Dr Isabel King is a health policy and advocacy professional and exercise physiology researcher at Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA), the national peak body for exercise and sports science. Her work spans chronic disease, preventive health and health-system reform, with a particular focus on GLP-1 and obesity pharmacotherapy. She leads ESSA’s policy and clinical work in this area, including multidisciplinary models of care, muscle health and physical function, and initiated and coordinated an international joint statement on the role of exercise and physical activity in the era of obesity pharmacotherapy.

Isabel holds a PhD in Exercise Physiology from the University of the Sunshine Coast. Her research examined age-related changes in skeletal muscle quality and myokine responses to resistance exercise, with a focus on how skeletal muscle adapts across the lifespan and how exercise can preserve strength, function and metabolic health.

Her broader policy portfolio spans healthy ageing, mental health and preventive health, with a particular interest in translating emerging evidence into practical clinical pathways and policy change. More broadly, her interests extend to global health, health security and equitable access to care, particularly how health systems respond to new medicines and technologies while ensuring prevention, physical function and long-term health remain central to care.