reta has been part of my routine for roughly 6 weeks, and my trip is roughly a week away. Right now I take 4mg/week. Around 10 lbs have come off, and overall things are going really well; even so, I'm considering quitting at this point (roughly a week ahead of the trip). There's a "grey" feeling I've been having. Libido is lower, and I don't have much desire to drink or take pleasure in things. Before I leave, I'd like to recover some of that. My plan is to keep eating exactly as before (healthy, low cal, high protein, weight lifting every day). Once I'm back, I intend to start again about 2 weeks after I stop. Has anyone here gone through this? What should I be aware of? Thanks!
Stopping Reta a week before vacation - Feel "grey"
- Thread starter Tfeff1
- Start date
It's possible your system hasn't fully adjusted to Ret yet, so quitting may not produce the result you're expecting.
Losing 10lbs over 6 weeks is impressive. If you've still got a long way to go, reducing your dose could be a better route than going cold turkey.
For me, things evened out after I'd been on my program for some time.
A handful of people here have tried it — I'll leave it to them to weigh in.
BNLFL
Explorer
I hate to break it to you, but that's not how this medication operates. You can't just hit pause and expect to go wild with drinking, eating, and partying—that's not part of the plan. Plus, it lingers in your body for quite some time. There's no chance I'd go 3 weeks without it.
desinr-gal
Explorer
I ran this by Google AI and it came back with the following ideas..
When you're on GLP-1 medications and want to actually enjoy food while traveling, the smartest approach is to aim for quality rather than quantity - that means planning out your dosing and eating with intention. There's no need to quit your medication completely in order to have a wonderful food experience. [1, 2]
Fine-Tune When You Dose
How to Eat Smart
Handling Side Effects While Traveling
When you're on GLP-1 medications and want to actually enjoy food while traveling, the smartest approach is to aim for quality rather than quantity - that means planning out your dosing and eating with intention. There's no need to quit your medication completely in order to have a wonderful food experience. [1, 2]
Fine-Tune When You Dose
- Push your shot back: For a weekly injection, you could take it 1 to 2 days later than you normally would, provided that lines up with when your trip starts. [1]
- Work with the half-life: Peak concentration for GLP-1 medications usually arrives 1 to 3 days after the injection. By delaying your dose, the heaviest appetite suppression tapers off right around the time your vacation kicks off. [1, 2]
- Don't switch things up mid-trip: Skipping several weeks in a row is a bad idea, because you'd have to begin again at the lowest dose so you don't trigger serious gastrointestinal side effects. [1, 2]
How to Eat Smart
- Put protein and fiber first: At each meal, eat your protein and vegetables before anything else. That way you take in the nutrients you need before your stomach tells you it's full. [1, 2, 3]
- Make appetizers your main: When you look at a restaurant menu, pick two appetizers rather than a heavy entree. You still get to sample different local flavors, but without wasting food or stuffing yourself. [1]
- Split everything: Share heavier dishes, desserts, or street food with the people you're traveling with. You still get the taste, but without the physical discomfort that comes with a full portion. [1, 2]
- Quit at 80% full: GLP-1 meds slow gastric emptying. Eat until you're completely full and you'll probably end up feeling painfully stuffed or nauseous an hour down the line. [1, 2]
Handling Side Effects While Traveling
- Go easy on alcohol: GLP-1 medications can alter the way your body handles alcohol, so you may get drunk faster or end up with rough hangovers. Cap it at one or two drinks and switch off with water.
- Bring a rescue kit: Pack over-the-counter items such as antacids, ginger lozenges, and anti-diarrheal medication. Vacation food tends to be richer, and on these medications it can set off reflux or nausea more easily.
- Drink a lot of water: Travel, heat, and GLP-1 medications all raise your dehydration risk. Get plenty of water and think about bringing electrolyte packets.
- Which specific medication are you on?
- What kind of culinary style does your vacation destination have?
hotsauceboss
Explorer
Heh, looks like I've got a tough stretch ahead. I'll be in Europe for 3 weeks and will end up skipping a couple of weeks of shots. Right now I'm at 4mg, and once I'm back I'm worried about dropping to 2, though I might space doses closer together than every 7 days, depending on how it goes.
desinr-gal
Explorer
Take them along?
At room temperature, they should remain good for 21 days.
hotsauceboss
Explorer
Will customs give me a hard time over them? Most likely I'd pack 1 vial plus 3 syringes in my checked luggage.
