Unrealistic expectations?

[AirborneElephant]

I’ve decided enough is enough, and I’ve ordered Mounjaro. I’ve successfully struggled with weight all my life, hanging onto the top end of a healthy BMI. But since going through medical menopause three years ago I can no longer control it, the weight has steadily built and I am now obese.

So, onto my hopes for this medication. I would desperately love to be able to order a meal that I fancy in a restaurant, rather than obsessing about what will fill me up. I’d love to eat a nice healthy dinner and then not feel like eating an entire chocolate bar or tub of ice cream. Or eat a chicken salad for lunch and not be desperate to add bread. I’d love to stop thinking about food all day - when can I eat, is it time yet, what am I allowed. So, how unrealistic am I being here?

Everyone is different but not unrealistic I would say. I am 6 months in, slow but steady loser.

my desire for crappy food has massively decreased. It’s still there because crappy food is nice sometimes but I eat much much less (genuinely satisfied by a mouthful). Conversely my idea of a huge treat foodwise is a bowl of cherries.

what it has done for me is removed my enjoyment of food as an activity. I used food to give me a dopamine hit and stress/comfort eat. That has gone (good) but so has the joy of eating a nice meal as a leisure activity. That has been mentally quite a tough adjustment if I’m honest.

good luck - it is a game changer but it is still an effort on your part.

Sounds perfectly reasonable, I hope it works out for you. Make sure you have a healthy meal plan in place, drink plenty of water and get some sort of exercise every day. I tracked calories to begin with to make sure I was in a deficit, but still eating enough. It will still take time to lose weight and aim for 1-2 pounds per week so your body has time to adapt. Good luck.

Not unrealistic at all. You've described mine and many other people's experience. It works for the large majority.

That sounds fairly realistic but I personally haven’t found that it eliminates all those thoughts, just most of them. Works for me.

You sound a lot like me. Although no medical menopause I finally lost my grip due to peri and a really stressful situation at home.

I’m 12 wks in and almost 2 stone down.

I eat a healthy dinner with my family every night and I don’t feel like having a whole tub of ice cream (half a large bar or chocolate or whole tube of Pringles was my go to!). Sometimes I fancy a small snack - but a multi pack crunchie or finger of fudge totally satisfies me.

The less good bit. I think about food all the time. I worry that I’m not eating too much or not eating enough. I worry I won’t lose. Should I go up a dose. I worry that I’m inadequately fuelled for exercise etc. if I’ve not eaten breakfast and I start to get hungry I start fantasising about all the things I will eat… then I make a meal and can’t eat it all! So for me that ‘noise’ hasn’t gone. But the compulsion to eat has. I know others get the complete silence you describe but I wanted to be honest - although this is the easiest weight loss I’ve ever experienced it is still hard because I’m very anxious about everything.

Thank you all. I am a bit worried about the not enjoying a meal out as a leisure activity, I have to admit. I was hoping I’d still enjoy the taste of nice food, and just be able to eat less. Does everyone tend to find they just don’t enjoy it at all any more?

Thank you very much for the honesty Incognitoburrito88 , it’s helpful to be prepared. I have a plan to help with the protein / macros anxiety, I have low sugar protein for a shake instead of breakfast (I’ve never really liked eating first thing), and my go-to for lunch is a chicken Caesar salad which should still work in some form. I will need to keep cooking dinner otherwise DH won’t eat properly, but he’s not fussy so I can cook mainly protein and veg and do carbs for him.

I don’t think that’s too unrealistic. I generally feel like you’ve described. Sometimes I do have pudding , but I choose what I fancy not the one that’s biggest now, and I often can’t finish. Although being able to leave food is still a challenge even when I can recognise that I’m full.

I’ve been taking mj 4.5 months and lost 18.5 kg, so basically 2 lbs a week. Initially it comes off fast, then slows a bit. Don’t rush through the doses, the smaller the dose you can manage on, the better. I’m still on 5 mg and my side effects are minimal now as I’m used to that amount. Better for skin and body to lose slowly.

