Medical Mystery: The Man Who Got Weaker When He Started Training

A 43-year-old man starts exercising and ends up in the ER with a CK over 100x the upper limit of normal. His doctor says it’s from training. We don’t think so. In this episode, Dr. Jordan Feigenbaum and Dr. Austin Baraki walk through the full case — history, labs, diagnosis, and what actually went wrong — then break down the mechanisms behind the answer, the nocebo research, and what the brand-new 2026 guidelines mean for the 40 million Americans on a drug class you’ve definitely heard of. We also cover the STOMP trial (do statins actually impair strength gains?), the SAMSON trial (how much of statin intolerance is nocebo?), the difference between myalgia, myositis, and rhabdomyolysis, Austin’s clinical approach to a patient whose strength is declining on a statin, and the treatment escalation pathway for statin-intolerant patients including bempedoic acid, PCSK9 inhibitors, and inclisiran. Plus, where GLP-1 receptor agonists like tirzepatide fit into the cardiovascular risk picture. Timestamps 0:00 — A 43-year-old man is getting weaker, not stronger 2:09 — Taking the history: Medications, lifestyle, and red flags 12:53 — The labs come back: CK at 18,979 16:05 — Metabolic syndrome and the modern treatment approach 23:15 — Rhabdomyolysis: What it is and why it’s dangerous 29:50 — Final diagnosis and what went wrong with the medications 37:15 — 2026 ACC lipid guidelines: What changed 40:32 — Three mechanisms: How statins affect muscle 47:02 — The nocebo effect and the SAMSON trial 54:17 — Do statins impair training? The STOMP trial 1:00:30 — Who’s at highest risk for statin muscle problems 1:07:36 — What happened to the patient and options if this is you 1:14:12 — Five takeaways Five Takeaway Statin myopathy is real but relatively uncommon. The excess symptom rate above placebo is roughly 1–5% in controlled trials. But in exercising patients, especially on combination therapy, the risk can be higher. There are three proposed mechanisms: reduced energy production from CoQ10 depletion, compromised muscle cell membranes from isoprenoid loss, and accelerated protein breakdown from calcium leak via the ryanodine receptor. Exercise amplifies all three, but the vast majority of people compensate. If you’re on a statin and your strength is going down, talk to your doctor before stopping the medication or changing your training. A CK test can help separate a drug problem from a programming problem The 2026 ACC guidelines list vigorous exercise as a risk factor for statin-associated muscle symptoms for the first time. They also provide statin-intolerant patients a clear escalation pathway: bempedoic acid, ezetimibe, PCSK9 inhibitors, and more. Lower is better for LDL. There’s a 33% relative reduction in cardiovascular events at <55 vs. 70 mg/dL. Lower for longer. Healthy lifestyle changes plus effective lipid-lowering therapy are among the best things you can do for cardiovascular risk. Next Steps For evidence-based resistance training programs: barbellmedicine.com/training-programs For individualized training consultation: barbellmedicine.com/coaching Explore our full library of articles on health and performance: barbellmedicine.com/resources To consult with Drs. Baraki or Feigenbaum email us at support@barbellmedicine.com To support us and get ad free listening, plus special product discounts, and exclusive content, go to supercast.barbellmedicine.com Resources Training Plateau Action Plan (free): Fish oil episode: Lp(a): Guidelines Blumenthal RS, Morris PB, et al. 2026 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Management of Dyslipidemia. Circulation. 2026. DOI: 10.1161/CIR.0000000000001423 Case László A, et al. Exercise and Statin-Fibrate Combination Therapy-Caused Myopathy. BMC Research Notes. 2013;6:52. LDL Targets Lee YJ, et al. (Ez-PAVE) Intensive LDL Cholesterol Targeting in Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease. NEJM. 2026. PMID: 41910315 Mechanisms of Statin Myopathy Meador BM, Huey KA. Statin-Associated Myopathy and Its Exacerbation with Exercise. Muscle Nerve. 