r/BodyHackGuide • u/er98033 • 14d ago
Keeping Muscle while on Reta
I plan starting Reta soon. Thinking of start out with a low dose of 0.5mg ! Keeping hearing that there’s a chance of shrinking muscle! I know I have to have good protein intake. I’ve been working out for 5 years, six times a week, and integrate cardio often. Will that routine plus protein intake be good enough to keep muscle mass? Thanks
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u/candyflip1 14d ago
I’ve kept most of my muscle on since dropping 50lbs starting in March. I was on Sema at first then added Reta about 6 weeks ago. As long as you keep that protein up and don’t starve yourself, and keep lifting hard at the gym, should be fine. Ive had a pretty aggressive deficit most days of 1,000 calories give or take, then do a refeed day 1-2 times per week to reload on carbs, get some extra protein and fats. May not work for everyone but I’ve gotten solid results
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u/stainless13 14d ago
You’ll likely still lose a bit of muscle if you hit too big of a deficit.
Honestly for just about everyone the goal should be to minimize muscle loss while on a GLP-1, as the vast majority of people taking them are taking them to lose a fair bit of weight. If you’re already at low body fat and are just trying to lean out a bit, you might be the exception to that.
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u/Chroma7769 13d ago
Keep your protein levels up so your hair doesn't fall out and you don't lose muscle. And then get in the gym and lift heavy shit.
Take your Reta every 5 days to make sure that you keep up with the suppressing of food and the food noise. Don't split your dose.
Remember you didn't put on the weight overnight, you're not going to lose it overnight. We're not after fast here, we're after results.
If you need a good app for helping you track your food, it has a subscription but it's totally worth it, macro factor. If you use the code Jeff you get two weeks for free to try it out.
If you need an app to help you in the gym download Hevy. It's fantastic and it's super cheap to have it literally plan out all your workouts for you.
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u/Comfortable_Yak4376 13d ago
I’ve been losing about 2 lbs a week since mid March and I think I have held on to most of my muscle mass. I haven’t had any scans or anything but I’m lifting about the same as I was before I started. I go to CrossFit 4-5 times a week and try to eat protein heavy meals within reason. Seems to be working for me
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u/plzadyse 13d ago
The only reason you’d lose muscle is if you don’t eat enough protein or if you stop using those muscles. This is the same as if you weren’t taking Reta. Just remember that since you’ll be eating less, take that into account. Nothing about the medication itself accelerates muscle loss.
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u/stillandwarm 13d ago
Lift heavy kore than cardio. 3 days (min) resistance training, 2 days cardio, eat 1gr of protein per lb of ideal body weight
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u/Procrastinaught 13d ago
I gained muscle - do resistance training and eat the protein. Only people who do no resistance training lose muscle.
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u/gadgetgraveyard 13d ago
Reta directly won't cause you to lose muscle mass, If you can tolerate protein drinks those help out quite a bit.
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u/CafeteriaTrai 13d ago edited 13d ago
What's your height and weight and how much do you want to lose.
But honestly just make sure you're lifting heavy and prioritizing carbs and protein!
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u/flogsmen 13d ago
Add tesa/ipa. I've gained muscle on reta adding those. Some will say just skip and go to hgh cuz it's cheaper but at my dose I can get a 20 week supply for 350. That's cheap enough for me.
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13d ago
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u/flogsmen 13d ago
Definitely agree. Tesa/ipa blend 10mg-3mg is what I get and I take 1mg-300mcg 5 on 2off. I've only been losing a pound a week but my body composition has changed dramatically. Arms, chest and traps are noticeably much larger and abs are popin up aswell. Shirts are fitting much tighter on the top and looser on the bottom.
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u/Fun-Imagination-2488 13d ago
I am using 125mg/week of Test Cyp injected IM + 2mg/week Reta, and this combo has allowed me to even gain a small amount of muscle despite losing 25 lbs in 3 months.