I still definitely enjoy the taste of nice food. I look forward to my dinner every night. The meal out thing is hard to describe. I love eating out but have only done it once in 12 wks - four kids so not unusual but it’s normally me who pushes for a meal out and I haven’t done so. I just feel a bit ambivalent about it - I think because food doesn’t give me the same ‘hit’ it used to the meal out is much less exciting - but that’s ok - because I can recognise that my desperation to go to a restaurant and eat loads probably wasn’t particularly healthy in itself. My husband and I have had to find other things to do to spend quality time together but that’s ok.

The dinner I went out for I ordered a seafood platter because that’s what I love and it’s high protein. I enjoyed it, ate til I was full and then didn’t even consider a desert. I enjoyed the company and the ambience and the talking about food and what people were having but filling my stomach was not the main focus of the outing. I’m going away to a spa hotel with friends at the weekend and we’ve got a posh dinner booked. I’m looking forward to it but mainly the getting dressed up and being with my friends element - If I’m honest I’m slightly worried about them noticing how little I can physically eat - hopefully they will be too drunk!!

I think your concern about eating out is a symptom of a disordered relationship with food though (sorry that sounds harsh but that’s what I had too) - I had exactly the same concerns. But the reality is that once you start on the jabs you won’t care about it anymore.

I’d be very happy to lose slowly. I have 25kg to lose ideally, so if I can manage 1kg a week I’d be done by Christmas 😀. Normally I do a lot of exercise, I average over 1000 active calories a day (if you choose to believe the tracker!), but injured right now so it’s a challenge. Might need to look into swimming options as it’s the only thing I will be able to do for a few weeks. But I currently hate the way I look in a costume 😒

This sounds perfect - you sound very well prepared. I tend to just eat a small portion of the family dinner including carbs and it’s fine.

That’s my experience! Not really arsed about food and when I do look forward to something and order it, can usually only manage half. Have gone right off booze, stopped smoking and lost 4 stone since January. It’s been life changing for me - the relief of not having to obsess about food is quite astonishing and makes me realise how much I did centre everything around food before.

In terms on enjoying eating out, for me the first few months getting used to the medication meant I couldn’t really enjoy a meal out. I had nausea and indigestion and just couldn’t manage much food. We had a special dinner two months ago, and I really could not eat much at all because I was just moving up doses and it was a little stressful having a plate of expensive food in front of me and just picking at it. But now I’m used to my current dose and I could enjoy a meal at a restaurant having a smaller portion but definitely pleasurable.

@Incognitoburrito88 that’s the same as my experience of eating out. I do it quite a lot still and I enjoy it but I don’t ‘fancy’ it as much. Our family tastes are pretty low brow but the idea of eating a whole pizza or a main course at somewhere like wagamamas is way too much now. I eat starters, swap for salad etc. still fun to go out but the food is not the attract

Thank you. Yes, you’re probably right that it’s part of the disordered thinking. Definitely use meals out as an excuse to eat and drink too much. If I can still enjoy the taste / company / ambiance I should be ok. Loving your seafood platter story, that’s exactly what I want to be able to do. Order what I fancy, stop when I’m full.

I've eaten out once in the 2.5 years I've been on the meds. I just can't eat enough for it to be worth it. I had a wrap from subway the other day and it lasted me three dinners. Lady night my other half had fish and chips, I had 6 chips and was full. But we are all different. Last year I went on holiday and had one meal a day and could eat maybe a quarter. It was a waste of money so I went to the supermarket and bought cheese and ham and had it in the room.

Hi - yes this is my experience exactly. I'm 22 weeks in and 50lbs down.

I actually enjoy eating out more - I take more time with my food and enjoy it - and I don't worry if I'm leaving food on my plate if I'm full. I tend to order 2 x starters rather than a main and I haven't had dessert since starting MJ - just haven't felt the need to. I tend to stick to soft drinks (a total turnaround for me!), so eating out is fun and I enjoy that I haven't cooked and am not going to wash up!

