Weight loss that never happens.
I honestly don’t know if I’m losing my mind at this point, so I wanted to ask whether anyone else has experienced this.
I’m 53 years old. I had a gastric band fitted when I was around 40. Like many people who’ve had bariatric procedures, I’ve had periods over the years where my weight has gone down and back up again.
But I think an important part of my story is this:
Even BEFORE Mounjaro, appetite was never really the issue for me. I had to have 5 mils removed from my band as i spent 11 years living off liquids, I found I could eat after that but I was still restricted.
Having a gastric band for that long fundamentally changed the way I ate. I’ve lived with restriction for over a decade. I physically cannot eat large amounts the way I used to years ago, and honestly food obsession or binge eating hasn’t really been my main issue for a very long time. I did not feel hunger and food was not a major factor in my day. If my stomach grumbled then I knew I was probably thirsty not hungry.
In fact, for years I was eating very low calories. Around 700 a day.
The problem is that around perimenopause and menopause my body seemed to completely change despite that.
I gained weight anyway.
At one point I was surviving on extremely low calorie intake, (bone broth) and to even reach some of those calories I was drinking alcohol because it was easier than eating. Eventually I realised that obviously wasn’t healthy or sustainable, so I gave up drinking completely.
When I finally saw a specialist, I was actually told I needed to INCREASE my calories because my intake had become too low and nutritionally poor. Its increased to 1261 ideally 1500.
That completely messed with my head because society tells overweight people:
“eat less”
But here I was being told:
“you actually need to eat more properly.”
Over the last couple of months I’ve genuinely been trying properly again. Not pretending. Not “sort of dieting”. Actually trying.
I’m on Mounjaro through Juniper, 15mg.
I’m training multiple times a week.
I’m trying to increase my protein intake because I know at my age muscle preservation matters.
I’m trying to make better choices consistently instead of crash dieting.
I’m also arranging blood tests because I want to properly investigate whether there’s something else affecting this:
- thyroid issues
- hormones
- inflammation
- insulin resistance
- deficiencies
- metabolic adaptation
- age-related changes
- bariatric-related issues
- or something else entirely
What’s messing with my head is this:
According to body composition readings, I’ve gained muscle and lost fat.
I’m stronger than I was.
I’m more active than I was.
My measurements suggest I’ve lost inches.
But the scale barely moves.
Or worse, it drops slightly, gives me hope, and then goes straight back up again.
And I know people say:
“ignore the scale”
or
“muscle weighs more than fat”
But the reality is nobody asks me what my muscle-to-fat ratio is.
The apps don’t ask.
The medication providers don’t ask.
Most people don’t ask.
They ask:
“What do you weigh?”
That’s the number society seems to care about, and when that number doesn’t move properly, it feels like all the effort is invisible.
Another thing I need to clarify because I want to be honest about this:
When I say I think my body has changed, I don’t mean I suddenly look slim in the mirror. I absolutely do not feel that way.
Most of the time when I look in the mirror, I still just see the same overweight, frumpy version of myself. I still have an apron stomach. I still feel big. I still feel self-conscious.
The only times I notice changes are sometimes at certain angles when I’m training or looking down at my legs on machines where I can see a bit more definition than before. Sometimes I can feel more strength in my body. Sometimes measurements suggest inches have changed.
But psychologically I do NOT feel thin.
I do NOT look in the mirror and think:
“wow, I’ve transformed.”
That’s partly why this is messing with my head so much.
It feels like I’m putting in effort, getting stronger, maybe changing composition slightly, but visually I still feel like the same person.
Also, I want to be realistic about my exercise because I don’t want to exaggerate it.
I’m not doing intense athlete-level cardio.
On the treadmill I mainly walk as I am told not to run.
The stairs machine i do slowly with resistance.
Most of my focus has been consistency, movement, resistance training, recovery, and trying to rebuild health rather than pretending I’m smashing out marathon sessions.
I have increased my load on weights and i feel stronger but i stay at 79kg
Another huge issue is food fatigue.
I’m exhausted by constantly thinking about food.
Not hunger necessarily, just FOOD. I get up and i need to find something to eat so
I’m drinking protein shakes because I know I need protein, then lunch eggs then im expected to eat dinner but some days I don’t even want food at all. Sometimes even the protein shakes make me feel nauseous.
It feels like my life has become:
“What should I eat?”
“How much protein?”
“Too much fat?”
“Too many calories?”
“Not enough calories?”
I realise that other people around me talk about food all the time. I really don't care about it but I feel like I am meant to be eating all the time according to my pt. I changed to eat the way they wanted me to but it's exhausting. I did on the atart of this do a waterfast which was easy for me as its did not involve food. I lost 2oz for 7 days ? The hospital with the study found it fascinating but gave me no insight I left and cried myself to sleep for the next week.
I feel the glp1 and pts are constantly analysing every decision.
Telling me its your diet and looking at my apps. I got hume, the pod and the tracking and it confirms I am honest and not cheating.
Still 79kg with a 4kg muscle gain and loss in fat, but it makes me feel worthless. The frustrating thing is that if I was binge eating constantly or secretly cheating all the time, I could understand why nothing was changing.
But I’m not.
That’s the part that’s making me feel defeated.
So I guess I’m asking:
Has anyone else experienced this, especially:
- over 50s
- gastric band / bariatric patients
- people on Mounjaro or GLP-1 medications
- people trying body recomposition
- people weight training while trying to lose fat
Did the scale eventually catch up?
Did blood tests reveal anything?
Did anything finally “unlock” progress?
Because mentally this is one of the hardest things I’ve dealt with in a long time, and I’m trying really hard not to give up.