Mounjaro / Wegovy with > 5st / 30kg to lose: Thread 6

[VelociraptorsVelociRapping]

Thread SIX of this lovely community. Anyone using weight-loss injections to lose more than 5 stone or 30kg is very welcome to join us, no matter what stage of the process you are on. Share your losses, your non-scale victories (NSV), your frustrations and your love of Longley Farm cottage cheese and kiwi fruit here!

Please don’t post discount codes on this thread as your post will be deleted. These need to go in the dedicated thread on this board.

Is it worth seeing a dietician, even privately? Your diet is so different to mine - I wouldn't have a clue what to advise, I'm sorry. I don't calorie count, but know I'm not eating (or drinking!) anywhere near what I used to. I eat more protein than you've put - I tend to focus on chicken or prawns mainly, with spinach. No carbs at all most days - only because the thought of eating them makes me feel nauseous most days, although I'm usually OK for a few chips at the weekend 😊

I use a side plate now to eat from - helps psychologically and is all I need.

I'm sorry it's so frustrating for you - I can't see how you can reduce your food intake, but maybe a dietician can help?

@alwaysscared I agree you need advice on this although I'm not convinced your doctor has the best understanding of this drug which is another reason you might be better with a private provider who might be able to do that.
There's a couple of things jump out at me from your daily diet. I'm not surprised you are hungry as everything you are eating is carb and sugar based which digests quickly and is not good for a diabetic. You do need to try to find ways to get protein in which would help fill you up, protect muscle mass and would be more balanced for health (especially with the diabetes). Have you tried the clear protein shakes that are like juice? I know it's hard when you feel yukky but you may need to make small changes and keep chipping away. I log my eating on Nutracheck which tells me the protein content as well as the calories, I would enter your day but am up to my eyes in grandchildren today.
Just as a final thing you may be too far below your TDEE, that will slow your metabolism as well as the lack of protein. Calculate your TDEE again, don't go lower than TDEE-500 and also look at your BMR as you always need to be above that level

My diabetes numbers are perfect now, so the carbs and sugars don’t worry me on that front but maybe they are making the weight stick??
According to my scales my BMR is 1500, so should I be eating that each day?? Even though that’s more than 500 below my TDEE? It’s so confusing

@alwaysscaredyou definitely need more protein and less carbs.

My diet averages at 50% protein and 25% carbs every day. I know you have issues around changing your diet but I think without the addition of more protein you are stuck in a loop and will continue to find it difficult.

You have nuts in there but no nut butters, how about switching one of the apples for peanut or almond butter and have it on the apple slices?

how are you with savoury drinks and soups, you could try bone broth or bouillon as a snack? Hot drinks tend to be more satisfying and bone broth contains protein.

Hi @AdotHam

Well done @InfoSecInTheCity! Even when I was a super fit teenage rower I couldn't run for toffee

I'm sorry you're so frustrated @alwaysscaredI was stuck for ages & what seems to have made the scales suddenly drop again is I've added in a small protein breakfast as per Stacy Sims who is all about how women's physiology is different from men's & but most of the research is done on male college students. Might be worth a shot?
ETA x posted with everyone else saying protein 😁

@InfoSecInTheCity I have tried soups, hot liquids have always tended to make me feel sick. The problem is is that I don’t really eat meat, and I don’t really eat dairy (makes me feel sick) so I’m stuck on what to eat protein wise. I’ve had bits of meat here and there to try and up my protein but it just makes me feel gross
Im interested in the BMR @QueenOfHiraeth should I be eating more to get over the 1500?

Also always steered away from nut butters as they are so calorific!

@alwaysscared What about vegan protein sources like tofu, seitan, tempeh, or Quorn which I know is divisive as its very processed. Or other meat substitutes like soy or pea protein mince?

Smoked firm tofu is a favourite of mine, you can roast it in the oven or air fryer with whatever seasoning you like on it. Edamame beans are also high in protein and go well with tofu.

@alwaysscared Your BMR is the number of calories your body needs just to function healthily, it uses them in breathing, digesting, muscle repair, brain function, etc and if you are consistently eating below that, it will slow metabolism to allow itself to function so you should not consistently eat below this level.
Have a look at "BossFitAmy" on Tiktok , I think she is AmyHollings on FB. She's not everyone's cup of tea but she explains these things well.

@SilenceInside I’ve tried some quorn but it tasted nasty 😂 I’ve never had tofu so might give that a shot, thanks
@QueenOfHiraeth thanks, I’ll have a look at her. Maybe an increase to 1600 cals a day for a trial period might be a way to move forward. I may as well, I’m not losing now!

Maybe I’m just not eating enough and that’s why I’m so tired and low on energy, so can’t exercise (I also have fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue)
I’ll up my calories a little

You're not eating enough. Your body knows it's in a deficit and so is holding on to fat for what it thinks of as the coming famine.

Have a couple of high cal days/feast days to trick your body into releasing some of its stores.

