I work with a lot of men and women who want, and need, to lose weight. Some are struggling to lose 50+ pounds, while others can’t seem to shake the last 10 pounds off. As we age, our mitochondria diminish in quantity and quality, leading to a reduction in cellular function. Burning body fat requires optimal cellular function and energy. If you think back to biology class in high school, remember that the mitochondria reside inside our cells and produce ATP, our energy currency, that runs the mother ship- your body. Without optimal cellular functioning, our body struggles to perform. That’s the simple version. Other factors that influence our inability to efficiently burn body fat are poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, stress, poor sleep, toxins, and genetics. Some people are genetically wired to be fat, affecting appetite control, metabolism, food cravings, body-fat distribution, and more. During menopause, many women start gaining weight. One year it may be just 5 lbs. But, because their hormone levels are dropping, women struggle to shed those pounds. The next year, it may be another 5-7 pounds, until each year it continues to accumulate. Twenty to forty pounds later, post-menopausal women are overweight, fatigued, stressed, not sleeping, and their lipid profiles and metabolic biomarkers change for the worse. They may become insulin resistant as a result. This chronic condition will lead to pre-diabetes, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, dementia, bone density loss, and more. Then there’s the obesity epidemic. You can view the stats on the CDC.gov website, but here’s a snippet: From 2017-2020 nearly 42% of the US population was obese. I’m sure it’s higher now, especially due to the pandemic. Staggering numbers. The first line of defense for weight loss is always lifestyle interventions and personalized supplementation. But, what if you are doing everything right and you still cannot shed those pounds? The next line of defense may be medical weight loss interventions. And that’s what we are here to learn about today. If you watch tv, you’ve seen commercials for Wegovy, Trulicity, or Ozempic. These are safe, effective, and proven medical weight loss interventions that are used for type 2 diabetics but are now being used more and more for weight loss. They are called GLP-1 receptor agonists and my guest today is going to put this all in layman's terms for you to understand what they are and how they work. Dr. David Yablonsky has been practicing medicine for over 20 years and is a board-certified internist. He has experience in providing adults with help diagnosing a full range of medical issues including chronic disease management, primary care, hormone optimization, erectile dysfunction, weight loss, and vitamin deficiencies. He graduated with honors from Boston University prior to attending the Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine. Upon completion of medical school, he went on to complete a three-year residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Rochester School of Medicine in Rochester, New York. His past leadership positions include Chief of Medicine, Internal Medicine Section Chief, Medical Director of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Chairman of Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee at Grinnell Regional Medical Center in Grinnell, Iowa. Dr. Yablonsky’s focus is on disease prevention and health optimization. He has furthered his training by completing several conferences and courses in age management medicine including the elite training programs of Cenegenics, A4M, AMMG, and the International Peptide Society. Medical Disclaimer: By listening to this podcast, you agree not to use this podcast as medical advice or for making any lifestyle changes to treat any medical condition in either yourself or others. Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having. This entire disclaimer also applies to any of my guests on my podcast. To contact Dr. Y