Reta 12mg - Sloooooow Motion

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Draculawless

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First part first - personal Specs

44 year old Male: Moderately handsome, but not dashing

Current weight: 278

Starting weight in Feb 2026: 295

Exercise: weights 3 times a week if I find the time. During my lunch break I walk approximately 2.5 miles as fast as I can. Usually in like 35 to 40 minutes.

Calories: counted via cronometer. Current at 1950 per day.

Reality:

I think I'm a slow responder. I'm currently at 12mg of reta and .75 of cag per week. My weight has been hanging around 280 for a month or so. I can still eat, although less, but still get hungry. If I drop down to 1500 calories I get HUNGRY.

So what gives? Do I increase the reta above the trial limit of 12mg or add more cag? Wait it out? Has anyone stalled at the apex of their dosing?
 
Did you have previous GLP experience?

It's interesting you've had some response but relatively little response.

How many calories are you eating? In general it's roughly as simple as CICO, Reta's GCGR may give that a 100-300 calorie daily increase.

Walk us through your reconstitution and measuring methodology... assuming you have a known quantity of Reta in the vial.

I'm beyond trialed dosing, but not taking cagri. No sides, no problems detected.
 
woundcarping said:
Did you have previous GLP experience?

It's interesting you've had some response but relatively little response.

How many calories are you eating? In general it's roughly as simple as CICO, Reta's GCGR may give that a 100-300 calorie daily increase.

Walk us through your reconstitution and measuring methodology... assuming you have a known quantity of Reta in the vial.

I'm beyond trialed dosing, but not taking cagri. No sides, no problems detected.
30mg reconstituted with 2ml for 80 units per https://cellgenic.com/peptide-calculator/

Calories yesterday were 1985 with an expenditure of 3756 per fitbit and cronometer (this second number is bunk, I know. I don't even pay attention to it and do not eat back calories) I need to be more religious with counting, however. Some days I just get busy. I wouldn't mind doing omad again, I just try to hit my macros and omad and weight lifting on top of all the other stresses of life are tough.

I also take a blood pressure med (losartan hydrochlorothiazide) Wellbutrin, and buspar for the occasional anxiety. From what I've read, none of those really affect weight loss. I was taking Lexapro but I weaned off of that thankfully. I discovered that one of my other blood pressure medications was causing me to get dizzy and give me anxiety. It's been a fucking process and I'm not disappointed with the results. My blood test came back stunning for the first time in my life and I'm getting off medications. It just seems like the weight loss is slow going.
 
I wouldn’t personally jump above trial dosing just because the scale has been flat for a few weeks. You’re already at a pretty aggressive point with 12mg reta plus cag, so before changing compounds or doses, I’d probably audit the boring stuff first.

A few things I’d look at:

Your loss from 295 to around 278 is still solid progress. A stall after dropping almost 20 lbs is not unusual, especially if training, water retention, sodium, carbs, constipation, or inflammation are moving around.

Also, 1950 calories may or may not be as low as it feels depending on tracking accuracy, weekend variance, sauces, oils, bites/tastes, and Cronometer entries. Not saying you’re doing it wrong, just that this is usually where the hidden calories show up.

The other thing is hunger does not always mean the meds “aren’t working.” At 278, walking 2.5 miles fast plus lifting 3x/week can make 1500 calories feel brutal. That may be too aggressive to sustain, and it could make adherence worse.

Personally, I’d probably hold steady, tighten tracking for 2 weeks, look at weekly average weight instead of day-to-day weight, make sure protein/fiber/electrolytes are solid, and maybe add steps before touching the dose. If nothing moves after that, then it may be worth reassessing with more experienced people or a clinician.

I’m fairly new to Reta. I was using Tirz before and the food noise suppression was higher. With that said, I’d be cautious about assuming “more dose” is the answer when the current dose is already high.
 
Draculawless said:
First part first - personal Specs

44 year old Male: Moderately handsome, but not dashing

Current weight: 278

Starting weight in Feb 2026: 295

Exercise: weights 3 times a week if I find the time. During my lunch break I walk approximately 2.5 miles as fast as I can. Usually in like 35 to 40 minutes.

Calories: counted via cronometer. Current at 1950 per day.

