Really depressed I didn’t just go on Ozempic - only maintained for a year

[Neade]

I don’t know I really need a rant.

I feel really angry and upset at myself. To the point i just want to scream/cry.

Last year i lost 55 pounds without glp 1s. I totally cut out carbs (well I’d eat sweet potatoes if absolutely necessary). And just made an effort not to use food as a crutch. It worked fairly well as the weight came off.

I decided I needed more moderation. The no carb thing was just making me have cravings. So I started eating jackets, pasta salads etc. Not ideal as I have pcos but I try to be sensible. Ie having cooled down pasta to make it resistant or whatever. Not smothering pasta in cheese etc.

Its meant my weight loss has completely stalled. I’m happy that I’ve not gained all the weight back. But still. I’ve been eating in moderation for a year and not lost weight! I can’t deny this anger is compounded by the fact I saw my friend for lunch today. She’s lost 5 stone in 5 months using Mounjaro.

I just want to weep. I wish I just started on Ozempic or similar. I’m at my goal weight but to be honest I’d love another stone off. I don’t know why I didn’t go
on a glp 1. I just knew in my heart that my weight was not “inexplicable”. I was eating far too much out of boredom.

Just another sunny day wasted hating myself even though I’ve tried 😢

I’ve been going to the gym too. How pathetic to be this mindful and to not have lost any weight.

That ain't a body problem. It's a self esteem problem, exacerbated by poisonous insta/ magazine nonsense. You are perfect the way you are.

You need to work on yourself and your view of yourself. You’ve done brilliantly but honestly; it’s hard to see that yourself sometimes

Look at it this way...

You made changes in your life. That took willpower and determination.

You took off a chunk of weight through willpower
You've then maintained that weight and not piled it back on.

Your friend will pile it back on when she stops using mounjaro because she has changed nothing in her life.

1. You did a real thing.
2. You didn't take doses of a GLP from a diabetic that actually needs it.
3. You wont get the side effects that come from longterm semaglutide use (they're actually not good)

So cheer up and enjoy the evening sun
Have a hug :)

People on Ozempic still have to put in the work to learn how to keep the weight off without the drugs. You have done that work. Be proud.

The issue isn’t your body it’s your brain. It sounds like even if you lose another stone you’ll be disappointed so now you have to work on your mental health. Doing random exercises and tons of cardio isn’t going to change your body composition very much. Ask one of the gym instructors to write you a programme with progressive overload and start working on exercise for strength gains rather than aesthetics. Building muscle will give you a more sculpted look and I’d also suggest you calorie count for a couple of weeks. Weigh and record every morsel that passes your lips, you will need to reduce your calorie intake to loose more fat as you’re eating at maintenance but if you start lifting more weights you may find you can lose fat at maintenance calories. Which by the way is a hell of an achievement in itself to maintain a steady weight. The advice of deliberately putting weight back on to go on weight loss drugs is the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard. You met you original goal, just create a new one. Also, who cares that your friend has lost weight. Are you only happy if other people are struggling? Weird attitude. You need to start being nicer to yourself and maybe that’d help you be nice to others.

Do you know at what point they'd stop prescribing it for you?

Are you lifting?

I think you need to get a grip op

Exactly!

You will plateau though any sort of weight loss.
It’s completely normal.

And I know loads of people who didn’t lose/couldn’t maintain weight loss on WLIs because their issues were eating too much (not because they were hungry).

WLIs are great for many people but they’re not good for everyone and they’re definitely not a magic wand.

Generally it’s 19.5 bmi, some 21/22, they dint stop prescribing unless you lose more weight,

There’s a lot to be said about accepting yourself as you are. You sound like you’re eating healthily, going to the gym, that sounds like a good balance to me.
its really amazing you have been able to keep the weight off too - that’s the hardest part of any diet - maintaining it, must mean you’re doing something right.

stop comparing yourself to others, we are all different shapes and sizes and you need to start feeling proud of the weight you have lost and get some body confidence!

You've done brilliantly and you have developed extremely healthy eating habits, giving you a much higher chance of keeping the weight off.

The lack of recent weight loss prob means you have reached a natural, good, weight. If you lost more, especially by using drugs, it may be that you couldn't possibly maintain that additional loss without ongoing chemical support.

