Browse the evidence

GLP-1 receptor agonists (semaglutide, tirzepatide) produce significant weight loss (10-21%) but also reduce lean body mass, necessitating resistance training to preserve muscle and performance in physically active individuals.

If you are using GLP-1 agonists like semaglutide or tirzepatide for weight loss, expect to lose both fat and some muscle. To protect your strength and athletic performance, you must incorporate resistance training into your routine. This combination helps offset the lean mass loss associated with these drugs. Do not rely on the medication alone; long-term maintenance requires continuous therapy and lifestyle adherence, as stopping treatment typically leads to weight regain.

Multidisciplinary therapy combining nutritional, physical, and behavioral interventions reduces body weight, fat mass, and cardiometabolic risk factors in adults with obesity.

To manage obesity effectively, you need a team approach that includes diet, exercise, and behavioral counseling, rather than just one of these. Aim for sessions 2-3 times a week, lasting at least 20 minutes, over a period of weeks to months. This combined approach helps reduce weight and fat while preserving muscle and improving metabolic health, which is crucial for long-term success.

Aerobic and resistance exercise reduce hepatic steatosis and improve insulin sensitivity in MASLD patients independently of significant body weight loss.

You do not need to lose weight to improve your liver health through exercise. Both aerobic exercise (45-60 minutes, 3-5 times a week) and resistance training (3 times a week for 8-12 weeks) can significantly reduce liver fat and improve insulin sensitivity, even if your body weight remains stable. Focus on consistency and metabolic health rather than just the number on the scale.

The effectiveness of protein supplementation on lean mass and strength is significantly higher in sarcopenic and frail older adults compared to overweight or obese older adults.

If you are an older adult who is frail, sarcopenic, or institutionalized, adding protein supplements to your resistance training is more likely to help you build lean mass and strength. If you are overweight or obese, you may not see these benefits, as your body's response to protein may be blunted by excess weight and lower activity levels.

Resistance exercise training (RET) volume is the primary driver of skeletal muscle hypertrophy, with higher weekly volumes yielding greater muscle growth up to a specific threshold.

To maximize muscle growth, focus on increasing your total training volume (sets x reps x weight) over time. You do not need to lift extremely heavy weights; moderate loads work just as well if you train close to failure. However, be aware that there is a limit to how much volume you can handle before gains stall or health suffers, so find your personal threshold.

Lifestyle interventions during OMM treatment should shift focus from caloric deficit for weight loss to optimizing health, specifically by mitigating lean mass loss through high protein intake and resistance training.

While taking OMMs, prioritize consuming 1.5g of protein per kg of fat-free mass (or 80-120g daily) and engage in resistance training 2-3 times per week. This helps preserve muscle mass and strength, which can be lost during rapid weight loss, and supports overall physical function.

Combined diet and exercise interventions produce greater reductions in liver enzymes (ALT, AST) and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) than either diet or exercise alone in patients with NAFLD.

For NAFLD, doing just one thing (diet OR exercise) is less effective than doing both together. Aim for a caloric deficit (750-1000 kcal/day reduction) combined with at least 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous exercise per week. This combination is superior for lowering liver enzymes and improving insulin resistance compared to either intervention alone.

Adhering to a vegan diet for at least 12 weeks significantly reduces body weight, BMI, HbA1c, total cholesterol, and LDL-C in individuals with overweight or type 2 diabetes compared to control diets.

If you have overweight or type 2 diabetes, switching to a vegan diet for at least 12 weeks can lead to meaningful weight loss and improved blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Most studies used low-fat vegan diets and provided B12 supplements. You do not necessarily need to count calories, as some studies were ad libitum, but energy intake was often lower. Ensure you get B12 supplementation.

Short-term multicomponent lifestyle interventions (6 months or less) combining nutrition and physical activity achieve statistically significant weight loss in adults with overweight or obesity compared to control groups.

