biobob
Explorer
I've dropped 20 lbs by exercising and following a proper diet. Occasionally, I'm getting really hungry. The initial week was intense, and I expected that sensation to continue each week. Should I consider increasing my dose?
Week 4 on Reta
- Thread starter biobob
- Start date
biobob
Explorer
I take 2mg. My diet is good and I train too. I stay quite active. Starting from 385 makes it somewhat less difficult. Before reaching that point, I had dropped 55 lbs on my own.
biobob
Explorer
At what point should I consider increasing my dose?
BNLFL
Explorer
If it were me, I'd wait until 4 weeks had passed. At 4 I didn't get the same feeling as I did at 2, though I'm still dropping about 2lbs per week, and I just took 6mg on Friday. At this dose the hunger suppression is strong. My wife disagrees, but she keeps losing too. I suppose everyone's different.
biobob
Explorer
I’ve been thinking about moving up to 4. Is there any reason I shouldn’t spend a week at 3 first, before making the jump to 4?
BNLFL
Explorer
Not in the slightest. At 4 we actually went with 5, and one went to 5 then straight up to 6mg. Since a week at 5 did nothing for me, I thought, might as well try 6. Friday will tell me whether 6 is hitting hard — that's when I weigh in. It definitely seems to be.
Dogmandu
Explorer
@biobob here is the Phase 2 data for Reta. Faster titration results in more weight loss. Slower titration results in fewer side effects.
Those who began at a higher dose (4 mg rather than a 2 mg start) and then titrated up shed a larger percentage of body weight. Per the study, if losing weight is goal #1 AND you can tolerate the side effects, then going up by 2 mg each month is the correct approach. When side effects are problematic, use the slower path - increase by 1 mg monthly. How well you tolerate it determines how fast you escalate.
I had trouble with sides, so my escalation was 0.5 mg each month. It took 8 months for me to reach 4 mg. My slower escalation means I will lose less weight. Still, I made it there without going crazy and without giving up.
Those who began at a higher dose (4 mg rather than a 2 mg start) and then titrated up shed a larger percentage of body weight. Per the study, if losing weight is goal #1 AND you can tolerate the side effects, then going up by 2 mg each month is the correct approach. When side effects are problematic, use the slower path - increase by 1 mg monthly. How well you tolerate it determines how fast you escalate.
I had trouble with sides, so my escalation was 0.5 mg each month. It took 8 months for me to reach 4 mg. My slower escalation means I will lose less weight. Still, I made it there without going crazy and without giving up.
biobob
Explorer
Wow, thanks so much for posting this.
Great job! A good chunk of that was probably water weight and inflammation, but if you keep dropping at this rate, you might want to increase your intake a bit so you don't lose muscle or hair! And your gallbladder
lessthanhalf
Explorer
Starting from 385 lbs, you've got a considerable distance ahead, and in all likelihood you'll end up needing the maximum doses at some point. In my view, 12mg is the right dose for optimal weight loss, upkeep, and — even more crucially — long-term health.
Dropping 20 lbs within 4 weeks is quick. Was your weight holding steady before you began reta? You mentioned a prior loss of 55 lbs, so if things had plateaued even briefly, then 10 lbs of those 20 could simply be fluid instead of fat. My guess is the scale over the coming weeks will probably reflect a slower, truer rate of fat loss; sustaining over 2kg per week is nearly unattainable for long, unless someone is extremely heavy, barely eating, and physically active.
Given how things are going, there's no rush to move doses up unless hunger is bothering you. Still, I'd recommend keeping your long-term target on the higher end of dosing rather than the lower. Plenty of folks here will tell you to stick with the smallest dose you can, but for those with severe obesity I don't believe that advice holds — provided side effects aren't an issue.
Dropping 20 lbs within 4 weeks is quick. Was your weight holding steady before you began reta? You mentioned a prior loss of 55 lbs, so if things had plateaued even briefly, then 10 lbs of those 20 could simply be fluid instead of fat. My guess is the scale over the coming weeks will probably reflect a slower, truer rate of fat loss; sustaining over 2kg per week is nearly unattainable for long, unless someone is extremely heavy, barely eating, and physically active.
Given how things are going, there's no rush to move doses up unless hunger is bothering you. Still, I'd recommend keeping your long-term target on the higher end of dosing rather than the lower. Plenty of folks here will tell you to stick with the smallest dose you can, but for those with severe obesity I don't believe that advice holds — provided side effects aren't an issue.
stay at your current dose for now. as long as the weight is still coming off, then IMHO upping the dose isn't necessary. the goal is to squeeze as much as possible out of each titration step before hitting the max dose, or running into side effects that are too harsh. if nothing changes for over 3 weeks, then id think about going up, provided you can handle the hunger. once you do increase, id suggest waiting 4 weeks before even thinking about another bump. that's roughly how long the body needs for levels to stabilize and show whether it's doing what it should
There's been a lot of solid input here! Just like Dogmandu, I've had to deal with side effects, and since 2mg worked so well for me, I made the call to move up to 3mg — and I'm glad I did. I stayed at 3mg for 5 weeks before stepping up to 4mg, but for the past 2 weeks at 4mg I've been dealing with that awful sunburned sensation. When it comes to efficacy, 4mg has hit like a sledgehammer — honestly it might be too much — and I'm still dropping 2.2lbs each week. Lessthanhalf clearly put real thought into his reply, and it deserves consideration. My starting weight was 261lbs, so I have somewhat less to lose than some others, and I'm trying to find the balance between results and side effects.
MFGamesta
Explorer
I'm with you. Keep going until it stops working.
If you want to feel hungry all the time, then go ahead and increase. Just let the number on the scale tell you what to do.
biobob
Explorer
A good chunk of that was probably just water.
lessthanhalf
Explorer
When it comes to bumping up your dose, the easiest framework is this: are side effects causing you trouble, and are you experiencing hunger / is sticking to the eating plan you need for weight loss easy or difficult?
Hungry with no side effects → raise the dose
Side effects but no hunger → hold off
Side effects plus hunger → really frustrating, and there aren't any great simple solutions. I dealt with that for a year on ozempic before I found out grey peptides were a thing; perhaps try smaller doses more often.
You can always go up by less than the standard increments — it'll take longer, but side effects tend to be milder. For reta and tirz, the suggested dose increases make sense; for ozempic they're badly designed and happen too fast.
Hungry with no side effects → raise the dose
Side effects but no hunger → hold off
Side effects plus hunger → really frustrating, and there aren't any great simple solutions. I dealt with that for a year on ozempic before I found out grey peptides were a thing; perhaps try smaller doses more often.
You can always go up by less than the standard increments — it'll take longer, but side effects tend to be milder. For reta and tirz, the suggested dose increases make sense; for ozempic they're badly designed and happen too fast.
biobob
Explorer
My initial grey order is in. Fingers crossed it actually shows up!
