There are a couple people in my circle of friends and acquaintances who have had remarkable losses of weight with the help of Ozempic.
According to my understanding and a quick Google search, it is basically a Type II diabetes drug that as a side effect causes a loss of appetite, so it is being used massively as a "weight loss drug." The street price (cost if not covered by insurance) is about a thousand bucks per month. As with every pharmaceutical, there is a whole library of potential side effects, but all of them are rare enough not to be a serious concern for the "casual" short-term user.
I bring it up because I was at a bowling banquet last night and at my table were three women who have all lost 100+ pounds over the past year...one with stomach surgery, one with Ozempic, and one the hard way, just cutting back on food.
Has anyone reading this personally tried Ozempic? How did it go?
I personally need to lose some weight; 20 lbs to get to my "normal" weight, and 50 pounds to get to where is should be, according to the BMI "Bible." I can lose weight fairly easily - though I hate it - but I've never been able to make the permanent eating changes that will stabilize my weight. I just enjoy eating. So shoot me.
Ozempic is a prescription drug and nobody should be getting it without a prescription from their personal physician or competent specialist.
I think self medicating without approval and monitoring by a competent doctor is generally a bad choice and can very often be dangerous.
To lose 20 pounds, look for whatever is in your diet that is not essential for good nutrition--bread, sugar, fatty meats or whatever--that you are eating quite a bit of and eliminate that from your diet.
But do research whatever you choose to compensate for that. For instance don't choose dried fruit as a substitution for the blueberry muffins or M&M peanuts or French fries as that has as high a calorie content and can generate blood sugar spikes with quick reversal that can increase cravings.
Do pile your plate with color though--lots of green, red, yellow, orange veggies--well seasoned roasted veggies are great--and use boiled, poached, low fat fried or whatever eggs, lean meats, poultry and fish for protein. Fresh fruit should be counted as free--a large apple or four or five fat peaches all at once can make you feel really full without messing up your metabolism. On such a diet you don't need to count calories and you can eat enough to feel satisfied.
And unless you are already physically active, get in at least 20 to 30 minutes daily of serious weight bearing exercise that includes some cardio--walking/running/dancing/push ups or whatever you can do without being completely bored. Your heart, lungs, bones, brain, metabolism will all love you for it.
The 20 pounds won't come off immediately but, if your body needs to shed them, they will come off without subjecting your body to a potentially dangerous drug.
