5 pens in and only lost 1st 8lbs . Please help

[Hundredthmillionthdiet]

Hi,

I've been on my weightloss journey for some time. Lost 3 stone through diet and exercise and really struggled to lose more.

I put some weight on, struggled with cravings so decided to try mounjaro.

I'm 5 pens in, just ordered my 6th and upped the dose to 10mg and only lost 1st 8lbs in that time. That's from beginning November, (with a big loss in my first week of mounjaro).

What am I doing wrong ? I eat in region of 1200 calories a day. I try to exercise but not as much due to time.
I'm only grateful that at least the weights not going back on. I have the odd treat but I count everything.

Any ideas/ tips /advice ?

First you have lost lots whixh is good

Age/height/weight/activity levels- 1200 and stable suggests not much exercise? Although 1200 for me would be around a pound a week off

No advice but following- lost 15lbs since Jan and about to start my 5th pen on 7.5 currently- no side effects like others but do have weeks where I gain then lose so frustrating my bmi is 47 so I have a lot to lose also

Maybe look at your calories? If I ate 1,200 I wouldn’t lose weight.

Age 39/5ft 2/11st 12lb.

Try go to spin once a week, with an additional session at gym and or walks.

When I lost the 3st I was at gym 4 times a week but I just don't have the time for that but I'm still keeping active. I aim for 40:40:20 protein, carbs, fat split.

So, around 20 weeks and a 22 pound loss, is that right? That gives an average of 1.1 pounds lost per week, which is an expected amount of weight loss.

1200 calories puts you at about 500 cals below your TDEE roughly, per week. Which would be around a pound a week weight loss, on average, which is where you are at. So I would say you're not doing anything wrong at all.

Op not much help but you’ve lost a lot in 4 months when you think about it?

For me 1200 cals equates to about 1 pound per week loss, so about right for 20 weeks? I have just finished reading 'Why we eat (too much)' and I recommend it if you've got time. Th diet he suggests is no upf, lots of whole foods, high in omega 3 so nothing groundbreaking there. But, the book explains a lot about how the body works, why obese peoples bodies work differently to those of a normal weight and why it is so important to change what you are eating and how much in order to maintain a healthy relationship with food that allows your body to lose weight. It could be if you are on a restricted diet it has done as much as it can for you and your body is now fighting back against it and wants to get back to your old 'set point'.

At those figures you would be looking to lose a pound every 2 weeks if you are really strict

Do you actually track your calories, because according to a Tdee calculator, you should be losing weight.

I lost 10/11lbs in the first week so I would be 11 lbs after that

Should I reduce my calorie intake do you think ?

Reduce from 1200? Isn’t that already very low?

Not drastically low ? Was thinking 1000 ?

I would hardly lose anything if I consumed 1200 a day.

I usually eat around 800 since starting MJ.

If you aren’t getting adequate suppression maybe go up to max dosage, but I suspect you are just consuming too many calories to make significant loss possible.

There are some awful posts in here - nobody should be advocating eating under 1000 calories. It’s unhealthy and unsustainable.

you are losing weight, you are in a calorie deficit. It’s working but losing weight is a long game.

If you cut your calories even more you are at risk of your hair falling out and nutritional deficiencies.

I know it's a long game. I've been at this for 18 months. So hard when you see/hear people losing weight and it's dropping off them.

I live on noddles about 2-3 day and coffee.
I dont think i cover a 1000 calories.

I maintain on 1300. So 800 is the recommended 500 below maintenance that allows me to lose between one and two pounds a week.

If your maintenance is really that low, which seems incredibly unlikely unless you’re both very short and totally sedentary, then the 500 calories deficit isn’t suitable for you. Please speak to a GP.

Have you calculated your TDEE?

You can’t possibly be getting all the nutrition you need, and how will you maintain such a low level of calories? If you can’t handle eating much, you need to focus on better quality, higher calorie foods. Snack on nuts, dried fruits etc.

Agreed. OP, I’m not here to tell you about the pros and cons of weight-loss injections because you clearly lost more without it, but there seems to be a lot of disordered eating going on. Your weight might also have plateaued. But please do not go below 1200, without consulting a qualified nutritionist/dietician. 800-1000 calories is not sustainable for long term healthy eating.

If you're 11st 12 how much should you be? Weight loss slows a lot when you're close to healthy and 1lb a week is great!

OP, you’re better off losing weight slowly rather than drastically. You have less weight to lose compared to others who might show significant weight loss. Your body and lifestyle is different to others so try not to compare too much and focus on your own journey. Instead of reducing the calories, just focus on having a healthy and balanced diet that gives you the energy to have an active lifestyle rather than a sedentary one.