Pod Insights The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway The Truth About GLP-1s, Caring for Aging Parents, and When to Accelerate Your Career About this episode Scott Galloway addresses concerns about muscle loss on GLP-1 drugs and explains why he's still bullish, unpacks the financial and emotional strain of supporting aging family members, and makes the case for putting the pedal down on your career before it's too late.
Want to be featured in a future episode? Send a voice recording to [email protected] , or drop your question in the r/ScottGalloway subreddit.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcript 4,253 words · 11 speakers
Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.
0:00 Speaker 00 Flowing ad budget on metrics that look great till the CFO sees them? That's bull spend and marketers are calling it out in dashboard confessions.
0:09 Speaker 01 I remember telling my boss, it'll be good for the brand when leads were slow. Yeah, it wasn't.
0:17 Speaker 00 Cut the bull spend. LinkedIn lets you target by company, job title and more. Advertise on LinkedIn. Spend $250 on your first campaign and get a $250 credit. Go to LinkedIn.com/campaign. Terms and conditions apply.
0:31 Speaker 02 Low energy, unfocused, foggy? You might be dehydrated. Gatorade Zero powders have been scientifically designed to help improve hydration balance in the body with a clinically proven electrolyte blend and no artificial colors or flavors. Great tasting hydration, no matter where you're going. Shop now online or at retailers nationwide. Gatorade hydrates better than water. Is it in you? Symptoms noted are signs of mild to moderate dehydration. Consult a healthcare professional if symptoms persist.
1:01 Speaker 03 This episode is brought to you by Michelob Ultra. Good times mean competitions between you and your friends, like seeing who can throw some pigskin the farthest or rush the field the fastest. Winner gets an ultra because it's not just a superior light beer. It's also giving fans superior access to their favorite sporting events. Superior is worth playing for. Visit michelobultra.com/superioraccess to enter. Enjoy responsibly. Copyright 2026 Anheuser Busch InBev Michelob Ultra Beer, St. Louis, Missouri.
1:35 Scott Galloway? Welcome to Office Hours of Prof G. This is the part of the show where we answer your questions about business, tech, entrepreneurship and whatever else is on your mind. If you'd like to submit a question for next time, you can send a voice recording to officehoursofprofgmedia.com. Again, that's officehoursofprofgmedia.com or post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit and we just might feature it in our next episode. Question number one comes from Hillary from California.
1:58 Speaker 05 Hi Scott, it's Hillary Beach calling you from California with a question about GLP-1 drugs. You've been an extremely strong advocate for the value of these drugs. But the more I learn, the more I'm concerned about them. They undermine our body's ability to build and maintain muscle mass and seem to require Herculean efforts to offset this negative trend. When I had Claude do a research summary, it came back with 30 to 40% of weight loss being muscle and that you would need to do resistance training three to five days a week and take in 1.6 to 2.3 grams of protein per kilo of fat-free mass to counter this effect,
2:43 Speaker 05 which sounds pretty daunting to most of us. And getting the protein in is really hard when you're not hungry and your body is working against you eating properly. So for those of us no longer youthful, as you know, muscle mass is really important to avoiding falls and maintaining our function and mobility. So assuming that you're aware of all of this and this downside risk, I wonder how you have been factoring this into your thinking about the value of taking these drugs? As I'm struggling with this, it seems to me that it would be a setup for undermining healthy aging and my ability to retain muscle mass. Thanks so much.
3:26 Scott Galloway? Thanks for the thoughtful question, Hillary. First off, just let me say if you're considering GLP-1 drugs or going on them, these are questions for your doctor. And I look at GLP-1 in terms of the macro data. I love the economics of it. And so let me just say, I have no medical training. I look at data, but if you're seriously considering taking this or any other medication or pharmaceutical, you absolutely want to defer to the advice of your doctor and do your own research. So just some data on muscle mass loss. The data is real, but more nuanced than the 30 to 40% figure suggests.
