“Lose 7 pounds this week.”

“Drop 20 pounds this month.”

“Get skinny fast.”

Those promises get attention. They make great ads. And in the GLP-1 world, they can sometimes even happen.

But after three years of working with people using these medications, I’ve become convinced that one of the most dangerous things we can sell someone is the idea that the faster the scale moves, the better the treatment is working.

I understand the excitement. If you’ve struggled with your weight for years and suddenly see the scale dropping faster than it ever has before, it feels like victory. But my concern isn’t simply how much weight you lose. It’s what you’re losing along with it.

Rapid weight loss can mean losing lean mass along with body fat. That matters. Muscle supports your strength, mobility, metabolism and your ability to maintain the results you worked so hard to achieve. Getting to a smaller number on the scale while becoming weaker isn’t the outcome I want for anyone.

That’s why I get uncomfortable when I see GLP-1 programs marketed almost entirely around how many pounds someone can lose and how quickly they can lose them. If your provider is promising you seven pounds a week, I would have serious questions about whether the goal is actually improving your health or simply producing an impressive before-and-after picture. I’ve seen this type of advertising both locally and online.

The goal shouldn’t be to see how little you can eat. It shouldn’t be to see how quickly you can shrink. And it definitely shouldn’t be to stay on a medication forever without changing anything else.

Use the opportunity.

Eat enough protein. Strength train. Move your body. Improve the quality of the food you eat. Build routines you can maintain. Learn the difference between being lighter and actually being healthier.

I’m not impressed by how quickly someone can lose 40 pounds.

I’m impressed when they lose it, get stronger in the process, change their relationship with food and movement, and five years later they’re still living differently.

Fast weight loss makes a great advertisement. Sustainable health makes a much better life.

(This is Volume 9 of a 12-part series exploring the realities, misconceptions, and lessons I’ve learned after three years working with GLP-1 clients. New volumes every Tuesday.)