Low-dose consistency: has anyone else gotten results like this?

octopusthorpe

octopusthorpe

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Week 9 of reta is underway for me, and I've dropped 23.8lb so far — which I genuinely did not expect.

Here's what I'm wondering: lots of people seem to be injecting 2mg to 10mg each week and getting comparable results, but has anyone matched that kind of progress while staying at 1mg/week or less? The phrase "hyper responder" gets tossed around a lot, though it always struck me as more myth than reality.

Being the spreadsheet type, I plotted my weight against bi-weekly reta dose (chart attached below).

My starting protocol was 0.5mg twice per week to keep side effects manageable, and things went so well that I never changed it through the end of March. Then I bumped it to 0.7mg for roughly 2 weeks — mostly curiosity rather than need — and I felt completely awful (exhaustion, gym numbers dropped, hiking stamina fell apart).

Injections happen Tuesday morning and Friday evening. After Friday's smaller 0.5mg shot, today I feel dramatically improved.

While on reta, my RHR barely budged (normally 46-48 BPM, now sitting around 49-50 BPM), sleep stayed fine (7-8 hours nightly, average sleep score 80), and HRV looks balanced. Honestly, given the stories I'd read, I expected something different. Not complaining though 🙂

A few details worth listing:

1) Female, 50 years old, 5'10.5"

2) Reta is my first-ever GLP

3) Back in 2016 I dropped 160lb through low-carb, high-protein eating (typically 1-1.2g per pound of lean mass)

4) Powerlifting has been part of my routine since 2017, plus long-distance hiking, so I entered this with a solid base of muscle and endurance

5) Perimenopause caused my weight to climb starting in late 2024, leaving me roughly 25-30lb above my 2016 low point

6) My eating remains fairly low carb (protein is higher on reta, around 175g/day), with easily digestible carbs used pre-workout

7) Strength training happens 4-5x weekly, moderate cardio on the indoor bike 3-4x weekly, and most Saturdays include a long-distance hike of 20-30 miles. Step counting isn't my thing — no "10k steps per day" routine — because mileage suits me better (with a 41" stride length and very long legs, tracking steps gets irritating)

8) For perimenopause I use estradiol - 0.0375 patch 2/weekly, and test-c 10mg weekly divided into 2 doses

One more thing: I'm grateful this forum is here. Ever looked at the reta subreddit? That place is a total dumpster fire of stupidity. Almost impressive, really. 🤣





5af42ae14ff08fab2ebef2e95abb6f77949fb08733354d72e1505fba5ffdf7c8.webp
 
Nice work. If it’s already doing the job, bumping the dose up serves no purpose.

GLP-1 analogues outperform natural GLP-1 by dozens of times, so it makes sense that some people respond to far smaller amounts.
 
octopusthorpe said:

Week 9 of reta is underway for me, and I've dropped 23.8lb so far — which I genuinely did not expect.

Here's what I'm wondering: lots of people seem to be injecting 2mg to 10mg each week and getting comparable results, but has anyone matched that kind of progress while staying at 1mg/week or less? The phrase "hyper responder" gets tossed around a lot, though it always struck me as more myth than reality.

Being the spreadsheet type, I plotted my weight against bi-weekly reta dose (chart attached below).

My starting protocol was 0.5mg twice per week to keep side effects manageable, and things went so well that I never changed it through the end of March. Then I bumped it to 0.7mg for roughly 2 weeks — mostly curiosity rather than need — and I felt completely awful (exhaustion, gym numbers dropped, hiking stamina fell apart).

Injections happen Tuesday morning and Friday evening. After Friday's smaller 0.5mg shot, today I feel dramatically improved.

