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

I ordered mine online last Wednesday evening, had my video consultation on the Thursday morning, it was dispatched not long after and arrived on Friday by lunchtime! Took my first jab Friday night, it was a really fast, straightforward process.

Really pleased to have found this thread! I have also been disappointed by the gatekeeping around this, Im 45 and have been steadily gaining weight for the last couple of years and various fasting/exercising regimes not able to get it back to my goal weight, with the numbers slowly growing every couple of months.
I started off at BMI 26.5 /11 stone 4lb 4 weeks ago, and am amazed by how quickly the 2.5ml dose of mounjaro has worked. Have lost a stone and am already feeling healthier and more confident. Have decided to stick at 2.5ml for the next round- am slightly worried it’s come off a bit too quickly and want to make sure I’m maintaining/building muscle as best I can. I worry about putting it all back on (I know the stats aren’t great for this) and or/slowing my metabolism when I come off it.

Can someone give me a bit of a dummy’s guide? I’ve found to my astonishment that I’m eligible for Wegovy through Voy - BMI 26/27, size 16. Like many others I’m in my 40s and perimenopausal. I really only want to lose 10kg. I’ve struggled with my weight my whole life, never obese but often overweight, and constant food noise.

It seems that people experience quite rapid and dramatic weight loss- are you all cutting calories significantly as well or does the weight loss tend to be bigger than your calorie deficit?

I don’t really want to stay on it permanently - have any of you tapered off it and how are you finding that?

What was your experience of the first 4-6 weeks of being on it?

Thank you so much. I’m just a bit confused - there’s a lot of noise around it and I’m not sure how I feel about going on it.

I have a wedding dress fitting in a couple of months and I’ve been struggling to lose weight and I’m tired of how I feel about myself.

I could’ve written this! You’ve asked all the questions that I’ve wanted to ask and we sound very similar in that I’m not obese but have always been overweight. I’m also tired of how I feel and look.

I’m also eligible for mounjaro. So would be keen to hear about differences. 🙏🏻

@MessyNDepressy i’ve just had my consultation and all approved so hoping I’ll have it by Wednesday. Thanks for replying

And to the other ladies just looking into it, I can’t comment on the effectiveness as I’ve only just ordered it but I’ve done my research and opted for Weygovy as it is much cheaper, fewer bad side effect reports plus only contains one hormone that suppresses appetite unlike MJ that also has another hormone that makes you feel full so you do tend to find bigger quicker losses on MJ. I don’t mind slow and steady as I haven’t got a huge amount to lose. This could be a very simplistic view, but it’s how I came to my decision . If I had 3+ stone to lose I think I’d probably go with MJ.

I have the same approach as @lechatnoir. I chose Wegovy for a few reasons:

• Only has the one hormone, so weight will
come off slower (that’s good for me as I don’t have a lot to lose and I want to be able to actually eat and have some sort of social life but be in control!) I also want to lose slower so that I can build good habits and not pile it back on in a few months.

• it’s cheaper - why would I want to start on the more expensive one? if I he had side effects, then I’ll switch

• non weight related advantages - this is probably the main one. If you google Semaglutide (Wegovy is the Brand name of Sema), you’ll see there is loads of evidence of non weight loss advantages of taking it. Even a microdose. This is important for me as I suffer from an autoimmune condition and I hope Wegovy will reduce the symptoms. There’s talk of it reducing the risk of some cancers and improving heart health and mental health (anxiety) too. It’s all quite new research, but it’s exciting and definitely one to watch.

Obviously this is just my opinion, but for me - Wegovy seemed like a sensible and safe choice. I injected on Sunday afternoon (first jab - huge anxiety!) and I’m only starting to notice any food suppression now. I’m going to track my food to make sure I’m hitting protein, fibre and calorie goals.

