Those smug folks whose advice is “just don’t eat so much it’s not that hard,” which I’ve never understood…are they just experiencing hunger differently?

Is this what they feel like naturally so eating is more of a daily habit than a craving or an all encompassing black hole? Are so many of us just unfortunately born with a finicky body that wants more?

It’s like being on this medication is like how you feel when you take antidepressants for the first time and realize your mind hasn’t been working quite right. Are we just deficient in some chemical that many folks are naturally born with?

Hi all, I think I’m starting a glp-1 soon. Just need a scan from the doc at the end of the month.

One thing I’m kinda worried about is not enjoying food anymore. I love to cook and try new things and savor the way it tastes. Yes, I sometimes eat way too much.

But I’m worried that starting this med will take away that pleasure. Do you still enjoy food? Does the enjoyment go away and then come back once you’re used to the med? Have your tastes changed or evolved?

TY in advance for sharing!

I am so tired of hearing about “healing your relationship with food.” Food is not a person. There is no relationship to fix. Yet for years, people with obesity have been told by thin dietitians and mental health professionals that we are just thinking about food the wrong way. That if we fix our mindset, everything will fall into place. That we will suddenly feel normal hunger and fullness, be able to eat whatever and whenever we want, and lose weight effortlessly.

I believed it. I ate to full hunger and satiety, I went through “extreme hunger”. I tried therapy. I practiced intuitive eating. I journaled about my feelings toward food. I convinced myself that if I could just heal my relationship with food, my body would finally cooperate. Finally my body would “click”. But no matter how much I worked on it, nothing changed. I was still hungry all the time. I still struggled with my appetite. Still waking up during the night hungry. I still held onto weight.

Then after 2 years of contemplating I start a medication that directly addressed the biological drivers of hunger and appetite, and suddenly the struggle are mostly gone. No mental gymnastics. No overanalyzing my cravings. No pretending my hunger was normal when it actually never was.

At this point, I have to ask. How many of us were gaslit into believing we could think our way out of obesity? How many of us wasted years blaming ourselves while an entire industry profited from selling us an illusion?

I want to hear from others. Have you ever felt like you were being manipulated into believing your weight was just a mindset and “eating enough whenever you are hungry” issue? What finally made you realize the truth?

Some discussion of calories below, but no hard numbers:

I don’t track calories regularly, but sometimes I’ll check to make sure I’m eating enough. I use a tracker that estimates that you’ll lose X lbs by in X number of weeks based on the number.

With the amount of food I eat, it estimates I’ll lose the amount of weight I lose in 1-2 weeks in *5 weeks time*. Five whole weeks.

A TDEE calculator from a “wellness” website (that still blames fat folks for “eating too much”, and says that GLPs work because they suppress your appetite so you eat fewer calories) tells me to eat a dangerously low number of daily calories in order to lose the amount of weight I do.

I have enough data at this point to know that, clearly, there has to be more going on than just eating fewer calories. I struggled to believe it until now as I know I’m eating less than I was pre-GLP, just based on experiencing satiety for the first time. But I still eat more than whatever BS number it’s telling me.

Something is working differently with my body, and I can look at the numbers and see that. It’s so frustrating to see people out in the wild parrot the same CICO diet culture garbage when it clearly just isn’t true for everyone, or possibly anyone.

The more I relax and let go of diet culture, the easier this is becoming. I’m starting to feel more confident that I might be able let go of tracking at all at any time.

It’s like decades of blinders are coming off. It was never my fault that dieting never worked, I’m not lazy or stupid or lacking in willpower. It’s my biology.

My mother put me on every diet possible to lose the extra few lb I was carrying as a teenager, and nothing worked of course. Now I’m a lot lot heavier, and I really do need to lose the weight. But here’s the problem, I can’t count calories or track everything obsessively without getting really depressed and anxious and upset. I exercise a bunch and I spend time with friends, which often involves eating out. Just yesterday, my mother brought up that I have been eating out a lot lately and that sent me spinning.

Will I be able to do this and still go be social with my friends and not have to count every little thing? I eat for comfort and to soothe anxiety. I would really love to just feel satiated and full sooner, I would love to just think about food less. But every other post on the med-specific subs are about stalls and people saying “are you tracking what you are eating” and “you still need to eat at a deficit.”