A whole year of maintaining a significant weight loss is a huge, HUGE win that people who diet less healthily, or with meds, are less likely to achieve

OP I think you are focusing on the wrong thing here. If you are at your goal weight loosing another stone might not help your stomach or arms.

Switch it up, focus on your protein and exercises for these area. HIT work ours would be perfect, short, quick and target areas.

Taking a weight loss drug won’t help you tone up

OP I got to a healthy BMI but knew I would feel much better with another stone off and did so using Fast 800 Keto. I find it so so hard to stick to a moderate calorie deficit for months at a time but for some reason a short burst of 800 Keto feels more manageable. I have now maintained for over a year at my lower weight. Just to manage expectations tho, despite being a size 10 and regularly lifting heavy weights and walking 20k steps daily I still v much have wobbly bits!

You're doing fine, much better than taking the weight loss jabs if you can do it that way. Recent studies appear to be confirming the fears that roughly 1/3 of the weight loss is bone and muscle, which will cause all kinds of issues for people down the line.

But you are where you want to be, at your ideal weight … or where you wanted to be anyway! Try and get out of the habit of comparing yourself to others, it’s a lose-lose mentality. Look at your own progress not theirs. You are a healthy weight, which you have maintained for a year, you are physically active so you have achieved a lot. And it’s great that you did it without meds, it may have been harder but you won’t get the backlash of coming off meds - typically as soon as you come off meds your appetite bounces back big time and you put on weight. Now you’ve lost the weight and are down to what was your ideal weight, maybe cut yourself some slack about how you look. Try seeing your body as your friend, not as a commodity that has to fit some ideal standard of beauty. Do exercise that you enjoy that makes you feel alive. Be grateful for everything your body gives you, for every movement it can make, for every feeling it lets you experience. You’ve lost the weight, maybe now you can take the time to appreciate your body for other more soulful reasons as well.

Sorry you're so frustrated OP. Mumsnet feels a bit gaslight-y sometimes: it's perfectly possible that losing a few more pounds might do something about the wobbly bits you don't like - agree toning good alongside. For me toning on its own wasn't nearly as helpful as losing a few lb. Being 137lb isn't some magic figure, people feel they look their best at different weights, we all carry weight so differently.

BUT: what will it cost you though, in terms of energy, head space, the obsessiveness needed to do it? Definitely one to weigh up. Energy hating yourself is energy wasted, and it won't help you to nourish your body with the right things (and sometimes the right thing is cake!) in a loving way. Loving yourself is def more important than any of the weight loss stuff, and that counts double if you can feel your eating becoming disordered, or thought patterns becoming unhealthy.

Be thankful to be the weight you are, we are never perfect. I used wli to the extreme and now I look skeletal just stay healthy.

Hit the gym and walk, loads.
I'm on hrt, which is incompatable with wli 😫
I"m trying so hard to drink my Huel and eat 1 decent meal a day. You're only 31, just get yourself moving and lifting

Why is it incompatible? I am on HRT and successfully used Mounjaro.

OP I got to a healthy BMI but knew I would feel much better with another stone off and did so using Fast 800 Keto. I find it so so hard to stick to a moderate calorie deficit for months at a time but for some reason a short burst of 800 Keto feels more manageable. I have now maintained for over a year at my lower weight. Just to manage expectations tho, despite being a size 10 and regularly lifting heavy weights and walking 20k steps daily I still v much have wobbly bits!

No it's not??

You need to work up from 2kg. They might be ok to start for lateral raises but over 2-3 years need to be using much heavier

In terms of weights for upper body i’m currently managing (for arms, all for 10 reps) the weights below are per hand other than tricep extension and kettlebell swing.

6kg - chest supported Y raise. Rotator raise, front raise
8kg - lateral raise
12kg - rear delt flies, skull crushers, chest flies, upright row
16kg - tricep kickback, tricep extension (with both hands together), shoulder press
18kg - incline bench
20kg - bench press, per hand
24kg - dumbbell row (1 hand at a time)
28kg - kettlebell swing (2 hands)
32kg - farmer carry for 1 mins per hand

Of course you can! "Healthy" BMI is anything between 18.5 and 25, that is quite a range.

You are at your goal weight. You have got there in a sensible sustainable way. This is a TRIUMPH!

Losing 5 stone in 5 month is not a recipe for long term health, how easy will that be too sustain?

You have done brilliantly but still a bit more to do on mindset. Have a look at Slimpod which is great on the psychology for weight loss & maintenance.