Late April ‘25 starters - thread 6

[Stasis26]

New year, new thread, new username for me to reflect my the start of my first year of maintenance - I’m a wlinewbie no more!

onwards and downwards (or along) we go!

@Merlin23that book sounds interesting I’m going to have a look!

It is really good, it starts by explaining what GLP-1 is and how it was discovered. How it has been used. What obesity is. Then it explains how to take it then how to maintain with or without it.
Protein is the key 80-100 grams a day
I am definitely going to up my protein.

Thanks @Merlin23- the audiobook is included with Spotify Premium, so I’ll have a listen. I’m much better at reading than listening though, so might have to buy!

I like to listen but I might buy it because there are lots of facts and figures.

Right - I’ve ordered it! 😀

Hope you enjoy it!

🎉 @AbundanceofKatherines and @Merlin23. Wow! Very impressive!

On a different subject, I was wondering if anyone has managed to tighten up their loose skin? I’ve only lost 2.5 stone ( not complaining - I’m happy with it), but have been left with quite a wrinkly tummy (between my breast bone and tummy button) and bingo wings. I’m doing 3 strength and Pilates classes a week, but it doesn’t seem to be improving things. Any suggestions?

Hello all,

First weigh-in since my Christmas debacle and I'm -2lbs

CW: 128.5lbs

I've revised my goal weight (which was initially 126lbs) and I'm aiming for 119lbs. That's 8st 7lb and I'm 5ft 1in so it's still at the upper end of my range?

In total I've now lost 59lbs.

Plan is to get to goal, titrate down to a smaller dose (I've been on 10mg for many months now but have not needed to go any higher) but I'm also going to look into therapy as I don't feel my mentality around food has changed at all. I think if I was to stop MJ I'd be back to my old ways quickly as they are all I've ever known.

I haven't been as healthy as some of the people in this group. I still have too many carbs (but much, much less) and I haven't managed to crack my sugar addiction (but I no longer overeat / binge. I can stop after a biscuit these days?)

That isn't through willpower though, its because of MJ.

I fully admit my reasons for being fat are phycological and I wish the past 8 months had allowed me to fully change my habits but its not worked like that for. I feel like MJ is treating the symptoms (being fat) without tackling the underlying cause.

So until a time I feel more able I'm going to have to be a long term user. Anyone else on here feel this way?

@crunchymum I recognise the feeling of not quite having done it properly, but it’s not all or nothing, some people may exist on zero carbs and sugar, Victoria Beckham comes to mind, but she looks miserable. I think that whole mindset of good and bad foods etc , can be so damaging, you are describing a healthy lifestyle. It’s fine to have a biscuit, you are doing well. And so am I.
84.5 this morning, .8 kilo down from last week, and travelling in the right direction. I had 2 glasses of white wine last night, and woke at 3 am with what feels like a hangover. Does Mounjaro make us more sensitive to the effects of alcohol? I don’t drink much, but if this is the result I think I will cut it out all together.

Well done on your latest weight loss.
After reading numerous books from obesity doctors, I have come to the conclusion I need to cook my own food as I used to and only eat upf as a treat. My bmr is very very low. The joys of being short.

I am never going to give up chocolate as life is too short.
I like my new size and I think I'll be on mj throughout my life as my body has never been slim and it needs retraining.

Hi all, checking in late to the 2026 party. I’ve skimmed the last thread but I’d missed so much I decided to just start fresh here. Happy new year to everyone.

xmas and NY was a crazy time for me and things are just starting to settle .

I didn’t weigh myself at all over the festive period, and am gobsmacked to learn that I’ve lost a few lb and gone down a stone bracket!

im still on 5ml … I have 4 doses left and am thinking I will get a 2.5 pen to titrate for maintenance. I’ve been reading about stopping cold turkey and it scared me to imagine gaining weight after such a transformative journey. I’m going to see how I feel on 2.5 and go from there.

i never actually had a ‘goal’ weight in mind.

This year is about exercise. I haven’t done weights or any exercise really, and my muscles are seriously depleted… not that I was ever muscular to start with. I feel like a marshmallow, and am hoping to tone up.

back to clubercise and I’m incorporating some light weight lifting into my day. I’ve got a kettle bell and figure I’ll start small and see how I go.

Lovely to see everyone’s updates and connect with you all again.