Reality:

I think I'm a slow responder. I'm currently at 12mg of reta and .75 of cag per week. My weight has been hanging around 280 for a month or so. I can still eat, although less, but still get hungry. If I drop down to 1500 calories I get HUNGRY.

So what gives? Do I increase the reta above the trial limit of 12mg or add more cag? Wait it out? Has anyone stalled at the apex of their dosing?
Solid progress so far, man Dropping 17 lbs since February as a 44-year-old guy while lifting and power-walking is legit. You're doing the hard parts right.

A month-long stall around 278-280 on 12mg reta + 0.75 cag isn't unusual, especially if you're strength training. You could be recomping (losing fat, holding/gaining some muscle), which the scale won't show. Track waist measurements, photos, or how clothes fit too?

1950 cals with lingering hunger suggests your body is fighting back a bit (metabolic adaptation is real on these meds). Dropping to 1500 sounds miserable and unsustainable. Some guys find success by Prioritizing high protein (aim 180g+) More volume eating (veggies, fiber)Occasional refeed days Instead of slashing cals hard.

Some people on reta hit a wall right at the 12mg trial max. Options people discuss:

Wait it out , Plateaus often break after 4-8 weeks if you stay consistent.

Slight reta increase , Some go 15mg+ off-label, but that's beyond trial data and side effects (GI, etc.) can ramp up. Only do this if you're tolerating 12mg well.

Tweak cag , Bumping the cagrilintide portion can help appetite more for some in combos.

Not sure if you're a " slow responder " you've already lost weight and built habits. Keep logging in Cronometer, stay hydrated, sleep well, and manage stress. The walk + weights combo is gold long-term.

Hang in there. A lot of guys break through these stalls and keep dropping. What's your target weight?
 
With all your doing it could be a case of your body creating more muscle , thus your not loosing weight . Obviously a good thing . As above have mentioned stick to your dose. Keep the intake strict for a few weeks and increase exercise and protein.

We all have stalls it's part of the journey. 12mg is heavy already , increasing from here is diminishing returns , until new data tells us otherwise.
 
Draculawless said:
First part first - personal Specs

44 year old Male: Moderately handsome, but not dashing

Current weight: 278

Starting weight in Feb 2026: 295

Exercise: weights 3 times a week if I find the time. During my lunch break I walk approximately 2.5 miles as fast as I can. Usually in like 35 to 40 minutes.

Calories: counted via cronometer. Current at 1950 per day.

Reality:

I think I'm a slow responder. I'm currently at 12mg of reta and .75 of cag per week. My weight has been hanging around 280 for a month or so. I can still eat, although less, but still get hungry. If I drop down to 1500 calories I get HUNGRY.

So what gives? Do I increase the reta above the trial limit of 12mg or add more cag? Wait it out? Has anyone stalled at the apex of their dosing?
I think I might be able to help you. I was in the same exact situation except I'm extremely handsome. Ask anyone.

I posted where I took 12mg reta, 10 tirz and 1 mg of Cagri and never even burped. Zero effect on me and then I found something.

I was swearing my thyroid was jiggy. My doc said the bloods looked good. However after researching several hours a day I came to the conclusion that I needed iodine. So I started taking 2 drops of Lugols every morning in my coffee w/ 8oz of water w/ a pinch of Baja Gold Sea Salt. Worked my way to 5 drops.

Bam! Weight started coming off and I was getting better hunger supression w/ my reta. My energy was thru the roof and my old man pains went away. No more brain fog. It has changed my life.

I never said anything about it until one day @Airborne Daddy made the statement that he heard that thyroid problems could effect how reta works. He was right (and 6 months late 🙂 ) but it verified my suspicions.

Maybe this will help you to but everyone is different. Good luck.
 
Draculawless said:
First part first - personal Specs

44 year old Male: Moderately handsome, but not dashing

Current weight: 278

Starting weight in Feb 2026: 295

Exercise: weights 3 times a week if I find the time. During my lunch break I walk approximately 2.5 miles as fast as I can. Usually in like 35 to 40 minutes.

Calories: counted via cronometer. Current at 1950 per day.

Reality:

I think I'm a slow responder. I'm currently at 12mg of reta and .75 of cag per week. My weight has been hanging around 280 for a month or so. I can still eat, although less, but still get hungry. If I drop down to 1500 calories I get HUNGRY.

