New and Learning

[Pinngo]

Hey all,

For about 2 weeks I've been reading here as a guest, and I decided it was time to actually sign up. Nothing has ever been part of my routine—no current use, no past use—but the concept intrigues me. My aim is to soak up information and, down the road, figure out whether this path suits me, whether that means gray, compounding, or going through my PCP (he's been reluctant to write any prescription, instead pushing me toward their in-house "fat loss expert team," and that option would probably blow past what I can afford).

A bit of history: I was a D1 offensive lineman until injuries piled up—specifically blown knees—and cut that career short. At that level, on the oline, eating whatever you want is basically the norm, and the push is to carry as much weight as possible while keeping your speed, health consequences be damned. I tipped the scales at roughly 380lbs while playing. That was over 10 years ago now, yet the old patterns stick around. Through plain old diet and exercise I dropped 30 pounds last year, and then things stalled out at 400lbs.

These days I still train, just not with the same intensity or volume as before. If you asked me what I want right now, today, it's better overall health, a smaller gut, and keeping as much muscle as I reasonably can. No dexa scan or anything like that yet, but my guess is I could stand to lose at least 120lbs.

I'm eager to keep going through the threads on here and to get more involved—liking posts, that sort of thing.

 

[primordialfusion]

Welcome aboard — I'm pretty fresh to this community too, though I've spent a while doing what I'd call 'bioexploring' as a powerlifter with T1D. What pulled me deeper into this area was a shoulder operation plus a sluggish recovery. These days I'm nearer to my body weight, and I'm working out the whole body recomposition thing.

My own stripped-down framework goes like this: Recovery & heal first > Energize & focus > Build & maintain. You might be ahead of me on this, but it's worth finding a solid blood work lab and a schedule so you can test your panel and vitals regularly throughout the process. That framework made it much easier for me to read the data and tell what was actually doing something versus what was just noise. One more thing — I never dove into stacks or complicated protocols; I began with a single peptide and waited at least a month or two before moving to the next step. As for GLP, give yourself a long run way: start with GLP-1 > GLP-2 > retatrutide (since "GLP-3" doesn't exist) so you don't max out of options too early. Based on my experience, sema (GLP1) will likely benfit a lot given your profile.

Good luck!

 

[woundcarping]

Pinngo said:

Hey all,

For about 2 weeks I've been reading here as a guest, and I decided it was time to actually sign up. Nothing has ever been part of my routine—no current use, no past use—but the concept intrigues me. My aim is to soak up information and, down the road, figure out whether this path suits me, whether that means gray, compounding, or going through my PCP (he's been reluctant to write any prescription, instead pushing me toward their in-house "fat loss expert team," and that option would probably blow past what I can afford).

A bit of history: I was a D1 offensive lineman until injuries piled up—specifically blown knees—and cut that career short. At that level, on the oline, eating whatever you want is basically the norm, and the push is to carry as much weight as possible while keeping your speed, health consequences be damned. I tipped the scales at roughly 380lbs while playing. That was over 10 years ago now, yet the old patterns stick around. Through plain old diet and exercise I dropped 30 pounds last year, and then things stalled out at 400lbs.

These days I still train, just not with the same intensity or volume as before. If you asked me what I want right now, today, it's better overall health, a smaller gut, and keeping as much muscle as I reasonably can. No dexa scan or anything like that yet, but my guess is I could stand to lose at least 120lbs.

I'm eager to keep going through the threads on here and to get more involved—liking posts, that sort of thing.

Local in-person visits for "supplemental" doctors tend to leave me unimpressed, and I haven't gone out of my way to travel for a specialist when the need is ongoing upkeep. So I ended up figuring things out solo and going through a tele doctor to get a prescription that aligns with what I'm aiming for.

For me, bored eating and portion control have typically been trouble spots. Back in 2018 I combined high protein with intermittent fasting and got down 80lb, yet restrictive diets demand too much work. The weight returned over time, which wasn't shocking, since not enough inside me shifted to make staying at 225lb work.