Derby
Explorer
Use the forum search. There's a post about traveling with peps that shows up in this forum at least once/week.
TriDiddy
Explorer
Lots of people say travelling with vials and syringes has never given them problems. My own experience with it, though, is zero.
FartfulCodger
Explorer
Just sharing my experience: I take Tirz and Cag. I was in Japan for 3 weeks and left my meds at home (some hotel rooms had no fridge). Right before departure I bumped my dose up a bit. Within a couple of days it stopped working, and I ate like crazy. Surprisingly, when I got back I had only put on 3 pounds. I went back on Tirz and Cag at my previous dose, and the appetite suppression returned as I'd wanted. Now, 2 weeks after my return, I'm at the same weight I had before the trip. YMMV.
JohnBlutarski
Explorer
I got back not long ago from a 2 week trip to Europe. The morning of our departure I did my final 5mg injection, and on the evening we got home I started up again. Honestly, there's nothing complicated about this. And somehow I dropped 2 pounds too, lmao! We're on foot the whole time!
bigbodybarry
Explorer
Same situation here — I'm heading to Ibiza soon for a party vacation with friends. Plenty of drinking and other "party supplies".
I'm thinking about tapering down and then pausing for 2 weeks so that the steady-state amount of reta in my body drops.
From the 1 or 2 occasions I've had heavy alcohol since I began reta, the hangovers can get pretty rough.
Obviously reta isn't great for cycling, since you basically reset your maintenance dose that has accumulated systemically.
I'm thinking about tapering down and then pausing for 2 weeks so that the steady-state amount of reta in my body drops.
From the 1 or 2 occasions I've had heavy alcohol since I began reta, the hangovers can get pretty rough.
Obviously reta isn't great for cycling, since you basically reset your maintenance dose that has accumulated systemically.
Bioexplorer
Explorer
Adding another data point here. My break wasn't as drastic as what you're considering, but I got back from a trip that lasted 11 days. I injected my usual 4mg Reta dose 3 days ahead of schedule right before leaving, then picked back up with 4mg right after getting home, 1 day past when I'd normally take it.
My appetite clearly went up toward the end of the trip. It seemed like I was consuming far more food and alcohol than I typically do, with calories climbing as the days went on. I didn't try to restrict anything and completely dropped my usual 3x a week weight lifting and cardio workouts.
I figured the scale would tick up a couple pounds and assumed things would get back on track once I returned to my usual routine. Turns out I dropped 2.6 lbs during the trip
. At the gym, though, I doubt the results will be that favorable.
My appetite clearly went up toward the end of the trip. It seemed like I was consuming far more food and alcohol than I typically do, with calories climbing as the days went on. I didn't try to restrict anything and completely dropped my usual 3x a week weight lifting and cardio workouts.
I figured the scale would tick up a couple pounds and assumed things would get back on track once I returned to my usual routine. Turns out I dropped 2.6 lbs during the trip
. At the gym, though, I doubt the results will be that favorable.
TazaTaza
Explorer
I never got why someone would quit their meds just to go wild with food on a trip. My routine is to inject the day before I leave, or on day 1 of the vacation, so I can have fun and not obsess over eating.
Tz is my main choice, and its appetite suppression is the strongest — I can go 10 days minimum with no food noise. If Ret's side effects are hitting you that hard, I'd suggest making a change, since you're looking to pause just to "feel normal" once more
Tz is my main choice, and its appetite suppression is the strongest — I can go 10 days minimum with no food noise. If Ret's side effects are hitting you that hard, I'd suggest making a change, since you're looking to pause just to "feel normal" once more
bamagirl26
Explorer
Make a Tirz label that appears legitimate, then pack it in your carry on. The tirz I get compounded arrived in prescription vials, so check whether you still have an old Rx bottle to transfer it into. My sister recently traveled to ireland with 18 months worth of Tirz and had no probs
desinr-gal
Explorer
From what I've gathered, the usual answer is no—try searching the forum, as this has come up in plenty of threads. Once I learned that peptides remain stable for 21 days without refrigeration, it got a lot simpler.
Beansnapper
Explorer
From what I've noticed, those who post about traveling often are on domestic flights; I haven't come across anyone bringing up international flights. Ruining a 3 week trip to Europe would be awful — Europe is too great and too costly for that kind of mess.