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Wow...some of the responses to the OP's question are serious "tough love" (that's a nice way of saying a bit harsh) and I suspect some of the PP's are "fattie haters" 'cause they sure are preaching!
Yes, to be successful in losing and maintaining one's weight at a healthy level one must eat healthy and exercise. But sometimes just a jump start can make all the difference in the world.
OP - I've been reading about this pill (and others) lately and I intend to have a conversation with my doctor soon. I am diabetic and hypo-thyroid. And I've been overweight all my life. As others have pointed out, it's not easy. But if you need medical assistance to jump start your life in the right direction, go for it!
Talk to your doctor, I'm sure they will work with you.
Why does one need a 'jump start'? The weight didn't jump start on, it went on gradually and thats how it needs to come off. You can take these pills but once you go off the weight comes back so it really is defeating the purpose. Let use some common sense here: If a diet pill really worked it would be front page news and every single over weight person would be taking it and before you know it there would not be anymore overweight people. Losing weight is not glamorous, or easy, or quick. It takes hard work and dedication. A healthy diet is mandatory along with exercise. Ask any person who has lost weight and kept it off how they did it. They will tell you it never started with a pill.
Why does one need a 'jump start'? The weight didn't jump start on, it went on gradually and thats how it needs to come off. You can take these pills but once you go off the weight comes back so it really is defeating the purpose. Let use some common sense here: If a diet pill really worked it would be front page news and every single over weight person would be taking it and before you know it there would not be anymore overweight people. Losing weight is not glamorous, or easy, or quick. It takes hard work and dedication. A healthy diet is mandatory along with exercise. Ask any person who has lost weight and kept it off how they did it. They will tell you it never started with a pill.
This. I lost more than half my body weight and never used any pills, OTC or prescription.
Yes, to be successful in losing and maintaining one's weight at a healthy level one must eat healthy and exercise. But sometimes just a jump start can make all the difference in the world.
One can obtain a "jump start" by immediately starting to eat more moderate portions. Generally, people drop weight rapidly soon after cutting calories (read up on initial water weight and glycogen loss). If a rapid 5 pound drop in one week isn't enough of a jump start, then good luck trying to lose weight and maintain that loss because a steady, healthy weight loss is slow and unexciting. It goes a few pounds at a time. If you can't mentally get in the game for the long haul, you're never going to see that finish line.
Bottom line is losing weight and maintaining the loss isn't easy and takes work. If you are unwilling to do the work for the long term, for life, then no pill or anything else you throw your money at is going to help you. There is no easy way out. Do the work or stay overweight. Your call.
You say you honestly do not eat that much. Well, you must to have a BMI of 41, sorry to say. Either that or you don't get moving enough. Occasional bag of Cheetos?? What is that? Like 1,000 calories?? That's the majority of your day. Add a bagel and a drink to that and you've gone over what you need for the day!
One of the hardest parts of the obese mindset to break was that I was eating the same kinds and amounts of food as the thin person over there. I saw them eating a large fry and Big Mac, but they are skinny and I am fat. Must be metabolism difference. Can't be that that may have been the only thing that thin person ate all day, while I went on to have three 1000 calorie meals that day. I watched two British shows on YT: Secret Eaters and Supersize vs. Superskinny and they really helped demolish this idea that I had that skinny people were somehow eating as much as I was eating and somehow not fat. No, what it taught me was how out of control my portion sizes were and how I was lying to myself constantly, nonstop, about the amount of calories I was actually eating.
After I finally woke up, I dropped from around 36-37 BMI to 25.8 and still dropping.
One of the hardest parts of the obese mindset to break was that I was eating the same kinds and amounts of food as the thin person over there. I saw them eating a large fry and Big Mac, but they are skinny and I am fat. Must be metabolism difference. Can't be that that may have been the only thing that thin person ate all day, while I went on to have three 1000 calorie meals that day. I watched two British shows on YT: Secret Eaters and Supersize vs. Superskinny and they really helped demolish this idea that I had that skinny people were somehow eating as much as I was eating and somehow not fat. No, what it taught me was how out of control my portion sizes were and how I was lying to myself constantly, nonstop, about the amount of calories I was actually eating.
After I finally woke up, I dropped from around 36-37 BMI to 25.8 and still dropping.
Congratulations on your loss (so far!) and changing your mind set! I was overweight but not obese (I have maintained a 30 pound loss for 3 years) and also underestimated what I was eating. I also attributed it to my slower "metabolism." I couldn't have been more wrong. I used an app on my phone (My Fitness Pal) to track calories once I got serious about weight loss. I started by just logging what I normally ate to establish a baseline of sorts. Talk about a wake up call when I realized how I grossly underestimated my portion sizes and what I was eating. Yikes. Being honest with yourself is tough but very necessary for successful weight loss.
I appreciate everyone's input. I have not gone into the mental aspect of it, the reason why I eat so much. I have gained 100 lbs in one year.
While I appreciate everyone's insight, I am looking for someone who has actually tried the pill and get their experience.
You will not find one person who has had successful weight loss with a pill. You need to wrap your brain around the fact that in order to lose weight successfully (that means keeping it off) requires a complete mindset change. Eat whole, fresh foods, limit sugars, watch portion sizes and exercise. If you need help you can join Weight Watchers were you will go to meetings and meet others that are in the same boat as you are.
100 pounds in a year sounds like you have some other issues as well, perhaps a therapist can help you work out your issues with food. Good luck.