2010;42(4):469–479. Safitri N, et al. Statin-Induced Rhabdomyolysis: Mechanisms, Risk Factors, Management. Drug Healthc Patient Saf. 2021. Molinarolo S, et al. Cryo-electron microscopy reveals sequential binding and activation of Ryanodine Receptors by statin triplets. Nat Commun. 2025;16(1):11508. doi:10.1038/s41467-025-66522-0 Thompson PD, et al. Lovastatin Increases Exercise-Induced Skeletal Muscle Injury. Metabolism. 1997;46(10):1206–1210 Nocebo Effect and Statin Intolerance Wood FA, et al. N-of-1 Trial of a Statin, Placebo, or No Treatment to Assess Side Effects (SAMSON). NEJM. 2020;383(22):2182–2184. Khan S, et al. Does Googling Lead to Statin Intolerance? Int J Cardiol. 2018;262:25–27. Gupta A, et al. Adverse Events Associated with Unblinded, but Not with Blinded, Statin Therapy in the ASCOT-LLA. Lancet. 2017;389(10088):2473–2481. Moon JC, et al. Examining the Nocebo Effect of Statins through the FDA AERS. Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes. 2021;14(1):e007480. Statins and Exercise Outcomes Parker BA, et al. Effect of Statins on Skeletal Muscle Function (STOMP). Circulation. 2013;127(1):96–103. Parker BA, Thompson PD. Effect of Statins on Skeletal Muscle: Exercise, Myopathy, and Muscle Outcomes. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 2012;40(4):188–194. Mikus CR, et al. Simvastatin Impairs Exercise Training Adaptations. JACC. 2013;62(8):709–714. Slade JM, et al. The Impact of Statin Therapy and Aerobic Exercise Training. Am Heart J Plus. 2021;10:100028. Gui Y, et al. Efficacy and Safety of Statins and Exercise Combination Therapy. Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2017;24(9):907–916. DOI: 10.1177/2047487317691874 Genetic Susceptibility SEARCH Collaborative Group. SLCO1B1 Variants and Statin-Induced Myopathy — A Genomewide Study. NEJM. 2008;359(8):789–799 Autoimmune Myopathy Barkhordarian M, et al. Statin-Induced Autoimmune Myopathy. Am J Case Rep. 2024;25:e944261. Statin-Fibrate Interactions Jones PH, Davidson MH. Reporting Rate of Rhabdomyolysis with Fenofibrate + Statin vs Gemfibrozil + Any Statin. Am J Cardiol. 2005;95(1):120–122 Bruckert E, et al. Mild to Moderate Muscular Symptoms with High-Dosage Statin Therapy (PRIMO Study). Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2005;19(6):403–414 Sinzinger H, O’Grady J. Professional Athletes Suffering from Familial Hypercholesterolaemia Rarely Tolerate Statin Treatment. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2004;57(4):525–528 Tirzepatide and GLP-1 Agonists Al-kuraishy HM, et al. The mechanistic role of tirzepatide in atherosclerosis. Int J Biol Macromol. 2025;329(1). Effects of Tirzepatide on Lipid Profile: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. 2024. Hamidi H, et al. Effect of tirzepatide on coronary atherosclerosis progression (T-Plaque trial design). Am Heart J. 2024;278:24–32. doi:10.1016/j.ahj.2024.08.015 Fish Oil and Omega-3 Fatty Acids Bhatt DL, et al. Cardiovascular Risk Reduction with Icosapent Ethyl (REDUCE-IT). NEJM. 2019;380:11–22. Abdelhamid AS, et al. Omega-3 Fatty Acids for Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2020. Manson JE, et al. Marine n-3 Fatty Acids and Prevention of CVD and Cancer (VITAL). NEJM. 2019;380:23–32. Myopathy Classification Selva-O’Callaghan A, et al. Statin-Induced Myalgia and Myositis: Pathogenesis and Clinical Recommendations. Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2018;14(3):215–224. Our Sponsors: * Check out FIGS and use my code wearfigs.com for a great deal: * Check out Factor and use my code factormeals.com/bbm50off for a great deal: * Check out Quince and use my code quince.com/bbm for a great deal: Advertising Inquiries: Privacy & Opt-Out:

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Medical Mystery: The Man Who Got Weaker When He Started Training is an episode from Barbell Medicine Podcast by Barbell Medicine.

This episode is 75:46 long.

This episode was published on Apr 7, 2026.

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