If you have overweight or obesity, a structured program combining diet and exercise lasting 6 months or less can help you lose weight. You don't necessarily need a year-long commitment to see results. Look for programs that offer education, tracking tools, and support, as these multicomponent approaches are effective.

A eucaloric ketogenic diet (KD) induces significant weight loss primarily through visceral fat reduction while preserving muscle and bone mass, without adverse metabolic changes, over a period of up to three months.

If you are overweight or even normal weight, a ketogenic diet can help you lose fat without losing muscle, provided you eat enough to maintain your weight (eucaloric) and monitor your ketone levels to ensure you are in ketosis. This approach also appears to improve quality of life and reduce fatigue, particularly in those with overweight. You should aim for very low carbohydrate intake (around 33-35g/day) and monitor blood ketones to confirm adherence.

Combining time-restricted eating (8-hour window) with concurrent aerobic and resistance training significantly improves body weight, BMI, fat mass, and functional capacity in overweight/obese women compared to control or TRE-only groups, with no significant difference between early (4pm-8am) and late (12pm-8pm) eating windows.

To lose weight and improve fitness, combine an 8-hour eating window with 3 days per week of exercise (mix of cardio and weights). You can choose to eat early (e.g., 8am-4pm) or late (e.g., 12pm-8pm); both work equally well when you exercise. Ensure you eat enough calories (1200-1500 kcal) within that window and do not snack outside it. Consistency in both diet timing and exercise is key.

Resistance training combined with high protein intake (1.6-2.0 g/kg/day) preserves or increases muscle mass during caloric restriction, whereas high protein intake alone is insufficient without resistance training.

To lose fat without losing muscle, you must lift weights (at least 10 sets per muscle group per week) and eat 1.6-2.0 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight daily. Do not rely on protein shakes or dieting alone.

Adding high-volume exercise (six sessions/week) to a caloric deficit completely preserves fat-free mass while maximizing fat loss in individuals with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes, whereas lower exercise volumes fail to prevent fat-free mass loss.

If you have type 2 diabetes and are losing weight through diet, you must add exercise to protect your muscle. Aim for 6 days of exercise per week, combining cardio and resistance training, to maximize fat loss and keep your muscle mass. If 6 days is too much, 3 days still helps lose fat, but you might lose some muscle.

Combining flexible time-restricted eating (8-hour window) with aerobic exercise yields significantly greater fat mass reduction than either intervention alone in middle-aged women with overweight/obesity.

If you are a middle-aged woman with overweight or obesity, combining an 8-hour eating window with regular moderate aerobic exercise (like brisk walking or jogging) will result in significantly more fat loss than doing either one alone. You do not need to count calories or stick to fixed meal times; simply choose an 8-hour window each day that fits your schedule and stay active.

A plant-based caloric restriction diet (PB-CRD) using a '5+2' structured meal plan is non-inferior to conventional calorie-restricted diets (CRD) for weight loss in obese adults, while providing superior reductions in total body fat percentage and improvements in metabolic markers including insulin sensitivity, uric acid, and liver enzymes.

To lose weight and improve metabolic health, you can follow a structured plant-based diet that restricts calories to 1,300-1,600 kcal/day. You do not need to be vegan 7 days a week; eating standardized plant-based meals for 5 days and allowing flexible, calorie-controlled meals for 2 days is effective. This approach matches the weight loss of traditional calorie restriction but offers better improvements in body fat percentage, insulin sensitivity, and liver health.

Daily consumption of 100 mg Kaempferia parviflora extract (SIRTMAX®) for 12 weeks significantly reduces body fat mass and visceral fat area in overweight adults compared to placebo.

Take 100 mg of Kaempferia parviflora extract (SIRTMAX®) once daily before breakfast for 12 weeks. This specific extract has been shown in a clinical trial to significantly reduce body fat mass and visceral fat in overweight adults, even without changing diet or exercise habits. It is not a magic bullet, but it provides a measurable advantage over placebo.

