Help! I lost too much weight

[black_tweets]

Apologies for the over-the-top opener, but I genuinely need guidance. I began reta 8 months back at 0.5mg, and as of now I'm on 3mg. Roughly 30lbs has come off, yet I've also shed a lot of the traits that defined me. My thighs and glutes were always fuller, and at this point they've gone totally flat. I believed I'd gone extremely gradually and that nobody would pick up on it, but today my mom said she's concerned something is wrong with me, and my husband added that he now sees me as too frail. For context, nobody is aware I use reta and I'd like to keep it that way. On top of that, I've worked out steadily for 8 years at nearly 5-6 days per week and I'm still doing so. I've observed that I'm not lifting any heavier, though I'm not lifting less than my usual either. So I don't believe this is muscle loss. With all that said, I'd like to put 10lbs back on and I'm wondering what the best method would be.

Should I:

1) Pause reta for a couple of weeks? OR

2) Cut to half the dose, going down to 1.5mg?

I'm unsure which path is best. Any help would be much appreciated!

 

[randompersonrandom]

I really don't like weighing in on this kind of thing without hearing your doctor's perspective first. The reason I feel that way is that your situation is unknown to me, but I'm well aware that once a person begins shedding pounds, a pattern can show up: those around them—including relatives—who have no real sense of what a healthy weight is may keep telling them they're shrinking down to nothing, even when the truth is they still carry enough weight to be raising certain health risks. Still, I hope you reach whatever goal you're aiming for, wherever that turns out to be!

 

[black_tweets]

randompersonrandom said:

I really don't like weighing in on this kind of thing without hearing your doctor's perspective first. The reason I feel that way is that your situation is unknown to me, but I'm well aware that once a person begins shedding pounds, a pattern can show up: those around them—including relatives—who have no real sense of what a healthy weight is may keep telling them they're shrinking down to nothing, even when the truth is they still carry enough weight to be raising certain health risks. Still, I hope you reach whatever goal you're aiming for, wherever that turns out to be!

I appreciate that, it's a considerate point I hadn't considered. When I began, I was diabetic with an a1c of 6.2. I started metformin alongside reta. My most recent bloodwork came back at 5.6, which I believe falls in the pre-diabetic range. I'm still on metformin; my doctor was quite pleased with the weight loss. That said, you're correct - it's mainly my family who say I'm wasting away and becoming "too skinny"

 

[matt400]

 

[Ragnar]

Like @randompersonrandom, I think it’s hard to give guidance when the full picture isn’t known, and plenty of folks have a skewed idea of what a healthy weight actually is. What I’d recommend is getting a Dexa scan, or at minimum a bioelectrical impedance analysis, to check whether your body fat percentage puts you in a healthy range. That number shouldn’t be the sole thing you base your choice on, but it might help you see things differently. Wishing you the best on your journey.

 

[desinr-gal]

I'm with you on the dexa — or at minimum a solid scale that reports muscle mass, body fat, visceral fat and so on. Nothing beats actual measurements and hard information as your reference point.

When it comes to parents, their judgment is far from dependable! I've seen that firsthand.

Friends too.. as a rule, people feel uneasy when someone else's appearance shifts.

On top of that, plenty of fitness influencers demonstrate effective leg and glute movements. Put your focus on sound nutrition plus lifts targeting those areas, and the muscle will follow.

consider trimming your dose a little, which would let you take in the calories needed for muscle growth.

 

[80s.diver]

Maybe you could begin strength training with heavier weights so your muscles get bigger. Should that require lowering the reta dose you are on right now, the choice is yours to make. A few programs exist that focus on the spots you want to work on; Strong Curves, found on reddit, is one of them. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

 

[MsGizmo]

black_tweets said:

randompersonrandom said:

I really don't like weighing in on this kind of thing without hearing your doctor's perspective first. The reason I feel that way is that your situation is unknown to me, but I'm well aware that once a person begins shedding pounds, a pattern can show up: those around them—including relatives—who have no real sense of what a healthy weight is may keep telling them they're shrinking down to nothing, even when the truth is they still carry enough weight to be raising certain health risks. Still, I hope you reach whatever goal you're aiming for, wherever that turns out to be!

