3 weeks in on reta and I'm actually loving it :)

[octopusthorpe]

Hi everyone - really happy to have come across this forum!

A bit about me:

My reta experiment began roughly 3 weeks ago. At the moment my weekly dose is 1mg, which I divide into two 0.5mg shots, and starting low was such a good call because WOW. This stuff is legit.

What made me want to try this (pun intended) goes back to 2017, when I dropped 160lb by myself (SW: 301lb) using low-carb, strength training and hiking. That's been maintained for close to 10 years now, and during that stretch I've built a significant amount of muscle from training at a powerlifting gym 3x/week, with great muscle definition - until menopause hit.

Being a girl sucks sometimes.

Even though I changed literally nothing about my training and fuel, over the last two years I became "puffy" and gained a noticeable amount of subcutaneous fat. The estradiol patch has been part of my routine for two years and did wonders for my sleep and mood, but did f* all for my weight. A year ago I added test-c (injectable), which was awesome for putting on mass and libido, but again, no positive impacts on my ability to complete a cut.

3 weeks in on reta (I'm still on a low-carb diet) and I've dropped 8lbs - more weight than I have in the past two years of trying and failing - which is mind-blowing. I have more energy, no negative impacts on my lifting and hiking, my RHR hasn't changed at all (my normal is between 46-51bpm) and aside from a slightly lower HRV (still balanced) and waking up at 4am in the bloody morning most days (getting around 7 hours per night) I haven't had any adverse side effects.

I've never been on a GLP before so I'm basically playing this by ear for the moment. I'll see how it goes over the next 4 weeks and if I notice it being less effective, the plan is to titrate up 0.25mg/week for four weeks, then re-assess.

Thanks for giving people a place to have candid discussions on reta. Much appreciated.

 

[Rezwalker]

Going low and slow with the dose is definitely the right approach!

Reta packs a serious punch !!

And welcome aboard the 4 am wake-up crew !

 

[octopusthorpe]

Rezwalker said:

Going low and slow with the dose is definitely the right approach!

Reta packs a serious punch !!

And welcome aboard the 4 am wake-up crew !

I've always been someone who likes mornings, but not to that extent

 

[TxUt777]

Yeah I'm at week 4 now, moving up at a pretty gradual pace, currently at 2mg per week and staying there, and with the consistent energy, absence of cravings, and having to slow down my eating, it feels genuinely great. The one downside for me was after eating Korean BBQ — despite not eating too much, I got reflux at night while trying to fall asleep. I started taking some pre and probiotics and it improved

 

[birdwhacker]

TxUt777 said:

Yeah I'm at week 4 now, moving up at a pretty gradual pace, currently at 2mg per week and staying there, and with the consistent energy, absence of cravings, and having to slow down my eating, it feels genuinely great. The one downside for me was after eating Korean BBQ — despite not eating too much, I got reflux at night while trying to fall asleep. I started taking some pre and probiotics and it improved

Slowed digestion has to be among reta's most significant downsides. I've discovered that using less liquid helps — for instance, I now blend psilium husk and protein powder into a far smaller volume of fluid than I would otherwise. On top of that, my thirst levels have dropped noticeably (I take in a huge amount of electrolytes).

 

[Peptommy]

9 months in my case, and I figure this might just be something I stay on forever lol

Welcome

 

[vande250]

Welcome in — and wow, what a foundation you're bringing.

Dropping 160 lbs and keeping it off for years, and packing on strength and muscle the way you have… that's no small feat. The effort behind that is obvious.

What you're running into with menopause is something plenty of folks hit — same habits, same effort, but the body suddenly stops answering the way it once did. That "puffy + stubborn fat" stretch is a real grind.

Your Reta plan reads like a smart one:

• beginning at a low dose
  
• dividing doses
  
• paying attention to your body's signals

And 8 lbs in 3 weeks after two years of getting nowhere… yeah, that's going to feel pretty surreal.

Also encouraging that:

• performance hasn't dropped
  
• RHR is steady
  
• sides are minimal (early wake-ups are pretty common)

Honestly, it sounds like you already have a strong grip on this. The gradual titration plan makes sense if/when needed.