After hanging around 265lb +/-5lb for a good while, I began Tirz in December at roughly 282lb. Nerves about starting Tirz, followed by a hold-up, likely triggered some stress eating, along with that foolish notion of "eat it while you can."

Now I'm just past 3 weeks in, and this morning the scale read 271lb. Before starting a GLP I put in a lot of study and prep, and I give that credit for my experience so far having zero adverse side effects worth mentioning. I figured a prime beef would carry too much fat and wreck my stomach, yet nothing I've eaten has caused trouble so far.

That has caught me off guard somewhat, likely since the accounts I came across were probably about Sema with stronger adverse effects. I had a 14oz prime NY strip breakfast, and across the last month I've eaten the several pounds of pork sausage/cream cheese/tomato dip, chocolate cake, burgers, sushi, hotdogs, ice cream, etc.. with no stomach upset or reflux I can tie to the GLP (when I eat couple pounds of steak I tend to run hot in the boiler room, that's only been once). Soft drinks, energy drinks, milk... nothing has been a problem.

During this stretch I've used more than 10lb of whey protein, and I've built up to 18-24g of PHGG fiber daily to keep things moving (I read constipation is a common side effect). My hope was that the GLP would help the boiler room, and in my case it definitely has.

A recent tweak of mine is lining up 8 .5L/16.9oz bottles of water in the fridge as my daily ration. Along with another couple quarts of water in the protein shakes, that keeps me deliberately hydrated (not an unusual amount of liquid for me to drink preGLP, but I never bothered to measure it before).

A more curious shift is that my energy drink intake has no doubt caused Lost and Found to lay some workers off. I used to take in 600mg/day of caffeine regularly, whereas over the past 3 weeks I've had 450mg total, mostly just to confirm I wasn't steering clear of them. Also, on the 3 occasions I've had a drink, I slept poorly that night by staying up much later than normal. Odd, since caffeine has never really affected me, and even that single drink doesn't give me a wired feeling.

Assuming your knees cooperate, walking is a great way to burn extra calories, and that's what I began yesterday. At 400lb, burning 500 calories takes only ~1.5-1.7 miles. Resistance training matters too, but that's a separate topic.

 

[Pinngo]

primordialfusion said:

Welcome aboard — I'm pretty fresh to this community too, though I've spent a while doing what I'd call 'bioexploring' as a powerlifter with T1D. What pulled me deeper into this area was a shoulder operation plus a sluggish recovery. These days I'm nearer to my body weight, and I'm working out the whole body recomposition thing.

My own stripped-down framework goes like this: Recovery & heal first > Energize & focus > Build & maintain. You might be ahead of me on this, but it's worth finding a solid blood work lab and a schedule so you can test your panel and vitals regularly throughout the process. That framework made it much easier for me to read the data and tell what was actually doing something versus what was just noise. One more thing — I never dove into stacks or complicated protocols; I began with a single peptide and waited at least a month or two before moving to the next step. As for GLP, give yourself a long run way: start with GLP-1 > GLP-2 > retatrutide (since "GLP-3" doesn't exist) so you don't max out of options too early. Based on my experience, sema (GLP1) will likely benfit a lot given your profile.

Good luck!

Absolutely, once I start moving ahead I intend to get blood work and labs checked on a routine basis. Within the limits of what's possible here, I'd like to keep any dangers as small as I reasonably can. On top of that, dropping pounds on its own reduces quite a few risk factors.

Beyond that, my plan is to begin with just 1 pep and see how it goes. Wishing you the best of luck!

 

[Pinngo]

woundcarping said:

Pinngo said:

Hey all,

For about 2 weeks I've been reading here as a guest, and I decided it was time to actually sign up. Nothing has ever been part of my routine—no current use, no past use—but the concept intrigues me. My aim is to soak up information and, down the road, figure out whether this path suits me, whether that means gray, compounding, or going through my PCP (he's been reluctant to write any prescription, instead pushing me toward their in-house "fat loss expert team," and that option would probably blow past what I can afford).