I appreciate that, it's a considerate point I hadn't considered. When I began, I was diabetic with an a1c of 6.2. I started metformin alongside reta. My most recent bloodwork came back at 5.6, which I believe falls in the pre-diabetic range. I'm still on metformin; my doctor was quite pleased with the weight loss. That said, you're correct - it's mainly my family who say I'm wasting away and becoming "too skinny"

A reading of 6.2 for a1c falls into the pre-diabetic category, whereas 5.6 sits within the normal spectrum.

Rather than letting your family's views guide you, I'd suggest heeding your physician's guidance and paying attention to what your own body is telling you. Body dysmorphia is a peculiar condition and it can distort how you perceive OTHER individuals as well. Since your family grew used to seeing you at a heavier weight, your current appearance may seem off to them.

With that said ... YOU mention that YOU are aiming to put back on 10 pounds.

Reduce the reta dosage by 50%. Going off it abruptly isn't something I'd recommend.

 

[Killerbudd0912]

MsGizmo said:

black_tweets said:

randompersonrandom said:

I really don't like weighing in on this kind of thing without hearing your doctor's perspective first. The reason I feel that way is that your situation is unknown to me, but I'm well aware that once a person begins shedding pounds, a pattern can show up: those around them—including relatives—who have no real sense of what a healthy weight is may keep telling them they're shrinking down to nothing, even when the truth is they still carry enough weight to be raising certain health risks. Still, I hope you reach whatever goal you're aiming for, wherever that turns out to be!

I appreciate that, it's a considerate point I hadn't considered. When I began, I was diabetic with an a1c of 6.2. I started metformin alongside reta. My most recent bloodwork came back at 5.6, which I believe falls in the pre-diabetic range. I'm still on metformin; my doctor was quite pleased with the weight loss. That said, you're correct - it's mainly my family who say I'm wasting away and becoming "too skinny"

A reading of 6.2 for a1c falls into the pre-diabetic category, whereas 5.6 sits within the normal spectrum.

Rather than letting your family's views guide you, I'd suggest heeding your physician's guidance and paying attention to what your own body is telling you. Body dysmorphia is a peculiar condition and it can distort how you perceive OTHER individuals as well. Since your family grew used to seeing you at a heavier weight, your current appearance may seem off to them.

With that said ... YOU mention that YOU are aiming to put back on 10 pounds.

Reduce the reta dosage by 50%. Going off it abruptly isn't something I'd recommend.

That answer works for me. — coming from a 42 yr old married guy who is mostly full of shit

 

[DunningKruger]

80s.diver said:

Maybe you could begin strength training with heavier weights so your muscles get bigger. Should that require lowering the reta dose you are on right now, the choice is yours to make. A few programs exist that focus on the spots you want to work on; Strong Curves, found on reddit, is one of them. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

Exactly this. If your routine includes cardio, drop it or keep it to an absolute minimum. Put your energy into resistance training, aiming for both strength and hypertrophy. Higher weight with fewer reps will help restore volume in the areas that look hollowed out and shift your body composition.

In your position, I would stop the Reta. Otherwise, lower the dose sharply and bring in Tesamorelin to support body recomposition and muscle growth (ONLY if there were no precancerous growths, cardiac problems, or uncontrolled diabetes).

Above all, I would raise protein intake to 1g to 1.5g per pound of ideal bodyweight. (1g is simple to reach, but 1.5g is difficult for me without supplements). At every meal, I would eat protein first, ahead of every other food group. I would also speak with a doctor and a personal trainer (not a typical trainer, but one who is muscular and deeply knowledgeable about kinesiology, physiology, diet, eating disorders, and peps. They exist. Some of them encounter this ALL the time).