Lots of love xx

Happy New Year @cannyvalley good to have you back!
I think you should buy a 5ml and micro dose 2.5ml.
It will be cheaper and get your body used to the new weight for a little longer. You could also micro dose to 1.25ml for a few weeks.
Im thinking of ordering more with a maintenance site as I'm too scared to come off completely. My body needs to reset its weight set point.

Checking in. Happy New Year all!

Hi everyone, I haven't posted since late Sept, when I had my last pen. I didn't ever go past 3.75mg but, unfortunately, I couldn't afford the price increases.
I dropped 3st in total and never quite made it to my goal weight of 10st - I was very happy with 10st 4lb though! I maintained my weight until the start of Dec and stopped weighing myself with any regularity. Gave in to treats and booze in December and, as a result, gained a whopping 10lbs!
I'm furious with myself but I have restarted the same calorie counting and meal plan I used on MJ - 1450cals per day with treats on the weekend. Lots of meal and snack prep! In my first week, I've dropped 3lb of the 10 gained. I'd like to drop the other 7 by the end of Jan and maybe the last 4lb by my birthday in mid-Feb.
So, I'm not longer taking MJ, but would love to follow along with your journeys, if you'll have me!

Morning all
Monday weigh in, and, disappointingly I've put on another 0.6kg!
So that's a gain for two weeks in a row 😞
I had got down to 68.8kg and I'm now at 70.03kg. If I'm honest, I have been getting back into having bits of Xmas chocolate after meal times. I need to knock this on the head now as it's becoming a bad habit. I can so easily become accustomed to wanting something sweet (chocolate!) after a meal. Once I'm out of the habit, I don't miss it.
So, anyway, that's my goal now for this week. Need to see a loss on next week's weigh-in!

Hi all! And welcome back those who have returned for a new year!
@SassyLimeHelperwell done on maintaining for a while and it sounds like you will get back on top of the Christmas gain really quickly 👏
Hello @cannyvalleyif I were you I would order a 5mg for titrating down as the £value is much better than 2.5mg if you are happy to go a bit over 30 days you can do it more gradually. I would also recommend choosing one of the maintenance friendly pharmacies (I’ve gone with Swift but I also hear good things about Pharmulous, cloud or even the marmite Oushk!) that way if you do start to regain you have the option to restart without having to get back to obese to qualify. I feel just like you, weight is now back where I want it but muscle is not, arms and ass are in serious need of toning!

well done on the loss @Zebracati def can’t drink like I used to and have mostly gone off wine, I have a new ability to just stop after a couple of drinks which is reason alone to micro dose forever as I was in a terrible bad habit of ‘wine o’clock’ most days to cope with life’s stress before MJ came along. I make sure when I do drink to have extra water and electrolyte before bed and haven’t had a hangover in such a long time.

well done @Crunchymumon this week’s loss but also on the really honest self-reflection, I can identify a bit, I did improve what I ate a lot, but I do know what you mean about suspecting I will need Mj longer term, I’ve yet to try fully coming off but I let my levels drop last week, much lower than they have since near the start due to being away over the holidays, at the lowest point I felt the mindless grazing return with a vengeance (browsing the cupboards, eating leftovers off the kids’ plates). Took a dose and after 24h it stopped completely. Same as you described @AbundanceofKatherines- It’s easy to forget how much heavy lifting even a low dose of Mj still does for us in the background. With all these statistics of re-gain I am realistic enough to know I’m not likely to be the lucky exception, but determined never to be obese again so will keep taking it if necessary.

@ThePilatesLifenot yet but toning arms is my top priority! My bingo wings are horrid. Ok under winter jumpers but that’s the goal for summer too.

thanks for the book rec @Merlin23l’ll have a listen.

and hi everyone else I’ve not scrolled down to wave 👋🏻 Better get on with Monday morning though - alarm’s about to go off!

last reflection - it’s just amazing having a January where I’m not feeling overwhelmed with the huge amount of weight I need to lose. One less miserable thing about this horrid, dark, depressing month!

Hi everyone.. its been a while.
I have just read back through about 900 posts on the previous thread and love that their are still so many positive stories.

