August 2026 starters

[chocolatecoveredpretzels]

Hello everyone, I'm due to start on MJ in the next few days, and I'm feeling nervous!

I've been above size 20 since I was about 14/15 years old. The highest weight I've ever logged was 134kg, about 14 years ago. I'm currently 117kg. I also have issues with my heart caused by Cushing's, type 2 diabetes and PMOS.

In the past few years, I'm yo-yo'd between 125kg and 110kg three times. I know how to lose weight and can do it... but as soon as work gets busy or stressful, I fail and give up. I also have an issue with binge and secret eating.

I went for my annual diabetic review yesterday and the nurse basically used the whole time telling me about going on MJ, because my BMI is over 40 (well, as of yesterday's weigh in, I'm 39. something) and because of my other health conditions. I didn't have to fight for it, or request it.. they're just giving it to me.

Now I'm doing as much reading/ video watching as I can to clue myself up.

On my on-track days, I eat:

Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with some flavouring- chilli flakes or marmite or 15g cheddar.

Lunch: Chicken thigh fillet in some kind of seasoning mix, salad made of lettuce, pepper, tomatoes, cucumber, sugarsnaps, carrot. Sometimes 3 cream crackers and a laughing cow triangle as well.

Dinner: Varies- roast chicken dinner/ 5% fat mince spaghetti bolognese with wholewheat pasta/ beef burger without the bun with cheese, salad on half the plate, usually without chips, noodles with chicken and stirfry veg.

Snacks: Usually a portion of berries/ a nectarine/ cherries/ 25g peanuts at 4pm.

How does that sound?

I have a treadmill and run/walk at 6.5/6km/hr pace for 30 mins three times a week. The nurse said I should do some weights for my arms too.

Any recommendations for which day I should inject?

Hi @Belladog1 i was on Wegovy for maybe 10 months last year. I did lose weight but very slowly. I kept trying to hit 1mg but fatigue and gastro side effects meant I had to keep dipping back down to around 0.75. In hindsight I wonder if I gave up too soon instead of giving my body time to adjust to the 1mg. Maybe keep going until you can try the higher levels?

I switched to MJ after a break - still losing slowly but no side effects. Best of luck - it is hard to be a slow loser!

My update - no loss for me this week which I was surprised at as I have lost waist cms.
Finished 8 weeks on 2.5. Have a 5mg pen will try 3.25 or similar next week.

Morning all. My weigh-in confirms less than a pound loss for the past week, and a total of 13.3lb for the 6 weeks and 2 days since my first jab. I’ve now just past 1/3 of the way to my target since starting MJ, yay! And I am exactly a stone and a half above the top of the healthy BMI range. This is astonishing to me!

I have upped my jab to 3.75mg this morning, so let’s see what that does. I don’t think my portions have changed particularly, except for the “little extra” at the end of my main meal. I’ll see if I can rein that back in again.

The other thing is, I have been doing 3 strength sessions a week and trying to do heavier weights, so I suppose I could be starting to build some muscle. The analyser at the gym should reveal that, but because of the effect of hydration changes you really need to be looking at trends over weeks and months, it wouldn’t do to be hopping on that scale even once a week, never mind three times.

Never mind. Keep on doing the things, day after day.

I did my first 5mg jab on Tuesday, and today I've woken up with diarrhoea and my digestive system is gurgling like nothing else. I'm hesitant to call it a side effect though, as I'm not reliably calm on the inside anyway, and yesterday was quite unusual food-wise as I had a busy day going to and fro and not getting much opportunity to eat anything. I'm hoping with a more normal food day today it'll settle down!

In happier news, the scales are definitely going in the right direction 🥳 and the blanket I entered in the local agricultural show yesterday not only won the class but also won me the overall handicrafts champion trophy 😍

@Anseranser yay! Well done on the blanket, I’ve always loved the idea of being able to craft something beautiful and useful like that. Sadly I think I’m just too impatient to sit down and learn. Maybe one day.

Hope the digestion issues go away soon.