Female to female: when the people closest to you are noticing, you are drifting into disordered eating or dysmorphic thinking. If your BMI is no longer outside the normal range, you should really come off Reta until you have worked through that. As females, we should have more fat in our lower bodies. Losing that can harm our hormones and organs. Are you close to goal weight? Are you ok with stopping Reta, or does it cause a mild internal panic? Don't answer that publicly, only notice it within your body, because if you feel a mild panic at stopping, or compulsion to continue, you will know you've entered into disordered territory.

Remember, we are reducing fat for health. Strong is the goal, not skinny.

 

[randompersonrandom]

DunningKruger said:

80s.diver said:

Maybe you could begin strength training with heavier weights so your muscles get bigger. Should that require lowering the reta dose you are on right now, the choice is yours to make. A few programs exist that focus on the spots you want to work on; Strong Curves, found on reddit, is one of them. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

Exactly this. If your routine includes cardio, drop it or keep it to an absolute minimum. Put your energy into resistance training, aiming for both strength and hypertrophy. Higher weight with fewer reps will help restore volume in the areas that look hollowed out and shift your body composition.

In your position, I would stop the Reta. Otherwise, lower the dose sharply and bring in Tesamorelin to support body recomposition and muscle growth (ONLY if there were no precancerous growths, cardiac problems, or uncontrolled diabetes).

Above all, I would raise protein intake to 1g to 1.5g per pound of ideal bodyweight. (1g is simple to reach, but 1.5g is difficult for me without supplements). At every meal, I would eat protein first, ahead of every other food group. I would also speak with a doctor and a personal trainer (not a typical trainer, but one who is muscular and deeply knowledgeable about kinesiology, physiology, diet, eating disorders, and peps. They exist. Some of them encounter this ALL the time).

Female to female: when the people closest to you are noticing, you are drifting into disordered eating or dysmorphic thinking. If your BMI is no longer outside the normal range, you should really come off Reta until you have worked through that. As females, we should have more fat in our lower bodies. Losing that can harm our hormones and organs. Are you close to goal weight? Are you ok with stopping Reta, or does it cause a mild internal panic? Don't answer that publicly, only notice it within your body, because if you feel a mild panic at stopping, or compulsion to continue, you will know you've entered into disordered territory.

Remember, we are reducing fat for health. Strong is the goal, not skinny.

That guideline doesn't sit right with me at all.

I've seen so many women in my circle get nagged and pushed around by husbands and mothers who feel threatened, people who'd rather their daughters just stay exactly as they are, never changing — and those women hadn't even reached what you'd call "normal" size yet. Some of them were still squarely in obese range.

 

[lessthanhalf]

To figure out if your weight is fine or has dropped too far, you need objective data. Since your diabetes is currently in remission thanks to the weight loss and reta, gaining weight may not be the ideal path. So height, weight, waist circumference, age, and bmi should give you a solid picture—or a dexa scan if you want to be fancy or precise.

Relatives may undermine weight loss attempts unintentionally. If they are accustomed to your previous appearance and it shifts, they might respond badly. I remember my 84 year old mother grew quite worried that I was shedding too much weight when my bmi was still in the high 20's.

Particularly with diabetes, quitting reta abruptly doesn't look like a good answer, but if your bmi is 25 or less, lowering the dose makes sense if that weight feels uncomfortable, and then watch what happens to your weight and blood sugars over time. Continuing reta could by itself be sufficient to keep diabetes away long term; metformin isn't that great, meaning it won't necessarily bring type 2 diabetes into remission.

 

[CNCCurrency]

black_tweets said:

randompersonrandom said:

I really don't like weighing in on this kind of thing without hearing your doctor's perspective first. The reason I feel that way is that your situation is unknown to me, but I'm well aware that once a person begins shedding pounds, a pattern can show up: those around them—including relatives—who have no real sense of what a healthy weight is may keep telling them they're shrinking down to nothing, even when the truth is they still carry enough weight to be raising certain health risks. Still, I hope you reach whatever goal you're aiming for, wherever that turns out to be!