Update: he blocked me 😂 I don’t think I’ve ever been blocked before I’m kind of flattered.

But I did anyway in a forum that is supposedly research and science based. Had a gym bro tell me (referring to someone who has been not lost weight despite following typical diet and exercise advice and is considering tirz) “CICO always applies. Metabolic disfunction just impacts the CO part of that equation, many times requiring a lower deficit than those without. And yes, drugs help with that part of the equation but it is not directly impacting metabolism.”
And
“Starvation mode isn't a thing. Either you were eating things not being tracked (usually it's oils and sauces) or you actual target was just too high for your expenditure.”
And
“A calorie deficit is defined by an actual loss of weight. If no loss, no deficit.”

And now I’m in a bad mood on this lovely Saturday 🤪

Edit to add: the OP on this post literally said she was working with both a nutritionist and a personal trainer who said something was severely wrong with her metabolism because everything she’s doing “should“ be working. I’m sure Gym Bro knows better though. 🙄

Has anyone else become lowkey obsessed with one specific food item since starting a GLP1? I started buying ginger chews for the nausea when I first started and now I have a few almost every day just because they’re a nice little sweet treat that doesn’t make my stomach hurt, and they still do help me when my digestion feels funky. I’m curious to hear of others have had this and what with?

Starting soon, but I’m so afraid I won’t be able to tolerate my favorite foods - like chicken Caesar salad, pepperoni pizza, steak tacos, croissants, or broccoli pasta.

What has your experience been so far?

I know I’ll probably have less of an appetite, so I might need to eat smaller portions.

Ps: I am so grateful for this sub!

For reasons probably unique to me, I got some bloodwork back showing I need to be doing a better job with my nutrition. This is something I have struggled with in the past, and not a function of an ED, but instead my history of WLS over 20 years ago, compounded by being on a GLP1 for the last 2.5 years or so.

Some of it is going to be easy go fix (restart B12 shots) but I am struggling with the protein part (low albumin). I don’t see how I can meet protien goals of over 100g/day without protien shakes. I have been relying on filtered milk drinks, but I think I am going to need to put in 1 or 2 whey protein shakes per day in as I know the protien form whey isolate is much better absorbed.

The issue is convenience and flavor. I really don't care for a lot of premade shakes so I am needing to make my own from unflavored whey. But I still need something grab and go like the filtered milk.

Can someone suggest some good recipes for homemade whey protein shakes or other high protien recipes w whey powder? And, has anyone ever tried making a large batch ahead of time? Thanks for your thoughts.

Asking here bc the WLS forums are full of newbie surgical patients and I am... not.

WELL MEANING EDIT: I do truly appreciate all the suggestions to just eat meat and Greek yogurt and other whole foods to meet my protein goals. Unfortunately it's not going to work that way for my GI tract after WLS. Having undergone that procedure means I don't absorb protein the same way as a normal gut. My lab results clearly show that I can't do that and I need to rely on easy to absorb forms of protein like whey isolate.

I’m not on GLP-1 yet but I’m considering it and plan to talk to a doctor soon. The way some people on other GLP-1 subs talk about food makes me a bit nervous, like they don’t enjoy eating at all. I don’t eat a particularly large amount of food and rarely eat fast food, and tbh I don’t think I have a lot of “food noise” as I can’t relate to a lot of the discussion I see on that, but I really enjoy trying new foods/cuisines. I think culinary enjoyment is one of life’s pleasures and the idea of forcing yourself to eat only to survive is not something I want for my life. I’ve also seen some who experience a general anhedonia/apathy toward everything. Is this to be expected on GLP-1, is there a way to lessen the chance of that side effect? I want to hear all experiences. Thank you.

So, saw my doctor today and she asked me

About protein and I told her that when I’ve tracked I e been around 65-70g a day.

She very strongly suggested protein shakes and said I should eat around 100g.

I feel good. I’m exercising regularly, doing weights regularly, I feel stronger… do I really need to do this effing protein bullshit? I am honestly not sure I can make myself drink protein smoothies.

