The problem with using Ozempic for weight loss is that ... it works too well.

Imagine losing weight simply because you’re not hungry. Imagine suddenly disliking the taste of your favorite high-calorie foods and preferring healthy, lower-calorie foods instead ... because your brain itself has literally been rewired.

That’s what you can expect from using Ozempic for weight loss.

And objectively, that's ... awesome.

As a fitness coach, that may sound irresponsible of me. But if we're going to talk about using Ozempic for weight loss, we might as well do so honestly.

How Does Ozempic Work?

Using Ozempic for weight loss is so effective that some people can’t eat enough to keep muscle on their bones, even their faces.

Others get horrible nausea or stomach issues. And in very rare cases, people lose weight so fast they get permanently blinded. 

These side effects are scary. But the craziest part? People still say using Ozempic for weight loss is worth it. 

Because the real struggle when losing weight isn't just appetite.

It’s the fight against yourself.

That’s where Ozempic changes the game — helping you instantly overcome the rare levels of willpower traditionally needed to lose weight. 

Picture 10 people. Your neighbors. Your friends. Your coworkers. On a normal weight loss program, only 1 of them will manage to lose a significant amount of weight.

But if you instead gave those same 10 people the latest, most powerful versions of Ozempic, all 10 of them will lose weight and keep it off as long as they continue taking it. 

But if Ozempic is making diet and exercise look like outdated advice from a textbook, then we must understand why and what else it's doing to your body, good and bad …

And helping us with that is Dr. Eric Trexler, a metabolic scientist from Duke University who has studied the drug ever since its inception. 

“I've been following decades' worth of fat loss research, and I've never seen anything like Ozempic. So Ozempic is just a brand name, just like Tylenol or Advil, and Ozempic is kind of the most popular of what is really a developing class of drugs."

Ozempic Mimics The Hormone GLP-1

"Essentially, this whole class of drugs works by mimicking something called GLP-1, and GLP-1 is a hormone.

Our body naturally produces it in the gut. After we consume food, it tells us, 'Hey, you're full, and it's time to stop eating.'

So obviously, now that we have this new class of drugs, Ozempic being one of them, that can actually mimic GLP-1, we're seeing really dramatic effects of these drugs on energy intake."

Compare the experience of using Ozempic for weight loss to bariatric surgery, a relatively high-risk procedure where your stomach is physically shrunken.

This may reduce hunger for a time, but it doesn't change your cravings.

Over time, the stomach stretches, old habits creep back in, and many patients regain weight shortly after. 

But the crazy part about Ozempic is it doesn’t just make you full.

Ozempic Also Rewires Your Brain 

Another mechanism through which using Ozempic for weight loss works is that it rewires what your brain wants to eat.

Dr. Eric Trexler explains:

"There are all sorts of studies where we can look at brain activity when people eat these really high-calorie delicious foods, and we can see these reward centers really light up and become more active.

But when you're using Ozempic for weight loss, those same calorie dense, really delicious foods, they just aren't quite as satisfying.

You don't have this really dramatic reward response to it, and it's really altering the way that your brain is processing those food-related rewards.

So that gap in terms of how much you are enjoying at a neurophysiological level, the difference between a super tasty meal and maybe a healthier option that's not quite as palatable. That gap between those meals actually shrinks.

And what you find is individuals who use Ozempic for weight loss end up experiencing fewer cravings for those high-calorie foods and ultimately end up opting for a lot lower calorie foods."

So instead of craving a burger and fries, when using Ozempic for weight loss, you might actually prefer and be more satisfied with a small plate of chicken and broccoli.

This is one of the major reasons why, on average, Ozempic users naturally eat 16–39% fewer calories without even trying.

In fact, Ozempic is SO good at curbing your appetite and cravings that junk food sales have taken a noticeable hit. So much so that there’s speculation the Big Food industry is scrambling to outsmart these drugs by developing hyper-palatable snacks that trigger cravings even on Ozempic. 

So, by this point, the effectiveness of using Ozempic for weight loss sure sounds like it’s making diet and exercise obsolete.

Right?