I have been a bit rubbish with no mj regularity since my summer holiday. I had seriously bad frozen shoulder which basically put me out of action so the gym stopped along with any exercise due to the pain. Due to feeling poorly and being dosed up with medication I stopped MJ for a while as didn't want the side effects of feeling generally low in energy alongside those of the painkillers. After my steroid injection when the pain from the shoulder resided and I could stop taking the painkillers I have tried to restart MJ weekly but other random illnesses and issues have stopped me so I have maybe had a jab one day then the next 10 days later etc. My lowest weight has been 9st5, which I was also back to over Xmas during a bout of illness that put me in bed but upon getting out of bed I appear to have gone on a rampage and eaten everything I shouldn't and have put on 5lb.

I have a holiday to the Philippines planned for April and I am determined to get to 9st before then. I have 2 x 5mg pens left and I took a 2.5mg dose Sat night and I AM going back to weekly and back to the gym.. I cant do a lot as my shoulder still doesnt move but I will do something! (Im trying to convince myself)

I must say though, I have woken up this morning with a headache, crazy thirst and a feeling of exhaustion... its like week one again!!

Good luck to you all for the year ahead, whether that be carrying on plodding, maintaining, starting to titrate down or even just making a decision about what happens next xx

Week 37 weigh in and its 3.5lbs off! Really got back to basics after xmas/ny I had let my water intake slip so back to at least 2l per day. Also back to work/school so in a much better routine again. Hope everyone has a great week 😊

@Stasis26
January is so dark and miserable, I wish we could adopt extending Christmas lights outside houses to brighten January!

Well done to everyone on losses and best of luck to everyone getting back on track.

I was feeling OK, until I heard we have Ofsted in at work tomorrow! 😱
Better get all my knowledge in my head!

Oh no @Merlin23that’s bad luck at an already hard time of year. Hope it goes well. I remain unconvinced about the changes to the framework but hope it’s a positive experience.

First inspection as we only opened last year! Tuesday is our busiest day! They would choose a Tuesday! 😱😳

Lovely reading everyone’s updates and decisions for the new year. Hope Ofsted isn’t too bad @Merlin23

1lb off for me this week 🎉

Taking the first dose out of my last pen today and feels like the end for my MJ use is in sight, but that’s not end of my weight loss journey so I’ll definitely be sticking around in here for a while longer 😊. 8lb to get to top of ideal weight (10st) but I’d like to be a bit under that. Feeling ready to come off the MJ and try going it alone, and can’t really justify the cost continuing much longer…but need to think about back up plans for if the weight piles back as all the media articles are doom and glooming about at the moment.

@Coventree
Ofsted was fine. I wasn't even asked any questions. Inspector was still with management when I finished.
Good luck with your last pen. I am really scared to come off. I'm thinking of staying on for the whole year. I might order 2 more pens and with micro dosing that will see me through to 2027 and hope my body can reset its set point. My set point has always been at around 14 stone - I am currently 9 stone.
It's such a battle

Hi Stasis26, longtime lurker here 😊
can I please ask, is it Swift-medi you’re using, and are happy with? And they’re good for maintenance?
I’m not too far off BMI 25, about 12lb to go, but 5’9” and late 50s. I do want to go down a bit further, but vainly worried about saggy skin! So thinking about maintenance now, and very possible very long term use. Especially in view of my age, I really don’t want to regain again. This is the second time I have lost a significant amount of weight, and I have read that when you lose a significant amount of weight, you lose muscle as well as fat, and when you regain the weight, you only regain fat. So each time this cycle happens, you’re further depleting your muscles.
So, all you younger users, take heed, and keep off the weight while you have elasticity in your skin too! 😉

Congrats on getting Ofsted out of the way @Merlin23glad it wasn’t too stressful for you.

@Pinkapronyes I moved to Swift Doctor for my last order (and had made one previous order with them in August - I have used about 5 different suppliers). I specifically made one more order with them in November to have myself on record as wanting to move to maintenance and try to come off MJ, as they allow reorder of 2.5mg with a gap of up to 12 months. I confirmed this with them and this is the exact wording from my email:

“With regards to restarting after a break, yes we allow patients to restart within 12 months of their last order as long as your BMI remains above 21 (our prescribing cut off).

Thanks,
Customer Support
SwiftDoctor”

I am currently maintaining at BMI 22.5ish and using up the last of my pen stash. I intend to order another pen from them before my 12 months is up to reset the clock and keep myself in the system in case of future gains, I never want to have to get back to obese to meet the criteria again.