FitOn
Fitness brands are navigating the rise of weight loss prescriptions.
The latest: The drugs are booming, but there are side effects. Attempting to instill behavior change while building muscle and winning members, new partnerships are forming.
This month, wellness platform FitOn teamed with weight loss company Noom, and digital brand obé Fitness linked with Found.
Both debuted progressive strength training programs for GLP-1 users, designed to combat complications like slowed metabolism and sarcopenia that can accompany rapid weight loss.
Weighed down. Early studies suggest ~40% of weight lost on GLP-1s is lean mass. And, since 68% stop using GLP-1s within 12 months, they’re likely to regain weight with even worse body composition.
Skirting the FDA’s recommendation to pair injections with diet and exercise, patients who fail to alter their habits may experience a costly yo-yo effect.
Balancing scales. Forced to adapt, gyms are rethinking weight loss shots while promoting long-term lifestyle shifts.
- Equinox announced its programming workouts for clients on obesity meds.
- Life Time said it will pilot “in-house” GLP-1s and launched medical concept MIORA.
- Planning to prescribe, Xponential Fitness acquired weight loss clinic Lindora.
Another approach, Crunch CEO Jim Rowley spoke out against shortcut culture and said the chain won’t be dispensing drugs.
Meanwhile, Big Pharma is racing to develop muscle-preservation shots — but masking the effects of one med with another may spark more problems.
Punchline: Whether they choose to dispense or support, gyms have an opportunity to convert a previously untapped market. But for an industry that prides itself on doing hard things, the irony isn’t lost.