While on reta, my RHR barely budged (normally 46-48 BPM, now sitting around 49-50 BPM), sleep stayed fine (7-8 hours nightly, average sleep score 80), and HRV looks balanced. Honestly, given the stories I'd read, I expected something different. Not complaining though 🙂

A few details worth listing:

1) Female, 50 years old, 5'10.5"

2) Reta is my first-ever GLP

3) Back in 2016 I dropped 160lb through low-carb, high-protein eating (typically 1-1.2g per pound of lean mass)

4) Powerlifting has been part of my routine since 2017, plus long-distance hiking, so I entered this with a solid base of muscle and endurance

5) Perimenopause caused my weight to climb starting in late 2024, leaving me roughly 25-30lb above my 2016 low point

6) My eating remains fairly low carb (protein is higher on reta, around 175g/day), with easily digestible carbs used pre-workout

7) Strength training happens 4-5x weekly, moderate cardio on the indoor bike 3-4x weekly, and most Saturdays include a long-distance hike of 20-30 miles. Step counting isn't my thing — no "10k steps per day" routine — because mileage suits me better (with a 41" stride length and very long legs, tracking steps gets irritating)

8) For perimenopause I use estradiol - 0.0375 patch 2/weekly, and test-c 10mg weekly divided into 2 doses

One more thing: I'm grateful this forum is here. Ever looked at the reta subreddit? That place is a total dumpster fire of stupidity. Almost impressive, really. 🤣





View attachment 11401
Click to expand...
Honestly, it's time to get real about this. The first thing you ought to do is head to church, drop to your knees, and pray with genuine intensity in gratitude for being blessed this way without paying any tax — then go to confession and seek forgiveness for stirring up so much envy. My reason for starting gear was to address low T. After reading that post, my T levels dropped below those of a 2 year old girl.

On a lighter note, congratulations, ma'am. Plenty of folks spend their whole lives chasing power. You've got such prowess that you make lifting power seem utterly blase. Salut!

And, should you consider bumping doses up again, SMH fast, plunge it into cold water, and use whatever hangover remedy works best for you.
 
Smiter said:

octopusthorpe said:

Week 9 of reta is underway for me, and I've dropped 23.8lb so far — which I genuinely did not expect.

Here's what I'm wondering: lots of people seem to be injecting 2mg to 10mg each week and getting comparable results, but has anyone matched that kind of progress while staying at 1mg/week or less? The phrase "hyper responder" gets tossed around a lot, though it always struck me as more myth than reality.

Being the spreadsheet type, I plotted my weight against bi-weekly reta dose (chart attached below).

My starting protocol was 0.5mg twice per week to keep side effects manageable, and things went so well that I never changed it through the end of March. Then I bumped it to 0.7mg for roughly 2 weeks — mostly curiosity rather than need — and I felt completely awful (exhaustion, gym numbers dropped, hiking stamina fell apart).

Injections happen Tuesday morning and Friday evening. After Friday's smaller 0.5mg shot, today I feel dramatically improved.

While on reta, my RHR barely budged (normally 46-48 BPM, now sitting around 49-50 BPM), sleep stayed fine (7-8 hours nightly, average sleep score 80), and HRV looks balanced. Honestly, given the stories I'd read, I expected something different. Not complaining though 🙂

A few details worth listing:

1) Female, 50 years old, 5'10.5"

2) Reta is my first-ever GLP

3) Back in 2016 I dropped 160lb through low-carb, high-protein eating (typically 1-1.2g per pound of lean mass)

4) Powerlifting has been part of my routine since 2017, plus long-distance hiking, so I entered this with a solid base of muscle and endurance

5) Perimenopause caused my weight to climb starting in late 2024, leaving me roughly 25-30lb above my 2016 low point

6) My eating remains fairly low carb (protein is higher on reta, around 175g/day), with easily digestible carbs used pre-workout

7) Strength training happens 4-5x weekly, moderate cardio on the indoor bike 3-4x weekly, and most Saturdays include a long-distance hike of 20-30 miles. Step counting isn't my thing — no "10k steps per day" routine — because mileage suits me better (with a 41" stride length and very long legs, tracking steps gets irritating)

8) For perimenopause I use estradiol - 0.0375 patch 2/weekly, and test-c 10mg weekly divided into 2 doses

One more thing: I'm grateful this forum is here. Ever looked at the reta subreddit? That place is a total dumpster fire of stupidity. Almost impressive, really. 🤣





View attachment 11401
Click to expand...
Honestly, it's time to get real about this. The first thing you ought to do is head to church, drop to your knees, and pray with genuine intensity in gratitude for being blessed this way without paying any tax — then go to confession and seek forgiveness for stirring up so much envy. My reason for starting gear was to address low T. After reading that post, my T levels dropped below those of a 2 year old girl.