Really interesting case, especially with your training background — would love to hear how things look over the next couple months

 

[TxUt777]

birdwhacker said:

TxUt777 said:

Yeah I'm at week 4 now, moving up at a pretty gradual pace, currently at 2mg per week and staying there, and with the consistent energy, absence of cravings, and having to slow down my eating, it feels genuinely great. The one downside for me was after eating Korean BBQ — despite not eating too much, I got reflux at night while trying to fall asleep. I started taking some pre and probiotics and it improved

Slowed digestion has to be among reta's most significant downsides. I've discovered that using less liquid helps — for instance, I now blend psilium husk and protein powder into a far smaller volume of fluid than I would otherwise. On top of that, my thirst levels have dropped noticeably (I take in a huge amount of electrolytes).

Dude, I'm putting away more than a gallon daily. For the first time in years, my pee is nearly clear lol

 

[birdwhacker]

TxUt777 said:

birdwhacker said:

TxUt777 said:

Yeah I'm at week 4 now, moving up at a pretty gradual pace, currently at 2mg per week and staying there, and with the consistent energy, absence of cravings, and having to slow down my eating, it feels genuinely great. The one downside for me was after eating Korean BBQ — despite not eating too much, I got reflux at night while trying to fall asleep. I started taking some pre and probiotics and it improved

Slowed digestion has to be among reta's most significant downsides. I've discovered that using less liquid helps — for instance, I now blend psilium husk and protein powder into a far smaller volume of fluid than I would otherwise. On top of that, my thirst levels have dropped noticeably (I take in a huge amount of electrolytes).

Dude, I'm putting away more than a gallon daily. For the first time in years, my pee is nearly clear lol

What you're missing is electrolytes. Kick off your day by drinking a large glass of salt water, mixing table salt and potassium at a 1:3 ratio. Potassium's RDA sits around 4.5g/day

 

[CreepyZebra]

Nice work on the weight loss — doing that solo is impressive! I only wish I'd come across these forums (and others) way earlier in my research. I'm at the 3 week mark too, except a medspa started me at 2mg right away (yep, I know better now) and that first week was brutal. Heart racing. No appetite at all. Awful GI problems and nausea. Since then I dropped to 1mg taken 2x per week, which changed everything.

On top of that, perimenopause has absolutely wrecked me, and that's what finally pushed me toward peps after a lifetime of staying healthy and active.

 

[octopusthorpe]

Peptommy said:

9 months in my case, and I figure this might just be something I stay on forever lol

Welcome

Whoa - how much are you taking? Even at just 1mg I'm finding it hard to get food down

 

[octopusthorpe]

birdwhacker said:

TxUt777 said:

birdwhacker said:

TxUt777 said:

Yeah I'm at week 4 now, moving up at a pretty gradual pace, currently at 2mg per week and staying there, and with the consistent energy, absence of cravings, and having to slow down my eating, it feels genuinely great. The one downside for me was after eating Korean BBQ — despite not eating too much, I got reflux at night while trying to fall asleep. I started taking some pre and probiotics and it improved

Slowed digestion has to be among reta's most significant downsides. I've discovered that using less liquid helps — for instance, I now blend psilium husk and protein powder into a far smaller volume of fluid than I would otherwise. On top of that, my thirst levels have dropped noticeably (I take in a huge amount of electrolytes).

Dude, I'm putting away more than a gallon daily. For the first time in years, my pee is nearly clear lol

What you're missing is electrolytes. Kick off your day by drinking a large glass of salt water, mixing table salt and potassium at a 1:3 ratio. Potassium's RDA sits around 4.5g/day

I mix up something like a 'hot chocolate' using LMNT Chocolate salt. throw in a splash of heavy cream and it tastes divine.

CreepyZebra said:

Nice work on the weight loss — doing that solo is impressive! I only wish I'd come across these forums (and others) way earlier in my research. I'm at the 3 week mark too, except a medspa started me at 2mg right away (yep, I know better now) and that first week was brutal. Heart racing. No appetite at all. Awful GI problems and nausea. Since then I dropped to 1mg taken 2x per week, which changed everything.

On top of that, perimenopause has absolutely wrecked me, and that's what finally pushed me toward peps after a lifetime of staying healthy and active.

Yep, the peri is total bullsh*t isn't it

 

[nesbit]

octopusthorpe said:

Hi everyone - really happy to have come across this forum!

A bit about me:

My reta experiment began roughly 3 weeks ago. At the moment my weekly dose is 1mg, which I divide into two 0.5mg shots, and starting low was such a good call because WOW. This stuff is legit.

What made me want to try this (pun intended) goes back to 2017, when I dropped 160lb by myself (SW: 301lb) using low-carb, strength training and hiking. That's been maintained for close to 10 years now, and during that stretch I've built a significant amount of muscle from training at a powerlifting gym 3x/week, with great muscle definition - until menopause hit.