Also think about adding more protein and fat, and fewer carbs and upfs. As you may be holding on to water weight.

I think this is probably true.
We're all sold the maths of weight loss but we're not machines & our bodies can downregulate lots of functions in order to use less energy. (We're colder, fidget less etc)

@alwaysscared My advice is based on my own personal journey, so apologies in advance if it is just not something you can do.

I agree with others re protein.

I am hugely insulin resistant and have tried every diet under the sun and nothing shifted the weight over the years. It was demoralising and depressing. I don't get food noise (never have) and I have mentioned on here I don't get suppression on MJ either (just upped to 10mg), but luckily, I don't get side effects.

Anyway, I went off and researched and basically I now know that my body looks at all refined carbs (bread, pasta, rice, grains, cereals) as sugar. Same with fruit.

Your list strikes me as being very sugar and carb loaded. As others have said, this is not filling and I would be very hungry very quickly eating that, I also would never feel "full"/satisfied. The scales would likely go up too.

The key is to eat healthy fats (the body treats fats as fuel and (contrary to what we have been told over the years) it will not add fat to your body. Fats combined with protein (and veg) = complete satiation; no cravings, zero urge to snack, etc.

It is life changing. If you do get a sweet urge; blueberries (and raspberries, strawberries) are great, but as others have said, switch what you have them with, e.g. high fat greek yoghurt and cinnamon. Throw in some nuts too to keep you satisfied. Nut butters, as others have said are great.

Avocados are brilliant (I see you eat those) and have 2 boiled eggs instead of 1.

I think I started around the same time as you, and you have lost more weight than me. (I started on 2nd September), so it is safe to say I am a slow loser (55 pounds to date), but I can honestly say I am never hungry. I believe MJ keeps me on track and I love the way it (and my way of eating) makes me feel. My sleep is great and my energy levels are the highest they have ever been (I am 54).

Read The Obesity Code by Jason Fung - he explains it a whole lot better than me (he noticed that his diabetic patients were gaining weight despite restricting their diets on metformin and in spite of his best efforts. He couldn't fathom it). He explains everything so well. Free you tube videos, and his books come in the audio version too, if reading is not your thing. I also follow Dr Berg online - it was him that introduced me to the Insulin Index (which is different to the glycaemic index) and it was only when I understood that, that I realised some of the foods I was eating (eg bread) my body was reacting the same as if I ate a bowl of sugar. It was life-changing.

I am not here to preach a certain way of eating, but your posts resonate with me as I was you years ago - no matter what I did, calorie deficits, eating minimally, I still piled on the weight. It reduced me to tears. My children constantly commented that my diet did not reflect my weight. I never had puddings, never ate Easter Eggs, everyone knew not to give me treats for presents....I honestly thought I was a lost cause.

Hope this helps. Best of luck with it.

Thanks everyone for your comments. I have a lot to look in to! I appreciate everyone taking the time to reply to me. I keep thinking this MJ journey isn’t for me, but coming on here and hearing what others have to say really helps.

@NewbieMJ I’m now T2 diabetic but have had insulin resistant PCOS my whole life and like you I just cannot really handle carbs, I’ve had long stretches of my life where I’ve pretended that’s not true and gorged on cake, biscuits and chocolate in insane amounts, but it’s a fact I’ve had to reconcile.

Nut butters are my salvation, if I’m feeling peckish a teaspoon of peanut butter solves it. I literally just take a spoon straight from the jar, I get that ooey gooey texture reminiscent of desserts that makes me feel like I’ve had a treat, it’s delicious (Pip n Nut crunchy slightly salted is my jar of choice) and it is remarkably filling for a single mouthful of food.

On a completely different note, just have to say that today I’m wearing a pair of S/M sized leggings!

Ha! This time last year it was XL/XXL, admittedly they’re snug, which highlights my newly toned legs, but it’s inconceivable to me that they actually pulled on. By the way anyone looking, they were a surprise find in poundstretcher a few months ago, high waisted plain black with a pocket on each side and mild shaping effect. £4.99 a pair and I love them, originally purchased in the XL size and have been sizing down as needed.

Very insightful and interesting post @NewbieMJ some of which resonates. I was thinking about this on another post recently and my experience over Christmas.

Since I started Mounjaro in June last year I had no real interest in anything sweet (even artificially sweet) or snacking. But over Christmas, I took Mounjaro as usual, but because it was Christmas I also partook more often in daily sweet treats, snack habit, crisps and found the more I had the more I wanted and the cravings, the crisps shouting at me from the cupboard, all started coming back. I considered, but never upped my dose (as I want to stay on lose doses as long as possible if I can and I am stubborn!) and after Christmas it took the best part of January and some extra willpower to get back to where I was before with no cravings.

