BMI under 27 - Off Label/less to lose

[ritala]

I am mid 40’s and just can’t lose the weight like I used to. I’m fed up of losing and gaming the same two pounds. I’m about a stone and a half more than my happy weight (where I would be approx bmi 23).

I have tried to find a thread for people who have been approved ‘off label’ Wegovy or Mounjaro with less to lose but couldn’t find one, so thought I’d start here. I have a BMI higher than 25 but less than 27 with a couple extra health conditions. Hoping to start after Easter. I’d like to stay with a very low dose if possible. Half a pound a week loss would be good for me. I really want to avoided side effects.

Anyone who is in a similar boat and wants to share experiences or ask questions, please join! X

@NinthBestOption I believe the advice for women is to wait at least four weeks on a particular calorie target to decide if it's 'working' because hormone fluctuations/cycle can hide the impact, eg retaining water. But if you don't start losing soon I'd go back to your doctor, because unless there's a drip feed that you're extremely short, 1100-1200 should be low enough to lose weight surely. I can imagine it must be really frustrating.

I’m on track for a tiny loss this week but I’m feeling very bloated due to my period, so it’s definitely hormonal. I had a similar pattern last month in terms of not much loss around my period.

However, I’m tipping into the 9 stone bracket for the first time since I got married 20 years ago!

I finding it really interesting to read everyone’s experiences.

My story: as of this morning, in the last 5 and a half weeks I’ve lost 12lbs from top starting weight, probably more like 10lbs from usual weight in the mornings.
I’m only just over 5 foot, am currently 9 stone 1, which has taken me into the green range of BMI.

I am aiming to get under 9 stone by the end of next week - that would give me a huge psychological boost I think.
I’ll then have 4 more weeks of jabs to go, which will hopefully take me to about 8 stone 8ish. I’d be delighted with that - it’s still towards the higher end of the green BMI scale, but I don’t think I want to be any lighter than 8 and a half stone. Maintaining will be the challenge.

On a day to day basis, I’m eating normal, healthy foods, but am genuinely happy with a smaller portion - I’d previously got into the habit of matching my very tall husband bite-for-bite. I’m getting a bit lax with hitting the protein target though; I definitely need to up my game with that. I’ve had no side-effects, still enjoying my meals but much less greedy and once a meal is over, I’m not really thinking much about food until the next one comes along. Presumably this is how naturally thin people operate all the time, what a revelation!
My sleep is still not great, but not sure if I can blame that on the WLI, probably other factors at play there.

Thanks for all the support on here, it’s good to hear how others are doing.

I’m 2 jabs and 10 days in. Lost 6.5lbs which Im
thrilled about. Really struggling to eat anything today though-the suppression is insane!!

Had a lunch out and really noticed the difference - there weren't really any 'light' menu options, I still enjoyed the taste but I took far longer to eat and I was trying to eat enough to feel polite and not waste my food. It's surreal to be faced with a portion of fries and think 'i could take or leave that'. It was nice to be sociable though.

Hi can I join you all.
Height 5ft 7.5
Age 58
SW 12st 7lb (73kgs)
BMI 27.4
First GW 11st 7lb

Simple process signing up with MedExpress just with photo and ID check.
i do have raised cholesterol but not on medication. So that might have swung it for me.
Also in the last year I’ve been experiencing lower leg aches and pains which just won’t disappear.
I have a physical job in that I’m on my feet all day but do no other exercise.

Was feeling fed up of my clothes getting tight and uncomfortable and a general feeling of not being at the correct weight for me. Hoping a lose of weight will improve the cholesterol and inflammation I have.
Took the plunge and first dose of Wegovy 2 days ago. 0.25ml

Set my first goal as 11st 7 so not too much to lose
In the past I’ve hovered around that weight naturally.
Anything less than 11st and I look too thin.

So far no SE. I know it’s early days so I chose to do first week while on half term holidays just in case.
I know how to eat well but I just need this to focus my mind on healthy meals and stop my mindless snacking which is my downfall.
I’m already feeling that focus returning and finding my normal meals are enough without the snack temptation.

@NinthBestOption are you tracking your weight in an app like Happy Scale? If so, you could download the data and give it to Chat GPT or another AI and ask if you’re really in a plateau. I have done that and it was able to convince me that I’m actually just losing more slowly rather than a true plateau. I’d still love to get back to the 1.2 lb per week loss I had for the first few weeks but it says losing .5 pounds per week is much more likely to be sustainable and healthy.

I track in chatgpt. It does tell me it's a plateau and that's normal, but 3 weeks without change is a bit wearing.

I can't imagine my GP will be interested, the jabs are probably the solution, I'll up it to 0.5ml next jab.

Still happy enough with the bit of weightloss I've had and the ability to stick to a diet. But I'm now 24.5 bmi and need to get that down some more.

