To go to Slimming World whilst taking Mounjaro

[moosmum21]

I recently got a cost of living increase at work and I'm thinking of investing it into losing weight and getting fit because I'm very overweight and miserable about it.

I plan to use weight loss injections, but I don't want to come off the weight loss injections without making lifestyle changes so I am thinking of attending Slimming World classes as well. My only concern is I know there are awards for "Slimmer of the Week/month" and taking part in them whilst using weight loss medication seems unfair to those who aren't able to afford a private prescription.

At the same time I don't really want to have to tell anybody I'm on injections either.

AIBU to go to Slimming World and not tell anyone that I have pharmacological help with my weight loss?

And you know this how?

People attend SW who've had bariatric surgery, and some people who are slim go there to maintain weight loss. I think they just want people to pay their subs and turn up. You could tell the leader you'd rather opt out of 'slimmer of the week' or whatever. You don't need to give a reason, but you could just say I'm on medication that effects my appetite.

Thin people “fat people should just lose weight as you’re such a drain on the NHS!”

Obese people <attempt to lose weight including by medical treatment where indicated>

Thin people “no not like that you’re doing it wrong”

If you have never struggled with obesity, unless you are someone like a bariatric specialist, you have no idea of the complexities and should keep your opinions to yourself.

Surprised comments from users in the Ozempic subreddit, with 74k users.

Are you aware of the side effects of long term morbid obesity?
Do you know what the success rate is for the "eat less move more" approach for morbid obesity?

Weird I'm on all the oz and mounjaro reddits and that's not what I have seen there.

I would not do Slimming World as it encourages lots of carbohydrates.

I have been on Wegovy for a year. The weeks I eat carbs I don't lose weight, the weeks I don't eat them.I lose. Wegovy makes it easy to resist carbs, I'm just being lazy when I have a sandwich for example.

I think Weight Watchers encourages more protein from what I've read.

All the hate for SW always focuses on 'it's too many carbs'.

The reality is that no one becomes morbidly obese from eating too much plain pasta and plain rice 😂 Come on, we all know this. Obese people (me included, I say this with no judgement) are usually obese because they eat far too much crap and not enough natural, filling foods with decent nutritional content.

Personally I'm a huge fan of SW and I think it's much further from 'disordered eating' than most of the diets out there. There's a huge emphasis on filling your plate with free food - fruits, veg, salad, potatoes, lean meats, eggs, tinned fish, plain pasta, plain rice, plain noodles. Then two portions of dairy and one of fibre each day.

The only thing to count is your syns which is far easier than counting calories and encourages healthy choices - do I want this chocolate bar for 14 syns or shall I have some berries and yoghurt because I know it's free? Shall I buy the 15% fat mince which I'll have to count syns for, or spend the extra quid on the 5% fat mince which is free?

I've been doing SW for a month and have lost 11lbs. I find it totally freeing and I haven't eaten so well for the last couple of years.

Like any new way of eating - if you stop doing it and go back to eating poorly, you'll gain weight. SW isn't unique in that.

I understand your concerns about the ethics of this. My concern is more that I think you might find the cult approach of SW is not compatible with Mounjaro.

There's a huge emphasis on filling your plate with free food - fruits, veg, salad, potatoes, lean meats, eggs, tinned fish, plain pasta, plain rice, plain noodles. Then two portions of dairy and one of fibre each day.

This makes my point very well for me. SW encourages the consumption at volume of low-energy foods. On Mounjaro you will not be able to stomach the sheer volume of whatever franken-fakeaway they encourage you to make out of sugar-free jelly and quark. You have to focus on small quantities of nutrient-dense food and keep your protein levels high.

If you want the accountability then consider just attending for the weigh-in and then leaving before the meeting. You’ll be paying twice, though. I would personally put the SW money towards a gym membership or a strength-training class.

On Mounjaro you will not be able to stomach the sheer volume of whatever franken-fakeaway they encourage you to make out of sugar-free jelly and quark

Not my experience at all. The only encouragement I've experienced is, like I said, to fill your plate with free food.
So...

• Cooking a spagbol with no oil, 5% mince, added veg and tinned tomatoes...free spag bol, fill your plate.
• Having a jacket potato with a tin of Tuna, sweetcorn and salad for lunch- free lunch, fill your plate.
• Eating 40g of porridge oats with a banana for breakfast...included, enjoy.
• Eating berries and fat free natural yoghurt for dessert...free, have a bowl full.

But yes...that sounds totally disordered. Probably better to inject yourself with chemicals instead because, carbs 🙈

They are legal and licenced for weight loss.

You keep making my point for me, @SuperLois34. Everything in your list reflects SW's approach of high volume, low energy foods. It's great that it is working for you. A person on Mounjaro won't be able to eat that volume of food and the approach is therefore incompatible.

Everything is chemicals. Carbs are chemicals. Water is made of chemicals.

My reply was more in response to this part of your comment @VelociraptorsVelociRapping ...

whatever franken-fakeaway they encourage you to make out of sugar-free jelly and quark

Which I disagree with as that's not my experience.

But yes, if the injections limit appetite then I agree that it's incompatible with actually following SW where the focus is very much on eating plenty of healthy, natural food. If you've temporarily chemically altered your appetite so that you're unable to manage more than a few mouthfuls of something, being told every week to fill your plate to the brim with chicken, salad and rice isn't going to work or probably be good for your morale.

