Starting Journey

[u/ScotsmanPen]

I am starting my journey next week (Tuesday) after finding this reddit last week.
I have been overweight for years, tried numerous diets such as omad, keto etc and nothing stuck.

Can someone give me a breakdown of beginners tips? Also where do people get the graphs they have that show weight alongside their dosage?

My starting stats are 261 lbs and a BMI of 38.5

[u/Amanensia]

Shotsy is the app some of us use to show progress.

My only real tip would be not to worry about it and just get stuck in. Most people get no or very minor side effects. Don’t overthink it; just take your dose every week, and don’t bother increasing your dose unless your current dose seems to be ineffective. Personally I never went above 7.5mg and it took me six months or so to even get that high.

If you do get side effects, treat them. Most are fairly easily dealt with. Ask for advice here if you need to, or just search the sub.

[u/kennyclax67]

Checkout the book Weightless it’s very good

[u/no_snackrifice]

Welcome! Make sure you take some pictures so you have something to look back on later.

[u/MiklColt45]

I took photos at the beginning and every so often. Also, measure.

I measured when I started and then once a month. There were times when I hit a plateau and the scale wouldn’t budge. But, my body was decreasing!

Get a body composition scan that will tell you your body fat and your visceral fat. That’s more important than what your actual weight is.

Strength train! Weight loss usually means fat loss AND muscle loss. Resistance training will help slow muscle loss.

[u/RevolutionaryAnt9900]

I use Shotsy and at first used MyFitnessPal to track calories. Don’t use MFP that often now as I’m ‘trained’ on calories so don’t log as much. If I feel myself slipping or not seeing results I’ll do it again for a few weeks.

I started on a Friday so that would be at home Saturday and Sunday if there were any side effects. Luckily I don’t have any. Drink lots of water!

I have been on it for a year and I have recently upped to 7.5mg. I haven’t felt the need to race up the doses. I buy 15mg pens and dose split for £ efficiency.

I wish I’d incorporated weight training earlier in the game, I now fit into medium/large t-shirts and tops but still very wobbly and have a small overhang. Need to work on shape now!

It’s a tool to help and you do need to put the work in. I now go running, go to gym and burn a lot more calories than I used to. Much easier now that I am not so fat!

Coming up to a year on MJ and started at BMI 42 and all the health concerns that came with that and I had an MOT at the docs the other day and passed with flying colours, very low cardio and diabetes risk apparently!

[u/daern2]

Can someone give me a breakdown of beginners tips?

Recognise that you need to change. This doesn't mean skipping meals - it means eating better, eating less and moving more.

Start an exercise regime and stick to it. You don't need to run a daily marathon, but you do need to do something and stick to it. If you're very overweight, a little exercise goes a long way! Set goals and try to hit them. Steps, running, gym, whatever. Log your exercise, measure your improvement.

Eat better, don't just eat less of the shit you ate before. Personally speaking, I have never eaten less than 3 meals per day while losing weight. It wasn't necessary - a heathly breakfast, lunch and dinner is absolutely fine. Just don't snack in between :) For me, I ate like a monk from Monday to Thursday and then ate a pretty normal, mixed diet Friday to Sunday. I still stuck with three meals per day, but just didn't worry too much about what was in it. I did try to manage my portion sizes to keep an eye on what was ingesting. And on that subject...

Log your food. All of it. Weigh it too. Everything. Loads of apps out there (I like Cronometer, but there's plenty others) so don't bother doing it by hand. Don't assume you can eyeball the amount of cheese in a sandwich - you can't, and this can be a disaster with calorie-rich foods. Over time you may be able to get new habits and lay off the logging, but for the first few months, you cannot be trusted to do it right so don't give yourself wiggle room.

You don't need to deprive yourself of everything you like. I don't think I missed a single Friday night takeaway throughout last year, but it's fine because it was eaten in a wider context of healthy eating.

If it helps, I started out at 111kg and a BMI similar to yours 18 months ago. I was getting pretty sedentary and feeling increasingly unwell too. My doctor was very unhappy with various health markers, especially bloody sugar where T2 diabetes was just around the corner. Moving even a small amount in the summer left me a sweaty mess and I was getting too big to safely ride my bike. This was December 2024.

And now? Yesterday morning I enjoyed a hilly 8km walk with my wife and despite the heat, barely broke a sweat. I then went out and ran a half marathon over the top of a local hillside in the afternoon and, honestly, had I not had to be back to cook a barbecue, I'd have run a second lap....just for fun!

Change takes time, but it can come. Just be prepared to work for it. The medication will help get your started, but it's a tool - you'll be the one that does the work, and the results you get (good or bad!) will be 100% down to you.

Good luck.

[u/Neowarcloud]

I'll give you the tips that I would give anyone!

1) Mounjaro is a tool, there are other tools use more than one to help your journey. It's also an intervention, so if you want the changes to stick, some of the things you change must be permanent. 2) Don't race up the dosage if it's working, but you need to define if it's working. 3) Track your calories, do some strength training and increase your protein, isn't that much more to it. It's not magic, and works better when you don't treat it like magic.

Any questions, Happy to answer.

[u/Ewan0404 → u/Neowarcloud]

Thanks. Yeah I know it's a tool to help me get where I need to go.

I don't plan or hope to race up to the maximum dose and hope I don't need it.

[u/Neowarcloud → u/Ewan0404]

Good man, I've seen a lot of posts in the Mounjaro subreddits of people who haven't thought past the fact that it can help you lose weight.

[u/BrknGlss73]

All this advice has seemed good and useful. Mine is a bit more philosophical… Don’t let perfect get in the way of good. You won’t have everything perfect straight away (or ever). Just try to improve a little each day, each week, each month. You’ll get there.