@Blushingviolets Thanks you! I learned to crochet during covid 😂 nothing like being trapped to give you the focus 😱 A friend dropped a bag of spare hooks and yarn on my doorstep during her daily walk and told me which tutorials etc to have a go at, and I never really stopped 🥰

@Anseranser you can’t drop that info and NOT SHOW US! Please can we see the blanket, if it’s not too outing??

@chocolatecoveredpretzels
Oh go on then 😂 Annoyingly I haven't got a decent picture of it actually sitting flat 🙈

Oh my god, it’s amazing!!!! The amount of work you’ve put in and the detail is incredible. A worthy prize winner!

I don’t have the patience for blankets, but I really love crocheting toys/ amigurumi style figures. Covid hobbies hit differently 🤭

It took SO LONG, and I was so pleased to have finally got it finished, that's why I entered it in the show in the first place 😂 Amigurumi is a lot of fun too, I've made a few little mushroom people from this designer, they're so cute!
www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/mushroom-sprites-set-2

@Anseranser that is incredible!

@chocolatecoveredpretzels I’m so glad you asked! I wanted to ask too haha.

My daughter really wants to learn to crochet. I can knit but I’m not sure I have the patience for crochet.

Is anyone else struggling to manage burps? Like really bad sulphur burps? Bad enough for those around me to smell unfortunately

I’ve had them twice and they are horrible and worse knowing others can smell them. I just avoided eating that day and increased my water intake. Pepto bismol helps.

Having them for multiple days, so can’t really avoid eating, will try pepto thanks

Oh no, @user1496146479 you poor thing! Do you track your meals? It might be a particular type of food that’s causing it for you.

I’ve been having bone broth if I feel a bit unsettled or gassy and it does seem to help. I just get the instant sachets from Freja. They’re quite expensive (£5 for 4) but worth it for me.

Very niche non scale ‘victory’, I’m sat here this evening and I’ve just realised my wedding and engagement ring are looser. In fact, I can’t stop my engagement ring from spinning round. I’ve got an heirloom ring I’ve not worn in a while as it was a bit tight and I was worried it might get stuck. I’m going to dig it out tomorrow to have a look if it fits better yet.

I haven’t really had any burps so far on MJ — a few here and there, but thankfully none of the really stinky ones I got when I tried Ozempic! I’m honestly not sure whether I’m eating better or whether the medication just suits me better. I do eat much leaner most of the time, although obviously less so when I was on holiday, and even then I didn’t have the stinky burbs issue. I’m still on 2.5 mg, so that might change when I eventually go up.

I was actually on 3 mg last week while I was away, but I think I’m going to do another 2.5 mg this week before deciding what to do next. Now that I’m home, I’m finding it quite manageable to stick to lower calories, so my food choices are definitely helping a lot.

I’m also trying really hard to focus on what’s ahead rather than getting stuck in negative-land — blaming myself for not exercising while on holiday, feeling like I’ve failed and now have to start all over again, etc. I did my one BodyPump heavy track this morning and I’m ready for my walk, so that’s something. I also need to get some food packed for the office for the week when I’m back from walk.

I did some basic prep: boiled rice, roasted sweet potatoes, air-fried peppers, roasted chicken fillets and boiled eggs. I also have little tubs of natural Greek yoghurt, baby tomatoes and grapes for easy fruit and veg.

And yes, I know grapes are high in sugar — please don’t come for my grapes 😂. A 130g little bag is still a much better option for me than pretty much anything I’d end up buying in the work canteen. And if I have it with 150g of natural Greek yoghurt, it actually works really well for me.

Anyway, I’m doing the things. Hopefully the motivation will come back along with everything else, but for now I’m trying to give myself credit for actually doing them even when I have absolutely no motivation. I’m proud of myself for that.
well... I am trying to be

Have a super happy, side effects free day all! Chat tomorrow.

Thank you for this.

I am going to keep going. I am still only on the 0.5 dose, so I have a long way to go yet. I do have a dilemma though.

One thing I have noticed is that I don't gain weight. Last week my partner stayed over, and when he is there we go out for a meal one night and I probably drink and eat a little more ... but my weight stays static. This week I am alone, and I plan on making a very conscious effort to get those scales moving downwards.

I had my official weigh in this morning, no change again. 13 stone 8.4Ibs. I have lost a stone since starting, but no change now in about a month.