Top tips from me:

Drink tons of water every day - at least 2 x litres
Up the protein and veg and reduce carbs
Get some hand weights if you haven't got any and use them in short bursts every day - it's amazing how quickly muscle will build if you use them regularly and the fat starts going!
Use a side plate as your main eating plate - this has really helped me with portion control
Enjoy what you eat - I've found I've wanted lots of tasty food - and if I want a sweet taste I'm blobbing cranberry sauce on my plate, which has been lovely!

Good luck and I hope it works for you 🙂

I think this sums up my feelings on it too. I’ve been on it 11 months & lost 4 stone. However, you do want some kind of hunger & get used to the weekly cycle of how the injections make you feel. It’s so liberating!

I feel how you describe. 27.4kg down now over 6 months.

I still really enjoy the taste of good food, perhaps even more than before. But I don't need to eat very much of it.

I’ve been away for three weeks in the last month and eaten out most nights. But how I eat now is very different to 6 months ago when I started.

I’ve learned about what someone described as “the sigh” which is when you’re eating and you’ve reached your “had enough point” but you could still keep going. Now I stop, even if there’s still food on the plate. I was brought up to clean my plate and I can’t remember ever leaving food pre-MJ. This has been a really big deal for me.

I’m also happy now to order what I want, rather than what I think I ought to have. So three courses have gone out the window. Now it might be a starter with one or two side vegetables to be served as a main. Sometimes I’ll have a main and DH and I share a starter and/or a dessert. I’ve always been a curious and adventurous foodie, but now I recognise that often I really just want a taste to see what a dish is like, and I don’t want a whole portion. Plenty of times I’ve looked at the menu and thought there’s nothing special/unusual there, so I’ll just have a coffee to end the meal. And sometimes not even a coffee.

And I must say, it’s been lovely coming home and having ordinary food again!

@AirborneElephant I’m a year in, lost all I wanted to in six months, have been maintaining on a decreasing dose since Jan.
When I first started I wondered if I would ever be interested in food again - it was my joy. It took a while but I do genuinely enjoy food now. I can go out for dinner and have a lovely time. Can cook for friends. Will cook something I really fancy just for me. But I’m also not over eating.
There are days when I could happily skip a meal and not be bothered. That was never a thing before.
For full disclosure- it’s not all roses- the munchy food noise is somewhat back. But I also know that a walk is better than ice cream to lift my mood.
Good luck.

I think it's very realistic. I've gone from someone who thought about food all day, every day. Like you, I've picked a dish in a restaurant because it looked more filling than the others. Now, I pick something I really fancy and it's usually healthier. I use to always have dessert, now I never do. It doesn't work the same way for everyone but I hear a lot of people saying similar.
Good luck with your journey.

What you want is pretty much in line with my experiences OP.

I find meals out are doable, but best as far away from the last jab as possible. For me this means injecting on Mondays, and going out at weekend. I choose judiciously, nothing too big and heavy, but that aside its fine. And I still like the food.

This is on 2.5 though. It might be harder if you find you need a higher dose.

I think it varies. I don't enjoy eating out any more. I don't really enjoy food or crave it at all. I still eat out. I might eat half a pizza out and take the rest home. But I certainly don't hate eating either. I'm just full quicker and I don't crave things. But that wears off over the week. So injection on Monday might be best if you eat out over the weekend?

I'm three months in and only thought about a takeaway once. I'm hoping this all with it as I'm also a slow looser

Ive only been on it for a few days but so far it's been amazing for me. I started taking it because I was just so fed up of having food on my mind constantly. Even if I was being good and not over eating or eating sweet things, I'd still be thinking about them and having this endless battle in my head.

I still feel hunger but it's not such an all consuming feeling...I also have been amazed at how quickly I feel full. Before this I could eat a three course meal in a restaurant and still be perfectly happy to keep eating. Hardly anything left me full. I fancied a biscuit yesterday, ate it and usually I'd want more and more but I ate it, thought that was fine but not that great and didn't reach for more.