A bit of history: I was a D1 offensive lineman until injuries piled up—specifically blown knees—and cut that career short. At that level, on the oline, eating whatever you want is basically the norm, and the push is to carry as much weight as possible while keeping your speed, health consequences be damned. I tipped the scales at roughly 380lbs while playing. That was over 10 years ago now, yet the old patterns stick around. Through plain old diet and exercise I dropped 30 pounds last year, and then things stalled out at 400lbs.

These days I still train, just not with the same intensity or volume as before. If you asked me what I want right now, today, it's better overall health, a smaller gut, and keeping as much muscle as I reasonably can. No dexa scan or anything like that yet, but my guess is I could stand to lose at least 120lbs.

I'm eager to keep going through the threads on here and to get more involved—liking posts, that sort of thing.

Local in-person visits for "supplemental" doctors tend to leave me unimpressed, and I haven't gone out of my way to travel for a specialist when the need is ongoing upkeep. So I ended up figuring things out solo and going through a tele doctor to get a prescription that aligns with what I'm aiming for.

For me, bored eating and portion control have typically been trouble spots. Back in 2018 I combined high protein with intermittent fasting and got down 80lb, yet restrictive diets demand too much work. The weight returned over time, which wasn't shocking, since not enough inside me shifted to make staying at 225lb work.

After hanging around 265lb +/-5lb for a good while, I began Tirz in December at roughly 282lb. Nerves about starting Tirz, followed by a hold-up, likely triggered some stress eating, along with that foolish notion of "eat it while you can."

Now I'm just past 3 weeks in, and this morning the scale read 271lb. Before starting a GLP I put in a lot of study and prep, and I give that credit for my experience so far having zero adverse side effects worth mentioning. I figured a prime beef would carry too much fat and wreck my stomach, yet nothing I've eaten has caused trouble so far.

That has caught me off guard somewhat, likely since the accounts I came across were probably about Sema with stronger adverse effects. I had a 14oz prime NY strip breakfast, and across the last month I've eaten the several pounds of pork sausage/cream cheese/tomato dip, chocolate cake, burgers, sushi, hotdogs, ice cream, etc.. with no stomach upset or reflux I can tie to the GLP (when I eat couple pounds of steak I tend to run hot in the boiler room, that's only been once). Soft drinks, energy drinks, milk... nothing has been a problem.

During this stretch I've used more than 10lb of whey protein, and I've built up to 18-24g of PHGG fiber daily to keep things moving (I read constipation is a common side effect). My hope was that the GLP would help the boiler room, and in my case it definitely has.

A recent tweak of mine is lining up 8 .5L/16.9oz bottles of water in the fridge as my daily ration. Along with another couple quarts of water in the protein shakes, that keeps me deliberately hydrated (not an unusual amount of liquid for me to drink preGLP, but I never bothered to measure it before).

A more curious shift is that my energy drink intake has no doubt caused Lost and Found to lay some workers off. I used to take in 600mg/day of caffeine regularly, whereas over the past 3 weeks I've had 450mg total, mostly just to confirm I wasn't steering clear of them. Also, on the 3 occasions I've had a drink, I slept poorly that night by staying up much later than normal. Odd, since caffeine has never really affected me, and even that single drink doesn't give me a wired feeling.

Assuming your knees cooperate, walking is a great way to burn extra calories, and that's what I began yesterday. At 400lb, burning 500 calories takes only ~1.5-1.7 miles. Resistance training matters too, but that's a separate topic.

Whenever the situation isn't crystal clear, I tend to drag my feet about seeing a specialist. Is the doctor hunting for a diagnosis that isn't there? Are they passing the buck out of fear of a lawsuit? What is actually happening? It blows my mind that the system is designed around treating sickness rather than stopping it, with the exception of catastrophic diseases, which do get vaccines.

I get those same "eat while you can" thoughts too, and I haven't even begun! Self-sabotage really shows how strange the mind can be.

For my lifting goals, I take protein powder and creatine. It's good to hear protein powder is working out for you. That's something I still need to look into. I doubt there would be any interactions with creatine, but I can't say for certain yet.