But the dilemma is. I 'could' go up to 1mg with my new order. My last jab of the 0.5mg is on 10th October, so the new 1mg could be used on the 17th October. However, I go on holiday on 26th October for a week. It is an important holiday. This year I have had a lot of injuries including broken limbs .... twice, and this is the first holiday where I haven't been in pain. I want to enjoy myself, and so far I haven't had a single side effect. I'm a little scared that I will get side effects with the new 1mg pen .... but maybe I wont.

Do I stick with the 0.5mg dose and go up to 1mg in November, or risk going up the week prior to my holiday and perhaps ruin the holiday with stomach issues and smelly burps.

So interesting, (and TMI, sorry) I had my first burps this weekend on week 8. Such a random development.

I had been eating guacamole and had put in a bit of raw garlic - definitely going to avoid that combination going forward!

Overall happy with progress. I have done a month of 2.5 and a month of 3 ish and have almost lost 2 stone.

Going up to 5 from the end of this week, fingers crossed it isn't too much of a jump as I am away the following week visiting family.

SW - 196lbs (14 stone)
CW - 169lbs (12 stone 1)
GW - 147lbs (10 stone 7)

Wow @DeedlessIndeed , that is an impressive loss. Congratulations, and enjoy your family time.

Thanks for all the lovely messages earlier this week, nice to know I'm not alone in the wobbles! I'm still feeling wobbly but hoping if I keep going I'll eventually get there. Love reading everyone else's stories/ journey

I haven't really been able to get my head in the game this week, and then had a weekend away celebrating my wedding anniversary so drank far too much champagne and great food 🤦‍♀️ although in far smaller portions than usual.

My children are 2, 6 and 8 so very much still in the stage I need to be fit enough to run around with!

Weigh day today - I've stayed the same at 98.1kg! So frustrating but I am still on the 2.5 dose.

Starting Weight: 104.5 kg (16 st 6 lbs)

Week 1: ~102.8 kg (-1.7 kg)
Week 2: ~101.2 kg (-1.6 kg)
Week 3: 98.6 kg (-2.6 kg)
Week 4: 98.1 kg (-0.5 kg)
Week 5 (Today): 98.1 kg
Current Weight: 98.1 kg (15 st 6 lbs)
Total Loss to Date: -6.4 kg (-14.1 lbs)
Goal Weight: 76.2 kg (12 st 0 lbs)

Onwards and upwards I hope and pray!!

@Mamatriesmounjaro if you’ve stayed the same but managed to have a lovely (slightly boozy) weekend I bet your due for a loss over the next couple of days as your body recovers!

Love the blanket, I have done about a dozen triangles of that pattern! One day it’ll be finished….

@Anseranser your blanket is like a stained glass window, wow! And wow for everyone's sustained progress and consistency that makes me feel so wobbly in comparison. We almost need a new thread! I was going to aim for 3mg but where do you buy extra needles for the pens? I looked at Amazon and it's dodgy "new to Amazon" sellers with five reviews? I've jumped straight to 5mg and regretting it in terms of sleepless night, delicate stomach etc like starting from scratch - BUT I can see how people claim to forget to eat, the suppression is total. I've had my normal lunch of greek yogurt with berries and either carrots or an apple but by evening I'm not even peckish. I wish there was a halfway dose.

@Housemum @WombatCowgirl Aww, thanks 🥰 I'm never making anything by this designer ever again, it was so unbelievably fiddly and took me an incredibly long time to finish (some of which was putting it aside entirely so I could make other things). I'm so pleased with it though, it was a real test of patience and perseverance.

In other news: weigh-in Tuesday! This has been my first week at 5mg, and aside from funny-tummy Sunday it's been absolutely fine. I'm at 91.6kg today, which is a 2kg loss this week. Seems like quite a lot, but maybe Sunday is a contributing factor to that. I've found that I'm still hungry for meals, but satisfied with smaller portions. Also much less likely to snack, and if I do, it's easy not to overdo it. I had a hobnob yesterday afternoon. Just one! And there I was thinking they always went around in pairs 😂

Start: 97.8kg
Current: 91.6kg (6.2kg loss)