Reta dosage - time to go up?

Hello Everyone,

My first few injections were done like this:

Week 1 - 1 mg (weighing 242 lbs)
Week 2 - 1 mg
Week 3 - 1.5 mg
Week 4 - 1.5 mg (weighing 220 lbs)
Week 5 - 2 mg
Week 6 - 2 mg (weighing 215.3 lbs)
Week 7 - 2.5 mg (weighing 214.9 lbs)
Week 8 - 2.5 mg (weighing 214.5 lbs)
Week 9 - 2.5 mg (weighing 212.3 lbs)

As you can see, I dropped roughly 22 lbs in a month. During that time, I changed what I eat. No sugar, bread, sweets, booze, or sweet drinks. My meal sizes got smaller too.

For the last month, I've been on 2.5 mg each week and barely lost any weight.

My question for more experienced folks: Should I increase my dose? What do you suggest?

I was hoping 2.5mg would be enough for the long haul.
Thanks!

when deciding whether to go up, the reta dosing & stacking thread helped me

I'm pretty new to this too (been doing 1mg a week for a month, going to 2mg tomorrow) but I've been researching it for a while and basically:

Month 1: 1mg a week to make sure you don't have bad reactions and to let it build up. (the weight loss here is mostly water as your body starts losing it, not much fat burning yet)

Month 2: 2mg and see what happens (this is when you might see some fat burning but also side effects. Stay hydrated!)

Month 3: 3mg or 4mg depending on how 2mg went and how fast you want to lose weight. (I like to go slow. Less side effects, more room to increase the dosage later. I like the lowest effective dose, not instant results).

Keep going like that, customizing it to what works for you. Waiting a month between dose changes gives the dose time to stabilize in your body. It's like filling a bathtub with a drain open. Not enough water and it all goes down the drain. You need to see what each fill rate does.

Some people go up by 1mg each month to 12mg (seems to be the highest dose before side effects are pretty much guaranteed) and others are good with less than half that. Most people seem to end up at 8mg for best results. It's different for everyone. People have different goals too. I want to lose about 75lbs, others want to lose a few pounds for a competition. Their info isn't as useful to me.

Once you hit your goal weight, find a maintenance dose. Some people stop completely for a while. Others stay on a small dose. I'll probably do the latter because I want the neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects.

It's good to look at the clinical studies for general info, but we should really figure out what works for us individually.

Of course you can go up! 2.5 is still a pretty low dose. I'm on week 12 and taking 4mg every 5 days.

Here's a study I found:

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hsr2.1864

GLP-1 helps us lose weight easier, but it's not a magic fix. We lose weight because we burn more calories than we eat. I see that people who strength train lose weight faster. Strength training also helps you keep muscle. So, try adding one strength training workout each week and see if that helps. Make sure you're eating enough protein too.

I don't see many people who do cardio, like running, sharing their results.

Your body/brain could just be getting used to it, and the weight loss will start again.
You lost a lot of weight fast.
2.5 is kinda low after 9 weeks with almost no loss for a month. I'd increase it. Could be from 2 to 4 to 6 to 8.
You can read about the trial dosages.
Do you exercise? Cardio and resistance training? It's pretty important.

I'm on a similar schedule with similar weight loss. I haven't hit any plateaus and I'm on 1mg every 3 days. I'm burning 600-1000 calories more than I eat each day (based on weekly weight loss). It's almost too consistent right now but it should level off as I get closer to my goal weight plus the holidays will probably mean I'm eating closer to maintenance for a few days.

I suggest you track your daily calories. Not to hit a specific number but to get in the habit of tracking. That should make your weight loss easier.

Your calorie intake should be in your post. Dose and weight aren't the whole picture.

My weight loss is always the same. I lose a lot at first, then plateau, then lose a lot again. I wish it was a steady 1-2 pounds a week but it's more like nothing and then 4 or 5 pounds overnight. I'm not sure if that's normal. If I were you, I'd probably go up in dosage. I started at 4 mg per week and went up to 8 mg per week. I haven't lost as much as you and this is week five.

If increasing the dose doesn't work well, maybe tirzepatide would suppress my appetite more.

I am not sure if I can say this here, but I noticed that some patients are taking peptides for healing purposes. For example, BPC-157 and TB-500. Has anyone had any experience with this?

MetabolicMike said:

As you can see, I dropped roughly 22 lbs in a month.

Click to expand...

That's really solid progress in a single month! And you made some good changes to your diet, which is likely the main cause of the initial drop. It's common to see a stall after that initial rush. Your body's adjusting, and you need to keep pushing to see more results. I agree with others who said to consider upping your dose a bit, but keep tracking those calories!

Someone mentioned strength training. I agree 100%. Building muscle not only helps with weight loss by increasing your metabolism, but it also helps shape your body as you lose fat. I'm trying to do at least 3 strength workouts a week, focusing on different muscle groups each time. I am also eating lean protein.

I lost 84 lbs in 10 months, mostly by eating protein and cutting carbs. I hit the gym like 4-5 times a week, doing an hour of cardio and 30 minutes of weights. Now I'm trying to lower my dose from 1mg to 0.75mg for two weeks, then down to 0.50mg. I don't want to stay on this forever!

Majority don't see shifts first month. Outliers posting wins on Reddit make it look fast. Give it space, keep following the bump schedule until it's working.

The effect doesn't disappear on restart, but receptor sensitivity after a multi-month break may need recalibration. Most people retitrate from a lower dose and reach their previous response within 4-6 weeks. The second titration tends to move faster because the body's baseline is already calibrated. The main concern with the pause is weight behavior during that window, not permanent loss of effectiveness.

The escalation in those first 6 weeks is on the faster end - 1mg up to 2mg by week 5 is ahead of the standard 4-week hold consensus. The Epithalamin/Epitalon confusion is separate and doesn't affect Reta dosing - different compound class. At 2mg and still moving, hold until it stalls, then consider 3mg.

Water aversion on reta is more common than expected - electrolyte-enhanced or lightly flavored works better than plain for most people.

NoShortcuts is right about the initial drop being diet-driven. I saw the same when I started in November, first weeks felt almost easy and then everything slowed and I panicked. 22 lbs in a month is solid, likely includes some water weight but the changes you made are clearly working. Stalls do break. Keeping protein high helped me push past mine. You are on a good track.

22 lbs in 9 weeks at 2.5mg is a solid response - if the loss has genuinely stalled for 2+ full weeks and sides are manageable, moving to 3mg is the reasonable next step.