Metformin Could Lessen Some of the Benefits People Get from Exercise
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Briana Mercola
4.6 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 29 December 2025
⏱️ 8 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
- Metformin is a widely prescribed Type 2 diabetes drug that works by lowering liver glucose production and improve insulin sensitivity
- A 16-week Rutgers trial in 72 adults found that metformin dulled exercise benefits, reducing the usual improvements in aerobic fitness
- Long-term risks for prolonged metformin use include vitamin B12 deficiency, rare lactic acidosis, and hypoglycemia
- Skipping breakfast, not getting enough sleep, consuming too much alcohol, and social isolation can greatly disturb glucose regulation and increase the risk of developing diabetes over time
- Lifestyle strategies such as consistent movement, and a bioenergetic, nutrient-dense diet can support insulin sensitivity. Berberine may also help to slowly wean you off metformin medication
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Have you ever wondered if a common diabetes pill could quietly cancel out the gains you work so hard for at the gym? |
| 0:06.0 | Welcome to Dr. Mercola's cellular wisdom. Stay informed with quick, easy-to-listen summaries of our latest articles, perfect for when you're on the go. |
| 0:15.0 | No reading required. Subscribe for free at Mercola.com for the latest health insights. |
| 0:20.0 | Hello, and welcome to Dr. Mercola's cellular wisdom. |
| 0:24.0 | I'm Ethan Foster. |
| 0:25.9 | Today we're looking at new research, suggesting Metformin may reduce some of the benefits |
| 0:30.2 | you'd normally get from exercise, along with practical steps you can use to strengthen |
| 0:34.8 | insulin sensitivity with fewer trade-offs. |
| 0:43.5 | I'm Alara Sky. We'll walk you through what the Rutgers trial found, what that means for your aerobic fitness and blood vessel health, the known risks of long-term metformin use, |
| 0:48.9 | and how to assess your insulin resistance early so you can make informed choices with your |
| 0:53.7 | clinician. A 16-week clinical trial at Rutgers followed 72 adults at risk for metabolic syndrome |
| 1:00.9 | and split them into four groups. Low-intensity exercise with placebo, low-intensity with |
| 1:07.0 | metformin at 2,000 milligrams per day, high-intensity with placebo, and high-intensity with metformin at 2,000 milligrams per day, high intensity with placebo, and high intensity with |
| 1:13.3 | metformin. Training occurred five days a week at roughly 55% or 85% of VO2 max. |
| 1:21.3 | Researchers tracked vascular insulin sensitivity, aerobic fitness, VO2 max, fasting glucose and inflammation markers like TNF alpha and endothelin 1. |
| 1:33.2 | When participants exercised without metformin, vascular insulin sensitivity improved, |
| 1:38.9 | aerobic fitness went up, and inflammation markers trended down. |
| 1:43.3 | Clear signs your vessels are delivering oxygen and |
| 1:46.0 | nutrients more effectively after meals. When metformin was added, those gains dulled. Improvements |
| 1:52.3 | in aerobic fitness disappeared, and reductions in fasting glucose and inflammation were smaller. |
| 1:57.9 | Blood vessel function, still improved with training, but the drug blunted that effect. |
| 2:02.5 | If you're exercising and your glucose isn't dropping and your fitness isn't improving, |
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