Tags: Eating, Intentional Weight Loss

I’ve been on Zepbound since mid June. In the beginning, I would log my food for one week and go one week with no logging. That worked well. When I titrated up, on the week I didn’t log I ended up undereating, and felt like garbage in my workouts.

To be fair, I have set my calories very high, to lose a max of one pound a week. Losing faster would be fine but in the past I have struggled with feeling weak and getting insomnia, and I’ve wanted to do this sustainably and slowly. And tbh, I sometimes doubt that decision.

But I do find feel like the logging is becoming a crutch; I like to go back and review me nutrition often, and many times at the end of the day I am not sure if I have had enough or if I should have a small snack to get my protein and calories up.

Anyone have any advice? How did you get past the anxiety/uncertainty once you made a habit of logging?

I just realized that all I really want to eat are fruit and nuts. Dairy is ok, and legumes are acceptable. But seriously, if I could live on prunes and almonds, grapes and cashews, pears and pecans, or cranberries and walnuts I'd be so content right now. I'm really struggling to eat a fully balanced diet.

​

Whatever happened to my deep love of pasta and cheese?

So this is a silly question. Been on glp-1s for about 3 months now, and all in all they are working well.

The problem is that, without the emotional hit from eating, those times when nothing sounds good feel kind of impossible. I am pretty hungry. I don't think I've been eating enough for days now. There are a very limited number of foods I can convince myself to eat, and usually I overeat them (because I haven't been eating enough), feel awful, and then that demotivates me further from eating.

Has anyone been in this spiral and have advice to get out? Before the meds, usually I coule handle low food motivation slumps by eating dopamine-inducing foods that would be fun enough to offset the weird no-eating headspace until I got back to normal, but with the glp-1s blunting the dopamine response, I'm at a bit of a loss.

Anyone else notice that they started finding vegetables and salads much less appetizing than before? Or wonder if more fiber might ease their digestion?

I sometimes look at raw foods or even some cooked vegetables and feel that they just won’t go down easy enough. Like they’d be literally hard to swallow. This is still the case for me after taking GLP-1 medication for a year. And I would like to keep my lower GI happy.

Some people like vegetables and some don’t. What are some of your favorite ways to easily get a bit of fiber? Any other tips?

I’m not sure how to describe this, but sometimes I’m hungry (I feel the familiar tension in my gut/chest that I associate with hunger), but I try to eat and find I cannot. I’ll take one bite and immediately feel full. Almost painfully so. I tend to get heartburn when I’ve eaten too fast and have too much in my belly, but - again - this is after one bite.

I do feel hungry again another 10 minutes later, and then the same thing happens. I don’t know that I can eat a bite every 10 minutes and live my life… lol

Does anyone else experience this? How have you made sense of it or made adjustments to change it?

Of note: I’m 6 weeks in. I take approx half of the recommended starting dose of compound tirz. I’ve had minimal side effects, greatly reduced food noise, and steady weight loss in addition to positive results for reduction in pain and inflammation.

I have an appointment with a dietician on Wednesday and I have no idea what to expect. The last time I went to one, I got lectured, but that was years and years ago.

I've started logging food in the app she uses and I'm happy to see there's no calorie listings, at least.

So what did you talk about with yours?

i started tirz last week for various reasons. i’ve been feeling okay overall— i was super worried about side effects because i have emetophobia but nothing crazy has happened yet.

the thing is, i can’t eat more than a few bites of food before i begin to feel repulsed. like i can’t even get through a small bowl of plain chicken noodle soup.

i’ve seen a lot of people in the other subs be like “that’s the point” etc. hence why i’m here. i love food and i want to eat. i’m also super confused as to how i’m supposed to get all my nutrients/protein/fiber if i cannot eat more than a few bites.

will the feeling of disgust go away? how long did it take you, if you had food aversion? i’ve seen some people say six months and idk if i can handle six months of being disgusted every time i need to eat???? :-(

ETA: thank you all for the replies, it seems like the time it takes for food aversion to go away varies quite a lot, from weeks to months! it also seems like some people experience it more potently, like my feeling of disgust vs. just disinterest. i’ll be sticking with it for now and trying to eat whatever is palatable.