4:06 Scott Galloway? Studies show that 25 to 39% of total weight loss on GLP-1s comes from lean mass. But researchers increasingly view this as a consequence of rapid weight loss itself, not a unique drug effect. Similar results appear with weight loss from regular calorie restriction. So if you just lose weight regardless, that's kind of a similar ratio for muscle to fat loss. The risk is greater for older adults with limited muscle reserves, and it's largely manageable with resistance training and adequate protein intake. I just think there's no free lunch, but Jesus Christ, this feels like a pretty free lunch or the freest lunch in healthcare I've observed in a long time.
4:47 Scott Galloway? An estimated 10 million Americans were on GLP-1 treatment in 2025, up from 6 million in 2024 and 5 million in 2023, with projections that 25 million people, Americans, will be on them by 2030, according to JP Morgan. Beyond weight loss, they've registered meaningful reductions in cardiovascular events, fatty liver disease, sleep apnea, kidney disease. And the most surprising frontier is the reduction or the treatment of addiction using GLP-1. I just think this is incredible. They're now saying that some of these, I don't know if the right term is agonists, might actually delay early onset dementia. I mean, these things, I would argue that the findings here just keep getting better and better.
5:31 Scott Galloway? If I had a magic wand, if I were in my first year office as president, I would try and negotiate a billion doses of GLP-1 drugs and then offer them for free to anyone in a household making less than $100,000 that's struggling with obesity. Obesity is a plague in the United States. 70% Americans are either obese or overweight. Think about that. And 40% are obese. In Japan, it's 4%. So if we were to bring that down, call it 2% a year from 70% to 30%, I think you could probably reduce somewhere between 1/3 and 1/2 of the budget deficit if you were also thoughtful about reducing healthcare costs and entitlements.
6:12 Scott Galloway? Because something like 1/3 to 1/2 of medical care costs can be reverse engineered to obesity-related illnesses. When someone gets diabetes, they're just going to cost the society themselves and healthcare companies hundreds of thousands of dollars. So I think GLP-1s are absolutely a gift from God. Also, I believe GLP-1s are going to be a more impactful technology than AI. I would, as an investment strategy, I'm going long GLP-1 companies, and if I can't figure out a way, going short AI. Speak to someone who uses AI every day, as I do, who is also on GLP-1s, which I am not, and ask them what's having a bigger impact on their life. I have someone close to my life who's thin, and
6:56 Scott Galloway? they're on GLP-1s because they have neuropathy, their hands and feet get swollen and cold, and then they lose sensation, and they've been microdosing a GLP-1, and it's just gone. But I am comfortable saying, if you look at the larger data set here, I don't think there's been a breakthrough like this so far. Now, might there be something we find out over the long term? Sure. But I pick a technology of the year every year, and for two years running, 24 and 25, I picked GLP-1s. I personally think they are dramatically underhyped, and AI is dramatically overhyped. And the muscle loss you talk about, I have
7:38 Scott Galloway? a friend on them right now, a friend from college who's lost 60 pounds, he has another 40 to go, and I am doing some exercises with him using his body weight, air squats, pushups, because I'm like, you gotta, you don't want that draped skin look, you gotta get some muscle mass. But I think the trade-off here is vastly in the favor of this versus the downside of the health ailments from obesity. But anyways, a thoughtful question, and like all of us, as you get older, I am struggling to keep muscle mass on. I do 5mg of creatine a day, I'm on testosterone therapy, and I work out four times a week,
8:21 Scott Galloway? which I've done for the last 40 years, but I'm trying to do, it's hard for me to do free weights, which is the way you keep bulk or put it on, because my joints are, you know, getting older. Anyways, thanks for the question.
8:34 Scott Galloway? Question number two.
8:35 Speaker 06 Hi Scott, big fan here. Appreciate your insightfulness on masculinity and fatherhood. I'm 32 and have a two-year-old son with another son due in a few months. My wife stays at home, so I'm responsible for the financial stability of our house. My question revolves around balancing family and financials. My mother-in-law has a lot of issues, lives alone, works part-time, has no retirement, probably has undiagnosed early onset dementia. She has been in a dark stretch due to a number of issues and even called suicide hotline recently. She's had a windy life with a lot of mistakes, but has always been a terrific caretaker as a mother to my wife and grandma to my son. I owe her so much as she has almost single-handedly raised the love of my life to be who she is.