I went for Mounjaro mainly because I didn’t want to be on it very long so wanted quickest possible results, to support other changes I was implementing in my exercise plan. I also knew of other people who had really big successes on it.
It was highly effective from day 1, and what ritala and lechatnoir have said as their reasons for going with Wegovy really resonates - I have no appetite at all really, and so socialising over food can be quite difficult, as on those occasions I’m effectively forcing myself to eat when my body is telling me it doesn’t really want to.
Im not calorie counting as such- Im just not eating a lot because i don’t feel hungry. I am prioritising protein and fibre and eating almost exclusively whole food, but the portions are small.
With the benefit of hindsight, I think the loss has been a little too quick, and Wegovy might have been a better choice. It might have given me a bit more flexibility/slightly less suppression. Though I’ve been lucky to not have any side effects, and MJ has been very effective for me on the lowest dose alone.

That makes sense @gracefulprocrastinator- I guess you could switch to Wegovy if needed.

in my earlier post I said I injected on Sunday afternoon, but that’s incorrect- I actually injected Saturday afternoon.

No side effects yet but I definitely feel the suppression. This is prime snack time for me and I’m just not interested. I have had a small breakfast and small lunch today and feel completely satisfied with that. Extremely early days for me but so far, so good (although my sleep has been affected the past few nights - unsure if that’s WLI related or just being an old bird lol)

@loveroadbikelifedid you have any luck with Chequp? I was in a similar situation as I’m 27.2 but Asian and wasn’t sure where I’d get accepted - luckily didn’t have to go through an interview with MedExpress and got my order pretty quickly. Also found this which was super helpful as I wasn’t sure who would accept me: https://cleardose.org/guides/overweight-glp1

I used to say that if I qualified I’d get WLI without hesitation, but now that it comes down to it I’m struggling with the decision - feeling like I’ve failed, fear of the unknown, and how do I explain it to friends and family?

Did anyone else have these misgivings?

Yes all of them @SandwichesAndGingerBeer and I’m not telling anyone except my GP. My DH is very anti (& naturally slim 🙄) and I don’t want the advice or comments that people always feel is acceptable when discussing weight like we are stupid for being fat.

@SandwichesAndGingerBeerand @lechatnoiri was the same - really questioning if I could find another way to lose the weight. But then read that article I posted above and made me think twice about how I should lose the weight sooner rather than later - so meds is probably the best way. Although I haven’t told people at work 🙈 and have a few upcoming meals where I’m sure I won’t be able to eat much!

@SandwichesAndGingerBeer- Yes! Even when I was injecting I was thinking “WTF am I doing? What if I die?!” Such an extreme and stupid reaction.

It’s even harder for us where we are not obese so people are even more judgemental with the ‘you don’t need to lose any weight! Just track your calories etc’. I’ve not told anyone other than my partner who is fully supportive, luckily.

At the end of the day, it’s your body and you know what does and does not work for it. I’m framing this as an experiment just to see how I feel mentally and how I get on with appetite suppression. I also need to see if it helps with inflammation as that’s what’s causing my autoimmune condition. I think.

You can always try it for a month and if you don’t like it, don’t continue. That’s what I’m doing. I find it hard to get my head round a drug that causes appetite suppression or changes to other parts of me - I just feel like I should just accept myself or be able to do it myself - but clearly I can’t. It’s a headf@ck!

Another thing is the whole ‘Body Positivity’ movement, which has now seemed to have died a death now everyone is ‘on the jabs’. It’s like one minute we are told to be happy in our non size 8 bodies and now we are being told ‘hey, there’s a jab that can make you thin. Why wouldn’t you take it?’

Society is messed up! Do what is best for you and remember you are not locked in a contract to take it forever!

Although I do think Voy is a subscription!!

Yes same @SandwichesAndGingerBeer although now I've done my first jab those misgivings are starting to disappear. And you don't have to tell anyone, it's no one else's business!

I am not yet really feeling much appetite suppression but also no side effects which is good, I did my first Wegovy dose late morning Sunday so early days I guess.

These were pretty much my reasons also - my mum has heart issues and I've been a bit concerned about a few twinges myself recently so I was quite keen to get some of those benefits.

