September 25 starters

[outofofficeagain]

Anybody else planning to start in September?

I’ve been procrastinating for months but decided to go for it despite the price increases. Waiting for my delivery from Medexpress and planning on 1st Sept start.

Thanks for this very helpful calculator, I’ve saved it as it also works out BMI which will be helpful going forward.

According to the calculator, my TDEE is 1991 calories a day. To lose weight, I need to consume 1,740 cals for mild ( 0.23kg per week) loss or 1,491cals for a 0.5kg loss per week.

It’s made me think, on diet alone, I was losing an average of 0.5kg anyway so based on these calculations, there does not seem any point in paying for the injections! I think I’ll stick to no more than 1,400 cals for the rest of this first pen
(took second jab yesterday) and see how much I lose then have a chat with the pharmacist when I collect my new pen. Maybe a reduction to 1,200 will be OK.

Looking at my food diary for last week, apart from days when severe diarrhoea has affected me, I’ve been eating around 1200 to 1300 a day.

Off to my scales for my weekly weigh in now, be interesting to see how much I’ve lost.

@maz99 @MoreIcedLattePlease

Thanks for the advice.

I’m in Ireland and your web links won’t work for me as I get a ‘forbidden’ notice.
I’m limited when buying from the UK these says due to bloody Brexit (!) so Amazon is usually my best/only option. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I’ve looked on the website of the NI pharmacy where I buy my MJ from, but they don’t list syringes for sale. ☹️

I’ll carry on looking and see if there’s anything here in Ireland. 🤞

So my stats are quite pleasing, boosted by extra rapid weight loss - thanks dodgy tummy!

This week, W1 of WLI, I’ve lost 3lb.

Overall, including dieting for around 3 months previously, I’ve lost 24lb so far, starting weight was 19.2st, now 17.5st.

Onwards and upwards,

AI will also do this for you if your maths isn't good!

There are better options than this without having to buy a 'membership'.
The pharmacy (Ashcroft) I bought my 2.5mg from was selling it the cheapest (£120) without a discount code or membership/subscription.

They are selling 5mg for £164.99 and there is currently a £15 discount for this month.

Great loss @SnowWhiteisMyFavourite 👏 your starting weight is the same as mine.

@JustPickleRick I carry a lot of my weight on my stomach too... I look like I'm 6 months pregnant!

Is anyone else using the app MeThreeSixty? I set this app up the same day I did the photos for the pharmacy. The measurements are not accurate in places when compared to my measurements with a tape measure, but I wanted to see the visual changes over time.

@Ihateslugs what is your BMR? the calculator probably recommended a level not too much lower than that.

I would agree that there isn't any need for the injections if you have self control, can manage your diet on your own, no insulin resistance and have good blood sugar.

@maz99 the membership was included in the £142 price, so is £2 more than yours (including postage), so not a great difference! I don't know why, but the Monj website doesn't list Ashcroft on their suppliers. It's worth keeping them in mind anyway, like I said their service was very efficient for the price.

I've ordered another 2.5 pen, but I think the effects are wearing already after my third dose - I'm not really getting any suppression. But I actually, I like feeling hungry and having to use will power but just having a little extra boost to the will power, but I'll go up to to 5mg for my third pen.

I just bought a very good book called the 30g plan by Emma Bardwell, which is about aiming to eat 30g protein each meal, 30g fibre each day and 30 different plants a week. I've been finding it tricky getting enough protein and fibre, and this has lots of recipes and meal ideas, and although they are for more calories than I'm currently eating, I'm finding it a very good template for planning my meals, and the recipes look as though they will be ideal once I'm maintaining rather than trying to lose weight.

I assume you mean BMI?

My current BMI IS 41.5, it was previously 44.7. It’s a very slow decrease!

The consultant I saw re severe osteoarthritis of both knees told me to reduce my BMI before having replacement knees, he does not tell people to lose weight specifically, but as the pain prevents me from walking much let alone exercising, the only thing I can do to reduce it is diet - as I cannot increase my height!

When I first ordered I submitted my application on a Tuesday around 4pm and I had the pen in my hand the following Thursday at 12:30pm.

I personally don't like the idea of a membership/subscription as I don't see the benefit... but it may suit others. The price for these pens are already expensive enough without the need to pay any more.