So what gives? Do I increase the reta above the trial limit of 12mg or add more cag? Wait it out? Has anyone stalled at the apex of their dosing?
What is your exact macro?
 
People, he's not building muscle fast enough to offset fat loss running a 1k+ calorie daily deficit. That's not a thing. Building meaningful muscle fiber in general while in an aggressive cut is also not really a thing

15lb in ~4 months is absolutely not solid progress. He likely dropped 10lb of that in the first weeks. That's a 5% reduction in a third of a year.

Occam says something is wrong in the numbers and methodology, not something wrong metabolically... but so mething is certainly not correct.

Draculawless said:
30mg reconstituted with 2ml for 80 units per https://cellgenic.com/peptide-calculator/
That math checks, 30mg/2ml*.80ml= 12mg.

Side note, if .8ml is more than I care for, nothing wrong with it. I'd do 1ml for a .4ml injection, although I split dose so it would be .2ml 2x week for me (also fits in my more commonly used .3ml syringe).

Draculawless said:
Calories yesterday were 1985 with an expenditure of 3756 per fitbit and cronometer (this second number is bunk, I know. I don't even pay attention to it and do not eat back calories) I need to be more religious with counting, however. Some days I just get busy. I wouldn't mind doing omad again, I just try to hit my macros and omad and weight lifting on top of all the other stresses of life are tough.

Something isn't right, the obvious suspect is the numbers. Calories in are easier to "accurately" track compared to calories burned... but calories are easy to hide in food, especially as a big'n. I'm 40, my starting weight in December was 282lb and I've dropped 60lb in that time.

Draculawless said:
I also take a blood pressure med (losartan hydrochlorothiazide) Wellbutrin, and buspar for the occasional anxiety. From what I've read, none of those really affect weight loss. I was taking Lexapro but I weaned off of that thankfully. I discovered that one of my other blood pressure medications was causing me to get dizzy and give me anxiety. It's been a fucking process and I'm not disappointed with the results. My blood test came back stunning for the first time in my life and I'm getting off medications. It just seems like the weight loss is slow going.

Drug interaction isn't my forte, so without doing research to sound more knowledgable than I am, I'll accept your statement that there's likely not an interaction.

It definitely is a process and you're definitely making progress. Solid bloodwork is a great feeling. Have you checked your thyroid, testosterone, and vitamin levels? There's nothing wrong with trying to figure out why things are going slower than typically seen.
 
My question is what are the foods you are eating? Until I started keto and eating clean whole foods, I had ridiculous carb cravings for things like pizza and fried foods and such due to the dopamine addiction to them. You can be hungry and lose weight, but if the food you are eating is addictive for your brain, that hunger might be breaking through that way. This is the reason why I don't do cheat days even on Reta.
 
Draculawless said:
First part first - personal Specs

44 year old Male: Moderately handsome, but not dashing

Current weight: 278

Starting weight in Feb 2026: 295

Exercise: weights 3 times a week if I find the time. During my lunch break I walk approximately 2.5 miles as fast as I can. Usually in like 35 to 40 minutes.

Calories: counted via cronometer. Current at 1950 per day.

Reality:

I think I'm a slow responder. I'm currently at 12mg of reta and .75 of cag per week. My weight has been hanging around 280 for a month or so. I can still eat, although less, but still get hungry. If I drop down to 1500 calories I get HUNGRY.

So what gives? Do I increase the reta above the trial limit of 12mg or add more cag? Wait it out? Has anyone stalled at the apex of their dosing?
How is your thyroid levels?
 
DjJoshua said:
Solid progress so far, man Dropping...

Wait it out , Plateaus often ...

Not sure if you're a " slow responder " you've ...
Wanna know how I know you always use dark mode on your browser?
 
I am not having any results so far with Reta, below is my journey...What gives? Any thoughts or help would be appreciated.

Wk1 - 1mg - 278lbs

Wk2 - 2mg - 278lbs

Wk3- 2mg - 280.4lbs

Wk4- 2mg - 277.6lbs

Wk5- 3mg - 280lbs

Wk6- 3mg - 280lbs

Wk7- 4mg - 280lbs

Wk8- 4mg - 280lbs

Wk9- 6mg - 280lbs

Wk10- 6mg - 278lbs

Wk11- 6mg - 276.4lbs

Wk12- 8mg - 278lbs
 
I may

Rolltide61 said:
I think I might be able to help you. I was in the same exact situation except I'm extremely handsome. Ask anyone.