But the only way Ozempic COULD replace diet and exercise is if it caused zero harm to your health. Because diet and exercise don’t cause harm to your health, they improve it.

Looking Beyond Using Ozempic For Weight Loss

But, according to Dr. Spencer Nadolsky — America’s leading GLP-1 doctor and researcher — Ozempic might have benefits that extend far beyond just weight loss.

"What I will say is that they've had extremely large studies that have now spanned four to five years.

There's one called the SELECT trial. It was on Ozempic. It was actually wegovy, the semaglutide, which is the same drug.

They found in those with a history of heart disease and obesity, it reduced more heart attacks than a placebo. And so when they looked at those, it was thousands of people in this for four or five years, they found that the side effects were pretty minimal, bad side effects were minimal, and that it just turned out people had a trend for living longer, having fewer heart attacks.

So it looks like these drugs are pretty awesome. 

The drugs, by the way, for heart attacks, for anybody listening, people thought that it would be from the weight loss that you get from it, but they're actually these GLP one receptors all over the body and including the heart that it's thought that these drugs help reduce a lot of this risk of stuff through.

Not all of it's through weight.

In fact, a lot of it might not be through the weight loss itself. So it's possible someone like me, I don't need to lose weight, but a little dose might actually help prevent a heart attack without me losing much weight."

But in most cases, anything that sounds too good to be true probably is.

And to be completely transparent with you, Dr. Spencer isn’t just familiar with the research on Ozempic. He prescribes it regularly.

So if we’re going to be honest about its benefits, we should also be honest about the side effects you could see from using Ozempic for weight loss.

Side Effects Of Using Ozempic For Weight Loss

Ozempic Face And Ozempic Butt

You’ve probably heard of “Ozempic face” and “Ozempic butt”.

People act like these are new side effects of using Ozempic for weight loss, but in reality, these are the changes that rapid weight loss brings to your appearance. 

Dr. Spencer elaborates:

"And so the Ozempic face, we can see it with keto face or just dieting face too.

I mean, with bodybuilders, you see that fine sucked-in look, and it's because they're just losing adipose tissue everywhere, and you're starting to lose the fat in your face.

So when using Ozempic for weight loss, it's the same thing, you're going to lose adipose tissue from everywhere.

And a lot of the adipose, it's good adipose, by the way, if you have it in your butt.

But when you lose a lot of weight regardless, it's nothing about the drug that eats away at that fat specifically."

Muscle Loss

The side effects of using Ozempic for weight loss are made even more visible when you combine muscle loss to the equation.

On average, the typical person loses about 20% of their weight as muscle mass if they don’t lift and eat plenty of protein on a diet. 

Normally, the best way to preserve muscle while losing fat is simple: 

• Eat enough protein, 
• Maintain a modest calorie deficit, 
• And lift heavy

But when you're using Ozempic for weight loss, naturally, you might struggle to eat anything at all.

Lots of people who use Ozempic for weight loss say they’re full after just a few bites.  Some even force themselves to eat because they know they should, but their body isn’t sending the hunger signals to make it easy.

And if you’re barely getting in enough calories to function, let alone hitting a high-protein intake, what do you think happens to your muscles?

Your body quickly starts breaking it down. 

Then, stack that on top of the other big problem: low energy.

Low Energy

When you're using Ozempic for weight loss, overeating becomes more difficult.

This means Ozempic can unintentionally put you in a severe calorie deficit. 

As a result, your workouts suffer. If you do manage to lift, you probably won’t be pushing anywhere near your usual intensity. That means less stimulus for muscle maintenance, less strength over time, and an even greater risk of muscle loss.

But Dr. Spencer also highlighted how in some cases, the low energy might be caused by the drug itself.

"There's something about the drug that makes people feel a little tired.

I have some biomedical researcher friends that talk about how maybe it's hitting the same receptors in the brain of chemotherapy that make people tired.

So, it's possible there are certain parts of the brain that are maybe making people tired when it hits.

Again, it's rare, but I see it every one in 20 people that I see someone who's using Ozempic for weight loss go, 'I just feel really tired'."

