Help! I lost too much weight

[black_tweets]

Sorry for the dramatic intro but I really need some advice. I started on reta 8 months ago with a starting dose of 0.5mg and today I’m at 3mg. I’ve lost about 30lbs but have lost a lot of what made me, me. My thighs and glutes have always been on the fuller side and they’re now completely flat. I thought I took a very slow approach, and no one would notice, but today my mom told me she’s worried something’s wrong with me and my husband also chimed in that he thinks I’m too frail now. For context, no one knows I’m on reta and I want to keep it that way. Also, I’ve been consistently working out for 8 years almost 5-6 days a week and I’m continuing to do that. I noticed I’m not lifting any heavier, but I’m also not lifting less than I’m used to. Therefore, I don’t think it’s muscle loss. All that said, I want to gain 10lbs back and wondering what’s the best way to do that.

Do I:

1) Stop taking reta for a couple of weeks? OR

2) Drop down to half the dose and go down to 1.5mg?

I don’t know what’s the best route. Any help would be much appreciated!

 

[randompersonrandom]

I'm so hesitant to participate in advice about something like this unless I know what your doctor thinks. I say that because I don't know your circumstances, but I DO know that when someone starts losing weight, there can be a thing where people who don't know what a healthy weight looks like and their families start insisting that the person is wasting away to nothing while in actuality, they're still heavy enough to be upping some medical risks. I hope you get where you're going, though, wherever that is!

 

[black_tweets]

I'm so hesitant to participate in advice about something like this unless I know what your doctor thinks. I say that because I don't know your circumstances, but I DO know that when someone starts losing weight, there can be a thing where people who don't know what a healthy weight looks like and their families start insisting that the person is wasting away to nothing while in actuality, they're still heavy enough to be upping some medical risks. I hope you get where you're going, though, wherever that is!

Thank you - that's really thoughtful of you and something I didn't think about. I will say I was diabetic when I started (a1c of 6.2). I started on metformin at the same time as reta. Last bloodwork showed I'm down to 5.6 which I think is the pre-diabetic range. I'm continuing to take metformin; my doctor was very happy with the weight loss. But you're right - it's more so my family saying I'm wasting away and getting "too skinny"

 

[matt400]

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[Ragnar]

I agree with @randompersonrandom in that it’s difficult to offer advice without knowing all the circumstances and that several people don’t know what a healthy weight looks like. My suggestion would be to get a Dexa scan or at least a bioelectrical impedance analysis so that you can determine if you are at a healthy weight based on body fat percentage. This shouldn’t be the only factor in your decision but maybe it will give some perspective. Best of luck on your journey.

 

[desinr-gal]

I second the dexa, or at least a good scale that can give you feedback on your muscle mass, body fat, visceral fat etc.. Real data real information will be your best guide.

Parents are a very unreliable guage! I know from personal experience.

Also friends.. generally people get uncomfortable with other's change in appearance.

Also, There are many fitness influencers showing great excercises for legs and butt. If you concentrate on healthy nutrition and lifts for those zones you will build those muscles.

try just lowering your dose slightly, so you can eat the amount necessary to build muscle.

 

[80s.diver]

Perhaps start lifting heavier to help grow muscle mass. If that means you have to reduce your current reta dosage in order to make that happen, that is for you to decide. There are programs that can help target some of the areas that you are looking to improve, one of them is called strong curves on reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

 

[MsGizmo]

Thank you - that's really thoughtful of you and something I didn't think about. I will say I was diabetic when I started (a1c of 6.2). I started on metformin at the same time as reta. Last bloodwork showed I'm down to 5.6 which I think is the pre-diabetic range. I'm continuing to take metformin; my doctor was very happy with the weight loss. But you're right - it's more so my family saying I'm wasting away and getting "too skinny"

An a1c of 6.2 is pre-diabetic and 5.6 is in the normal range.

I would follow the advice of your doctor and listen to how you feel in your own body instead of your family's opinions. Body dysmorphia is a strange beast and can also affect how you look at OTHER people. Your family had become accustomed to you being heavier so it doesn't look natural to them.

That being said ... YOU say that YOU want to regain 10 pounds.

Cut the dose of the reta in half. I wouldn't quit cold turkey.

 

[Killerbudd0912]

An a1c of 6.2 is pre-diabetic and 5.6 is in the normal range.

I would follow the advice of your doctor and listen to how you feel in your own body instead of your family's opinions. Body dysmorphia is a strange beast and can also affect how you look at OTHER people. Your family had become accustomed to you being heavier so it doesn't look natural to them.

That being said ... YOU say that YOU want to regain 10 pounds.

Cut the dose of the reta in half. I wouldn't quit cold turkey.

I like that response. From a 42 yr old married man who is mostly full of shit

 

[DunningKruger]

Perhaps start lifting heavier to help grow muscle mass. If that means you have to reduce your current reta dosage in order to make that happen, that is for you to decide. There are programs that can help target some of the areas that you are looking to improve, one of them is called strong curves on reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

THIS. If you're doing cardio, scrap it, cut it back to the bare minimum. Definitely focus on weight training for both strength and hypertrophy. Less reps, and higher weight will help you to fill out the deflated areas and readjust your body composition.

If it were me, I would pause the Reta . Or drastically reduce the dose, and add Tesamorelin for body recomposition and muscle growth (ONLY if I didn't have any precancerous growths, cardiac issues, or uncontrolled diabetes).

Most importantly, I would increase my protein to 1g to 1.5g per pound of ideal bodyweight . (1g is easy to hit, but I find 1.5g hard to hit without supplementation) . And whenever I ate, I would eat protein before any other food group. I would also consult with both a doctor and a personal trainer (not your avg. trainer, one who is jacked and well-versed in kinesiology, physiology, diet, eating disorders, and peps. They exist. Some of them see this ALL the time).

