Posted by Mark Nessim
Most guidance on eating during a GLP-1 taper is vague: "eat more protein." A 2025 joint clinical advisory from four medical societies — the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM), the American Society for Nutrition (ASN), the Obesity Medicine Association (OMA), and The Obesity Society — put an actual number on it, and paired it with a condition most people skip past: protein alone is not enough without structured resistance training.
The number
The advisory's range is 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day for adults losing weight, GLP-1 or not, with the higher end of that range recommended specifically for people on a GLP-1 receptor agonist, where appetite suppression makes total calorie and protein intake harder to sustain. For a 170-pound (77 kg) adult, that's roughly 93 to 123 grams of protein a day — more than a typical diet supplies once meals get smaller and less frequent, which is exactly what a GLP-1 does to appetite by design.
Why the number moves as appetite drops
The mechanism is straightforward and not specific to any one drug: when total calorie intake falls, the body draws on both fat and lean tissue for energy unless protein intake is deliberately protected. Multiple GLP-1 trials tracking body composition (not just body weight) have found a meaningful share of total weight lost is lean mass rather than fat — the exact reason the 2025 advisory raised its protein target for this population instead of leaving it at general weight-loss guidance.
The part that gets left out: resistance training
Protein intake is necessary but not sufficient. The same joint advisory is explicit that protein supplementation without structured resistance training does not reliably preserve lean mass — the two work together, and neither substitutes for the other. Nutrition can make hitting a protein target easy; it cannot do the job a strength-training program does on its own. Any product, including ours, that is positioned as a replacement for resistance training is overstating what nutrition can do.
Where creatine fits
Creatine monohydrate is one of the most studied compounds in sports nutrition, with a long track record on muscle mass, strength, and exercise performance in the general population. Research specifically on creatine supplementation during GLP-1 therapy is newer and smaller in scale — a registered pilot study (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT07625202, 40 participants, 10 g/day creatine alongside a 12-week resistance-training program) is currently enrolling, not yet reporting results. That trial existing is not evidence of an effect; it's a study to watch, not a citation to lean on. What is well established is the general dosing and safety profile of creatine monohydrate at 3-5 grams daily, which is why ASP-1 carries 3 grams per serving alongside its protein blend.
What's actually in ASP-1
ASP-1 combines 20 grams of whey protein isolate and 5 grams of collagen peptides — 25 grams of total protein per serving, not "25 grams of complete protein," since collagen is not a complete protein on its own — plus 3 grams of creatine monohydrate, magnesium L-threonate, zinc, methylated B-12, L-glutamine, and a small probiotic complex. One serving does not hit the full daily protein target on its own; it is designed to close the gap between what a smaller appetite makes practical to eat and what the 2025 advisory recommends, alongside meals rather than instead of them.
Because ASP-1 is a nutritional supplement rather than a diagnosed medical treatment, it may be HSA or FSA eligible with a Letter of Medical Necessity — our HSA/FSA playbook covers how that works and what it costs, with savings depending on your individual tax rate. For the fuller picture on how the daily protein number was calculated for a GLP-1-specific audience, see our earlier piece, How Much Protein Do You Actually Need on a GLP-1?
This article is for general nutrition information and is not medical advice. Talk with your own physician or dietitian about a protein target and training plan that fits your health history.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
