength loss outpaces size loss. PMC8325614 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8325614/)
Yoshihara, et al. 2023. Sepsis-associated muscle wasting (−26% in a week). PMC10003568 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10003568/)
Warren GL, et al. 2017. Strength loss and recovery after muscle injury (meta-analysis). PMC5214801 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5214801/)
Hortobágyi T, et al. 1993. Short-term detraining in strength athletes. PubMed 8371654 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8371654/)
Gavanda S, et al. 2020. Training cessation in previously untrained adolescents. PMC7241623 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7241623/)
Lovell DI, et al. 2010. Detraining strength loss in older adults. PubMed 20140683 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20140683/)
Mujika I, Padilla S. 2001. Physiology of detraining (review). PubMed 11474330 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11474330/)
Smith K, et al. 2003. Two years of training, then detraining, in older adults. PubMed 12955872 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12955872/)
Staron RS, et al. 1991. Detraining and muscle cross-sectional area in women. PubMed 1827108 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1827108/)
Ivey FM, et al. 2000. Detraining across age and sex. PubMed 10795719 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10795719/)
Taaffe DR, et al. 2009. Training and detraining in older adults. PMC2756799 (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2756799/)
Grgic J, et al. 2022. Muscle size loss with detraining (meta-analysis). PubMed 36360927 (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36360927/)
Bosquet L, et al. 2013. Detraining effects on strength and power. PubMed 2334705...