I found Ashcroft on this website
https://click.compare/mounjaro

Also, what's the cost of the 7.5mg+ pens? Because from what I've seen those pens the subscription providers are a lot higher... which means eventually people will have to move to another provider to get the higher dosage pens cheaper.

@Ihateslugs congrats on the loss, that’s amazing.

@maz99 thanks for sharing your provider. I used Oxford pharmacy who seemed one of the cheaper ones. Was impressed with their service as I got my pen the next working day after approval but your provider is cheaper so I’ll have a look.

I don’t know if it’s day 4 or 5 for me as I took it just before bed on Tuesday night but any feelings I’ve had of feeling a little bit ‘off’ have completely disappeared today.

Suppression is not as strong today. I had a protein meal replacement drink at 10am and then wanted to eat again at 12.30pm but when I ate I could only finish half of it.

I was naughty and did a sneaky early weigh in and have lost 4lb already. I know it’s water weight but was still a nice motivator 🥰

I know some people get stronger effects after the 2nd jab so will see how I go as appreciate it’s still early days but as it stands my plan to stay on 2.5 for a second month may need to be rethought 😆

Day 2 after my first injection and omg the weeing! I've barely been out of the bathroom the last hour. Does this settle down??

No... I mean BMR (basal metabolic rate)
This is the amount of calories our bodies need/use to just function (as if in a coma). So, eating less than this for a long period of time (months) will have an effect... the metabolism will think it's 'starving' and start prioritising certain functions over others (i.e. hair/muscle loss)

TDEE is BMR + activity calories

To calculate your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE), first, calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) using your age, gender, weight, and height.

Then multiply your BMR by an activity factor (e.g., 1.2 for sedentary, 1.55 for moderately active) to get your TDEE. Finally, to lose weight, you need to consume fewer calories than your TDEE, creating a calorie deficit.

Sedentary: Little to no exercise (1.2)
Lightly Active: Light exercise or sports 1-3 days/week (1.375)
Moderately Active: Moderate exercise or sports 3-5 days/week (1.55)
Very Active: Hard exercise or sports 6-7 days/week (1.725)
Super Active: Very hard exercise and a physical job or training twice a day (1.9)

@maz99 I don't know, I have no intention of using them again unless they work out cheapest for my next dose- there's no point looking at that now, as it will inevitably change before I need more, I now have 3 months supply.

It was a membership to the pharmacy, not a subscription to the jab, I haven't signed up for anything more than a single pen, I just wanted to share the good price (which is currently showing as the lowest on monj, as I can't see the Ashcroft pharmacy in the offers table), and the good service. I was explaining about the membership, as if you added the discount code on Monj to your basket with just the Mounjaro, it took off £40, but if you added both pen and membership together, it combined the discounts, which seems counterintuitive to do.

Well it’s day 4 (my 3rd full day as I injected on Weds night)and I was surprised to wake up hungry 😕

Yesterday I still had some of the nausea so just ate when I felt like it, using a Huel Black drink as I have had them before and it was easier than solid food. In the late evening I even felt a bit peckish so had a yogurt and so managed to get up to my 1200 cal over the whole day.

I do hope I haven’t gone from two nauseous days to no suppression! To be honest I don’t even know if I have felt suppression yet, I am expecting a full feeling. I definitely have a slight annoying feeling in my throat as if I want to burp (and do so quite often) but not really a full tum feeling.

Any thoughts from those who are not as early days as me?

@Pinkbox give it a week or so ☺️ mine was fairly gradual, and then seems to change regularly. In on jab 4, day 4, and had a hungry day for no reason 2 days ago, just like a normal week I suppose

I do understand that it was a membership to the pharmacy... my point is that it isn't necessary to do any of that to get a good price.

Ashcroft isn't listed on monj, but it also wouldn't be in the offers table if it was. Because their price is not an offer... it's just their listed price.

They do have a current offer and that is £15 off any pen.

Yes, that's your body letting go of water retention. Usually happens to me when I start on a clean diet and stop filling my body with sugar and chemicals!

Yes it does, I took my jab at 10pm and then was up going to the toilet four times that night which I never do, not even once usually. It did settle down by end of day 2

You're welcome @Kazzaa46 I'm happy to share what I know.

