Forum › Dosing & Titration

Started on Tirz at 2.5mg Last Night

15 replies8 peopleOct 2, 2026☆ Follow
Summary

What should I expect in the first days and weeks after starting tirzepatide at 2.5 mg, including injection technique, side effects, appetite changes, and slow titration plans?

Users report the 2.5 mg starting dose often produces subtle or delayed appetite effects that may take several days to appear, with minimal side effects in the first 12-24 hours for many. Injection pens typically deliver the dose in 2-3 seconds even though instructions call for a 10-second hold to prevent leakage. Individual responses vary widely; some feel effects by day 2 while others notice gradual changes over weeks as levels build. Slow titration (staying at lower doses for multiple weeks) is common when the goal is modest weight loss around 13%.

What this discussion establishesWhere people disagree

Whether to increase dose on a fixed schedule or only when food noise returns, and how quickly to titrate for modest versus larger weight-loss goals.

Still open

How much total weight loss is realistic at lower doses for someone starting at 97 kg aiming to lose only 13 kg.

Nothing here is advice.

15 replies · 8 people
IronCompass84archiveopening postOct 2

I started my tirz journey last night at midnight with a single-dose disposable pen. Quick background: 183 cm tall, 97 kg, A1C 6.0, BP 150/90 off meds, resting heart rate 42. It took me two or three minutes to press the button. Next time should be easier since I hardly felt anything. I injected three inches to the right of my belly button. The instructions say to hold for ten seconds, but the pen seemed to finish in two or three seconds. I kept holding anyway and wondered if that was normal. Went straight to bed. Twelve hours later I feel unchanged—no nausea or stomach issues. Appetite is unclear; I had a light breakfast and chicken for lunch, not hungry but could still eat if I wanted. Does it take a few days to kick in? I have been drinking water every few hours. Any other tips?

PlainAnchor67archiveOct 2

RHR of 42 bpm is crazy! Do you do anything other than exercise?

BlueAnchor59archiveOct 2

In my experience the medication often stops coming out ahead of the recommended hold period, making a short wait afterward seem typical provided the device stayed in contact the entire duration specified in the guide. Changes to hunger levels at that starting amount might not stand out right away and could require several days up to seven before becoming clear, which means no issues after half a day counts as positive. During my time using it I focused on maintaining higher protein intake without pushing larger portions when appetite was low, and allowed the initial period to pass before looking for weight differences.

SteadySparrow75archiveOct 2

That's great to hear! What sort of weight reduction are you aiming for? On the day I get the shot, I hardly notice anything unusual. Then around the second and third days my belly starts making sounds and I get sensations up in my neck area resembling heartburn. That reaches its highest point and continues for maybe one or two more days before easing up around the fifth or sixth day. That amount is quite small so the effects could be milder for you. Anyway it's good that you've begun the process. Best wishes!

CopperSignal27archiveOct 2

I didn't anticipate this at all, there was basically no pain, likely because those needles are extremely fine. Blood concentrations reach their maximum roughly a day following an injection. People react differently to the medication, with some feeling reduced appetite while others experience queasiness. At the beginning, effects might go unnoticed, but if they appear, the following day tends to be when it happens. The half-life lasting around seven days means levels accumulate over a month after beginning or raising the amount, which explains the four-week interval before any adjustment. Predicting what will happen proves difficult; during the initial period, one could feel slightly less appetite, become satisfied quicker, or have mild stomach upset. Zero change or severe digestive issues remain possibilities, even if uncommon. Stick with the usual schedule for raising amounts except when side effects occur or the current level already suffices. I don't know the intended amount or target weight reduction, yet those details also influence when to increase.

IronCompass84archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @PlainAnchor67

Back in my college days I competed in soccer along with basketball, which meant tons of running and resulted in a resting heart rate that dipped down to 35 beats each minute. Now I'm aiming to reach between one hundred eighty-five and one hundred ninety pounds, which would mean shedding roughly twenty-eight pounds or thirteen kilograms, about thirteen percent off what I weigh right now. Does this goal seem realistic?