Being a girl sucks sometimes.

Even though I changed literally nothing about my training and fuel, over the last two years I became "puffy" and gained a noticeable amount of subcutaneous fat. The estradiol patch has been part of my routine for two years and did wonders for my sleep and mood, but did f* all for my weight. A year ago I added test-c (injectable), which was awesome for putting on mass and libido, but again, no positive impacts on my ability to complete a cut.

3 weeks in on reta (I'm still on a low-carb diet) and I've dropped 8lbs - more weight than I have in the past two years of trying and failing - which is mind-blowing. I have more energy, no negative impacts on my lifting and hiking, my RHR hasn't changed at all (my normal is between 46-51bpm) and aside from a slightly lower HRV (still balanced) and waking up at 4am in the bloody morning most days (getting around 7 hours per night) I haven't had any adverse side effects.

I've never been on a GLP before so I'm basically playing this by ear for the moment. I'll see how it goes over the next 4 weeks and if I notice it being less effective, the plan is to titrate up 0.25mg/week for four weeks, then re-assess.

Thanks for giving people a place to have candid discussions on reta. Much appreciated.

Reta really is great, right? I've lost 40 lbs already and still have plenty more to lose (150). Best of luck!

 

[muhvugga]

octopusthorpe said:

Hi everyone - really happy to have come across this forum!

A bit about me:

My reta experiment began roughly 3 weeks ago. At the moment my weekly dose is 1mg, which I divide into two 0.5mg shots, and starting low was such a good call because WOW. This stuff is legit.

What made me want to try this (pun intended) goes back to 2017, when I dropped 160lb by myself (SW: 301lb) using low-carb, strength training and hiking. That's been maintained for close to 10 years now, and during that stretch I've built a significant amount of muscle from training at a powerlifting gym 3x/week, with great muscle definition - until menopause hit.

Being a girl sucks sometimes.

Even though I changed literally nothing about my training and fuel, over the last two years I became "puffy" and gained a noticeable amount of subcutaneous fat. The estradiol patch has been part of my routine for two years and did wonders for my sleep and mood, but did f* all for my weight. A year ago I added test-c (injectable), which was awesome for putting on mass and libido, but again, no positive impacts on my ability to complete a cut.

3 weeks in on reta (I'm still on a low-carb diet) and I've dropped 8lbs - more weight than I have in the past two years of trying and failing - which is mind-blowing. I have more energy, no negative impacts on my lifting and hiking, my RHR hasn't changed at all (my normal is between 46-51bpm) and aside from a slightly lower HRV (still balanced) and waking up at 4am in the bloody morning most days (getting around 7 hours per night) I haven't had any adverse side effects.

I've never been on a GLP before so I'm basically playing this by ear for the moment. I'll see how it goes over the next 4 weeks and if I notice it being less effective, the plan is to titrate up 0.25mg/week for four weeks, then re-assess.

Thanks for giving people a place to have candid discussions on reta. Much appreciated.

Honestly, your story sounds a lot like mine - once I got into my mid 40s, it was like genetics suddenly decided to show up and hit me hard. For years I stayed on top of things by eating reasonably and staying active, and then... boom... all at once I see my dad when I look in the mirror... stubborn belly fat that won't go away no matter how strict I am with my diet.

It's really good to hear it's working out for you. I'd guess that dropping the weight also gives you more drive to keep up with the workouts.

 

[TxUt777]

birdwhacker said:

TxUt777 said:

birdwhacker said:

TxUt777 said:

Yeah I'm at week 4 now, moving up at a pretty gradual pace, currently at 2mg per week and staying there, and with the consistent energy, absence of cravings, and having to slow down my eating, it feels genuinely great. The one downside for me was after eating Korean BBQ — despite not eating too much, I got reflux at night while trying to fall asleep. I started taking some pre and probiotics and it improved

Slowed digestion has to be among reta's most significant downsides. I've discovered that using less liquid helps — for instance, I now blend psilium husk and protein powder into a far smaller volume of fluid than I would otherwise. On top of that, my thirst levels have dropped noticeably (I take in a huge amount of electrolytes).

Dude, I'm putting away more than a gallon daily. For the first time in years, my pee is nearly clear lol

What you're missing is electrolytes. Kick off your day by drinking a large glass of salt water, mixing table salt and potassium at a 1:3 ratio. Potassium's RDA sits around 4.5g/day

Thanks. There were a few occasions this week when I forgot to take electrolytes.