GLP-1 medication can cost hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars.
It can reduce your appetite and make losing weight feel possible again. But the injection or pill is only one part. It is so important to understand, ideally before you begin your medication, that the injection isn’t your ‘fix’. For long term results you need a system in place to support the weight loss beyond the job of a GLP-1. I hear time and time again stories of disappointment that the weight loss jab didn’t work. When you delve deeper the story is normally that the weight loss was achieved, but then it goes straight back on when the jab stops. It’s unsurprising when you rely solely on the injection being the answer. It’s not!
A GLP-1 can’t:
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Plan your meals
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Make sure you eat enough protein
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Remind you to drink water
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Get you moving
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Build your strength
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Track your progress
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Prepare you for life after medication
But if you set up a system around the medication to support you, you are much more likely to get the long term results you really want to achieve.
The Medication did it’s job, BUT I Still Had to Do a lot of the Work
I lost around 56 pounds (or 4 stone), using GLP-1 medication.
But I did not take the injection and believe this was all I needed to do. I tracked my weight. I paid attention to what I ate, writing everything down. I made protein a priority on my dinner plate, drank plenty of water and continued to workout and strength train.
I also noticed how my appetite, energy, mood and body changed during the week. It helped me understand my body more. Not panic when I put on weight: I started to see it was my monthly cycle, or if I’d had a glass or two of wine (yes literally I would be heavier the next morning after even 1 glass!!) Writing everything down helped me understand what was actually going on.
It showed me what was working and where I needed to make changes or do things better. The old me would convince myself that the small things were not that big. But day after day, month after month of just an extra piece of chocolate or glass of wine here and there, and suddenly you’re 10lbs heavier. To me rules are liberating. If I write it down and make a commitment, I am free of the guilt and shame. It also kept me accountable on the days when I was really struggling with motivation.
Most importantly, I started building these daily habits whilst still taking the medication. I didn’t want to wait until I finished the injection part of my journey to ask myself what I would do next. The Facebook support group I was in was a warning sign of what to prepare for when the injection stopped. The number of times panicked group members were posting messages “Oh my god, I stopped the injection last week, and I can’t stop eating now” “I’m piling the weight back on, help!”
When I stopped taking the medication, the habits did not suddenly disappear. I kept the weight off and continued losing because I already had a system in place that I could rely on. I accepted, before I started taking the GLP-1, that the injection was not the only solution.
That is my personal experience, not a promise that everybody will have the same results. But I strongly believe that the routines I built made a real difference, and is why I kept loosing the weight long after I stopped the jab.
Explore the Ultimate GLP-1 Tracker
What does the GLP-1 medication help with?
Your GLP-1 medication can make the journey easier by reducing your appetite. But you still need to know where you are going, what your body needs and how you will stay on course.
You need a plan. And I strongly recommend before you start the jab, and certainly before you finish the injection. During maintenance is a good time too. It helps you understand where you are, notice when something changes and make small adjustments before you drift too far off course.
What GLP-1 Support System Did I Use Daily?
1. Track The Real Journey
It is easy to think you drank enough water or ate plenty of protein.
Writing it down gives you an honest answer.
You can record:
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Your meals and snacks
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Protein
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Water
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Medication and dosage
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Side effects
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Appetite
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Energy and mood
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Movement and strength training
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Weight and measurements
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Non-scale victories
You do not need to track perfectly. You simply need enough information to notice patterns.
2. Nourish and Protect Your Body
Eating less does not always mean eating well.
When your appetite is small, protein, hydration and simple nourishing meals become even more important. Sometimes I would forget to eat because I had no appetite, no food noise. But the nourishment is so important. You don’t want muscles to waste or hair loss to occur.
Planning ahead helped me avoid reaching the end of the day and realizing I had barely eaten or drunk anything. I would keep cooked chicken in the fridge for something quick and easy. I also built a list of easy meals I knew I could manage on low-appetite days. or busy days where I didn’t have time to think about food.
3. Keep Moving and Protect Your Muscles
Weight loss was my initial goal. But as the journey continued I started to appreciate the other benefits. Less inflamed body meant I felt stronger and healthier too when I worked out or walked the dog. A list of other benefits I gained from taking a GLP-1 can be read here:
Strength training became an important part of my routine. Before I started the medication I listened to a podcast with a personal trainer, James Smith, who was delighted with the combination of strength training and the GLP-1. So I knew before I started that this would be something I would combine. I logged my workouts and watched what my body could do, rather than focusing only on the number on the scales.
What would progress mean in my journey:
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Lifting a heavier weight
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Walking further
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Having more energy
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Sleeping better
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Feeling more confident
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Wearing clothes I had not worn for years
Those wins really helped and felt very validated when I could write it into my tracker and journal.
4. Keeping Accountable
Your appetite and energy may change throughout your GLP-1 journey.
A diary helps you notice:
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Which days are hardest
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Which foods feel easy to eat on low appetite days
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Which meals keep you satisfied
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When you need more water
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How your body responds to different portions
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Whether stress or tiredness affects your medication or vice versa
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What you could do differently tomorrow, next week or next month
You stop relying on the guesswork and start learning from your own body.
Why I Tracked and Journaled my Weight Loss Journey
Writing everything down was my commitment. I wanted lose weight for the long term. I was investing so much in the GLP-1 injection, and I needed to make sure I didn’t rely solely on it delivering the results.
This is the exact system I created:
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115 printable, reusable pages
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Trackers for food, protein, hydration, movement, medication, symptoms and progress
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Meal planners, grocery lists and recipe pages
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Support for weight loss, maintenance and life beyond medication
Both planners are reusable. Print only the pages that are useful to you, or make repeat copies of the pages you use every day. Build the accountability and support system that works for your own routine.
Invest in a system, not just the injection
You may already be spending hundreds of dollars on your GLP-1 treatment.
Explore the Ultimate GLP-1 Tracker
The Ultimate GLP-1 Daily Essentials Tracker & Planner is $14.99. It helps keep your journey out of your head and puts it onto paper, so you can see your progress, learn from difficult days and build habits you can continue if your medication or dosage changes. The injection or pill is the start line and one part of the journey. It is not the finish line or the only solution.
For about the price of a coffee, get the GLP-1 Daily Essentials Tracker for $4.99, a simple daily support tool to help you stay on top of protein, hydration, movement and how you’re feeling.
Get the GLP-1 Tracker for $4.99
Please note: This article shares my personal experience and is not medical or nutritional advice. Speak to your healthcare provider about your medication, dosage, side effects and individual health needs.