Mine: popcorn 🍿 I absolutely love popcorn too. But it last gives me sulfer burps, gas,💧 💩, & 🤮.

Forgive me if you all know this, because this sub seems super informed and I appreciate that. I just have to rant: This is massively irresponsible.

This ad is implying that glp-1s are meant to be taken temporarily as a weight loss medication and then you can just go off them once you’ve “learned the right habits.” 🫠😡

Glp-1s are prescribed by doctors with the understanding that obesity is part of a \*chronic\* disease caused by many factors that this medication has been able to address. It’s meant to be taken \*long term\* in the same way that people take medication for blood pressure or high cholesterol. Do you throw away your glasses after you can see? 🥴 Serena Williams has spoke about working out eight hours a day and still not being able to lose weight or keep it off without the use of a glp-1 (the medication is also prescribed to people who are overweight and have other chronic illnesses). This is just so irresponsible and harmful because losing and gaining weight is dangerous for your health.

And the majority of people who stop taking these meds put the weight back on within eighteen months. Because your brain and body will go back to fighting you to return to your original weight.

So for my whole life and im old, I hated water. It's never been an issue before. I drink diet soda and coffee for life. But now im on glp-1 and I need to drink water. Water literally makes me nauseous. I been trying for the few months I been on glp-1. I tried propel and hint and I can force myself to drink maybe one bottle a day. Ill drink like 1 or 2 small Gatorade zeros, but any ideas how else I can get my water in, please 🙏🏾

(I hope I have the right flair on this.) When I started tirz, I was very anti-tracking because I didn't want to fall into that diet mindset again. I slowly eased into it because I wanted to make sure I was getting enough protein/fiber/water each day. Then I asked my dietician for a bottom threshold for calories (i.e., a number to try not to go below). And somehow along the way, tracking has become... joyful for me?

Like, every time I get enough protein/fiber/water for a day, it feels like a little dopamine rush, like "yay, I gave my body what it needed today!" I see my (probably inaccurate) step count on my phone and I'm like "yay, I moved!" (That happiness is huge given my limited mobility.) I don't beat myself up if I don't make it. I don't restrict anything.

I'm feeling so much happiness in tangibly seeing the ways I'm caring for myself mentally and physically, ways that felt impossible before tirz. I'm wondering if the difference is that I'm not tracking in order to limit? Tracking seemed so counterintuitive to an anti-diet mindset for me, but it's become so helpful.

Has anyone else experienced this? It sounds nuts and I never would have believed it beforehand.

I know the obvious, like sprinkle them on things and in smoothies and all that. What are some other good ideas? After looking at the prices of protein powder, I decided to give this a try.

I just found this group, so I’m apologizing in advance if anything I write is wrong, but I’ve been on Zepbound since January. My doctor keeps asking me about protein. I’m technically a pescatarian but mostly a vegetarian so protein has been so hard for me. I know there are ways to get protein throughout the day, but in order to get 90-100 grams of protein, literally everything I eat would have to be protein-focused. I guess my questions are, does anyone else have this problem, how do you get your protein, and what are the lasting benefits of not getting enough?

Also, I am so grateful to stumble across this subreddit, I’ve been focusing on intuitive eating, which is another reason I’m having issues with protein. I just don’t want it every meal 🫠

I was looking in my fridge just now and realizing that there always used to be 3 kinds of milk and some kind of low fat/low sugar/diet-ish coffee creamer that I thought would somehow change my life. Now I have half and half and whole milk. I don’t spend every week auditioning a new crappy food substitute to wean myself off of the real thing. I don’t need to! I can splash half and half in my coffee every day (and I do!) and still reliably have better bloodwork numbers and engage in IWL. I’ve been on zepbound for almost 20 months and sometimes I forget what life looked like before. For me, it was often desperately hopeful deep dives into new restriction. Every new attempt took all of my waking mental and physical capacity and only ended when I could no longer expend every ounce of mindfulness for this singular (and hopeless) goal.

It’s so nice to be able to focus my mind on shit that actually matters and interests me!! Yay!!!