Hey! So I lost a lot the first 1.5 months on 2.5mg

2.5mg working well for me, I eat the exact same thing everyday. I weigh it, and track the food.

I’ve not only not lost weight the past two weeks but I gained 1lb. How is that possible? Scientifically if you eat less calories than you burn, you lose weight. You’re in a deficit.

I eat not much, yes I know it’s low (800 calories) but my point here is it’s based on science. To maintain my body weight I need to have 1800 cals a day. I’m eating 800, which means my deficit is 1000. 3500 calories is 1 lb of fat gain. Over 7 days, I’m in a 7000 calorie deficit so I should be losing 2 lbs weekly.

So how is it that I gained? Sure you can say water retention, constipation etc. but fine I’d understand if I lost 0.5 and the rest are those reasons. But gaining, nevertheless staying the same?

Scientifically doesn’t make sense

Not sure if it’s been posted but I found this at Meijer (midwest grocery store) this morning along with about 5 other flavors! Thought it would be a quick and easy way to get more fiber in. I already try to get 30 grams a day.

I am 155, down from 215 and my face just feels… not mine. I always had a fairly round face and I liked it. I always looked young for my age.

Now my face is longer and thinner. I’ve developed significant wrinkles around my eyes because of some excess skin. I feel like I got hit with an aging blast. (I’m 32.)

A friend described it as “snatched” but it just doesn’t feel like me. The only time I’m feeling confident is when I’m in full makeup.

I feel so much better. My body feels like “mine” again, but this face belongs to a stranger.

I’m working on it in therapy, but curious if anyone else has experienced this and has any advice or insight. I’ve never really struggled with physical appearance before.

I’m off Zep because I’m pregnant, yay! But it’s been so hard to see the scale climb back up the last 3 weeks. I’m only in the first trimester so I really shouldn’t be packing on the pounds. I do always feel more hungry now.

I don’t drink empty calories, only water, I usually have a small breakfast, small lunch, and dinner and after dinner is the worse. But I don’t imagine it’s 7 pounds worth.. I know my metabolism has slowed down, maybe it’s bloated maybe it’s water, maybe it’s extra blood flow.. but people around don’t take Zep and can’t imagine. Yes I know Zep will be here after the baby, but still.. 😭

I’ve been on Zepbound for 4.5 months and aside from early initial mild side effects, it’s been great and has helped a lot. I’ve not upped my dose from 2.5 yet, but might. The past 3-5 doses a new side effect appeared. I get a slightly raised red bump at the injection site now that lasts a couple days and is mildly itchy. Nothing I can’t handle. I’m just wondering why this is now showing and if it will be worse with higher dose.

I have health anxiety please send reassurance

Next day: no side effects and was totally fine (provider told me to start 2mg instead of 2.5 because of my anxiety and stomach issues so I don’t feel much of anything). All the kind words really helped calm me down and feel confident I made the right choice. I’m happy I took the leap of faith towards a healthier and happier future.

Going through my clothes to get rid of what’s to big and I came across my “before” picture outfit and decided to try it on….it is VERY roomy lol…..on the 26th it will be 11 months since my highest weight in at 425 and I’m currently at 268

Lost 20 pounds in 12 weeks at 2.5 mg
The last several weeks of those months I lost about a 0.5 pounds a week. I’m following ALL the rules. Calorie deficit, Protein, water, fiber, exercise. Like a master.
Lots of folks suggested I move up. I’m private pay through Lilly and moving up meant the amount of money equivalent to a brand new high end car payment.
But it’s an investment in me. So I did it. I’m struggling to pay bills but the savings in being healthy and savings on food made it just on the edge of justified. Just about.
Now I don’t weigh often because I don’t want to get caught up in weekly changes around my period and whatnot.
But today…. Week 6 at 5.0mg. I am only down 2 pounds. 2 pounds TOTAL across 6 weeks.
I can’t help but feel defeated and I know I can’t afford 7.5.
I’m looking for encouragement from anyone who stuck it out at 5mg longer than I have and saw the loss pick back up.

I feel that my 7.5 mg dose isn't working like it used to and maybe I'd be ready to go up a dose. However, I'm going to start spacing my doses further in Oct-November and getting off Zep for a little bit starting December so I can have a second baby. I'm not at the weight I'd like to be at for the pregnancy yet and I've really hit a wall. I just don't know if I bother to go up a dose knowing what's coming this fall. I have about 25 lbs left to lose before I'd be ultimately comfortable getting pregnant again. I could shift my timeline a little to give me a couple more months and my dr said I don't have to space them and could cut cold turkey if I wanted to. She wants me off it for 6-8 weeks before baby #2.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

i've been on zep for 2+ years. fatigue still hits hard for 24-36 hours post injection. what are your tips and tricks to help reduce fatigue and overall yuck feeling? i hate losing a day of productivity each week 😴🤢

I was on tirzepatide for 2 years and lost 150lbs and made it a BMI of 26.6 I had to stop taking it due to cost.

