Glucagon-like Peptide 1 (GLP-1) Receptor Agonist Therapy and Exercise Training in People With Obesity

Part of paid clinical trials in St Louis, Missouri.

Sponsor: Washington University School of Medicine
Study ID: NCT07091500
Status: Recruiting

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Conditions

Brain Connectivity
Obesity
Skeletal Muscle

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: ALL
Age: 50 Years - 75 Years
Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

Exercise training — BEHAVIORAL
Participants will perform supervised exercise training sessions 3 days per week and unsupervised at-home sessions 2-3 days per week.
Semaglutide — DRUG
semaglutide 2.4 mg subcutaneous per week or max tolerated dose and diet behavior counseling
Therapy Cessation — BEHAVIORAL
After 1 year of treatment, participants will stop taking GLP-1 medications (and exercise, if applicable)

Study Details

The use of glucagon-like peptide receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) may have clinically important effects on skeletal muscle mass (SMM), and physical function. The effects of exercise training in conjunction with GLP-1 RA therapy on these outcomes has not been studied. Additionally, most people treated with GLP-1-based weight loss medications stop taking these medications within 1 year of initiating treatment. This is an important clinical concern because weight regain can occur after weight loss pharmacotherapy is stopped and the impact of stopping GLP-1 RA therapy on physical and metabolic function has not been studied. In this study, the investigators will conduct a 2-year randomized clinical trial to evaluate body composition, muscle, physical and metabolic function, muscle strength and appetite control and reward signaling in the brain in response to 1-year of GLP-1 RA therapy, with or without exercise training, and subsequent treatment cessation on muscle and appetite-related outcomes assessed 1-year after stopping treatment.

Key Dates

First listed: Jul 29, 2025
Start date: Aug 11, 2025
Status verified: Jul 2026
Primary completion: Aug 1, 2028
Completion: Aug 1, 2029

Study Design

Enrollment: 40 participants (estimated)
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: BASIC_SCIENCE

Arms

Active Comparator: GLP-1 RA
Participants in this group will receive semaglutide therapy along with diet behavior counseling for 52 weeks
Experimental: GLP-1 RA + Exercise
Participants in this group will receive semaglutide therapy along with diet behavior counseling and exercise training for 52 weeks.