It just somewhat blows my mind that anyone could think injecting yourself would be the preferable choice.

People should try to lose weight by changing their diet (and increasing their activity if possible) before embarking on weight loss injections. You wouldn't think it from social media, but it's a requirement of the product licence.

OP I would recommend starting a healthy eating plan, and then starting the injections if, after carefully considering the side effects and a proper assessment from a suitably qualified health professional, you decide that's right for you.

Remember, that the weight loss injections are for two years only, so you need to find a long term way of eating that is sustainable for you, enjoyable and which complements your lifestyle and social activities.

For this reason, I would be cautious of SW and WW. Their business model depends on people yo-yo dieting, not losing weight sustainably for the long term.

Good luck. You can do this - but do it in a way that works long term.

I see you've been attending for a month, @SuperLois34. I absolutely guarantee that in the coming months you will encounter multiple SW recipes, either in their books or in your meetings, which are based around the profligate use of quark and sugar-free jelly. Once upon a time they might also have included a Muller Light, although of course they are now synful.

I voted YABU, but only because Slimming Worlds is a fine way to encourage disordered habits and actually mess up your relationship with food!

I would see a dietician instead, or maybe do a nutrition course yourself.

Before I paid for these drugs I consulted both my gp and consultant. I read everything, and weighed up both the potential side effects as well as the benefits. I have a family member who had a gastric bypass and I much prefer the risks of Mounjaro to the side effects she lives with now,

@SuperLois34 - if SW is working for you at the moment that’s great. It worked for me for a while. Quite a few times!

I just wanted to point out something about the weight loss injections. Ozempic is actually a drug licensed for diabetes. Why? Because it helps with insulin resistance and blood sugar control. Appetite suppression and weight loss are a side effect of that.

I couldn’t eat porridge and a banana for breakfast as I would be starving later. Why? Because I have issues with insulin resistance. That breakfast would spike my blood sugar. It doesn’t for everyone obv.

So Ozempic worked really well for me.

The appetite suppression wears off at low doses hence Wegovy (same drug) at higher doses now being licensed for weight loss.

I was overweight for years. I tried everything. Everything. And I ended up feeling a total failure and hating myself. Because everyone else manages it. They go to SW or WW and lose weight. I did too. But I couldn’t sustain it. Now knowing more about long term obesity and weight loss and set points and insulin resistance etc I know why it was unsustainable.

Ozempic isn’t a new drug. It’s been available for diabetics for quite a few years. So there is some data on long term use. And as far as I am aware there haven’t been any major red flags.

There are issues with people just ordering it without understanding it and how and why it works obviously. But you can’t legislate for stupidity sadly. The media have a part to play here obviously.

As time goes on there will be more and more understanding of obesity and why some people can’t just join SW or cut calories or do whatever. These drugs are life changing for some of us.

I

I have one recipe book so far...fairly thick...that came free when joining. Haven't seen either of those ingredients so far but will keep an eye out.

Considering I've managed to eat in a SW friendly way for a month without using either, I imagine any recipies containing them are easily ignored if you don't fancy them 🙃

Speak privately to the local SW group leader and explain this....

Please stay away from Slimming World. It has been associated with increasing binge eating disorder. No food should be considered bad or off limits.

Here's a link to the Radio 2 programme on it. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001y27g

My experience of Mounjaro is that I get full very quickly, which makes me think that SW is not hugely compatible, as they tend to focus on filling up your plate and your stomach to stop hunger. This works well if you're feeling hungry, but I think that a different style of dieting is more appropriate alongside Mounjaro.
I personally have been following a 18/6 fasting schedule, and eating two smaller meals that are more nutrient and protein dense than normal. Snacking is not really something that I think about at the moment.

As far as being awarded for weight loss, I'd just take the praise if you want to! I think that there are huge numbers of people on injections, and most people dont seem to be open about it. I would be flabbergasted if you were the only one at a weight loss group using them. I also don't look at the medication as putting me at a huge advantage over others. There are people that do not suffer from insulin resistance and other hormonal imbalances that feel the way that I do on medication, but naturally. Dieting isn't a level playing field, some people have small appetites and can make changes more easily, some people have large appetites but a faster metabolism, some people have loads of free time for exercise and meal planning.
Do what you've got to do!

I wouldn't because of the added expense. I'd join a dedicated online support group or thread and just try to eat following general healthy eating guidelines. The advantage of the injection is that it can help you stick to eating in a normal healthy way rather than needing a special diet.

Slimming World experiences seem to vary hugely depending on the group leader, so some seem to be fairly good at talking about new ways of eating, and others are obsessed with processed food. I did try it once and my person told people off for doing too much exercise (because it was supposedly impeding weight loss, not because they actually were overdoing it), spent a lot of time explaining which ready mix rice flavour was Syn-free and which weren’t, and general recommended eating food less healthy than I was eating already. So SW isn’t going to deliver the same for everyone.

We all also do need different things and eating as much low-fat extra veg spag bol as I could work see my 7lbs heavier in a week. Also one helping of fibre a week is madness.

This is such a good point. The side effects really were horrendous for me. Extreme nausea, diarrhoea, dizziness, passing blood after 12 hours of constant vomiting and diarrhoea. It really scared me and so I stopped taking the drug. I was fine until month three and lost a stone but then it went very pear shaped for me.