Being an ex-smoker (22 years now!) I compared it on the other thread to my many previous attempts at quitting smoking - It was easy to stop smoking, the hardest bit was not starting again, all it took was one cigarette, leading to two and before I knew it I was a smoker again. The "hiccup" at Christmas has confirmed for me, that what/how I eat is more important than just the calories they contain and it will be very easy to fall off the wagon and back into bad habits and restarting the cravings again.

Well done on the S/M leggings! @InfoSecInTheCity

Just before I started Mounjaro, I ordered some bits from M&S and in my parcel there was a two pack of size 14 leggings and a 5 pack of size 14 knickers I didn't order. Phoned M&S to ask how to return (as were no bloody use to me!) and they said to just keep them.

I was in size 22-24 jeans and didn't find anyone to give them away to so stuck them in the cupboard and forgot about them. I came across them a couple of days ago, I am just about fitting into size 16 jeans (can do up but not comfortable yet) but now thinking I might just get to use my M&S free leggings and knickers! 🤣 (although they are regular length and I am 5'8" so might be a bit short!)

Thanks @InfoSecInTheCity and congratulations on the leggings front. I long to be your size and am following your progress avidly!

@WeAllHaveWings - this is exactly it! On a slight tangent, I went to see Paul McKenna a few weeks back (fantastic) and have been doing his whole manifesting thing (I was thinking great wealth, health, success as you do😂) and quite unexpectedly, while listening to his audio book, realised that I want to eat this way for life (for me it is keto) and it came from nowhere that I said (aloud!!!) I want to follow a ketogenic diet for life. I realise I have made the switch from a "means to an end" (weight loss journey) to a "way of life" (after MJ). It was quite the revelation, which may sound a bit odd, but hope it makes sense!

Your smoking analogy sums it up perfectly and makes sense - as pre MJ, the crucial thing for most, if not all of us is the maintenance, once we have got the weight off. Which is not always the easiest thing to manage (that is why, I am sure, we have all lost and gained the same X pounds multiple times over the years). The key, as you have done with stopping smoking, is to never start again. It is essentially adopting a way of eating/living to sustain our weight loss which is doable and as easy as we can make it.

I’m 5ft 8 too and one think I’ve realised is at least part of the extra length I needed on trousers was being used by my belly and butt because regular length aren’t drastically too short anymore, Long length is better but regular works on most things.

I'm also 5'8"!

Today's NSV is that I definitely, absolutely 100% am now in size 20 bottoms - was wearing a 24 (or squeezing into 22s) before starting MJ, so am really pleased with this. Just picked up a pair of size 20 summer trousers via Vinted and they're lovely - obvs now the sun and heat are nowhere to be seen, but I have hope 😬

Just need my top half to shrink a bit now - I've reduced from size 26-28 to around a size 22, but the boobs are still reaching places a few minutes before the rest of me... 🙈

Dr Jones DC on Tiktok talks a lot about what he calls zombie mode when you feel cold, tired, don't lose weight, etc and he recommends increasing calories by 200 a day on a weekly basis so, rather than jump straight to 1600, he would say do 1400 for a week then 1600.
You might find some interesting reading on the Diet Doctor website. I know it's low-carb which might be a bit much for you as yet (although it would be a lot healthier than your current eating) but there is a lot of information about a married couple called the Unwins, both GPs, and their work with diabetics

Feeling a bit worried tonight.

I always check myself (boobs) in the shower especially mid-cycle. I noticed I have lost more weight from my boobs and upper chest area recently and doing up my bra band is much looser. Boobs feel less full too but normal. While checking myself I did notice the bottom of my sternum (xiphoid process) seems a hard lump. Now I am not sure if I can noticed now because I’ve lost weight especially around there and maybe it was like that before. When I slouch (which I normally am) you can’t feel it but if I stand really up right I can feel it. It doesn’t hurt or anything and feeling a bit silly because maybe it’s just a boney but I am not used too.

Can anyone relate to this?
Maybe being obsessed and wearing a tight bra propped up on it makes it grow 🤷‍♀️ and maybe all
nirmal body changes that happened over time like my hump 🙄. I have also noticed the hard fatty lump (my hump) back of neck has shrunk in size lately and feels more boney there which is a good thing.

Will get husband to check the bellow boob sternum bump tomorrow and if worried still will see GP but gosh I would be so embarrassed if it’s just ‘something you normally have when not feeling through lots of fat’.

Any wisdom welcome!

I think I know what you mean and I think it's meant to be there @Reginaphalangeeeee

I remember it from the last time I lost a lot of weight (put it all back on) because I went through a similar thought process!

Thank you @taylorswift1989
feeling paranoid now & it feels sore from poking it so much.
As I have a significant double chin (which is shrinking) I read about lymphatic drainage to help this & doing in the shower each night & while putting cream on. Think it’s help but out of curiosity had a feel of lymph nodes in armpit tonight too. Them no lumps but much more boggy & noticeable through stretch marked loose skin here. I have been unwell with a virus so maybe worrying too much.
Made me wonder thoughhow much lymph nodes involved when loosing weight near those areas.