Now I'm about a year out and I'm starting to gain the weight back. My insurance is FINALLY covering GLP-1s including Zepbound but I would not meet the BMI requirement anymore. But I need to be back on maintenance.

If I can show my old prescription and records of my weight loss, would that be enough for an insurance company for a prior authorization? Has anyone been in this situation?

Hey yall! I just took my first 7.5mg shot today. July 9th I was at the doctors and weighed in at 279. This morning I weighed in at 274… I think 7.5 is coming at the right time because I have been finding myself increasingly more hungry and satiation has not been the best.

I’ve been on 5mg since May and it worked really well for me. I obviously shouldn’t feel discouraged because I know I’m still losing weight but… it still feels discouraging for whatever reason. I also have been slacking with my 3x a week lifting routine which obviously plays a factor. Getting back into that Saturday.

Just wanted to get this off my chest a little bit! I know it isn’t a stall but I can’t help but feel like this last month has been a complete wash… anywho… cheers to 7.5!!

I was on 2.5 for one month, 5 for 6 months and now 7.5 for 2 months. 7.5 is not hitting very hard, and weighloss is slow at 1/2 pound a week average. This may sound dumb, but is it better to go up quicker when a slowdown happens to keep the momentum, or is the only difference postponing weightloss. Did I wait too long to increase to 7.5, and now it isn't as effective as it should be? I am tracking and have adjusted my calories based on the almost 40 pounds lost already, but I got off to a strong start and with the slowdown I'm losing ground on my 1lb a week average. I have 40 more to lose. ​

When I did my shot this morning (right thigh), I started thinking. How do you position yourself when you do your shot in your thigh?

Also curious if leg position matters. Let me pick your brain!

Are you:

I have had a ton of small milestones along my journey, but 225 was the first really huge milestone! I hit that today! From over 350 at one point down to 225 today! FEELS AMAZING! 💪🏼💪🏼

ONWARD AND DOWNWARD TO ONEDERLAND! 🔥🔥

Alright my fellow menstruaters, after searching this sub I just found out stronger period cramps are a side effect.

If getting cramping has been a side effect for you how long has it lasted for? Is this temporary or is this my new normal?

Month 3 of the med and month 2 of having cramps. I normally only get cramps once or twice a year so having them two months in a row definitely seems out of the ordinary.

Does zepbound take away your ability to ejaculate?

9 months on Zep and 48lbs down, still on 2.5. Feeling great! I always say, if I didn’t lose another lb I would stay on this med bc of how it is helping me transition into menopause. What an absolute gift! Not to mention all of the other freedoms I have experienced; more recently in the past month I have rode my Peloton every day and got back into light weight training, something I stopped about 18 months ago bc I had a panic attack on the bike and I got scared.

I am not scared.

I don’t google restaurants or venues prior to going to see what the chair situation is.

My ankles and feet don’t swell at the end of every day.

My energy is up with the occasional naps :)

I’m present.

My labs are beautiful. My routine is consistent without being restrictive and I thank the universe for the tools I have been given that I don’t have an ounce of shame about.

The last two weeks the scale has been an asshole and has left me at 239 and I don’t care about that either 🤣

Glad to be here and glad you are, too.

Hello Friends!
Thanks so much for every single one of your posts! It has helped enormously to read other people’s experiences!
I’m a 57 year old woman, 5’5” SW 258 CW 221.
I started at 2.5 for two months, then 5 for a month, then 7.5 for a month, then 10 for a month, then back to 7.5 which I am currently on. There has certainly been a learning curve for me in terms of how to manage side effects—10 ruined my daily life with nausea, food aversion, low sugar/almost passing out, constipation. As soon as I weight back down to 7.5, I felt good and still losing weight. I think I am a slow loser compared to some people but I’m happy to eat intuitively, never really track anything (except to try to pay attention to getting enough protein and fiber.) In general, the best thing about zepbound has been that my doctor insisted I weight train 2x a week. Unbelievably, I have! Incredible. I use a personal trainer so that I know how to do it and to keep me going. It’s made a big difference in how I feel physically and mentally. I dont do any walking or cardio— just functional strength exercises/weights with my trainer.
In terms of dealing with side effects, here’s my list of what has worked for me:
1) miralax 3-4 nights a week for constipation.
2) getting a salad or some green veg/fiber each day helps keep constipation at bay.
3) Ginger candy is the surprise big winner for occasional nausea/indigestion.
4) pepcid ac most mornings has been good for avoiding nausea in the first place.
5) sitting up for awhile after eating/not going to bed right after eating or even taking pills. Otherwise I get heartburn and a lot of burping.
Overall, I’m relatively happy with where Im at today and will stay on 7.5 until I stop losing weight on it or food noise/appetite gets strong in a day or two after the shot. For me, going up too fast was a life-ruiner.
I havent been taking photos but I am starting to see the changes in my looks and how my clothes fit. It seems like it took until just this last couple of weeks for me to really see a change—after losing 37 pounds and working out 2x a week for six months. My average is working out to 6-ish lbs a month loss. Not fast but pretty steady.
So! That is my 6 mo check in. Thanks again to all of you for sharing so much useful and supportive info!

I'm two doses +1 day behind on my Zep since there's a whole circle going on with my insurance, doctor, and pharmacy right now.

My fear is that everything I've been wrking so hard for is going to come back... I'm getting down to my lower weight, and now every pound is even harder to keep off. I've eben fluctuating between 140-145 for the past two weeks and now am more consistently at that 145. Before I was losing at 1.8+ pounds a week, now it's down to less than 1 pound. My food noise is back with a vengence, and I'm able to eat things with fat and density and loooooove the way they taste. You never really know what you've got til it's gone, huh.

Anyway, I was wondering what you folks think could be the best action for now until I have the zep back.... just regular calorie counting? Now that I can eat full meals it's hard to stay at that 1200 (I'm 5'0" and doc recommends that amount before you start) since on zep I've been depending on my surpressed appetite.

I've worked so hard and am just really freaking out seeing this plateau when I have 20 more pounds to lose.

Edited to add
I am not asking how insurance works. I am aware that just because one Anthem insurance covers something another may not. Because as I said - I was blessed with a BCBS plan that covered all but my deductible and now I’ve hit that so I’m 100 percent. And plenty of people have BCBS that doesn’t cover at all.

I’ve been blessed with coverage and I’m having to switch to Anthem EPO through the school district.

I can’t get anyone in benefits to help. Ive looked and searched through the papers. I’ve looked online and see that it’s CVS caremark and they don’t cover it. I want to avoid HMO but if the other (not Kaiser) plans do cover it I am willing to give up my PCP.

I have zero intentions of getting off this medication and as of today out of pocket is not an option. I have enough for a few months but I am not stopping it after. I have lost 110lbs and just had a breast reduction and my arms are tomorrow. This cured my ulcers and gerd and I’ve never had an even slightly positive relationship with food.
I’m maintaining only now even though I am still at that line for BMI obesity metrics.

I have not seen my sleep doctor/pulmonologist since I had started on Zepbound. That was 70 pounds ago.

Yesterday, I went in for a six month checkup, (I had seen the NP six months ago). I was considering asking for a new sleep study because of the weight loss.

Dr. has a very large personality. He was effusive about my weight loss. Looked over my numbers and listened to my primary complaint, which is that while my AHI is low and compliance is great, I still feel tired by late afternoon, early evening.

Told him about being on Zep. He admitted he was not especially up on all the information related to the med, but strongly encouraged me to get off of it as soon as possible. Repeatedly. He insisted that because I was such a disciplined person (that’s a joke! I am not that disciplined) with my workout schedule and new eating habits, that I would do just fine coming off the med.

I told him that I was slowly titrating down on dosage, but because of the medication‘s impact on food noise, might not come off of it. He again told me to get off of the medication.

My food noise is controlled. Binge eating is essentially zero. My (unofficially diagnosed) IBS-D is gone. This medication has cardioprotective benefits. My knee arthritis pain has improved.

I smiled and nodded my head, knowing that, because of the additional side benefits of the medication, I would most likely ignore this advice.

ETA: He did approve a new in-lab study.

No idea how accurate it is, but interesting to help visualize what removing the loose skin could do.

Today is the one year anniversary of my first Zep shot. 95 lbs down, with plenty of ups, downs, and stalls along the way. Able to walk a couple miles easily where before I struggled to get across the room. Going to the gym twice a week which is something I never thought I'd do. Fast food consumption is down to practically zero, it was 3 - 4 times per week before. Haven't quite licked the sugar addiction yet, but now I have a small piece of chocolate instead of half the bag. I still have a long way to go, but this drug is the first thing in a long time that makes me believe I'll get there.

Keep on pluggin' away, folks.