9:20 Speaker 06 I see the writing on the wall that we will be supporting her in the future as my wife's sisters, despite being older, have no interest or ability to help out. Do you have any recommendations on balancing the economic viability of my small family with supporting outside family? The joys of being the sandwich generation. Appreciate your thoughts.
9:39 Scott Galloway? Ugh, this is a rough one. First off, you're a good man. The fact that you're, I can just tell by your voice and the way you're thinking about your mother-in-law and you describe her in a positive. It would be so easy for a lesser person or a more immature man to have this woe is me thing and position your mother-in-law in a negative light. Instead, you position her in a positive light. I think that says a lot about your maturity and, I don't know, I just think you're so far ahead of where I was at your age. So according to an AARP report, one in five adults in the US, an estimated 53 million people, is taking care of an aging family member.
10:23 Scott Galloway? The average family caregiver spends around $7,200 per year out of pocket on caregiving expenses. That's around 26% of their income. This is such a deeply personal decision and there is no silver bullet. Um, one, I would find out what state and government resources are available. If your mom truly has, or your son, I'm sorry, your mother-in-law truly has dementia, she's probably going to need to be at some point in assisted living.
10:57 Scott Galloway? But it doesn't, I didn't get a sense of how old she was. Anyways, where I was headed with the program. So there's a program in California where nurses can buy homes in San Diego or in California at a low interest and they turn each bedroom into a room. I found out about this program, I think on the Cal State or my sister did California.gov website. I wonder what resources, if any, are available, even just to get your stepmom out of the house with other friends, keep her busy, but I don't know what stage she's at. I think it's constant communication and alignment with your wife such that you guys are on the same page. And if your mom can play a role in taking care of the kid such that your wife can go to work
11:42 Scott Galloway? and maybe make some extra income, that's a huge benefit because childcare has become so expensive because unlike any other G7 nation, we don't provide universal childcare, which makes no fucking sense. This is something a ton of people are struggling with. And I don't know if I have a great answer for you, other than see if there are government resources and programs to maybe just get her fund for your, your mother-in-law, or maybe provide resources and care if and when she needs care, or if it's more an issue of maybe she takes responsibility for the kid if she's still pretty spry and alert during the day such that your wife can make some additional money. Brother, I'm, the only I can say is you're approaching this like a man.
12:24 Scott Galloway? Get alignment with your wife around this and see if there's in fact programs in your neighborhood community at a state level that help your mom maybe connect with other seniors or maybe some programs if and when she needs help herself. But anyways, I feel for you. A lot of people are going through this. And both your wife, your mother-in-law and your children are very, are very fortunate to have you. Sign up for help here. We'll be right back after a quick break.
13:06 Scott Galloway? Support for the show comes from Superhuman. The pace of modern work can be relentless. You're getting a constant influx of messages from a ton of different apps. You haven't closed all your browser tabs in a year. Everything seems urgent and staying on top of it all feels like an impossible task. Superhuman Go is an AI chat that's always there when you need it, already aware of what you're doing and doesn't ask you to start from zero. Superhuman Go, from the makers of Grammarly, help you be the best version of yourself at work. It handles the repetitive stuff so you can focus on the work that only you can do. Whether you need to summarize an endless email thread or prep for a meeting that's happening in five minutes, Superhuman Go works inside the tools and sites you already use, your browser, inbox, docs, and your project tools. And its AI chat is available on the side of your browser and it's always ready.
13:51 Scott Galloway? No new tabs, no switching apps, no losing your place. This is AI that works with you, not on top of you, so that you have the time and brain space to solve the problems that matter. Check it out, find out more, it's superhuman.com.
14:09 Scott Galloway? Support for the show comes from Upwork. Trying to scale your business? At some point, you're probably going to hit a point where you need some help. Sometimes the best way to break through that is bringing in the right talent at the right time. Upwork can help. Upwork is a one-stop platform where you can find, hire, and pay expert freelancers across more than 125 categories. Whether you need specialized skills for a single project or extra support to keep up with demand, it's easy to connect with experienced professionals, review their work, and find the right fit. You can move faster without taking on the commitment of full-time hires. And for businesses that need the very best talent, Upwork Business Plus provides access to the top 1% of freelancers on the platform. AI-powered matching connects you with qualified candidates in under six hours, cutting down the time spent searching. Upwork also takes care of contracts, payments,
14:55 Scott Galloway? and other administrative tasks, so you can spend less time managing logistics and more time focused on what's next. Visit upwork.com/profg right now and post your job for free. That's upwork.com/profg to connect with top talent ready to help your business grow. That's upwork.com/profg.