I did a fair bit of research before my first order and could see that whilst some providers with a subscription model do offer additional services (SheMed, Boots, Oushk, Juniper, etc.). But some of their existing customers are very pushy in promoting their discount codes, which felt like MLM and put me off.

I just wanted to get the injection from a provider that is 'real' (Ashcroft is a chemist in Bradford - I'm in London) with fair prices. Why pay more than I need to?

@Pinkbox I'm not sure if I call it suppression, but I couldn't eat as much and went longer to the next meal without any snacks pretty much straight away.

@maz99 hopefully I'm taking this the wrong way because it's written word, but honestly, it just feels like you've told me 4 times that I'm doing it wrong because I've paid £2 more than you. I was just sharing a good price, better than most pharmacies, for a dose a large proportion of the people in this group are going to want to buy soon. I'm really glad that you found a better deal, and a way you are happy to buy. There is no MLM within my message. I haven't shared any referral codes. I haven't told anyone to sign up to anything that's going to tie them in. And Ashcroft are doing exactly the same thing as the other pharmacy, by making the medication cheaper with a code.

I hope you didn't mean to do it, but you've put me off posting in here, by coming back to it repeatedly and basically telling me I'm wrong. You could have just said, yes, that's a similar price to what I've paid, here's the pharmacy, here's the code, its not a referral.

I'm using Juniper - passed my code on because they were the cheapest during the pendemic and it helped me and others out! I ended up getting £100 off my 5mg pen, so paid £129, which I couldn't see cheaper elsewhere at the time? 7.5mg is currently coming up at £229 for me though, so quite a jump! I have a £50 discount applied making it that price too. I've found the service brilliant in fairness, and efficient. No MLM vibes here, promise! Some people are mega pushy though.

I'll be sticking with them for the next few months. I'm planning on half-dosing my 5mg pen for as long as possible, and likewise using smaller doses from the 7.5mg pen so my overall monthly cost should be lower when evened out. I'll pause/cancel once I've gone through all the discounts I can with them and then I plan to move to Ashcroft, as they seem a brilliant alternative so I think you've chosen well.

I'm finding suppression through the roof today! Had a small pancake for breakfast (not my best moment, but my DH brought pancake mix back from the US and DD wanted me to try them too), then 2 egg muffins for mid-morning snack. Made some avocado and cottage cheese on toast for lunch, but I could only manage half of what I'd made! Went shopping with DH for a bit this afternoon and had coffee, but no cake!! Snacked on a pack of hula hoops when I got in, but I'm going to struggle to eat dinner later. I'm starting to wonder how healthy it is to be enjoying the lack of hunger so much? I just feel so free, compared to how it was before.

You are absolutely reading it the wrong way...

I could've said a lot of things... but I chose to say what I wanted to say.

I shared information just like you did, also my own opinion and also explained why I had the opinion.

None of which directly referred to you, only that it was in response to your comment.

But yet you're still doubling down to say that a subscription is the same as an offer code on a website. Really??? If you say so...

I was only highlighting to anyone on this post that may not be aware that they can still get good prices without a membership or subscription - and I used the pharmacy I purchased from as an example.

I fully understand that everyone has a preference for their own journey.

I purely found Ashcroft by chance and I'm not sure if they are the cheapest any more. But I do know they were efficient and cheap.

Are you doing 3.75mg now? How long were you on 2.5mg?

I'm feeling very peckish today... didn't eat breakfast but had a mini fry up for lunch - 1 hash brown, beans, 2 fried eggs, and mushrooms.

I was out with my cousin last night and she automatically bought my usual drink - rum & coke. I only had one drink... maybe that's what making me feel peckish?

@maz99 it's not a subscription. For about the 3rd time. There is nothing to tie you in. It is a one time purchase. There is no requirement to order again.

Membership to the pharmacy plus the jab, using the code, came to £2 more than yours. I have no need to reorder with them, nothing to tie me to them. It may be that in the future, as with Ashcroft, that whatever offer they have on makes it cheaper than others. Maybe not. I've not used them before.

Apart from being £2 cheaper, can you explain how that is better or worse than Ashcroft?

Not that you'll be able to see, but 3 other members of this thread have liked my comment, suggesting that I'm not the only one who read your comments that way.