Dr. Spencer also discussed the most commonly reported side effects of using Ozempic for weight loss: nausea and vomiting.

While more serious and long-lasting for some individuals, in general, this seems to subside as your body adapts to the drug. 

Blindness

But he also highlighted what’s arguably the most alarming side effect of using Ozempic for weight loss, blindness.

"Yeah, there are some cases of using Ozempic for weight loss, again, extremely rare, but the thought is that if you lose weight quickly and your blood pressure goes low at night, your blood vessels go to all your different organs, and you have these blood vessels in your eye.

If you don't get enough blood to your eye and your blood pressure's going too low and all these different things and you're sleeping at night, that might be a risk.

That's kind of the thought, but it's extremely, it's not been shown in any of the studies.

We're just kind of seeing some cases coming out, and you see some of the big headlines coming out, what the heck is going on? I've never seen it.

But is there a potential rare risk of stuff like that? Yeah, maybe.

So that's why we only want to use it in people that there's a true indication where we know they're going to get a clinical benefit versus potential risk. That's kind of what I preach."

Given the extreme rareness of this and assuming longer-term research continues to support Ozempic’s safety, the benefits seem to outweigh the risks.

Especially if you take the initiative to lift weights and eat enough calories and protein. 

But what happens to your body and brain when you stop taking Ozempic for weight loss?

Weight Regain

Well, on a typical diet without Ozempic, based on a 2019 meta-analysis that reviewed 29 long-term weight loss studies, on average most people regain 50% of the weight they lost within 2 years. And after 5 years, almost all of their weight loss is re-gained (80%).

So while a proper diet and exercise are key to losing weight, most people can only do both for a short period of time before old habits creep back in. 

And the same is true with Ozempic. As long as you stay on the drug, your old habits are suppressed. 

In a very real sense, using Ozempic for weight loss removes the part of “you” that makes you overweight. 

But when you go off it, you find yourself in a position where you’ve spent the past several months barely thinking about food. 

No hunger, no cravings, no struggle. Eating was just something you had to do, not something you wanted to do.

Then, all of a sudden, your old self is back.

The gnawing hunger. The dopamine hit you get from eating. The urge to snack, binge, and eat like you’re making up for lost time.

That’s why on average, after hopping off drugs like Ozempic, most people regain two-thirds of the weight they lost within the first year.

And this is why most patients using Ozempic for weight loss end up staying on the drug indefinitely.

For pharmaceutical companies, that’s a billion-dollar win. But for patients, it’s a lifelong commitment. But lifelong commitment is actually what the drug was designed for.

Think of it like testosterone.

If a person has clinically low T-levels, a doctor might prescribe TRT to bring him back to normal, so they can function like everyone else. That’s not the same as taking a fistful of steroids to blast past human limits.

The same goes for Ozempic.

Most people who struggle with obesity aren’t just overeating because they have insufficient willpower to stop. 

They have hormonal and neurological dysregulation that makes controlling their appetite far more difficult.

Ozempic helps restore these people to a state of “normal”.  

And once people with obesity attain this state of “normalcy” after years of struggling, they’re in a great spot to create momentum. Lots of it.

If you’re obese, and you see yourself lose 5-10 pounds quickly, this not only creates a mental shift but also puts your body in a better position to exercise.  

But, because they’re on Ozempic, even if they remain “open to the idea” of exercising but never get around to actually exercising, they’ll still lose weight.

This is one of the reasons why I THINK…

Ozempic And The Fitness Industry

So many people, especially in the fitness industry, are against the idea of Ozempic.

Using Ozempic for weight loss gets you results without suffering. 

If you pride yourself on hard work and discipline, like myself, the idea of taking a drug to overcome willpower is kind of like “cheating.”

I, without a doubt,t would have felt this way about using Ozempic for weight loss back when I was younger.

But now, I understand something I didn’t back then. 

Many people who are obese or overweight WANT to change. 

Yes, obesity can be environmental, but obesity can also be, in many cases, genetic. In either case, it can be much harder for an obese person to lose weight. 