My knees hold up fine, unless a storm rolls in or it's bitterly cold. Living in Minnesota, the cold is the worst part for them. I use a sitting elliptical and usually get ~15k rotations per day. I have no clue what that adds up to in distance; I just sit and pedal for an hour while watching a show. I lift 3-5 days a week, depending on my current program/goal/set-up. If I go too long without working out, I get restless!

 

[woundcarping]

Pinngo said:

woundcarping said:

Pinngo said:

Hey all,

For about 2 weeks I've been reading here as a guest, and I decided it was time to actually sign up. Nothing has ever been part of my routine—no current use, no past use—but the concept intrigues me. My aim is to soak up information and, down the road, figure out whether this path suits me, whether that means gray, compounding, or going through my PCP (he's been reluctant to write any prescription, instead pushing me toward their in-house "fat loss expert team," and that option would probably blow past what I can afford).

A bit of history: I was a D1 offensive lineman until injuries piled up—specifically blown knees—and cut that career short. At that level, on the oline, eating whatever you want is basically the norm, and the push is to carry as much weight as possible while keeping your speed, health consequences be damned. I tipped the scales at roughly 380lbs while playing. That was over 10 years ago now, yet the old patterns stick around. Through plain old diet and exercise I dropped 30 pounds last year, and then things stalled out at 400lbs.

These days I still train, just not with the same intensity or volume as before. If you asked me what I want right now, today, it's better overall health, a smaller gut, and keeping as much muscle as I reasonably can. No dexa scan or anything like that yet, but my guess is I could stand to lose at least 120lbs.

I'm eager to keep going through the threads on here and to get more involved—liking posts, that sort of thing.

Local in-person visits for "supplemental" doctors tend to leave me unimpressed, and I haven't gone out of my way to travel for a specialist when the need is ongoing upkeep. So I ended up figuring things out solo and going through a tele doctor to get a prescription that aligns with what I'm aiming for.

For me, bored eating and portion control have typically been trouble spots. Back in 2018 I combined high protein with intermittent fasting and got down 80lb, yet restrictive diets demand too much work. The weight returned over time, which wasn't shocking, since not enough inside me shifted to make staying at 225lb work.

After hanging around 265lb +/-5lb for a good while, I began Tirz in December at roughly 282lb. Nerves about starting Tirz, followed by a hold-up, likely triggered some stress eating, along with that foolish notion of "eat it while you can."

Now I'm just past 3 weeks in, and this morning the scale read 271lb. Before starting a GLP I put in a lot of study and prep, and I give that credit for my experience so far having zero adverse side effects worth mentioning. I figured a prime beef would carry too much fat and wreck my stomach, yet nothing I've eaten has caused trouble so far.

That has caught me off guard somewhat, likely since the accounts I came across were probably about Sema with stronger adverse effects. I had a 14oz prime NY strip breakfast, and across the last month I've eaten the several pounds of pork sausage/cream cheese/tomato dip, chocolate cake, burgers, sushi, hotdogs, ice cream, etc.. with no stomach upset or reflux I can tie to the GLP (when I eat couple pounds of steak I tend to run hot in the boiler room, that's only been once). Soft drinks, energy drinks, milk... nothing has been a problem.

During this stretch I've used more than 10lb of whey protein, and I've built up to 18-24g of PHGG fiber daily to keep things moving (I read constipation is a common side effect). My hope was that the GLP would help the boiler room, and in my case it definitely has.

A recent tweak of mine is lining up 8 .5L/16.9oz bottles of water in the fridge as my daily ration. Along with another couple quarts of water in the protein shakes, that keeps me deliberately hydrated (not an unusual amount of liquid for me to drink preGLP, but I never bothered to measure it before).

A more curious shift is that my energy drink intake has no doubt caused Lost and Found to lay some workers off. I used to take in 600mg/day of caffeine regularly, whereas over the past 3 weeks I've had 450mg total, mostly just to confirm I wasn't steering clear of them. Also, on the 3 occasions I've had a drink, I slept poorly that night by staying up much later than normal. Odd, since caffeine has never really affected me, and even that single drink doesn't give me a wired feeling.

