Australia Jules here

[Juls66]

I'm Jules. At my heaviest I weighed 180kg. Keto plus a lot of working out brought me down to 135kg. In 2018 I had a gastric sleeve - on the day of surgery I was 120. The surgery did its job well, but regain happens no matter what. I'd climbed back to 107.7 and realised I had to act to halt the regain. I've put in far too much effort to lose all of it. My first attempt was ozempic, which helped a moderate amount. I reached around 90, but the cost became too high so I stopped. After a few months with nothing, I began reta almost exactly 12 months ago. My dose is fairly low - 1mg every 2nd day. For a couple of months I've sort of been stuck on a plateau. I joined a gym at the end of October weighing 99.9kg. For the first time in my life I've stuck with it pretty consistently. I'm now at 78.9kg and trying to push past this set point. I've just registered for a charity 21km walk at the end of September, so I'm increasing my exercise. Since I was about 12 or 13, this is the lightest I can remember being. It's been one hell of a journey. For me, weight loss drugs on their own don't do the job. Reta combined with proper exercise appears to work well for me, provided I put the effort in.

 

[drgnfl]

Hey Jules! Great job on the progress you've made with your weight and for sticking with training for that 21 km walk. Don't forget to keep your electrolytes up and protect yourself from the sun! I run too (usually just 10 Ks, since there aren't any decent tracks nearby and running mostly on concrete really takes a toll on my joints).

One more thing—before the walk, find shoes that feel comfortable; what works for one person may not work for another. Test them out during your longest training walks. Believe me, a pair might feel fine on shorter outings, but once you go a certain distance, problems can show up. If it feels like too much, stop. Also, give yourself at least 48 hrs of rest between the longer distances. You might also try some HIIT: walk fast for about a minute, then slow for 2 minutes, repeat for roughly 10-20 minutes, and do that 2-3 times/week. It builds endurance FAST!

 

[Juls66]

drgnfl said:

Hey Jules! Great job on the progress you've made with your weight and for sticking with training for that 21 km walk. Don't forget to keep your electrolytes up and protect yourself from the sun! I run too (usually just 10 Ks, since there aren't any decent tracks nearby and running mostly on concrete really takes a toll on my joints).

One more thing—before the walk, find shoes that feel comfortable; what works for one person may not work for another. Test them out during your longest training walks. Believe me, a pair might feel fine on shorter outings, but once you go a certain distance, problems can show up. If it feels like too much, stop. Also, give yourself at least 48 hrs of rest between the longer distances. You might also try some HIIT: walk fast for about a minute, then slow for 2 minutes, repeat for roughly 10-20 minutes, and do that 2-3 times/week. It builds endurance FAST!

Appreciate those pointers, drgnfl — having completed that same walk 2 years back, I can confirm you're spot on! Learning the hard way, I picked up fresh shoes just 1 day prior and paid for it badly. These days I'm putting in the long stretches, 10+ km on the treadmill, to confirm the pair I've got can handle it. A month ago I got new shoes, and there's a duplicate pair waiting that I'll wear in during the final week. Running is absolutely not my thing — catch me sprinting and something's gone very wrong lol. That 21k should take me roughly 4 hours, and that suits me fine. Being 60 years old, I figure that's plenty good

 

[rhythm]

HI Juls,

Another Aussie checking in. You seem to have come a long way. I figured 25kg lost was a decent achievement on my part! I haven't been exercising on purpose much, though less joint pain and extra energy have naturally kept me moving more.

On top of that, it's been useful to discover a b12 deficiency, and getting that treated has made a difference.