Hey all. 62 y/o guy here, currently 241 lbs, down from 286. I’m about

Wow. In all of my research, I haven’t found any explanation as clear as yours. This should be pinned to one of the chats in this group. Thank you for this!!!

Don’t worry about overshooting. Zepbound doses move in 2.5mg increments. The prescribing directions advise staying on each dose for a minimum of 4 weeks. That’s how long it takes for blood levels to max out on the new dose. When you get to your goal weight stay at that dose or IF appetite suppression is still going on, drop back 2.5mg. At that dose, you should feel *nothing*. That’s the maintainance dose. Despite no noticeable effects, you are benefitting from a long and growing list of health benefits. It’s not difficult to characterize a GLP maintainance dose as the ultimate anti-aging, longevity health span supplement. The massive reduction in systemic inflammation alone is incredible (and the benefits that flow from that, everything from better cognition, slower skin aging, to lower cancer risk). I realize this may sound too good to be true (and I could go on for 100 pages about the positive effects GLPs offer for overall health), but to simplify things I’ll explain it via the evolutionary lens: GLP-1 is released when digestive tract tissue is stretched. This signals the body food’s been ingested. We evolved in an environment of intermittent food, often in abundance for a brief period in which we’d gorge ourselves (think an animal kill), and often filthy, loaded with bacteria. This large, bacteria laden meal would stretch our guts, making the barrier between the digestive system and blood permeable. (You’ve probably heard of “leaky gut”). Now bacteria is killed by acidic digestive juices. But this leaves behind endotoxin, the cell walls of dead bacteria. Endotoxin leaks through the permeable gut into the bloodstream. Endotoxin is the way our immune system identifies bacteria invading our bodies, and sets off a massive response. TLDR the brain “senses” this seemingly massive bacterial invasion, and tells the liver to release molecules that set the entire body on fire, via inflammation, to help the immune cells kill off those invaders. There are no invaders, just the “shells” of dead bacteria, but as far as your body is concerned, they’re bacteria. This massive “life or death” inflammatory response is extremely damaging. It harms cells everywhere. From the brain to the smallest blood cells in your toes. A few post meal responses like this would kill us via high fevers. So nearly every cell in the body, every neuron in your brain, every cardiac muscle cell, eyes, nerves, kidney, the endothelial cells lining your blood vessels has GLP-1 receptors. In every case, when GLP-1 attaches to those receptors, the cell responds by starting protective / regenerative processes. Mostly anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory mechanisms. Remember, at the same time that big meal is causing the endotoxin to pass the “leaky gut”, entering your blood, the stretched gut also triggers a release of GLP-1. (Natural GLP only lasts minutes.) By injecting engineered long lasting exogenous GLPs (that last weeks), like we do now, we’re essentially putting every cell into “protect and repair damage” mode, continuously. So far, after 30 years of GLP-1 med use (in various forms), the only side effect of long term use appears to be longer life and a significant reduction in nearly every disease from cancer to heart and kidney failure, and of course diabetes

Thanks for this. I've been trying to convince my mother to get on a glp and her excuse is she doesn't want to lose anymore weight, even though she's skinny fat. The pattern does make sense, every dose brings your body to a certain equilibrium with the signal strength of that dose. Myself I've noticed my BP is perfect now, went from doctor pushing statins on me to most recently just being told to exercise more and a1c is 5.0 🙌🏻