Evening ladies, sadly I’m here to report that my second period is not at all like the first on MJ ☹️.

First day today and have horrific pains again. Nothing touching the sides.

That is disappointing, I'm sorry you are suffering and hope you can take it easy 💐

Hi everyone. I’m going to be honest. I have had a lifetime of deafening food noise and struggles with food obsession and I’ve just bought some MJ.
Im 5ft 3 and currently 9 stone but have a small frame and feel best at 8 stone 4 or thereabouts.
i’ve already been sugar and flour free for 30 years I’m pretty much vegan apart from some fish. I’m not quite sure what else I can do. The menopause ihas absolutely been horrific. The only difference now is that I used to do hours and hours of exercise a week to maintain my weight and now I just don’t have time anymore - or the energy.

Hi @Objectrelations from your wording it sounds like you're a little reluctant/unsure - if so you'll find plenty in this thread who've been a similar position, I think because of the message that 'just losing a few lbs is easy'.
One thing I would caution about MJ is that it's very effective for a lot of people (double antagonist?) so do be careful you don't eat too little. Do you mind me asking if you got it prescribed, ie if you have access to a clinician if you need to?

Also just an update from me, end of first week of wegovy and I'm 2kg down on the scale. I know that includes water weight but I haven't seen the scale move in that direction for so long that I'm happy with that, especially as it's a week after my holiday so would have expected a bit of holiday weight to show now. Will be taking my second dose this evening so I'm really hoping to have another positive week.

Asking for some advice on gastro issues - I haven't really had many side effects apart from not tolerating a curry very well, but that just gave me a bit of a sore stomach. Yesterday though I threw up last night after having something with prawns while out - it wasn't a huge amount of food, it wasn't spicy, so I'm not sure if it was actually a touch of food poisoning or is it likely I could have just suddenly had a bad side effect like that? What I ate was something I've had before on Wegovy and it was fine then. I'm six weeks in. Thanks for any thoughts!

@Proteinpudding thank you so much for your response and for not judging. Yes, I have had it prescribed but I was dishonest about my BMI 😬 Although they did require a photo so on that basis, they have prescribed it to me. I really don’t want to eat too Little. I just want to know have constant food noise and struggling.

@Objectrelations I thought that could be the case as I go by kg but 9st sounded quite low! I'm not here to judge (think everyone on this thread is tired of being judged!) I am glad you've got a legit source though I was a bit worried you might have bought black market and not know what you were getting.
Everyone is different of course, but I started on wegovy and got instant appetite suppression, I went from eating 1800-2000 calories a day to having to work to hit 1300. With MJ being 'stronger' for most people I'd suggest having some easy to eat food around to make sure you can take in enough, given you're presumably already not eating relatively little at your height & weight. And if you're not already, consider doing strength training to preserve your muscle mass. I know it's not clinically recommended but some people 'click count' to take smaller doses from one pen too.

@aquitodavia if you've been fairly free of side effects I'd probably assume it's the prawns, especially if you were eating out and don't know how they've been stored.

Thanks @Proteinpudding that's my instinct. Note to self to avoid prawns on a hot beach...

Ok that’s helpful advice thanks

@Objectrelations sorry my post was a bit garbled I meant that presumably you're already eating quite light if you're vegan and starting at 9st!

Sorry if someone has already answered this question but how are you all getting this? I have BMI of 25-26 but I have a small frame and I look huge and it's all on my tummy. I tried to do Med Express and it turned me down? I tried with Voy and offered me some kind of diet supplement How are you getting it off label. Do you need to be a certain ethnicity (I know BMI boundaries are lower for some) or have a particular condition? I am 46 and struggling with meno

@Hoppity80I’m with MedExpress. I was BMI 25 when I started. I’m 45 years old and white. I do have PCOS, which may have helped my application go through.

I had a BMI of 26 and no other health conditions, I got mine through Voy. I did their online application and then had to do a video consultation which included videoing the scale and showing myself in a full length mirror and lifting up my top to show my belly!

Are you in the UK? I know not every country where they're available has off label prescribing, I believe voy and Medexpress are the only two that offer it here currently, and though medexpress advertise it off label I've read on here a lot of people being refused and the clinicians saying it's for 27+.
Also you say your BMI is 25-26, do you know what it actually is, as that's quite a big range and could be a factor?

I’m on my first month with bmi 27.
I do have raised cholesterol picked up in recent GP blood tests however I’m not on medication for it not that I’d want to be.
Supplier is MedExpress.

The Healand Clinic

Just a query about suppliers
After my first month with MedExpress (off label) will I only be able to get further supplies from them (or Voy ?)
or can you then start to shop around for discounts on prices?
so far so good my appetite and snacking habit is definitely curtailed even in this first week.