@SandwichesAndGingerBeer I only started Mounjaro on Friday so not long enough to really answer all your questions. I went with Mounjaro as another medication I take (Mirtazapine) is an appetite stimulant so I felt I would need stronger suppression than what Wegovy can offer. I have no intention of majorly cutting calories, I’m aiming for around 1800 which is a 500 deficit for me plus working out 3 times per week and walking daily. It’s strange as I still have an appetite but the suppression is definitely also working. Usually a calorie deficit for me is torture and I crumble after a few days to a week but it’s been so much easier. It’s still very early days obviously but I’m not snacking, the cravings that were basically controlling me have gone. There’s a pack of 5 cream eggs in the kitchen and I know I can have one if I fancy it but it’ll be one, not all 5 plus extras which is what it would’ve been just a few days ago! I really hope it continues like this. I don’t have any intentions of discussing it with anyone, I have no interest on anyone else’s opinion. All I am doing is taking the help that is available to me to help me get fitter and healthier and hopefully stay that way.

Yes absolutely! I looked about 6 months ago but talked myself out of it, said I’d try and do it on my own. In fairness I did manage to loose a couple of kilo but as soon as I relaxed it went straight back on and I can’t shift it. My first dose was delivered today, I’ll probably start next week as due to travel overseas for work in a few days and don’t want to risk it!

I also would do MJ if I had more to lose, but as it’s less, I’m going with W for cost reasons

I did 0.375mg today from 0.5mg pen. Didn’t realise these new Wegovy pens lock on the 4th dose and I didn’t have any other needles or way to get the golden dose out.

Yes, it got approved without any difficulty, but maybe similar to others have mentioned I actually felt really weird the moment I read the email confirming I’d got it. It was like a sudden panic and feeling of am I doing the right thing? What about pancreatitis? What about gall stones? What will happen when I eventually stop taking it…some people say the hunger comes back with a vengeance…all those thoughts I’ve wrestled with for ages!

Honestly I’m still in two minds about whether to actually take it when it arrives.

It’s all so unknown! It could change my life and finally put an end to food and my weight ruling my life, but it could come at a very high price (literally and metaphorically speaking!) and I don’t know if I want that 🤯

Took my first dose of MJ on Sunday morning and not feeling any effects yet! A bit disappointed as I was hoping it would have started to kick in by now, but hey ho! How’s everyone else getting on?

I felt exactly the same. What really helped me was having a very honest conversation with my GP. I am verging on having high blood pressure (but not diagnosed yet!) and I desperately need to lose some weight. I’ve been dieting my whole adult life and am still overweight. The GP offered to refer me to slimming world, but I just said there is no point as I’ve tried everything to lose weight and nothing sticks. I asked if it would be worth paying for WLI and she said it works very well as long as you do it carefully. She advised not going over 7.5mg and taking care with protein, water etc. It took me a while to come to terms with it, but the bottom line for me is either I lose weight or I end up on BP medication, and I want to try and bring it down with lifestyle changes first to see if that helps.

Ultimately you have to do what feels right for you, but I do understand how hard it is to make the decision!!

I took my first Wegovy Sunday morning and not really feeling any effects yet either! Someone said it takes about two days so I'm thinking it should do soon?

I took my first shot Saturday afternoon and definitely felt the suppression yesterday. I couldn’t finish my dinner and ended the day in less than 1200 calories. I had to make myself eat lunch and didn’t have any of my usual snacks.

Today I’ve had a light breakfast (wasn’t hungry but I don’t want to skip meals) and I’m just not feeling hungry or bothered about food at all.

To be honest, it is making me feel a bit weird. Not physically as I’ve not had any sickness (only a lot of burping) but I just feel a bit flat. I’ve slept very badly the last two nights - awake for hours, so I’m not sure if that’s insomnia brought on by Wegovy or anxiety around the drug as I’ve suffered with poor sleep in the past. However, normally when I’ve had a bad night - all I want to do is eat and that’s the last thing I want to do today. I’ve had to cancel an appt for today as not feeling up to it.

So yes, it’s working for me but I’m not feeling great.

Hope everyone else has success soon

I am also sleeping badly and have quite bad heartburn and reflux. I also feel tired and flat. I remember this from the first time around taking it. I did 0.375 and didn’t get too many bad side effects (apart from all of the above) but a bit fed up with my weight not really moving a lot now 😂