15:20 Scott Galloway? Support for the show comes from Vanta. As AI adoption grows, so does your company's security risks and requirements. New frameworks, audits, and vendors keep piling on, but your team isn't getting any bigger. Most compliance tools promise automation, but you're really stuck doing all the work by hand, chasing screenshots, validating controls, and playing catch-up when audit season comes around again. Vanta works differently. The regentech trust platform is built to scale with you, not slow you down. With over 1,400 automated tests across 400-plus integrations, Vanta collects evidence and monitors your controls year-round, cutting your audit prep by 82%. Plus, you can access the Vanta agent everywhere you work, whether your team is in Vanta every day or living in tools including Claude or Cursor. Want proof?
16:05 Scott Galloway? Over 16,000 fast-growing companies like Ramp, Ryder, and Harvey save time and resources while scaling fast with Vanta. Learn more at vanta.com/profg and get $1,000 off. That's spelled V-A-N-T-A dot com slash profg for $1,000 off.
16:29 Scott Galloway? Welcome back. Question number three.
16:31 Speaker 07 Hi, Prof G. I've worked full-time all my adult life. I am based in New York. I have an international medical degree and a master's in public health from Columbia. I work with the United Nations. I'm also a mom with two beautiful little girls. And my question is about how to sequence your career to make the most of your professional years, of your working years, and to be most successful at what you do, including financially. And so I'm at that phase where, being a mom to my three-year-old and five-year-old, especially
17:14 Speaker 07 given that I am the primary parent, that sort of supersedes other things. And I've had to make conscious decisions that limit career mobility and earning potential, quite frankly. And I don't ever want to look back with any regrets, both as a mother, but also as, you know, in the world of work. And so in terms of thinking about this 38-year-old professional woman, I think I have about, I don't know. Sixteen years of professional experience at this point. When do I put the pedal to the metal, so to speak, and accelerate my career?
17:55 Speaker 07 Is it, is there an age where you can do that without it hitting the kids too much? It's sort of the essential question that a lot of working moms juggle with. But I am determined to have it all. I hear you, I cannot have it all at once. But what's the sequence? What would you recommend? Thank you.
18:16 Scott Galloway? This is the question that unless you're smart enough to be born to rich parents, that we all struggle with. And that is if we're fortunate enough to be blessed with the talents you're obviously blessed with and the opportunities you've been blessed with. When do you? Yeah, as you said, put the metal down and accelerate versus which comes at a cost because you have to keep your eyes on the road. That is your career and you don't get really, you know, don't get to. And you're worried that the kids are in the backseat and, and, you know, or get left behind, right? Look, it's easy to run other people's lives. And what I don't like about our media ecosystem is that people will opt for the politically correct statement and say, you never get these years back.
19:00 Scott Galloway? Spend as much time as you can with your kids. But it sounds like you're not a single mother, but the primary breadwinner and maybe even the primary caregiver. And there's some studies that show that women who work, their daughters actually make more money later than life because they see them as role models. And I do believe that staying at home is more about, I think the benefits accrue more to you because I think staying at home is nice and rewarding. And there's a lot of data showing that kids are just fine when mom works. So.
19:37 Scott Galloway? In sum, and this is the way the world is, not the way the world should be. I believe that if you are the primary breadwinner and you have good professional opportunities at the age of 38, you're going to be 50 before you know it. A couple, let me give you just a couple of realities here. The workplace is ageist and you'll be 50 before you know it. And if you haven't hit a certain trajectory by the time you're 50, you kind of don't have the option to put the pedal down or no one cares. There's something about, people will say, okay, she's not a, she's not a player because she's 50 and she's not that senior. Also, money solves a lot of problems with kids. And I know how terrible that sounds.
