Free — from a board-certified surgeon

You didn't expect to lose muscle.

The scale went down. So did your arms. Here are the five dumbbell exercises that rebuild what a GLP-1 takes. Plus the tempo, the rest, and the log sheet to track it.

Get the free 4-page protocol

Enter your email and it lands in your inbox. Print it, take it to wherever you train.

You'll get the protocol plus occasional strength-training emails for women over 40. Unsubscribe anytime. No spam, ever.

What's inside

  • The five exercises — squat, hinge, overhead press, row, and press. Full setup, form cues, and what to watch for on every one.
  • The rules that make it work — frequency, load selection, the 3-second lowering tempo, rest intervals, and the exact rule for when to add weight.
  • An 8-week training log — so you can see progression on paper instead of guessing at the mirror.
  • The protein number — what to eat to hold onto muscle when the medication has killed your appetite.
  • Training smart on a GLP-1 — hydration, injection-day timing, and why you shouldn't train fasted. Nobody else tells you this part.

Why this isn't another bootcamp

Up to 40% of the weight you lose on a GLP-1 isn't fat at all. It's lean tissue. Add declining estrogen and you get the thing nobody photographs: a smaller body that feels weaker than the one you started with.

Muscle responds to mechanical tension and frequency — not to exhaustion. So this protocol is five exercises, twice a week, about ninety minutes total. No cardio. No machines. No sweat chasing.

Sweat is just water. Muscle tension over time is transformational.

Train smarter. I'll show you how.

This is education, not medical advice. Dr. K's Smart Strength provides general strength-training information for women over 40. It is not a diagnosis, a treatment plan, or a substitute for care from your own physician. Never start, stop, or change a prescription medication based on this material. Talk to your prescriber before beginning any new exercise program, particularly if you are taking a GLP-1 receptor agonist or have a cardiac, metabolic, orthopedic, or bone-density condition.