BNLFL
Explorer
I need guidance—I've gone below my goal, don't want to shed any more pounds, and have to begin reducing. I'll remain on it indefinitely as well. My wife will continue at 9mg for the time being.
Has anyone reached their target weight and then tapered down from retatrutide?
- Thread starter greenapplesandham
- Start date
Flash-BCR
Explorer
...and then they stayed happy forever...
Shittersfull
Explorer
Reading this gave me some useful perspective. I'm currently at 4mg of reta, have lost 45 lbs, and still have roughly 50 lbs left to lose. I haven't figured out an exit strategy yet. That said, I've been exercising a lot. Carrying less fat makes it easier. These days I genuinely enjoy training. I'll be picking up tips from everyone here. Staying on reta indefinitely is something I'd be fine with.
AllCourtTENNIS
Explorer
Trial results and social media stories are full of claims that stopping the medication leads to fast weight regain. On top of that, they say if you begin again later, your previous effective dose will no longer be sufficient to get you back on track.
downtherabbithole1
Explorer
My goal weight is reached, and I'm now in week 2 without Reta. My resting heart rate is back to normal, which I've been glad about; food noise hasn't shown up the way it used to; and I'm paying much closer attention to what I eat. I suppose the reason is that I put so much time into learning and researching Reta, keeping my weight steady, and staying active that old habits haven't really crept back in.
woundcarping said:
undecided said:
That's a fair observation! In my case, I use supplements—Vitamin C, for instance—since the body requires it daily. My reason for using Reta is solely to reach a specific target, and after I get there, my plan is to stop. That said, if you could give me a reason to continue, I might reconsider. To be clear about where I'm coming from: I'm here to learn, not to dispute or debate.ladyj779 said:
I find it really strange that folks get so anxious about using a medication or supplement that clearly improves their health, when we already take countless meds and supplements—many of which do nothing at all or can even cause harm.
For me, it's no different from a multivitamin, except that the effect on my health is obvious. It also costs less than some other supplements I take for no practical benefit
Suppose you make a change (GLP1) in order to reach a goal that doesn't end (losing weight), and then you remove that change (GLP1) — what becomes of that ongoing goal?
For the vast majority of people, weight loss isn't a finish line. Getting to 15% weight loss through diet and exercise alone is rare, and holding onto it is rarer still. Peptides seem to make that 15% relatively easy, and they appear to keep it off for as long as you stay on them — but not if you stop. Stop, and the weight comes back; and when you start peptides again later, they probably won't work as well, so the same amount of effort will get you less.
Sustaining effort over the long haul is difficult.
Sure, sustaining that kind of effort indefinitely is tough. Still, some form of dedication is unavoidable. You either stay on Reta permanently, or you stay dedicated to diet and exercise permanently (or possibly both). As you pointed out, halting either path brings its own outcomes. My reason for starting Reta wasn't hitting a specific number on the scale. The scale reading doesn't matter to me; what matters is reaching a certain degree of fat loss and being satisfied with my reflection. I'm finally nearing that point, and I've booked a DEXA scan to establish a baseline, so I can see my body composition at a moment when I feel I look good. (To clarify: I'm speaking strictly in terms of body fat. I believe I need to add FAR more muscle before I might look good to other people). After that DEXA, and once I can see the rest of my abs (nearly there), my plan was to taper off Reta, ramp up resistance training, and maybe look into TRT or HGH for a stretch to get a head start. Following 6mo or perhaps a year, provided my efforts stay consistent, I anticipate being further along in building muscle, and hopefully closer to the body I actually want, which would become the new goal. At that stage, I'll have a year's worth of labs without Reta, and I'll do the DEXA scan again. If it turns out I need to resume Reta, whether for fat loss or simply to keep the excellent lab results I appear to have while on it, then I suppose that's what I'll do.
woundcarping
Explorer
undecided said:
woundcarping said:
undecided said:
That's a fair observation! In my case, I use supplements—Vitamin C, for instance—since the body requires it daily. My reason for using Reta is solely to reach a specific target, and after I get there, my plan is to stop. That said, if you could give me a reason to continue, I might reconsider. To be clear about where I'm coming from: I'm here to learn, not to dispute or debate.ladyj779 said:
I find it really strange that folks get so anxious about using a medication or supplement that clearly improves their health, when we already take countless meds and supplements—many of which do nothing at all or can even cause harm.
For me, it's no different from a multivitamin, except that the effect on my health is obvious. It also costs less than some other supplements I take for no practical benefit
Suppose you make a change (GLP1) in order to reach a goal that doesn't end (losing weight), and then you remove that change (GLP1) — what becomes of that ongoing goal?
For the vast majority of people, weight loss isn't a finish line. Getting to 15% weight loss through diet and exercise alone is rare, and holding onto it is rarer still. Peptides seem to make that 15% relatively easy, and they appear to keep it off for as long as you stay on them — but not if you stop. Stop, and the weight comes back; and when you start peptides again later, they probably won't work as well, so the same amount of effort will get you less.
Sustaining effort over the long haul is difficult.