On a lighter note, congratulations, ma'am. Plenty of folks spend their whole lives chasing power. You've got such prowess that you make lifting power seem utterly blase. Salut!

And, should you consider bumping doses up again, SMH fast, plunge it into cold water, and use whatever hangover remedy works best for you.
Click to expand...
Is this the part where I go "oh no, my steak has too much juice and my lobster is overly buttery"? 🤣

Still, I appreciate it, my dude. And yeah, it just hit me that at this pace my stash of 10mg vials will stretch until I retire.

And there's no way I'm bumping the dose back up. Dropping from deadlifting 300x3 down to 205x3 was absolute bullshit I never want to go through again. Like, ever.
 
Hello! Today marks the start of my 8th week, and I'm getting results comparable to yours while staying on a low dose.

My injection schedule is every 5 days. The first dose was 1mg on April 1st. During that initial month, the weight came off more quickly than I'd planned, though I'm sure a good chunk of it was water. At week 5 I moved up to 1.5mg, and as of yesterday I've titrated to 2mg, which is where I intend to remain for the foreseeable future.

Food suppression isn't very strong for me and my appetite is still present. What it has done, though, is quiet the food noise and wipe out any desire for sweets and junk food.

Female, 41, 5'5"

SW: 164.8 lbs

CW: 147.2 lbs

GW: 130
 
Yes! I dropped 7-8kg across 4 weeks on 1mg x 4 weeks. Started at 90kg. For anyone who is not very obese and has never tried glp1s, 1mg makes a decent starting dose.
 
octopusthorpe said:

Smiter said:

octopusthorpe said:

Week 9 of reta is underway for me, and I've dropped 23.8lb so far — which I genuinely did not expect.

Here's what I'm wondering: lots of people seem to be injecting 2mg to 10mg each week and getting comparable results, but has anyone matched that kind of progress while staying at 1mg/week or less? The phrase "hyper responder" gets tossed around a lot, though it always struck me as more myth than reality.

Being the spreadsheet type, I plotted my weight against bi-weekly reta dose (chart attached below).

My starting protocol was 0.5mg twice per week to keep side effects manageable, and things went so well that I never changed it through the end of March. Then I bumped it to 0.7mg for roughly 2 weeks — mostly curiosity rather than need — and I felt completely awful (exhaustion, gym numbers dropped, hiking stamina fell apart).

Injections happen Tuesday morning and Friday evening. After Friday's smaller 0.5mg shot, today I feel dramatically improved.

While on reta, my RHR barely budged (normally 46-48 BPM, now sitting around 49-50 BPM), sleep stayed fine (7-8 hours nightly, average sleep score 80), and HRV looks balanced. Honestly, given the stories I'd read, I expected something different. Not complaining though 🙂

A few details worth listing:

1) Female, 50 years old, 5'10.5"

2) Reta is my first-ever GLP

3) Back in 2016 I dropped 160lb through low-carb, high-protein eating (typically 1-1.2g per pound of lean mass)

4) Powerlifting has been part of my routine since 2017, plus long-distance hiking, so I entered this with a solid base of muscle and endurance

5) Perimenopause caused my weight to climb starting in late 2024, leaving me roughly 25-30lb above my 2016 low point

6) My eating remains fairly low carb (protein is higher on reta, around 175g/day), with easily digestible carbs used pre-workout