I appreciate that, it's a considerate point I hadn't considered. When I began, I was diabetic with an a1c of 6.2. I started metformin alongside reta. My most recent bloodwork came back at 5.6, which I believe falls in the pre-diabetic range. I'm still on metformin; my doctor was quite pleased with the weight loss. That said, you're correct - it's mainly my family who say I'm wasting away and becoming "too skinny"

reta has been part of my routine for 6 months, and my a1c dropped from 6.6- 6 months to 5.4 this week

 

[desinr-gal]

randompersonrandom said:

DunningKruger said:

80s.diver said:

Maybe you could begin strength training with heavier weights so your muscles get bigger. Should that require lowering the reta dose you are on right now, the choice is yours to make. A few programs exist that focus on the spots you want to work on; Strong Curves, found on reddit, is one of them. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

Exactly this. If your routine includes cardio, drop it or keep it to an absolute minimum. Put your energy into resistance training, aiming for both strength and hypertrophy. Higher weight with fewer reps will help restore volume in the areas that look hollowed out and shift your body composition.

In your position, I would stop the Reta. Otherwise, lower the dose sharply and bring in Tesamorelin to support body recomposition and muscle growth (ONLY if there were no precancerous growths, cardiac problems, or uncontrolled diabetes).

Above all, I would raise protein intake to 1g to 1.5g per pound of ideal bodyweight. (1g is simple to reach, but 1.5g is difficult for me without supplements). At every meal, I would eat protein first, ahead of every other food group. I would also speak with a doctor and a personal trainer (not a typical trainer, but one who is muscular and deeply knowledgeable about kinesiology, physiology, diet, eating disorders, and peps. They exist. Some of them encounter this ALL the time).

Female to female: when the people closest to you are noticing, you are drifting into disordered eating or dysmorphic thinking. If your BMI is no longer outside the normal range, you should really come off Reta until you have worked through that. As females, we should have more fat in our lower bodies. Losing that can harm our hormones and organs. Are you close to goal weight? Are you ok with stopping Reta, or does it cause a mild internal panic? Don't answer that publicly, only notice it within your body, because if you feel a mild panic at stopping, or compulsion to continue, you will know you've entered into disordered territory.

Remember, we are reducing fat for health. Strong is the goal, not skinny.

That guideline doesn't sit right with me at all.

I've seen so many women in my circle get nagged and pushed around by husbands and mothers who feel threatened, people who'd rather their daughters just stay exactly as they are, never changing — and those women hadn't even reached what you'd call "normal" size yet. Some of them were still squarely in obese range.

Exactly this^ Speaking from experience—I've gotten negative reactions from relatives and acquaintances during both my heavier phase and my slimmer phase. One friendship ended because of it. . I've got plenty of ideas as to the reason. Particularly when it disrupts the unspoken parts people assign in their heads, like (she's the overweight one..)

Remember, they aren't a reliable safe reference point. Change frequently triggers a bad response in others.

 

[DunningKruger]

randompersonrandom said:

DunningKruger said:

80s.diver said:

Maybe you could begin strength training with heavier weights so your muscles get bigger. Should that require lowering the reta dose you are on right now, the choice is yours to make. A few programs exist that focus on the spots you want to work on; Strong Curves, found on reddit, is one of them. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

Exactly this. If your routine includes cardio, drop it or keep it to an absolute minimum. Put your energy into resistance training, aiming for both strength and hypertrophy. Higher weight with fewer reps will help restore volume in the areas that look hollowed out and shift your body composition.

In your position, I would stop the Reta. Otherwise, lower the dose sharply and bring in Tesamorelin to support body recomposition and muscle growth (ONLY if there were no precancerous growths, cardiac problems, or uncontrolled diabetes).

Above all, I would raise protein intake to 1g to 1.5g per pound of ideal bodyweight. (1g is simple to reach, but 1.5g is difficult for me without supplements). At every meal, I would eat protein first, ahead of every other food group. I would also speak with a doctor and a personal trainer (not a typical trainer, but one who is muscular and deeply knowledgeable about kinesiology, physiology, diet, eating disorders, and peps. They exist. Some of them encounter this ALL the time).

