The metabolic side of the results is the main reason I started testing retatrutide and am now trying tirzepatide. After eight weeks at 1.5 mg of retatrutide and then eight weeks at 1.5 mg of tirzepatide I ran labs. A1C came down, HDL rose to 96, LDL fell from 75 to 55, total cholesterol dropped from 176 to 162, and triglycerides went from 52 down to 39. I expect to stay on whichever compound I pick at 1 mg per week or less and possibly not every week. Weight loss is great for a lot of people but the other benefits matter more to me.
Reduced-Frequency GLP1 Therapy Maintains Weight, Body Composition, and Metabolic Syndrome Improvements
Summary
Does lowering the dose or frequency of GLP-1 drugs preserve weight, body composition, and metabolic gains after initial weekly treatment?
Users share personal lab improvements and weight stability after switching to lower or less frequent dosing of tirzepatide or retatrutide. One participant reports better lipids and A1C on reduced regimens focused on metabolic effects rather than scale weight. Another notes continued maintenance weeks after stopping tirzepatide. A critical reply flags flaws in the linked study's stall definition, arguing it does not truly test maintenance after weight loss has stopped.
What this discussion establishes- Metabolic markers like A1C, HDL, LDL, and triglycerides improved on low-dose tirzepatide or retatrutide
- Some users maintain or even lose a few pounds weeks after pausing weekly dosing
- Study defines stall as under 5% change in three months, which critics call too loose
- Interest centers on metabolic benefits over further weight reduction
- Longer-term outcomes after true plateau remain untested in the discussion
One poster argues the study's stall criterion is flawed and does not prove maintenance after genuine weight-loss cessation, while others treat the findings as supportive of reduced dosing.
Still openWhether weight loss that has truly plateaued can be held with less frequent dosing over extended periods
Nothing here is advice.
5 replies · 6 people
I have seen similar maintenance. I paused tirzepatide two months ago ahead of long travel and time in an unfamiliar place where stomach side effects would have been inconvenient. Several weeks after returning I still have not restarted and my weight has held steady or even dropped another three pounds. This is short term so things could shift, but right now it feels workable.
I have read the paper and see real problems with how it was set up. Moving to lower or less frequent doses after weight loss has already stopped, which usually happens around a year in, is not the same as doing it while loss is still happening. Their stall threshold of less than 5 percent change over three months works out to under 20 percent in a year, which is fast loss rather than a stall. That definition undercuts much of what the study claims. Ongoing loss at a given dose might be expected to continue if the dose is simply given less often, but that is not the same as holding a true plateau with reduced frequency, which would contradict other long-term data. Earlier studies with extended follow-up kept people on the dose that produced the loss and still saw maintenance.
↳ replying to @CopperSignal27
Thanks for catching that, as usual.
↳ replying to @BluePebble18
Has the food noise stayed quiet for you?
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