7) Strength training happens 4-5x weekly, moderate cardio on the indoor bike 3-4x weekly, and most Saturdays include a long-distance hike of 20-30 miles. Step counting isn't my thing — no "10k steps per day" routine — because mileage suits me better (with a 41" stride length and very long legs, tracking steps gets irritating)

8) For perimenopause I use estradiol - 0.0375 patch 2/weekly, and test-c 10mg weekly divided into 2 doses

One more thing: I'm grateful this forum is here. Ever looked at the reta subreddit? That place is a total dumpster fire of stupidity. Almost impressive, really. 🤣





View attachment 11401
Click to expand...
Honestly, it's time to get real about this. The first thing you ought to do is head to church, drop to your knees, and pray with genuine intensity in gratitude for being blessed this way without paying any tax — then go to confession and seek forgiveness for stirring up so much envy. My reason for starting gear was to address low T. After reading that post, my T levels dropped below those of a 2 year old girl.

On a lighter note, congratulations, ma'am. Plenty of folks spend their whole lives chasing power. You've got such prowess that you make lifting power seem utterly blase. Salut!

And, should you consider bumping doses up again, SMH fast, plunge it into cold water, and use whatever hangover remedy works best for you.
Click to expand...
Is this the part where I go "oh no, my steak has too much juice and my lobster is overly buttery"? 🤣

Still, I appreciate it, my dude. And yeah, it just hit me that at this pace my stash of 10mg vials will stretch until I retire.

And there's no way I'm bumping the dose back up. Dropping from deadlifting 300x3 down to 205x3 was absolute bullshit I never want to go through again. Like, ever.
Click to expand...
So the jealousy just keeps spreading endlessly, huh?

octopusthorpe said:

Smiter said:

octopusthorpe said:

Week 9 of reta is underway for me, and I've dropped 23.8lb so far — which I genuinely did not expect.

Here's what I'm wondering: lots of people seem to be injecting 2mg to 10mg each week and getting comparable results, but has anyone matched that kind of progress while staying at 1mg/week or less? The phrase "hyper responder" gets tossed around a lot, though it always struck me as more myth than reality.

Being the spreadsheet type, I plotted my weight against bi-weekly reta dose (chart attached below).

My starting protocol was 0.5mg twice per week to keep side effects manageable, and things went so well that I never changed it through the end of March. Then I bumped it to 0.7mg for roughly 2 weeks — mostly curiosity rather than need — and I felt completely awful (exhaustion, gym numbers dropped, hiking stamina fell apart).

Injections happen Tuesday morning and Friday evening. After Friday's smaller 0.5mg shot, today I feel dramatically improved.

While on reta, my RHR barely budged (normally 46-48 BPM, now sitting around 49-50 BPM), sleep stayed fine (7-8 hours nightly, average sleep score 80), and HRV looks balanced. Honestly, given the stories I'd read, I expected something different. Not complaining though 🙂

A few details worth listing:

1) Female, 50 years old, 5'10.5"

2) Reta is my first-ever GLP

3) Back in 2016 I dropped 160lb through low-carb, high-protein eating (typically 1-1.2g per pound of lean mass)

4) Powerlifting has been part of my routine since 2017, plus long-distance hiking, so I entered this with a solid base of muscle and endurance

5) Perimenopause caused my weight to climb starting in late 2024, leaving me roughly 25-30lb above my 2016 low point

6) My eating remains fairly low carb (protein is higher on reta, around 175g/day), with easily digestible carbs used pre-workout

7) Strength training happens 4-5x weekly, moderate cardio on the indoor bike 3-4x weekly, and most Saturdays include a long-distance hike of 20-30 miles. Step counting isn't my thing — no "10k steps per day" routine — because mileage suits me better (with a 41" stride length and very long legs, tracking steps gets irritating)

8) For perimenopause I use estradiol - 0.0375 patch 2/weekly, and test-c 10mg weekly divided into 2 doses

One more thing: I'm grateful this forum is here. Ever looked at the reta subreddit? That place is a total dumpster fire of stupidity. Almost impressive, really. 🤣





View attachment 11401
Click to expand...
Honestly, it's time to get real about this. The first thing you ought to do is head to church, drop to your knees, and pray with genuine intensity in gratitude for being blessed this way without paying any tax — then go to confession and seek forgiveness for stirring up so much envy. My reason for starting gear was to address low T. After reading that post, my T levels dropped below those of a 2 year old girl.