IronCompass84archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @BlueAnchor59

Afterwards I spotted a little fluid still inside the device. It didn't seem like much, maybe roughly one tenth of what started out there. I wonder if that's typical or whether my injection went wrong somehow.

SteadySparrow75archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @IronCompass84

My weight dropped from 224 down to 184 while taking tirz across roughly five or six months. The reduction stayed gradual at around two and a half pounds each month. Most of the change showed up early, then slowed noticeably toward the finish. The whole thing felt easy compared with earlier attempts at shedding pounds. Appetite stayed lower and meals held less appeal overall. Any stray thoughts about eating got quieted by just a few nuts that lasted several hours. I took much smaller servings than before and saved the extras for later. None of it required effort or felt unusual at the time. Dosing started low for four weeks before stepping up twice after that.

NorthSparrow11archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @IronCompass84

This medication turned out incredibly powerful for me personally. My weight fell from 293 down to 178. That equals nearly forty percent gone, with more still coming off. Back at the start I noticed the strongest results after just two days. Wishing you the best!!

PatientKettle48archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @SteadySparrow75

For the past fifteen weeks I've stuck with five milligrams of the medication, and during the most recent period the hunger control disappeared, with cravings returning around the time of the shot and persisting for a couple days afterward before fading. Now the impact seems even less noticeable. Still, I'm planning to hold steady at that level until at least the twenty-second week to see whether the scale keeps moving downward. Should progress stop or reverse, then maybe space the shots closer or go up a bit. This is testing my ability to hold back, especially since I have both compounds on hand for trying different approaches, and I've made hasty moves before because of missing out on quicker results. Provided the weight isn't climbing easily, I need to tell myself the process is still effective and that a flat period can happen.

SteadySparrow75archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @PatientKettle48

That's excellent! When I adjust my amounts, especially getting the sets rather than ready pharmacy portions, those sets let me decide the levels myself. I raise the amount until I notice extra burping, some gut noises, a constant sense of fullness in my belly, and a slight burning sensation in my throat. Yet I stop short of going further. I avoid aiming for any specific amount or what research suggests. Instead, I keep going until those effects appear, which tells me the process is effective.

LevelPebble88archiveOct 2

Those ten seconds aren't about inserting the material at all, instead they prevent it from escaping the body.

IronCompass84archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @SteadySparrow75

Yeah, that's the schedule I'm shooting for across the next half year. I'll start at the smallest dose for roughly four weeks, shift to the middle amount for sixteen weeks, and wrap up at the next step for another four weeks. Were you stepping up at that same gradual rate? I wanted to avoid moving too fast.

NorthSparrow11archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @IronCompass84

I bumped up the amounts gradually once those eating urges started returning. Four weeks on the smallest level, five on the next, six on the one after, ten on the step up from there, and fifty five on the top dose before easing off soon to hold steady.

SteadySparrow75archiveOct 2
↳ replying to @IronCompass84

I probably ramped up the amounts quicker than usual. The signs I noticed showed when the level was doing its job for me. Around the second month I began splitting each week into two shots like four plus four then five plus four ending at five plus five. During the most recent pair of months I swapped one weekly shot for retatrutide instead and that is my current setup. I seem to be holding my weight steady on the five five split while taking in bigger meals. gl! 👍 😎

CopperSignal27archiveOct 3

Trying to shed thirteen percent at a measured pace makes sense to me. There's a solid possibility that the highest levels won't even come into play except if results come slower than usual. The upper levels sit in the five to ten milligram zone for that kind of reduction. Reaching the maximum drop usually stretches beyond a year. It hinges somewhat on tolerance for time since aiming for quicker progress with bigger amounts could raise the odds of negative reactions. What I've seen from others here suggests that those with less to drop tend to handle smaller amounts effectively more frequently.

Related discussions

Add your experience

If you have tried it, this topic is still open. Sign in to reply — it takes a minute.