Anyone else attempting to stick to a regimen right now?

Several friends of mine are on either Ozempic/Wegovy/Zepbound (sp.?) or GLP-1 meds, one of whom has lost a lot of weight before even hitting the therapeutic amount. But she also mentioned the rather uncomfortable side effects.

I would probably mostly be worried about packing it all on again (and then some) once you go off, which seems to be almost inevitable in most cases.

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Listen to what Dr Rita Redberg has to say about Statins, interview on YouTube. She’s a Cardiologist at UCSF.

Read the book: The Truth About Statins by a doctor who teaches at Brown University.

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The weight yo-yo is my concern too!
I did not get another pen for several weeks after my first pen ran out and I seemed to be doing ok, I was within 2 pounds of my Ozempic record low weight. I logged my weight 3 or 4 times a week and even 7 or 8 weeks after my first pen ran out I had only regained a pound or two. And I was out of Afib and working out more regularly and more effectively.
But we will see. I need to find another gym I like. I spent 25 years going to Golds Gym Arlington and it became a huge part of my life. I miss that discipline.

I wasn’t trying to lose weight, but I was dealing with really bad heartburn/acid reflux that was stress induced (Sunshine’s cancer). I couldn’t really do anything about the stress, so my doctor put me on pantoprazole to repair my esophagus. It did a great job!!

One of the side effects was a loss of appetite. I had to force myself to eat. I usually only eat one meal a day (dinner), but I really didn’t feel like eating that. Even with forcing myself to eat, I still loss some weight. It wasn’t enough to trigger a red flag with my doctor, though.

I’ve been switched from a daily dose of pantoprazole to ā€œas neededā€. So, I’m hoping my appetite comes back.

I’m only posting this as information for those who are struggling to lose weight and need to. You may or may not benefit from my experience.

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If it was 20-30+ pounds that I needed to lose, I might consider Ozempic but it’s more like 8-10 pounds and I’d rather try to lose it by ā€œdiet ā€œ and exercise, which is doable.

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Late night snaking is the devil :smiling_imp:, that’s why I try to be in bed by 10pm-ish otherwise I’m eating everything in sight :sweat_smile:. Drinking water and brushing your teeth earlier rather than later is a good way to curb late night cravings.

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Did you significantly increase your protein intake? A big concern seems to be the loss of muscle mass over fat.

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My dietician also mentioned Fisherman’s Friends or other strong mints after dinner, to avoid snacking

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Muscle mass loss is a concern of mine. I am healthier now than I was a year ago, but I am not nearly as healthy as I was when I was lifting weights prior to Covid.
Protein is a huge part of my diet even after I started using Ozempic. I get a 16 ounce ribeye every week at a bar near my home and it makes 3 meals for me. I used to eat a lot more protein but I still like steak, eggs, milk, kefir, peanut butter and chicken thighs, so I am getting the protein, but I am not lifting and I feel like my muscle mass is not recovering. Resistance training of some sort is a great way to feel younger/fitter and my Peloton is not as good at that as I would like.

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I love good culture cottage cheese. My Costco had it in the 48 oz container for a few months and I was so happy.

Of course it disappeared. I still love it but Prairie farms is a little easier on the wallet

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Ooh, I never saw it at my Costco, SSF.

I like cottage cheese, too much. Meaning, its an easy food to overeat. A 48 oz tub can disappear fast around here. Especially like it with tomatoes onions and salt and pepper , but spooned straight out of the tub its just fine.

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Pantaprozole was prescribed to me as a replacement for omeprazole, which I had been on for too long for my asthma/gerd connection.
It has worked well, I’ve been taking it for 14 months, twice a day and am looking to have the dosage reduced when I see the new (4th one in 4 years----revolving door medical center!) gastro next week.

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Yes, I was only taking it once a day (morning) for about 2 months. Fixed me right up – pain all gone!

How was your appetite while you were taking it?? I had no desire to eat. I wasn’t feeling sick like having sour stomach or anything like that – I just wasn’t hungry.

Best of luck with your gastro appointment next week.

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I recently bought a product called Fodzyme, having had a severe, escalating GI issue the past several years and was at my wit’s end. It’s a tasteless powder added to high FODMAP foods that a supposed adjunct to digestive enzymes that might be missing, according to the spiel. After a couple of weeks, I’m really pretty shocked to find that it seems to be working, and way better than I ever imagined it would. Now I need to find a more detailed list of high and low FODMAP foods than I’ve been able to find. Also a more detailed description- everything I find seems to be geared toward people that don’t understand any medical terminology.

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Isn’t it great to find something that provides relief?

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Boy, I’ll say. I’m still kind of feeling my way around it, and I’m not sure what foods affect me, but at least I have someplace to start from.

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Best of luck to you!! It has taken me 8 years now to get to some sense of normal.
There were lots of things I explored.
Some of Joe Leech’s posts helped. My gastro people were pretty useless. I don’t think
they really understand the variety and severity of the condition. Then they move on to other
fields or leave the area totally.

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Thank you-

So I’ve noticed…

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If you don’t mind getting specific–wondering if you have trouble with onion/garlic/allium? If so has Fodzyme helped?

I can have 48 hours of painful, socially unacceptable gas after accidentally eating onion. It’s brutal.

Thanks in advance!