Has anyone reached their target weight and then tapered down from retatrutide?

[greenapplesandham]

A little context: I'm female, 168cm tall, and began at 70kg with a target of landing in a healthy 55kg range. Through slow, gradual dose increases—starting at 0.5mg and working up to 4mg—I got there in roughly 6 months.

I realize I didn't have all that much to shed, but the physical changes are striking. My waist went from 27 inches down to 24 inches over that period. Now I feel it makes sense to stop, take stock, and rethink what I'm aiming for.

I'd really like to hear how others have handled tapering off reta and shifting into maintenance rather than continuing to lose. What does the long-term plan look like? I've seen talk of cycling on and off, but some research suggests that stopping and then starting again means going all the way back to square one.

 

[ladyj779]

GLPs aren't meant to be cycled. Reta (and tirz) provide other major health advantages that go beyond or are separate from losing weight.

I'd recommend lowering your dose gradually, but remaining on something like .5 (or whatever works) long-term

 

[jjplantgeek]

I still need to drop roughly 15# before I reach my target of losing 100#. A while back I stepped down to 5mg, but 2 doses ago I went back up to 8mg, hoping that gets me across the finish line and clears out the remaining stubborn fat on my belly and back. When I finally reach my target weight, my plan is to maintain on 5mg Tirz each week.

 

[maokai]

I still find it hard to come to terms with the idea of using GLPs forever. Once I reach my goal weight, I plan to drop a bit lower than that, then taper down and find out how I do without it.

 

[woundcarping]

maokai said:

I still find it hard to come to terms with the idea of using GLPs forever. Once I reach my goal weight, I plan to drop a bit lower than that, then taper down and find out how I do without it.

On average, the weight comes back, and if you restart the medication, it won't be as effective. Then the cycle repeats.

 

[ladyj779]

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

 

[undecided]

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

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]

undecided 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

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.

Did you look into the many health advantages of reta?

 

[Chili777]

I've hit the end goal I set for myself, so now I'm stepping the dose down into maintenance. Right now I'm at 6 mg, and the highest I've gone is 12 mg. What I'm working out is the dose that holds my weight steady along with the other advantages I value almost as much.

 

[CMA Pooky]

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 of supplements 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.

 

[CMA Pooky]

Chili777 said:

I've hit the end goal I set for myself, so now I'm stepping the dose down into maintenance. Right now I'm at 6 mg, and the highest I've gone is 12 mg. What I'm working out is the dose that holds my weight steady along with the other advantages I value almost as much.

What sort of pace did you use to reduce your dose? Has appetite come back for you?

 

[undecided]

ladyj779 said:

undecided 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

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.

Did you look into the many health advantages of reta?

Wow..! That I had not. Weight loss was all I was taking it for. Very interesting! Whether links are allowed I am not sure, but at the risk of getting put in the penalty box, an interesting article was just what I read (to your point): https://www.goodrx.com/conditions/weight-loss/retatrutide-benefits

 

[Chili777]

CMA Pooky said:

Chili777 said:

I've hit the end goal I set for myself, so now I'm stepping the dose down into maintenance. Right now I'm at 6 mg, and the highest I've gone is 12 mg. What I'm working out is the dose that holds my weight steady along with the other advantages I value almost as much.

What sort of pace did you use to reduce your dose? Has appetite come back for you?

It happened a lot quicker than I expected. My assumption was that the decrease would mirror the increase—dropping the dose on a monthly basis—yet the pounds kept coming off. I ended up 8 lbs below my target, so now I'm stepping the dose down every 2 weeks. Appetite suppression is still quite strong for me, though Reta has always worked exceptionally well in my case.

I eat 2 meals per day, consistently. Last week I moved up to 6 mg and I'll monitor what happens. Staying at that amount might be necessary, or I could end up at 4 mg.

 

[randompersonrandom]

Before GLP-1's, if a leprechaun or a hypothetical wizard with nothing better to do had shown up and offered me: "I'll give you the power to be slim. To keep it, though, you'll have to give yourself a nearly painless injection at home once a week for the rest of your life. Stop, and the thin goes away. On top of that, you'll owe me roughly twenty dollars every month for the rest of your life. Deal?" — the toughest part would have been waiting for him to get the whole sentence out before I yelled "YES, YES GIVE IT TO ME, RIGHT NOW!"

 

[Skidude]

randompersonrandom said:

Before GLP-1's, if a leprechaun or a hypothetical wizard with nothing better to do had shown up and offered me: "I'll give you the power to be slim. To keep it, though, you'll have to give yourself a nearly painless injection at home once a week for the rest of your life. Stop, and the thin goes away. On top of that, you'll owe me roughly twenty dollars every month for the rest of your life. Deal?" — the toughest part would have been waiting for him to get the whole sentence out before I yelled "YES, YES GIVE IT TO ME, RIGHT NOW!"

Here's a funny one: my leprechaun was asking for 400$ every month, and I went ahead and agreed anyway!!

 

[woundcarping]

undecided 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

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.

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.

 

[Obvious_Reel]

I'd been on Tirz before, but picked up reta toward the end of last year. Once I got up to 4mg I parked there for ages, since there was no reason to push higher — it was working great and the weight kept coming off. That 4mg stretch lasted a solid 5 months. Just recently I thought I'd test 6mg, mostly to find out whether I could tolerate it. Like Chili, I'm clearly extremely sensitive to this stuff. End result: I dropped far more weight than I wanted — yep, I'm actually saying that, so go easy on me — but it's the truth. Too much came off. And the sides were rough on top of that. Beyond just coasting at 4mg, which looks like my sweet spot, I've been poking around with Maz a bit. My thinking was: I'm underweight now, so I need to gain, ideally muscle, obviously. Perhaps a solid low-dose stack of the two. Or maybe even mess around with some Elora! Who knows! It's been a fun ride!!!!

 

[octopusthorpe]

I began reta as part of a cutting phase, dropping 30lb over 3 months. At this point I've pushed it as far as possible without hurting my gym progress. My plan is to step down to 0.25mg/week (right now I'm at 1.0) across a couple of months, then stop altogether. I've built up a fair amount in reserve, so restarting later is always an option.

 

[Seasonal1]

Since my situation involves battling obesity rather than getting lean or dropping 5 pounds ahead of a wedding, I accept that a GLP1 will be part of my routine indefinitely. Nobody blinks at the idea of taking medication for life to manage high blood pressure, cholesterol, or diabetes, yet somehow the same people expect that obesity medication should stop once the condition is under control. Diet can influence blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes too, but most people recognize that few would manage it that way alone. For the majority of those living with obesity, this is a disease that needs medication to keep it in check. Choosing that path is neither a sign of weakness nor a failure of willpower.

 

[jpru2001]

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

I'm convinced it's down to the fact that it's given as an injection, and injections carry such a bad reputation in people's minds. Likely because of steroids, doping, IV drug use, and similar scare stories.

Once you get past the idea that injecting is merely a way to deliver something—no different from choking down giant tablets containing some African herb that claims to add 2 inches to your penis—it gets easier. The difference is that this one actually WORKS.