Female to female: when the people closest to you are noticing, you are drifting into disordered eating or dysmorphic thinking. If your BMI is no longer outside the normal range, you should really come off Reta until you have worked through that. As females, we should have more fat in our lower bodies. Losing that can harm our hormones and organs. Are you close to goal weight? Are you ok with stopping Reta, or does it cause a mild internal panic? Don't answer that publicly, only notice it within your body, because if you feel a mild panic at stopping, or compulsion to continue, you will know you've entered into disordered territory.

Remember, we are reducing fat for health. Strong is the goal, not skinny.

That guideline doesn't sit right with me at all.

I've seen so many women in my circle get nagged and pushed around by husbands and mothers who feel threatened, people who'd rather their daughters just stay exactly as they are, never changing — and those women hadn't even reached what you'd call "normal" size yet. Some of them were still squarely in obese range.

Random, you've got a point. I made a sweeping generalization without considering that certain people's families are genuinely insecure and unsupportive. That's on me.

 

[randompersonrandom]

DunningKruger said:

randompersonrandom said:

DunningKruger said:

80s.diver said:

Maybe you could begin strength training with heavier weights so your muscles get bigger. Should that require lowering the reta dose you are on right now, the choice is yours to make. A few programs exist that focus on the spots you want to work on; Strong Curves, found on reddit, is one of them. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

Exactly this. If your routine includes cardio, drop it or keep it to an absolute minimum. Put your energy into resistance training, aiming for both strength and hypertrophy. Higher weight with fewer reps will help restore volume in the areas that look hollowed out and shift your body composition.

In your position, I would stop the Reta. Otherwise, lower the dose sharply and bring in Tesamorelin to support body recomposition and muscle growth (ONLY if there were no precancerous growths, cardiac problems, or uncontrolled diabetes).

Above all, I would raise protein intake to 1g to 1.5g per pound of ideal bodyweight. (1g is simple to reach, but 1.5g is difficult for me without supplements). At every meal, I would eat protein first, ahead of every other food group. I would also speak with a doctor and a personal trainer (not a typical trainer, but one who is muscular and deeply knowledgeable about kinesiology, physiology, diet, eating disorders, and peps. They exist. Some of them encounter this ALL the time).

Female to female: when the people closest to you are noticing, you are drifting into disordered eating or dysmorphic thinking. If your BMI is no longer outside the normal range, you should really come off Reta until you have worked through that. As females, we should have more fat in our lower bodies. Losing that can harm our hormones and organs. Are you close to goal weight? Are you ok with stopping Reta, or does it cause a mild internal panic? Don't answer that publicly, only notice it within your body, because if you feel a mild panic at stopping, or compulsion to continue, you will know you've entered into disordered territory.

Remember, we are reducing fat for health. Strong is the goal, not skinny.

That guideline doesn't sit right with me at all.

I've seen so many women in my circle get nagged and pushed around by husbands and mothers who feel threatened, people who'd rather their daughters just stay exactly as they are, never changing — and those women hadn't even reached what you'd call "normal" size yet. Some of them were still squarely in obese range.

Random, you've got a point. I made a sweeping generalization without considering that certain people's families are genuinely insecure and unsupportive. That's on me.

Hey, I'm not judging you at all--honestly, it makes me glad, because it sounds like the people around you don't show that sort of...odd behavior often enough for it to be your first thought the way it was mine. That tells me most of your people are surrounded by people who care about them properly.

 

[DunningKruger]

I left my immediate family behind more than 10 years back, and these days the only one I still talk to is 1 cousin. So honestly, I ought to have figured it out, since they fit exactly the description you gave. Luckily, I've built friendships and a relationship with someone who are completely the reverse, and yes, you're correct, they're the good kind.

It pains me if unsupportive loved ones have been part of your life; when it comes from people who should be your safe place, the sting is always worst.