They have much higher hunger, cravings, and constant thoughts of food than the average "fit" person does.

The way their brain responds to food is different. And I think naturally fit people have a hard time seeing this. It’s something that even I, who is naturally lean and doesn’t struggle with controlling my food intake, have a hard time relating to. 

But it’s the truth. 

And by using Ozempic for weight loss, even people with severe obesity can become thinner by sticking an injection in their thigh.  

So if you’re overweight and meet the criteria, Ozempic is a game changer. 

But what if… you’re not very overweight?

You’re healthy and just want to use Ozempic for weight loss to get leaner?

Ozempic And Bodybuilding

Well, this is becoming more common than you think.

Aside from the many celebrity Ozempic transformations we’ve seen online, the drug seems to be slowly making its way to the bodybuilding community.

Bodybuilders are not overweight. They’re already lean. And when they compete, they get to extremely low body fat levels.

But based on recent conversations I’ve had with professional coaches in the sport, some competitors are now using Ozempic in place of more dangerous fat-burning drugs like Clenbuterol or DNP.

Or just as a way to bypass the intense cravings and hunger normally experienced at such low levels of body fat.

Is this bordering the line of abuse?

Arguably, yes. 

But what we define as “abuse” of the drug, I predict, will very quickly change.

It started as a treatment for diabetes. 

And now it's being used for weight loss. 

Which brings me to the future…

TL;DR

• Here’s why using Ozempic for weight loss works: it mimics the hormone GLP-1, which signals fullness, and rewires the brain’s sensitivity to calorie-dense foods.
• Using Ozempic for weight loss may bring about the unintended benefit of reducing the risk of heart attacks in people with obesity.
• Side effects of using Ozempic for weight loss include Ozempic face and Ozempic butt, muscle loss, low energy levels, blindness, and weight regain (after stopping Ozempic).
• Bodybuilders using Ozempic to get leaner borders the line of abuse, but what we define as “abuse” of the drug may very quickly change in the future. 

The Future Of Using Ozempic For Weight Loss

In the future, I believe Ozempic, and a handful of drugs like it, will be used by many, many people. 

Because Ozempic is a very special weight-loss drug.

It’s special because it’s a drug that:

1. Causes you to lose weight better than anything else out there, and 
2. For now, doesn’t seem to be dangerous to your health, and if anything, will improve it

Assuming you qualify for it, there is only one objective reason not to take Ozempic for weight loss right now. 

Cost. It’s expensive. 

This is the main reason why 50% to 75% of people stop taking it within the first year of treatment.

But the primary patent protecting Ozempic in the United States is expected to expire in December 2031.

Shortly after that, I predict we’ll start not only cheaper Ozempic generics hit the market but also more effective ones. 

I also predict the rules to qualify for the drug will be far more relaxed.

And when that happens ...

Who knows.

Maybe Ozempic will become the new multivitamin. Maybe America will finally reverse its obesity epidemic and drop its average BMI back down to the global average. 

But one thing is true.

Whether You Use Ozempic For Weight Loss Or Not ...

Whether you're on Ozempic or not, you can't outsource a healthy lifestyle to a prescription.

There are countless benefits provided by a proper diet and regular exercise that no drug can ever replace. Not just to your body, but your brain, mood, confidence, and the discipline it creates that transfers to all areas of your life. 

And if you’re serious about making lasting change without relying on a drug —  and instead using the most effective science-backed approach — then I highly recommend checking out my new Built With Science+ app. 

It's a little assistant that lives on your phone. It measures every aspect of where you’re at now and creates a plan to get you to where you want to be.

It’s even got a powerful meal scanner that can make tracking your food much easier, and gives you a workout program customized to what you can stick with. 

If you fill out the questionnaire below, you'll get 2 weeks free so you can try it yourself:

Click the button below to try the BWS+ app for 2 weeks, for free, no strings attached:

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Then, check out this article next for a step-by-step guide on how to beat the odds of getting lean without relying on a weight loss drug. 

Thanks for sticking to the end, and I'll catch you next time!

By the way, here’s the article summed up into a YouTube video: