"Ideal" body weight.

[Harpy Eagle]

A little more than a year ago my wife and I started a weight loss journey together as we were looking ahead to the things we want to do in retirement and knew we needed to be healthy to do them.

We have been using a semaglutide cocktail that we get from a Clinic our PCM runs on the side that focuses on weight loss and testosterone replacement therapy.

Without getting into specifics I have lost about 50 pounds and have gone from thinking I needed to buy a pair of 42 waist pants to wearing a 35 comfortably. My wife has had similar results.

I had a goal weight in mind and am about 5 pounds give or take from it, yet I have plateaued and over the last few months and stayed within the same 4 pound range that whole time. Again, my wife is sort of in the same boat, almost to what she thought of at the start.

But we talked about it the other day, and we both feel great, and great about the changes we have made. Our love life has not been so good for decades and we both now tend to think a lot more about what we wear even to the store. But we also decided that we are not willing to make the sacrifices to get those last 5 pounds off or so, at least not now.

We have a trip to Scotland at the end of April and knew we needed to be off the cocktail by then as the trip is 13 days and we are for sure not going to try and take needles with us!

Over the last 6 weeks or so we have spread out our shots from once a week to once every 10 or 11 days and we have started to cut the dosage and we have been able to maintain what we have achieved, which was the goal. We took a slow road, wanting to weight loss to be as much about a change in lifestyle as it was the drugs. I think we have achieved that.

Thanks for letting me ramble!

 

[Lewis Clark]

Congrats on a job well done!

 

[Aerides]

I would focus less on the number and more on the other facts, as I think we all have some number in our head which may no longer be realistic, or even good for us. BMI charts are even way off for a lot of folks - they weren't made by a doctor.

So,

Are you happy in your skin? (sounds like you both are, so that's great!)
Are you able to physically do the things you want and need and really should be able to do? (ie, fitness, which is more than just weight of course, but easier when not lugging extra weight).
Are you no longer cringing at that photo or catching a side glance in a mirror?

Aside from that, particularly with the GLP-1's, if you've added protein to your diet that's something that should continue after the shots as that will help maintain your goals.

 

[Harpy Eagle]

I would focus less on the number and more on the other facts, as I think we all have some number in our head which may no longer be realistic, or even good for us. BMI charts are even way off for a lot of folks - they weren't made by a doctor.

So,

Are you happy in your skin? (sounds like you both are, so that's great!)
Are you able to physically do the things you want and need and really should be able to do? (ie, fitness, which is more than just weight of course, but easier when not lugging extra weight).
Are you no longer cringing at that photo or catching a side glance in a mirror?

Aside from that, particularly with the GLP-1's, if you've added protein to your diet that's something that should continue after the shots as that will help maintain your goals.

We have definitely added a lot more protein into our diet, and been adding muscle mass which will also help.

And we have agreed that the number is not as important as we feel about ourselves and each other. The goal now is to not let it creep back up, as it took me a decade to gain the weight we lost over the last year and I do not want it to sneak back up so we are being pretty vigilant.

 

[folivier]

I could use to lose 20 pounds but haven't been able to do so. Did it once years ago on Herbalife but gained it back once I got back to eating real food.
Question: can you control your appetite and weight loss by having your doctor adjust the medications? Or will you get off it completely once you achieve your ideal weight?
I would not to do that if it will just lead to weight gain again. And wouldn't want to continue the medicine long term, years.
Not criticizing but interested in this if I could lose those 20 pounds then get back to a regular diet after.

 

[Harpy Eagle]

Question: can you control your appetite and weight loss by having your doctor adjust the medications? Or will you get off it completely once you achieve your ideal weight?
I would not to do that if it will just lead to weight gain again. And wouldn't want to continue the medicine long term, years.
Not criticizing but interested in this if I could lose those 20 pounds then get back to a regular diet after.

Our goal is to get off of it completely, though my wife wonders if we might do a "maintenance dose" for a while.

So far we have been able to both cut our dosage and spread out the shots without any noticeable increase in appetite. We took it slow, more than a year to lose about 50 pounds while some lose that in just a month or two. We did this so that our body adjusted and there would not be the boomerang back to our previous weight.

We will get our first real test when we are in Scotland for 13 days at the end of April as we will not be able to take our dose while there. I am hoping once we are back we will just stay off of it. But if we had to do a low dose for a while that would be ok as well.

 

[MarieIG]

Great job @Harpy Eagle . Enjoy your trip! I would suggest that you and your DW plan in advance how you want to handle eating while you are on vacation, and your plan for when you return home (i.e. have some good high protein meals ready for you in the freezer for your first two or three back home, so to the extent necessary you can get right back on track and won't be shopping or choosing meals hungry).

Also sometimes you don't know what's in the food while you are on vacation, and if you start getting "food noise" I wouldn't hesitate to return to your low dose for a period of time until you readjust - and then continue with your pre-vacation plan (with your medical care provider's clearance of course).

 

[folivier]

Thanks for the info! This summer DW and I are traveling with 2 other couples in our RV's to Alaska for about 4 months. 3 of the other 4 are diabetics, both husbands are on different injections, 1 has lost about 100 pounds since taking the meds. So I'm hoping our eating habits will help me lose weight since we'll be eating meals together most of that time. If not then I'll discuss with my doctor when we get back.

 

[audreyh1]

I don’t worry so much about eating on travel because I’m generally twice as active compared to home - far more walking plus steps. I do still limit/avoid certain foods but otherwise don’t worry about it.

Congratulations on executing a gradual weaning off. I suppose cravings returning is the biggest risk so avoiding foods that induce cravings like sweets may be important. I don’t have a strong sweet tooth so skipping desserts is no hardship for me, but others may feel deprived. I guess that can be a major challenge when traveling, plus all the yummy bread overseas.

 

[Closet_Gamer]

Congrats on the weight loss! Quite a journey.

Step 1: ignore any of the BMI stuff. Terrible, over-simplified and misleading.

I've dumped weight a few times in my life and I find there is a weight below which I simply do not feel well and maintaining that weight requires me to live like a monk doing penance for hanging around the convent. I've decided to not worry about those last few pounds. Particularly because it has always contributed to a negative rebound on my weight ... I start to not feel well, reach for some carbs and the whole thing shifts into weight gain again. Much better to land somewhere healthy and stay there IMO.

I would focus on a well-rounded view of health:
1 - Resting heart rate and ability to sustain high cardio output
2 - Core strength and balance ... can you do one handed get-ups? Squats? Single leg RDLs? Planks?
3 - Core blood work ... cholesterol, etc.
4 - Nutrition (notably the carb vs. protein stuff you're already doing)
5 - Colonoscopies, Prostate exams, Breast Cancer Screening, Immunizations...

If you haven't read "Outlive", I would suggest it. Lots of good insights and ideas of how to approach long term health. In particular, he focuses on what he calls the Four Horseman and the high odds that one of these things is what will ultimately get you:

1 - Cardiac Disease
2 - Cancer
3 - Slip/Fall
4 - Dementia

The first three can all be forestalled to some extent through behaviors, particularly keeping body fat down, staying fit, and being tested. Sadly, dementia has largely eluded any substantive behavioral or testing approaches so far.

FWIW, DD is a pharmacist and is quite agitated about the GLP-1 stuff, over-use and the long term unknowns of the drugs. She would applaud your trajectory to stop using them when you can.

Great job!

 

[Cayman]

Thanks sharing Harpy Eagle. 50 pounds is a feat and your approach to lifestyle change and shorter term use of meds sounds smart. Congrats to you and your wife. Happy travels.

 

[imjustawarrior]

Good job!

Keep us up to date on how it goes once you stop the semaglutide. It is effective for weight loss, but I wonder if people will have to be on it or gain back the weight.

 

[aja8888]

Great job!

Keeping the weight off is the key and that usually comes with a lifestyle change. When you get older it gets harder to do.

 

[mountainsoft]

I switched from sugary Coca-Cola a few years ago to zero sugar Zevia sodas. And I now use liquid stevia sweetener in my tea instead of sugar. I lost over 25 pounds just by eliminating the daily sugar intake. Unfortunately, I've since regained 5-10 pounds, but I'm still doing a lot better than I had been. I think we eat fairly healthy meals, but nighttime snacking is my weakness.

My wife started taking Rybelsus to manage her blood sugar, and lost about 5-10 pounds also.

 

[Ronstar]

Congrats OP! I like that you are approaching this as a lifestyle change.

 

[Exchme]

Congrats, that's a great journey to good health! I have fought overweight all my life, it's very hard to avoid backsliding as any one day of overeating doesn't seems to make a difference, but all of a sudden several months of overeating have gone by, the pants don't fit and it's just as hard to get motivated to lose as it was the first time.

I added resistance exercises and walking and that helps tremendously, it reminds my brain that I'm investing in good health each day so don't eat that extra portion, bag of chips or piece of cake.

 

[Koolau]

After a year+ of low carb, I've hit a plateau. Not sure what to do next. I'm just at the dividing line of overweight/normal. I can live this way, but would like to lose more. I swear I don't know understand how I'm not losing weight, but my body seems to have a mind of its own.

 

[latexman]

Congrats!

I’m curious, what do you mean by “ideal” body weight. 50 years ago in Nutrition 301 at university I was taught ideal body weight was:

= 100 lbs + 5 x (inches over 5’) for females

and

= 106 lbs + 6 x (inches over 5’) for males.

I think things may have changed.

 

[HFWR]

After a year+ of low carb, I've hit a plateau. Not sure what to do next. I'm just at the dividing line of overweight/normal. I can live this way, but would like to lose more. I swear I don't know understand how I'm not losing weight, but my body seems to have a mind of its own.

The body likes homeostasis, healthy or not…

Still, calories in, calories out is the biggest knob.

 

[aja8888]

After a year+ of low carb, I've hit a plateau. Not sure what to do next. I'm just at the dividing line of overweight/normal. I can live this way, but would like to lose more. I swear I don't know understand how I'm not losing weight, but my body seems to have a mind of its own.

Assuming you are on a low carb, high protein diet, exercise has a role in weight loss, even though it's not as big a role as caloric reduction and going into ketosis from the low carb effect. Using up some of the protein in muscle recovery after exercise may help in toning and strengthening. It's complicated.

I lost 20 pounds in 2023 and I played a lot of golf early last year. And after I had my little heath scare, I went to the gym three days a week and put the clubs away. I seem to have held the weight loss and eat minimum carbs (no bread, sugar, etc). No question, as you age, it gets harder to even maintain weight unless you are careful as to what you eat.

 

[rodi]

Thanks for posting this @Harpy Eagle . Great info. Your conundrum about travel is interesting.

The thread about "weight loss is hard" from a month ago inspired me to make some life style changes about a month ago. I haven't tried GLPs.... My sister is on ozempic and has lost almost 50 lbs over 6-8 months.

I've lost 7 lbs in one month by a combo of things:
* Limiting eating between 10am and 5pm
* Tracking all calories using my fitness pal.
*Increasing protein and limiting carbs.

This last one is hard because my husband is Italian and a great cook. But I've cut the pasta... Hard as that is.

I'm hoping that my new eating patterns will be sustainable.

You're an inspiration.

 

[Koolau]

Assuming you are on a low carb, high protein diet, exercise has a role in weight loss, even though it's not as big a role as caloric reduction and going into ketosis from the low carb effect. Using up some of the protein in muscle recovery after exercise may help in toning and strengthening. It's complicated.

I lost 20 pounds in 2023 and I played a lot of golf early last year. And after I had my little heath scare, I went to the gym three days a week and put the clubs away. I seem to have held the weight loss and eat minimum carbs (no bread, sugar, etc). No question, as you age, it gets harder to even maintain weight unless you are careful as to what you eat.

Thanks. I'm certain you are correct. I'm struggling with back issues that severely curtail my ability to even walk any significant distance. It's a real bummer that I am w*rking on with my "back doctor" (one more try at steroid shots on Thursday).

 

[aja8888]

Thanks. I'm certain you are correct. I'm struggling with back issues that severely curtail my ability to even walk any significant distance. It's a real bummer that I am w*rking on with my "back doctor" (one more try at steroid shots on Thursday).

Good luck, I have a couple of friends with back issues and they are not doing well either. I have been blessed with a good back and never had any issues (knock on wood).

 

[Koolau]

The body likes homeostasis, healthy or not…

Still, calories in, calories out is the biggest knob.

Agree completely. I hadn't been counting calories and I was losing a pound a week and then it slowed to 1/2 pound and now, virtually zero. SO, I guess I need to count. I understand that as one loses weight, they lose more slowly (extra weight takes calories to maintain and causes one to burn more calories.).

So I estimated (from the Net) how many calories I need to eat to lose weight again. Nearly as I can tell, I'm eating approximately a weight-losing amount. I guess I'll watch it even more closely. I'll weigh and measure every bite.

Thanks.

 

[Koolau]

Good luck, I have a couple of friends with back issues and they are not doing well either. I have been blessed with a good back and never had any issues (knock on wood).

Yeah, I'm the opposite of the "16 Tons" protagonist. I've got a strong(ish) mind and a weak back!