Assuming your knees cooperate, walking is a great way to burn extra calories, and that's what I began yesterday. At 400lb, burning 500 calories takes only ~1.5-1.7 miles. Resistance training matters too, but that's a separate topic.

Whenever the situation isn't crystal clear, I tend to drag my feet about seeing a specialist. Is the doctor hunting for a diagnosis that isn't there? Are they passing the buck out of fear of a lawsuit? What is actually happening? It blows my mind that the system is designed around treating sickness rather than stopping it, with the exception of catastrophic diseases, which do get vaccines.

I get those same "eat while you can" thoughts too, and I haven't even begun! Self-sabotage really shows how strange the mind can be.

For my lifting goals, I take protein powder and creatine. It's good to hear protein powder is working out for you. That's something I still need to look into. I doubt there would be any interactions with creatine, but I can't say for certain yet.

My knees hold up fine, unless a storm rolls in or it's bitterly cold. Living in Minnesota, the cold is the worst part for them. I use a sitting elliptical and usually get ~15k rotations per day. I have no clue what that adds up to in distance; I just sit and pedal for an hour while watching a show. I lift 3-5 days a week, depending on my current program/goal/set-up. If I go too long without working out, I get restless!

This afternoon I ate my usual meal from Sonic. I'm definitely stuffed, though I don't think it'll cause any problems. It came to 1920 calories, 59g protein, plus a bunch of carbs and fat. That's the 2nd time I've had it since starting tirz.

This morning I injected another 2mg of Tirz instead of the 2.5mg I'd planned (I split the dose 2x/week), since my appetite is under control and the noise is minimal. Bottom line: the anxiety I had early on, back when I could still feel it, was completely baseless and worked against me. Not dealing with food noise or hunger is, surprisingly, a lot more "normal" than I'd anticipated.

 

[Pinngo]

Do you follow OMAD? Big meals are something I avoid unless that's the only thing I eat all day, since they leave me feeling weighed down. Take pancakes — after eating them I feel enormous, yet a few hours later I'm hungry again. That sensation is awful. Going from that to no food noise is a fast shift, and it's genuinely good to hear.

 

[Jellybelly54]

Pinngo said:

Hey all,

For about 2 weeks I've been reading here as a guest, and I decided it was time to actually sign up. Nothing has ever been part of my routine—no current use, no past use—but the concept intrigues me. My aim is to soak up information and, down the road, figure out whether this path suits me, whether that means gray, compounding, or going through my PCP (he's been reluctant to write any prescription, instead pushing me toward their in-house "fat loss expert team," and that option would probably blow past what I can afford).

A bit of history: I was a D1 offensive lineman until injuries piled up—specifically blown knees—and cut that career short. At that level, on the oline, eating whatever you want is basically the norm, and the push is to carry as much weight as possible while keeping your speed, health consequences be damned. I tipped the scales at roughly 380lbs while playing. That was over 10 years ago now, yet the old patterns stick around. Through plain old diet and exercise I dropped 30 pounds last year, and then things stalled out at 400lbs.

These days I still train, just not with the same intensity or volume as before. If you asked me what I want right now, today, it's better overall health, a smaller gut, and keeping as much muscle as I reasonably can. No dexa scan or anything like that yet, but my guess is I could stand to lose at least 120lbs.

I'm eager to keep going through the threads on here and to get more involved—liking posts, that sort of thing.

Pick up some tirzepitide from the gray market and give it a shot.. You won't be sorry, just keep the dose low and increase slowly. My own start was 1.25 mg, held there for 2 months, and I still dropped weight. Just be aware that the scale doesn't move right away , roughly 4-6weeks pass before any loss shows up. The constant chatter about food and alcohol fades to almost nothing, letting you concentrate on 1-2 solid, healthy meals a day with no snacking in between. These peptides truly perform better than you'd expect.