On a lighter note, congratulations, ma'am. Plenty of folks spend their whole lives chasing power. You've got such prowess that you make lifting power seem utterly blase. Salut!

And, should you consider bumping doses up again, SMH fast, plunge it into cold water, and use whatever hangover remedy works best for you.
Click to expand...
Is this the part where I go "oh no, my steak has too much juice and my lobster is overly buttery"? 🤣

Still, I appreciate it, my dude. And yeah, it just hit me that at this pace my stash of 10mg vials will stretch until I retire.

And there's no way I'm bumping the dose back up. Dropping from deadlifting 300x3 down to 205x3 was absolute bullshit I never want to go through again. Like, ever.
Click to expand...
Hey, same here — obviously I have to reach 300 first... perhaps next time around.
 
octopusthorpe said:

Week 9 of reta is underway for me, and I've dropped 23.8lb so far — which I genuinely did not expect.

Here's what I'm wondering: lots of people seem to be injecting 2mg to 10mg each week and getting comparable results, but has anyone matched that kind of progress while staying at 1mg/week or less? The phrase "hyper responder" gets tossed around a lot, though it always struck me as more myth than reality.

Being the spreadsheet type, I plotted my weight against bi-weekly reta dose (chart attached below).

My starting protocol was 0.5mg twice per week to keep side effects manageable, and things went so well that I never changed it through the end of March. Then I bumped it to 0.7mg for roughly 2 weeks — mostly curiosity rather than need — and I felt completely awful (exhaustion, gym numbers dropped, hiking stamina fell apart).

Injections happen Tuesday morning and Friday evening. After Friday's smaller 0.5mg shot, today I feel dramatically improved.

While on reta, my RHR barely budged (normally 46-48 BPM, now sitting around 49-50 BPM), sleep stayed fine (7-8 hours nightly, average sleep score 80), and HRV looks balanced. Honestly, given the stories I'd read, I expected something different. Not complaining though 🙂

A few details worth listing:

1) Female, 50 years old, 5'10.5"

2) Reta is my first-ever GLP

3) Back in 2016 I dropped 160lb through low-carb, high-protein eating (typically 1-1.2g per pound of lean mass)

4) Powerlifting has been part of my routine since 2017, plus long-distance hiking, so I entered this with a solid base of muscle and endurance

5) Perimenopause caused my weight to climb starting in late 2024, leaving me roughly 25-30lb above my 2016 low point

6) My eating remains fairly low carb (protein is higher on reta, around 175g/day), with easily digestible carbs used pre-workout

7) Strength training happens 4-5x weekly, moderate cardio on the indoor bike 3-4x weekly, and most Saturdays include a long-distance hike of 20-30 miles. Step counting isn't my thing — no "10k steps per day" routine — because mileage suits me better (with a 41" stride length and very long legs, tracking steps gets irritating)

8) For perimenopause I use estradiol - 0.0375 patch 2/weekly, and test-c 10mg weekly divided into 2 doses

One more thing: I'm grateful this forum is here. Ever looked at the reta subreddit? That place is a total dumpster fire of stupidity. Almost impressive, really. 🤣





View attachment 11401
Click to expand...
My wife reached her goal weight, dropping 35lb, and she never exceeded 2.5mg every 6 days.
 
octopusthorpe said:

Week 9 of reta is underway for me, and I've dropped 23.8lb so far — which I genuinely did not expect.