20:22 Scott Galloway? It gets them tutors if you need it. It gets them after school athletic programs. It gets better healthcare. You know, a lot of these problems or the problems that come up, money just lubricates a lot about raising children. That's just the bottom line. And 38, you're at the sweet spot professionally. I had my first kid at 42, the first three, four years of their lives, I saw them, but not a lot because I was freaked out about money. I was doing really well professionally and I thought the extra 20% of effort, you know, instead of working 50 hours, working 60 hours, got me probably 50 to 100% more income such that I could have a dramatic amount of balance in my life now.
21:06 Scott Galloway? And I would argue the trade off now of being more focused on your professional life yields greater ROI on the backend when they're a little bit older and you have some financial stability. And by the way, kids only get more expensive as they get older. In a capitalist society, money solves a lot of problems. And two, working mothers do set, I think, a good example for, for daughters. And you are in an economy that is very ageist. So what is the sequencing? If you can't have it all and you have to trade off, what I would argue for, and a lot of this is me projecting because it's what I did, I would opt for putting the pedal down now. And hopefully being in a position to ease up and enjoy yourself a little bit more
21:51 Scott Galloway? when you're a little bit older. But these are deeply personal decisions. I don't know if one of your kids is struggling, maybe, or has some difficulties or learning needs. You might feel like, like you just need to be home, or need to be home more. And I always offered the women in my jobs flexibility. But it comes at a cost. You know, I don't think there's anything wrong with someone who says, I'm not going to have kids, I'm going to work my ass off and I expect to get paid more. I think I understand their argument. So I think you need to speak to some people about the trade offs. I would be wary of people who are generous with your money, who say, oh, spend all the time you can with your kids, not recognize, well, okay, you don't have to pay my rent. It's
22:32 Scott Galloway? a long winded way of saying, I believe in a capitalist economy, the money matters a lot. And that you want to have some sense of financial security and career momentum going into your 40s. Because to wake up at 50 and feel financially insecure with two teenagers is a really difficult place to be in. That's the place my mom was in when I was a teenager. And it created a cloud of stress that just never went away. It was like a poltergeist was following around telling us we weren't worthy, or that we had fucked up because we didn't have money. So this is my way. It's not necessarily the right way. But you asked me about sequencing. I would say now is the time to put the metal
23:13 Scott Galloway? down and put the pedal down and make that sacrifice. Such that hopefully you're in a position to have more balance when the kids are teenagers and you're a little bit older, having made more progress than if you'd sort of choked back to spend more time with your kids when they're little. But there's no doubt about it. It's a trade off and it's a difficult one. Very much appreciate the question. That's all for this episode. If you'd like to submit a question, please email a voice recording to [email protected] . That's [email protected] . Or if you prefer to ask on Reddit, just post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit, and we might feature it in an upcoming episode. This episode was produced by Jennifer Sanchez and Laura Janer. Kami Rika is our social
23:58 Scott Galloway? producer. Brad Williams is our editor. And Drew Burrows is our technical director. Thank you for listening to the Prop G Pod from Prop G Media.
24:12 Speaker 08 Now at Kroger, your points add up to more ways to save every trip. Use them your way to take dollars off groceries at checkout or save at the pump. You can even save up to $35 on your next fill-up. Same points, more choices. And with low prices on fresh, quality food, plus digital and personalized offers tailored to how you shop, your dollar goes further. Redeem your points online or in the app. Kroger: Fresh for Everyone. Restrictions apply. See site or store for details.
24:43 Speaker 09 Booking.com is the easiest way. From a day surrounded by noise...
24:56 Speaker 09 ...to a stay... ...surrounded by nature.
25:03 Speaker 09 That's nice. Go on, book it. It's easy. Booking.com. Booking done, yeah.
25:13 Speaker 10 The Viori Core Short moves with you.
25:17 Speaker 10 With everyday versatility and classic athletic fit.
25:22 Speaker 10 It's the one short for everything your day brings.
25:27 Speaker 10 Invest in your happiness and get 20% off your first purchase at viori.com core20. That's V U O R I dot com slash K O R E two zero. Exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions.
Previous Why the Rich Want to Live Forever — with Kara Swisher Next No Mercy / No Malice: Moonshot Page updated October 26, 2026 · transcript and summary are machine-generated