 

[Zydeceltico]

randompersonrandom said:

DunningKruger said:

80s.diver said:

Maybe you could begin strength training with heavier weights so your muscles get bigger. Should that require lowering the reta dose you are on right now, the choice is yours to make. A few programs exist that focus on the spots you want to work on; Strong Curves, found on reddit, is one of them. https://www.reddit.com/r/StrongCurves/

Exactly this. If your routine includes cardio, drop it or keep it to an absolute minimum. Put your energy into resistance training, aiming for both strength and hypertrophy. Higher weight with fewer reps will help restore volume in the areas that look hollowed out and shift your body composition.

In your position, I would stop the Reta. Otherwise, lower the dose sharply and bring in Tesamorelin to support body recomposition and muscle growth (ONLY if there were no precancerous growths, cardiac problems, or uncontrolled diabetes).

Above all, I would raise protein intake to 1g to 1.5g per pound of ideal bodyweight. (1g is simple to reach, but 1.5g is difficult for me without supplements). At every meal, I would eat protein first, ahead of every other food group. I would also speak with a doctor and a personal trainer (not a typical trainer, but one who is muscular and deeply knowledgeable about kinesiology, physiology, diet, eating disorders, and peps. They exist. Some of them encounter this ALL the time).

Female to female: when the people closest to you are noticing, you are drifting into disordered eating or dysmorphic thinking. If your BMI is no longer outside the normal range, you should really come off Reta until you have worked through that. As females, we should have more fat in our lower bodies. Losing that can harm our hormones and organs. Are you close to goal weight? Are you ok with stopping Reta, or does it cause a mild internal panic? Don't answer that publicly, only notice it within your body, because if you feel a mild panic at stopping, or compulsion to continue, you will know you've entered into disordered territory.

Remember, we are reducing fat for health. Strong is the goal, not skinny.

That guideline doesn't sit right with me at all.

I've seen so many women in my circle get nagged and pushed around by husbands and mothers who feel threatened, people who'd rather their daughters just stay exactly as they are, never changing — and those women hadn't even reached what you'd call "normal" size yet. Some of them were still squarely in obese range.

Yes — having grown up in a farming area myself, I can confirm that people who used to belong to the "corn, meat, potatoes, and apple pie tribe" yet no longer do tend to face a deeply ingrained and unyielding social resistance. That resistance persists even as those same family members and neighbors keep making trips "to town" for yet another doctor's appointment, dealing with health problems of every kind, all while their shared unwillingness to confront their own eating patterns remains untouched.

 

[black_tweets]

I appreciate all the helpful replies and everyone opening up about their own journeys. I'm going to find out where I can get a dexa scan done. For the coming weeks, I also intend to cut my dose in half so I can put a few pounds back on.

 

[randompersonrandom]

DunningKruger said:

I left my immediate family behind more than 10 years back, and these days the only one I still talk to is 1 cousin. So honestly, I ought to have figured it out, since they fit exactly the description you gave. Luckily, I've built friendships and a relationship with someone who are completely the reverse, and yes, you're correct, they're the good kind.

It pains me if unsupportive loved ones have been part of your life; when it comes from people who should be your safe place, the sting is always worst.

Honestly, I’ve had good fortune myself. Every close blood relative still in my life is a wonderful source of encouragement, and the people in my own circles are among the kindest and most uplifting anywhere. I also know some folks who are deeply committed to body acceptance and, in principle, against weight loss altogether—yet even they are happy for me and back my choice to do what I want. We all make an effort to mind how we discuss it, since neither side wants to irritate the other. But because I’m open about Tirzepatide—and, to some extent, open about grey—every single person on Tirzepatide shares their whole story with me. That’s fine, but my god. The accounts I get from women dealing with family and husband problems, women who are simply fighting to avoid a heart attack or just trying to find out how the “standard size” world lives—and there I am, working to keep a calm, mildly curious expression while inside I’m SCREAMIN.