GLP-1 medicines like semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) are extensively hailed as weight reduction sport changers. So when you’re taking considered one of these new medication and the size does not appear to be budging, you might be questioning what is going on on.
Generally it is a matter of being affected person, as it could take a couple of weeks earlier than you discover outcomes, and plateaus could be a regular a part of weight reduction. That stated, you should not rely solely on Ozempic to achieve your objective.
“With a view to see the outcomes demonstrated in research, GLP-1 medicines ought to be mixed with dietary and way of life interventions,” says Samantha Flanagan, DO, an weight problems medication specialist with Temple Well being in Philadelphia. For optimum success, you could avoid some widespread missteps that place key way of life adjustments on the again burner.
1. You’re Not Exercising
“An exercise prescription is a vital a part of all long-term [weight loss] plans,” says Richard Siegel, MD, an endocrinologist and a codirector of the diabetes and lipid middle at Tufts Medical Middle in Boston.
The clinician who prescribed your weight reduction drug must also help your effort to enhance your train habits. In the event that they don’t, it could be a pink flag that you just’re not getting the thorough weight reduction therapy and experience that you just deserve. Some sources corresponding to on-line clinics and med spas, maybe notably people who present compounded GLP-1s, could also be much less prone to provide way of life recommendation and help.
2. You Didn’t Change Your Weight loss program
Whereas it is extra widespread for folks to battle with consuming sufficient on a GLP-1, not everybody on the remedy finally ends up lowering their total caloric consumption the important thing to profitable weight reduction.
“Sure dietary habits can result in greater caloric consumption and less-balanced vitamin,” says Dr. Flanagan. “These embrace issues like grazing (snacking all day however not consuming any true meals) and alternating between skipping meals and consuming bigger, unhealthy meals.”
3. You’re Not Taking It as Prescribed
It is okay to decrease your dose or cease taking your GLP-1 altogether, however it’s vital to take action with the steering of your healthcare supplier. If there are elements which are making it tough so that you can take your remedy as prescribed, they can assist you to troubleshoot and discover a routine that works higher for you.
4. Your Different Drugs Are Interfering
These medicines ship vital advantages, so that you should not simply cease taking them for the sake of weight reduction, says Flanagan. As an alternative, speak together with your physician about your remedy plan as an entire. Collectively, you’ll be able to work out learn how to enhance your weight reduction plan whereas protecting another well being situations underneath management.
5. You Want a Greater Dose
You might want the next dose of a GLP-1 (or another remedy, for that matter) with a view to obtain the outcomes you’re searching for, even when you’ve made the really useful way of life adjustments. “Some folks have a really vital response on the lowest dose of remedy,” says Siegal. “Others want the next dose to realize a weight lack of 5 p.c (of their physique weight) or extra.”
It is price giving your physique a little bit little bit of time when you’re not seeing the quantity on the size pattern downward. However when you’ve plateaued after a month or two at your present dose, speak together with your physician, says Siegal. So long as you are assembly your dietary wants and your unintended effects are manageable, you might determine collectively to extend your dosage.
6. Stress or Dangerous Sleep Is Sabotaging Your Weight Loss
No matter whether or not you’re taking a GLP-1, continual stress and a scarcity of high quality sleep aren’t useful for wholesome weight administration. “That is one thing I speak so much about with my sufferers,” says Flanagan.
The Takeaway
- Whereas GLP-1s typically include the expectation of great weight reduction, a variety of elements can affect how your physique responds to those medicines.
- It’s vital to mix your GLP-1 with dietary and way of life interventions corresponding to common train, a balanced food plan, and high quality sleep to realize desired outcomes.
- If you happen to’re not seeing the outcomes you need, attain out to your healthcare supplier, who will help troubleshoot your present remedy dose, join you with a registered dietitian-nutritionist, and discover different elements that could be hindering your weight reduction success.