Female to female: If your closest relatives are noticing, you're wandering into disordered eating/dysmorphic territory. Unless you are still outside of a normal BMI, you should really be off of Reta, until you deal with that. As females, we should have more fat in our lower bodies . Losing that can negatively affect our hormones and organs. Are you close to goal weight? Are you ok with stopping Reta, or does it cause a mild internal panic? Don't answer that publicly, only notice it within your body, because if you feel a mild panic at stopping, or compulsion to continue, you will know you've entered into disordered territory.

Remember, we are reducing fat for health. Strong is the goal, not skinny.

 

[randompersonrandom]

Female to female: If your closest relatives are noticing, you're wandering into disordered eating/dysmorphic territory.

I strongly disagree with this rule of thumb

I have watched a GREAT number of women I know be hassled and harried by insecure husbands and mothers who are comfortable with their daughters staying comfy-same forever while those women weren't even at "normal" size territory, and more than a few who were still in obese territory.

 

[lessthanhalf]

You need objective information to asses whether your weight is OK or too low. Given you have diabetes that is currently in remission from the weight loss and reta, putting on weight might not be the best option. So height weight waist circumference age bmi should be enough to get a good idea or a dexa scan if you want to be fancy or precise.

Family members can sabotage weight loss efforts without meaning to , if they are used to seeing you a certain way and it changes they can react negatively. I know my 84 year old mother got very concerned I was losing too much weight when my bmi was still in the high 20's.

Especially given the diabetes stopping reta outright does not seem like a great solution, but if your bmi is 25 or less the dropping the dose is reasonable if you feel uncomfortable at that weight, and see what weight and blood sugars do over time. Staying on reta might on its own be enough to stop you from having diabetes long term, metformin is not that good, as in it won't necessarily put type 2 diabetes into remission.

 

[CNCCurrency]

Thank you - that's really thoughtful of you and something I didn't think about. I will say I was diabetic when I started (a1c of 6.2). I started on metformin at the same time as reta. Last bloodwork showed I'm down to 5.6 which I think is the pre-diabetic range. I'm continuing to take metformin; my doctor was very happy with the weight loss. But you're right - it's more so my family saying I'm wasting away and getting "too skinny"

I have been taking reta for 6 months and my a1c went from 6.6- 6 months to 5.4 this week

 

[desinr-gal]

I strongly disagree with this rule of thumb

I have watched a GREAT number of women I know be hassled and harried by insecure husbands and mothers who are comfortable with their daughters staying comfy-same forever while those women weren't even at "normal" size territory, and more than a few who were still in obese territory.

This^ As someone who has received unpleasant feedback from family and friends both when I got fatter, and when I got thinner..I had a friend stop being my friend. . I have many theories about why. Especially when it upsets subconscious roles people have in their minds i.e. (she is the fat one..)

Just know that they are not a guaranteed safe gauge. People often react negatively to change.

 

[DunningKruger]

I strongly disagree with this rule of thumb

I have watched a GREAT number of women I know be hassled and harried by insecure husbands and mothers who are comfortable with their daughters staying comfy-same forever while those women weren't even at "normal" size territory, and more than a few who were still in obese territory.

You're not wrong, Random. That was a gross overgeneralization that didn't take into account that some people have really unsupportive and insecure families. My bad.

 

[randompersonrandom]

You're not wrong, Random. That was a gross overgeneralization that didn't take into account that some people have really unsupportive and insecure families. My bad.

Hey, no judgement--in fact, I'm happy for you that you must not see as much of that kind of...weirdness in the circles you move in that your mind would leap there as fast as mine did. It means you've got mostly loved ones who have good loved ones.

 

[DunningKruger]

I moved away from my immediate family over a decade ago, and now only speak to one cousin. So, I really should've known better, as they were definitely the type you mentioned. Thankfully, I have cultivated some friends and a loved one who are the polar opposite, and you're right, they are good ones.

I'm sorry if you've had to deal with unsupportive loved ones; it always hurts the most coming from the ones who are supposed to be safe.

 

[Zydeceltico]

I strongly disagree with this rule of thumb

I have watched a GREAT number of women I know be hassled and harried by insecure husbands and mothers who are comfortable with their daughters staying comfy-same forever while those women weren't even at "normal" size territory, and more than a few who were still in obese territory.

Yep - I'm from rural farm country and can attest to witnessing a strong stubborn social aversion to folks who were once a member of the "corn, meat, potatoes, and apple pie tribe" but no longer fit in with the family's/community's collective dissonance when it comes to eating habits even while they are "headed to town" for another trip to the doctor for every manner of health issue.

 

[black_tweets]

Thank you everyone for the valuable feedback and sharing your experiences. I'll look and see where I can get a dexa scan. I'm also planning to half the dose for the next few weeks to gain a few pounds back.

 

[randompersonrandom]

I'm sorry if you've had to deal with unsupportive loved ones; it always hurts the most coming from the ones who are supposed to be safe.

You know, I personally have been lucky; all living blood-relations I have left who are close to me are great cheerleaders, and my own circles are full of the best, most supportive people in the world. I even have some friends who are super into body acceptance and philosophically opposed to weight loss in general who are nevertheless pleased for me and supportive of me doing what I want (though we both work to be careful in how we talk about it, because neither of us is interested in annoying the other). But since I'm "out" about Tirzepatide, and to a degree, "out" about grey, EVERYBODY on Tirzepatide tells me all about their situations. That's cool, but holy hell. The stories I hear about family and spousal struggles coming from women who are just trying very hard not to have a heart attack or just see how the "standard size" crowd lives, and I'm just over there trying to keep a neutral, pleasantly interested face when on the inside I'm SCREAMIN.