Sure, sustaining that kind of effort indefinitely is tough. Still, some form of dedication is unavoidable. You either stay on Reta permanently, or you stay dedicated to diet and exercise permanently (or possibly both). As you pointed out, halting either path brings its own outcomes. My reason for starting Reta wasn't hitting a specific number on the scale. The scale reading doesn't matter to me; what matters is reaching a certain degree of fat loss and being satisfied with my reflection. I'm finally nearing that point, and I've booked a DEXA scan to establish a baseline, so I can see my body composition at a moment when I feel I look good. (To clarify: I'm speaking strictly in terms of body fat. I believe I need to add FAR more muscle before I might look good to other people). After that DEXA, and once I can see the rest of my abs (nearly there), my plan was to taper off Reta, ramp up resistance training, and maybe look into TRT or HGH for a stretch to get a head start. Following 6mo or perhaps a year, provided my efforts stay consistent, I anticipate being further along in building muscle, and hopefully closer to the body I actually want, which would become the new goal. At that stage, I'll have a year's worth of labs without Reta, and I'll do the DEXA scan again. If it turns out I need to resume Reta, whether for fat loss or simply to keep the excellent lab results I appear to have while on it, then I suppose that's what I'll do.
Comparing the ongoing burden of using Reta against the ongoing burden of sticking to a calorie deficit plus exercise is a thought-provoking angle.
For me there's a distinction between a weight goal and a body target. A goal is pass/fail; a target is something you aim at. My body target comes with a weight attached, derived from the 4 DEXA scans I've done this year, with my 5th coming up in a couple weeks.
I began TRT in January, partly to protect lean mass and partly for the other benefits that come with treating hypogonadism.
Broadly speaking I don't have strong feelings about what anyone else chooses, I'm just sharing where I ended up. What matters more to me is being able to enjoy life rather than trying to hold the line without peptides. Back in 2018 I dropped 80lb the old fashioned way, and when I stopped being old fashioned I put 60lb of it back on. These days I'm 15lb below my 2018 low point, and instead of living under dietary restrictions and presumably having to exercise enough to avoid rebound... for the rest of my life, I get to enjoy life.
BNLFL
Explorer
There's still a decent stretch ahead of you, so no need to worry about it at this point.
She's aware of it and has asked me to dial it down. I'm roughly 7-8lbs under my target, and because of that subcutaneous belly fat I was still on 9mg, plus I was trying to lower my BF%, though that mostly comes down to sit ups and similar stuff. She had to lose more than me, and she still does. I honestly don't get how she ended up that puffed out.
WholesomeApril
Explorer
About 2 years back, my situation matched yours almost exactly. I'm 168cm too, and my weight fell from 68 kg to 56. The highest dose of Reta I ever used was 2.5mg.
Once I got down to 56, I began putting more time between my jobs, moving to 1 injection every 2 weeks. After that, I gradually reduced how much I was taking.
Fast forward 2 years, and I now run a 3 or 4 week stretch of 1 - 1.5mg per week roughly every 8 weeks (or anytime I sense I need it), and my weight loss has stayed put with this routine.
Once I got down to 56, I began putting more time between my jobs, moving to 1 injection every 2 weeks. After that, I gradually reduced how much I was taking.
Fast forward 2 years, and I now run a 3 or 4 week stretch of 1 - 1.5mg per week roughly every 8 weeks (or anytime I sense I need it), and my weight loss has stayed put with this routine.
HereKittyKitty
Explorer
So the plan isn't to keep her on it. She's the one deciding, right?
sheilarae74
Explorer
I'm facing this exact problem at the moment. Today I finally got to my goal weight, which means I should be figuring out how to transition into maintenance. But honestly, I'm not there yet mentally. Over the past 19 months I've dropped 90 lbs, and since I've come this far, hitting 100 even seems worth doing. Once my tesa arrives I'm going to add tesa/ipa, so that's probably when I'll take another look at where I stand.
Is she showing interest in the process? How does she view it?
(I've volunteered to mentor a handful of people. Their level of interest tends to vary.
It never fails to catch me off guard, since I'm fascinated by this subject and soak up everything I can about it!)
greenapplesandham
Explorer
Having someone who's been through a similar experience is really valuable. It seems like stepping the dose down gradually, paired with a monitoring plan, is a solid way to hold onto this.
This week I intend to begin reducing my dose, settling at 2mg weekly for the long term, then stretching the intervals to three or four weeks once my body adjusts. Did you notice a clear comeback of appetite and food noise?
WholesomeApril
Explorer
Yeah, somewhat — though in my view it's nothing beyond what's typical.
Whenever things start to feel out of hand, I'll drop to 1.5 or 1mg for a couple of weeks, which pulls me back on course
greenapplesandham
Explorer
After you get to your goal weight, I've heard that if you keep pushing reta too high, the body struggles more to hold homeostasis. That's the reason I want to bring my dosage down.
With the tesa and ipa, what result are you aiming for?
I agree. This isn't just anecdotal — trials have examined it too. Going off and back on doesn't work well, and from what people report, moving between Tirz and Reta raises that same risk. Why resist treating it like a long-term chronic condition, the way we do with diabetes or hypertension?
gimmeshelter
Explorer
What made you change over to T?CMA Pooky said:
ladyj779 said:
I find it really strange that folks get so anxious about using a medication or supplement that clearly improves their health, when we already take countless meds and supplements—many of which do nothing at all or can even cause harm.
For me, it's no different from a multivitamin, except that the effect on my health is obvious. It also costs less than some other supplements I take for no practical benefit
The issue for me is the sheer number ofsupplements I'm already on — 10 every day, plus 2 prescription medications. That said, Reta brought my A1C down under the Diabetes threshold, so I could likely drop 1 of those meds.
My plan is to keep using GLP1s, but I'm considering a switch from R to T once I hit my goal weight, which should be roughly a month away.
RetCurious
Explorer
Nice work!