Congratulations on your loss (so far!) and changing your mind set! I was overweight but not obese (I have maintained a 30 pound loss for 3 years) and also underestimated what I was eating. I also attributed it to my slower "metabolism." I couldn't have been more wrong. I used an app on my phone (My Fitness Pal) to track calories once I got serious about weight loss. I started by just logging what I normally ate to establish a baseline of sorts. Talk about a wake up call when I realized how I grossly underestimated my portion sizes and what I was eating. Yikes. Being honest with yourself is tough but very necessary for successful weight loss.
This bears repeating......you hit the nail right on the head.
I appreciate everyone's input. I have not gone into the mental aspect of it, the reason why I eat so much. I have gained 100 lbs in one year.
While I appreciate everyone's insight, I am looking for someone who has actually tried the pill and get their experience.
I went to a Physician's Assisted Weight Loss clinic back on the 9th of June and got prescribed Phentermine. The practitioner told me to start with a half pill, not a whole, and see how my body responded. She didn't really have to tell me this, because A) I'm a nurse, and doing massive research before taking ANY drug is an automatic for me. B) I can be sensitive to drugs period, and always go slowly when I first take them. I had surgery about 8 months ago, and the doctor sent me home with hydrocodone, and it DID NOT agree with me, so I stopped it and stuck to Vicodin and Ibuprofen.
That said, I had NEVER even ever thought about trying any type of diet pill before in my life. I have something called Candida, and was about to start a special diet along with some supplements to get rid of it; however, this was my 3rd try at it, and I could never finish the program because the diet you have to do is totally devoid of carbs, and I can have absolutely no fruit, because it's thought to feed the Candida (yeast) in your colon. I could barely make it past the third day because of such insane hunger. All natural appetite suppressants had failed to help me, so hence, the Phentermine idea.
The first week I took the Phentermine at the rate of half a tab per day. The instructions were to take it on an empty stomach one hour before breakfast, or two hours after. I took it on an empty stomach one hour before, only to suffer massive migraines, ear pain, upset stomach, itching skin, and insomnia. Horrible. So after the first week, I stopped completely, and eventually decided not to return for a follow up appointment.
Long story short, I went back to the Phentermine two weeks later with a different approach; I took only 1/4 of a pill per day, and instead of on an empty stomach, I took it not 2 hours after breakfast, but 1 1/2 hours after. This way, food was still on my stomach; I virtually had zero side effects, save an ever so slight headache. I just have to take it early enough in the day so I don't suffer insomnia at night, and sometimes take an Advil PM to help with that. The Candida already causes insomnia, so I can't deal with that from a 2nd sources. Sometimes you just have figure out if, and how, a drug works best for you.
Prior to starting it, I was already eating right, exercising as much as my work schedule would allow, (which is only 3-4 days a week as I work 14 hour days) and staying away from fast food, sugar, minimal processed foods, etc. But I have THE most ferocious appetite ever! I must have a tiny bit of healthy carbs, or I get headaches. I can probably do one meal a day without a carb in it, but that's it. I was raised vegetarian from age 8, but started eating meat in 2006 while in nursing school. I wish I hadn't, because going back vegetarian had be challenging to say the least. So healthy eating is no stranger to me.
People think just because you're looking for an appetite suppressant, you're looking for a quick fix; this is not always the case, and certainly isn't for me. You must do the work. Period. Exercise, good diet, water drinking.....there's just no way around that. Even when you take an appetite suppressant, it doesn't come and pick you up out of bed in the morning and drive you to gym; it doesn't grab your wrist when you're reaching for that Snickers bar, so effort on your part is still necessary.
As I said, once my Candida program ends, (which takes about 2 months) the Phentermine will probably go in
the trash, but I'll certainly lose some weight in the process, which is fine as a bonus to my primary goal.
If you do decide on the Belviq, just make sure you're being monitored by a doctor, and at any point if you don't feel right, stop. Your body will always tell you what's working, and what's not. And whatever you do, please don't do gastric bypass; it's not necessary unless you're on the verge of dying. Diet and exercise ALWAYS works, you just need to figure out WHICH exercise program (I like to keep mine mixed up) and WHAT diet works best for your body. The same thing doesn't work for everyone. For instance, I know my body responds to weight loss much better when I don't eat a lot of bread and starchy carbs, even if they're whole grain. I also know I will be fighting weight gain for life, because obesity is in my family. I'm just one of those people who will never be able to eat whatever I want, and not gain weight. It took me some time to come to grips with that, because for so long I felt it was unfair, but hey, so is life.
Whatever you do, don't quit, and don't expect it to happen quickly. After all, you didn't gain the weight overnight, and neither will you lose it that way. Good luck.
Hello there,
I have been casual dieting for over a year and am on the verge of looking into gastric bypass. I don't want to do anything that drastic, so I'm back to counting calories and walking more.
I have a BMI of 41, I have been checked for diabetes and thyroid issues, negative on both. No matter what I do I cannot lose weight. I honestly do not eat that much, granted I do enjoy the occasional bag of cheetos, but I don't eat fast food, rarely eat meat, have increased my water intake, etc...
I am looking at different diet pills avail and there is one called Belviq that looks promising. I took phentermine back in the 90's and I had incredible results with that. Unfortunately I gained it all back plus more. I don't want something that is "speed". Have any of you tried it? If so, what were some of the side effects and your results?
Thanks so much for any personal experiences you can share.
Lots of good advice here in this thread. I myself have lost 50 lbs over the past 18 months, and I have weighed in regularly below 200 for the last couple of months, something has not been true since the early 80's. All done by changing eating habits and walking more. No pills involved. (Except for better vitamin selection)
I recommend you watch a documentary called Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead to see if this approach might be of use to you. I believe you can watch it for free either on this website or on YouTube.
Surgury should be an absolutely last resort. Pills a next to last resort. Just my opinion.
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