I posted where I took 12mg reta, 10 tirz and 1 mg of Cagri and never even burped. Zero effect on me and then I found something.

I was swearing my thyroid was jiggy. My doc said the bloods looked good. However after researching several hours a day I came to the conclusion that I needed iodine. So I started taking 2 drops of Lugols every morning in my coffee w/ 8oz of water w/ a pinch of Baja Gold Sea Salt. Worked my way to 5 drops.

Bam! Weight started coming off and I was getting better hunger supression w/ my reta. My energy was thru the roof and my old man pains went away. No more brain fog. It has changed my life.

I never said anything about it until one day @Airborne Daddy made the statement that he heard that thyroid problems could effect how reta works. He was right (and 6 months late 🙂 ) but it verified my suspicions.

Maybe this will help you to but everyone is different. Good luck.
I may try this cuz at max doses i never lost more than 20lbs. Just began trying to cut my drinking 90% so well see.
 
Prodigy217 said:
I am not having any results so far with Reta, below is my journey...What gives? Any thoughts or help would be appreciated.

Wk1 - 1mg - 278lbs

Wk2 - 2mg - 278lbs

Wk3- 2mg - 280.4lbs

Wk4- 2mg - 277.6lbs

Wk5- 3mg - 280lbs

Wk6- 3mg - 280lbs

Wk7- 4mg - 280lbs

Wk8- 4mg - 280lbs

Wk9- 6mg - 280lbs

Wk10- 6mg - 278lbs

Wk11- 6mg - 276.4lbs

Wk12- 8mg - 278lbs
That’s less “surprising”, a portion of the trial population (~10%) were non responders.

The first thing to rule out could be if your Reta wasn’t Reta.
 
I vote calories in are being under counted.

In the end, it's just pure numbers. If you burn more than you eat, you will lose weight.

Reta will help you consume less, for sure, it may even help you burn a bit more in terms of increasing resting metabolic rate, but at the end of the day, week, month, if you're not losing weight you are consuming too many calories compared to what you're burning.

condiments, small snacks, beverages, it could be anything, but i'm confident there's something not being counted toward your daily intake

Dropping to 1500 is a bit extreme and if you can't stick with for an extended period, it it's not even worth trying because you'll rebound hard

I'd say if you're currently counting 1,950 daily, drop that to 1850-1800 (strict) and watch the scale.

Remember a pound of fat is like 3,500 calories. You'd need to be at a 500 calorie deficit for 7 days straight to lose one single pound. If you go over your cals one or two days, you could throw the whole week away.
 
nkresho said:
Remember a pound of fat is like 3,500 calories. You'd need to be at a 500 calorie deficit for 7 days straight to lose one single pound. If you go over your cals one or two days, you could throw the whole week away.

A pound of weight loss is rarely a pound of fat, the lean tissue loss reduces the calorie count per pound.
 
Prodigy217 said:
I am not having any results so far with Reta, below is my journey...What gives? Any thoughts or help would be appreciated.

Wk1 - 1mg - 278lbs

Wk2 - 2mg - 278lbs

Wk3- 2mg - 280.4lbs

Wk4- 2mg - 277.6lbs

Wk5- 3mg - 280lbs

Wk6- 3mg - 280lbs

Wk7- 4mg - 280lbs

Wk8- 4mg - 280lbs

Wk9- 6mg - 280lbs

Wk10- 6mg - 278lbs

Wk11- 6mg - 276.4lbs

Wk12- 8mg - 278lbs
Are you tracking calories in/out? If you’re not losing, you’re eating too many calories. That’s the undeniable rule of the game.
 
Man, all you guys are wonderful. Truly. I'm glad I have a place here to discuss these things!
 
woundcarping said:
That’s less “surprising”, a portion of the trial population (~10%) were non responders.

The first thing to rule out could be if your Reta wasn’t Reta.
It is from a reputable source that always has people post positive test results. Does that mean mine isn't reputable? Maybe, but probably not.
 
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