Monthly Cup of Joe is a once-a-month reflection on the questions people keep asking about weight loss, metabolism, and long-term health.
No hype. No pressure. Just calm, honest perspective served with a cup of coffee and the MXR lens.
February 2026
Is GLP-1 Cheating or Is That the Wrong Question?
This question comes up a lot.
Sometimes it’s asked out loud.
Sometimes it’s implied.
And sometimes it’s whispered quietly in someone’s own head.
“If I’m using a GLP-1 medication… am I cheating?”
At face value, it sounds like a simple question. But once you sit with it for a moment, you realize it’s carrying a lot more weight than it should.
Because “cheating” assumes there was a fair game to begin with.
And for many people, there wasn’t.
The Problem With the Question Itself
When people ask whether GLP-1 is cheating, they’re usually comparing themselves to an imaginary standard one where everyone starts with the same metabolism, the same hormonal environment, the same medical history, and the same physical capacity to respond to diet and exercise.
That world doesn’t exist.
Some people have spent decades fighting:
- Insulin resistance
- Hormonal dysregulation
- Metabolic slowdown after repeated dieting
- Injuries, cardiac events, or chronic inflammation
- A body that adapts too efficiently to restriction
In that context, calling GLP-1 “cheating” is like calling glasses cheating because some people can see without them.
It misses the point.
What GLP-1 Actually Does (And Doesn’t Do)
One of the biggest misunderstandings is what GLP-1 medications actually provide.
They don’t:
- Burn fat for you
- Build muscle for you
- Create discipline
- Teach habits
- Replace effort
What they do is change the internal environment so that effort can finally work.
They help regulate appetite signals.
They improve insulin sensitivity.
They reduce constant food noise.
That’s not cheating, that’s removing interference.
For many people, the work was never the problem. The system they were working inside was.
The Real Question We Rarely Ask
A more honest question might be:
“If someone’s metabolism is impaired, is it wrong to use a medical tool to restore balance so they can rebuild their health?”
When framed that way, the answer becomes obvious.
We don’t accuse people of cheating for:
- Using blood pressure medication
- Treating sleep apnea
- Managing cholesterol
- Rehabilitating after injury
We recognize those tools as bridges not destinations.
GLP-1 is no different.
Where People Get Stuck
The real danger isn’t using GLP-1.
The danger is thinking the medication is the solution.
This is where outcomes diverge.
Some people lose weight, stop there, and eventually regain it because the underlying system was never rebuilt.
Others use the window GLP-1 provides to:
- Prioritize protein
- Preserve lean mass
- Rebuild metabolic health
- Learn how their body actually responds
- Create a lifestyle that holds when medication is reduced or removed
Same medication. Very different outcomes.
The difference isn’t morality.
It’s structure.
Why MXR Looks at This Differently
MXR was never designed as a “with or without medication” framework.
It was built around a more fundamental truth:
When metabolic health improves, everything else becomes easier to sustain.
GLP-1 can help quiet the noise.
MXR teaches you what to do once the noise is gone.
That combination isn’t cheating.
It’s intelligent sequencing.
The Question That Actually Matters
Instead of asking whether GLP-1 is cheating, a better question might be:
“Am I using this tool to escape responsibility or to finally take it?”
Because the work still shows up:
- On the plate
- In the gym
- In recovery
- In consistency
- In patience
Medication doesn’t lift the weight.
It just makes it possible to train again.
A Quiet Reframe
If you’re reading this and you’re on a GLP-1 or considering one here’s something worth sitting with:
You don’t owe anyone a justification for rebuilding your health.
Not strangers.
Not social media.
Not outdated narratives about willpower.
Your body isn’t a moral test.
It’s a system.
And systems respond best when they’re supported, not shamed.
Closing the Cup
So… is GLP-1 cheating?
Or is it simply the wrong question rooted in an outdated idea that suffering is a prerequisite for progress?
From where I sit, the people who succeed long term aren’t the ones who argue about fairness.
They’re the ones who use every appropriate tool available to rebuild their health then do the work required to keep it.
That’s not cheating.
That’s ownership.
Grab your next cup.
We’ll keep thinking through this together.
— Joe
Joe Sharamitaro 