Here's what I'm wondering: lots of people seem to be injecting 2mg to 10mg each week and getting comparable results, but has anyone matched that kind of progress while staying at 1mg/week or less? The phrase "hyper responder" gets tossed around a lot, though it always struck me as more myth than reality.

Being the spreadsheet type, I plotted my weight against bi-weekly reta dose (chart attached below).

My starting protocol was 0.5mg twice per week to keep side effects manageable, and things went so well that I never changed it through the end of March. Then I bumped it to 0.7mg for roughly 2 weeks — mostly curiosity rather than need — and I felt completely awful (exhaustion, gym numbers dropped, hiking stamina fell apart).

Injections happen Tuesday morning and Friday evening. After Friday's smaller 0.5mg shot, today I feel dramatically improved.

While on reta, my RHR barely budged (normally 46-48 BPM, now sitting around 49-50 BPM), sleep stayed fine (7-8 hours nightly, average sleep score 80), and HRV looks balanced. Honestly, given the stories I'd read, I expected something different. Not complaining though 🙂

A few details worth listing:

1) Female, 50 years old, 5'10.5"

2) Reta is my first-ever GLP

3) Back in 2016 I dropped 160lb through low-carb, high-protein eating (typically 1-1.2g per pound of lean mass)

4) Powerlifting has been part of my routine since 2017, plus long-distance hiking, so I entered this with a solid base of muscle and endurance

5) Perimenopause caused my weight to climb starting in late 2024, leaving me roughly 25-30lb above my 2016 low point

6) My eating remains fairly low carb (protein is higher on reta, around 175g/day), with easily digestible carbs used pre-workout

7) Strength training happens 4-5x weekly, moderate cardio on the indoor bike 3-4x weekly, and most Saturdays include a long-distance hike of 20-30 miles. Step counting isn't my thing — no "10k steps per day" routine — because mileage suits me better (with a 41" stride length and very long legs, tracking steps gets irritating)

8) For perimenopause I use estradiol - 0.0375 patch 2/weekly, and test-c 10mg weekly divided into 2 doses

One more thing: I'm grateful this forum is here. Ever looked at the reta subreddit? That place is a total dumpster fire of stupidity. Almost impressive, really. 🤣





View attachment 11401
Click to expand...

I'm with this 1000%. Reddit...I just can't. Their nonsense is too much for me at my age. There's another forum with a lot of great info that's harder to get into, but I think a lot of reddit folks are over there too, so I don't interact much. The GLP1Chat is the best imo.
 
sheilarae74 said:


I agree with this 1000%. Reddit...I just can't. I'm just too old for their nonsense. There is another forum that is harder to get access to with a lot of great info but I suspect there are a lot of reddit folks there so I don't interact much. The GLP1Chat is the best imo.

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Haha, this appeared in my Reddit feed just now—how have these folks not earned a Darwin award yet? I mean, what the heck...

e8754aa0f957bc0726f51e46daadd9884b80093370924b8340000656c2fb1f23.webp
 
octopusthorpe said:


how are these people not a Darwin award yet I mean wtf...

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What's the reason for the surprise? Given the way reproduction works, what other result could there be? Belmont against Fishtown. If athletes get praised while the top student or nerd does not, you're always going to end up here.

People who once would have been shunned and mocked now have, thanks to the internet, the same ability to speak and are even welcomed
 
Smiter said:


When the jocks are celebrated over the valedictorian/nerd, this outcome is guaranteed.

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And let's not leave out the bro scientists, those ex-jocks still chasing the old glory days.
 
By the time I had been on reta for 9 months, my titration had only reached 3 mg/week. My starting point was 0.5 mg/week, and I stayed at each dose for no less than 4 weeks, moving up only once I had gone at least 2 weeks without any weight loss. (Typically the jumps I made were 0.25-0.5 mg at a time.)

For a lot of people that pace would have felt excruciatingly slow, but my goal was a loss of 1-2 lbs/week, and at those low dosages I was able to hit that rate. Staying on the lowest dose that works has mattered a great deal to me.
 
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