Engaging in brief, sporadic bouts of vigorous-intensity physical activity (VILPA) lasting 1-2 minutes during daily life significantly reduces all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality in non-exercisers, with effects comparable to structured vigorous exercise.

You do not need to join a gym or set aside large blocks of time for exercise to significantly lower your risk of death from heart disease or cancer. Look for opportunities in your daily routine to move vigorously for just 1-2 minutes at a time. Examples include climbing stairs quickly, walking very fast to catch a bus, or moving briskly between tasks. Doing this 3 times a day (totaling about 4-5 minutes) provides substantial health benefits comparable to structured exercise.

Physical activity enhances sleep quality in adults, with specific benefits observed in older populations.

Incorporate regular physical activity into your routine to improve sleep quality, which is essential for healthy ageing and overall well-being.

Resistance exercise yields clinically meaningful cognitive improvements in older adults at significantly lower doses (78–679 METs-min/week) compared to aerobic or mixed modalities.

If you are over 50 and want to protect your memory, prioritize resistance training (bands or weights). You do not need to do high volumes of exercise; even low doses (e.g., 15-20 minutes of resistance work a few times a week) can yield significant cognitive benefits, potentially more so than equivalent amounts of aerobic exercise.

An 8-week supervised concurrent training program (resistance and aerobic) significantly improves cardiovascular fitness, muscular strength, fatigue, and quality of life in post-COVID-19 patients compared to self-managed WHO guidelines.

If you have lingering symptoms from COVID-19 for more than 12 weeks, a supervised exercise program combining light cardio and resistance training, done 3 times a week for 8 weeks, can significantly improve your energy, strength, and quality of life compared to just following general advice. Start with low intensity and gradually increase under supervision.

Adopting a Mediterranean diet, characterized by high fiber, polyphenols, and unsaturated fats, promotes beneficial gut microbiota growth and reduces the risk of obesity, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic syndrome.

To lower your risk of heart disease and obesity, shift your diet toward the Mediterranean pattern. Prioritize whole foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. Use olive oil as your primary fat source and include oily fish like salmon or sardines regularly. Limit red meat, sweets, and highly processed foods. This dietary pattern supports beneficial gut bacteria and reduces inflammation.

In a health context, High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is a viable and effective method to improve cardiorespiratory fitness and reduce morbidity/mortality risk, often superior to Moderate-Intensity Continuous Training (MICT) when volume is matched.

If you are sedentary or have health conditions, HIIT is a highly effective way to boost heart health and longevity in less time than traditional cardio. Aim for intervals above moderate intensity (vigorous) at least 3 times a week, keeping total session time under 15 minutes. Start with medical clearance if you have conditions, but do not let fear of intensity prevent you from trying this time-efficient strategy.

Supplementing with 40g/day of Resistant Starch (Type 2) for 8 weeks facilitates significant weight loss and improves insulin sensitivity in individuals with overweight or obesity by reshaping gut microbiota to increase Bifidobacterium adolescentis and alter bile acid profiles.

To lose weight using resistant starch, take 40 grams daily (split into two 20g doses) mixed with water, drinking it 10-15 minutes before your main meals. This must replace other calories in your diet to maintain energy balance, not be added on top. Stick to this for at least 8 weeks to see significant results, as the mechanism relies on gut bacteria adaptation.

Replacing sedentary time with vigorous physical activity (VPA) reduces the risk of more types of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) than replacing it with light (LPA) or moderate (MPA) physical activity.

If you sit for more than 6 hours a day, try to replace that time with vigorous activity rather than just light movement. Swapping 1 hour of sitting for 1 hour of vigorous activity (like running or fast cycling) is associated with a significantly lower risk of multiple chronic diseases compared to swapping it for light or moderate activity. While achieving 1 hour of VPA daily is challenging, even partial substitutions offer substantial health protection.