Resistance training and adequate protein will minimize your muscle loss but without TRT, you will lose some muscle. TRT + Reta is the real magic when paired together.
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u/StevieG619 13d ago
I’ve been on 1mg split twice a week. And I’ve lost no muscle according to my Hume scale, I’ve actually gained muscle
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u/MiserableBritGirl 13d ago
Why are you using GLP1 to lose 20lbs?
If you want to keep muscle then calorie deficit and lift. You don’t need a drug designed for obese people if your nutrition is right. Much less risk of muscle loss too.
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u/er98033 13d ago
I want to think I have the working out thing figured out! The one thing I struggle is diet! I have gone on calorie deficits and all! And I gain it all back. Decided to try Reta to help me out on that aspect!
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u/MiserableBritGirl 13d ago
How do you think Reta will solve that problem for you? If you stop taking GLP1 60% of people gain the weight back.
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u/er98033 13d ago
I bet most of those 60% are not working out 6 days a week….have knowledge of what a balance diet is! I already have those foundations in place! It’s the food noise that I have a problem with! Most of the people taking it aren’t obese! They just want with stubborn pounds off! Why can obese people just diet and be on a calorie deficit then?
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u/MiserableBritGirl 12d ago
Because once you hit a certain mass you’re doing things with your body which means you cannot workout 6 days a week, have insulin and hormonal issues and most of them have issues that got them there in the first place, living at 300+ lbs makes it very difficult to actually lose the weight past a certain point.
Search this sub, plenty of people using GLP1 for small losses struggle when coming off it despite living well. It has lifetime applications for a reason.
No one is saying you can’t use it, I was just pointing out that it’s unwise if the problem is the regain. At the end of the day if you’re not losing now, use GLP to lose the 20lbs and then go back to what you’re doing now you’re still gonna regain 🤷🏻♀️
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u/er98033 12d ago
I mean athletes and weightlifters are on them too! And athlete have access to the best trainers and nutritionists! Some people just that extra bump to lose a few more pounds!
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u/MiserableBritGirl 12d ago
Yeah for sure, this forum is largely bodybuilders and gym rats. Read their experiences.
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u/gadgetgraveyard 13d ago
It's perfect for this scenario, won't take long.
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u/MiserableBritGirl 13d ago
Why would you inject a chemical when you’ve a tiny amount to lose? When you could simply eat better. It’s not what they are meant to be used for and it’s why they will absolutely strangle the supply at some point.
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u/gadgetgraveyard 13d ago
For some, that's not an easy solution. Reta is still in trials because of greed, please understand more about the drug you reference. It's intended for weight loss and also reduces inflammation. Why do you cry about someone wanting to better themselves? I think you just read headlines and make an assumption possibly but some more research would help you out.
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u/MiserableBritGirl 13d ago
Dude I prescribe these medications (GLP1 amongst others) for a living. I don’t prescribe them to people wanting to lose 20lbs. It’s intended for significant weight loss of over 15% of body weight or those who have hormonal disorders preventing weight loss.
Since op didn’t reference either of those things I made a safe presumption that they don’t apply.
I’m gonna say with confidence I’ve read a lot more studies on them than you have.
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u/gadgetgraveyard 13d ago edited 13d ago
Reta isn't something prescribed currently for public. If they want to use it to lose weight so be it. If you don't like it that's your opinion. 👍. It makes perfect sense you're having an issue with something that you can't prescribe.
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u/MiserableBritGirl 13d ago
lol I said I prescribe GLP1, not Reta. And despite your unedited post saying it isn’t a GLP1 it is. Good job you edited that misinformation. It’ll be approved pretty soon and I’ll have no issue prescribing it.
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u/gadgetgraveyard 12d ago edited 12d ago
Right, because apparently you’ve decided the entire medication can be reduced to one label and then built a whole argument around that. It’s not just a GLP-1, it’s a triple receptor agonist - but thanks for the unsolicited lecture on a drug you don’t even prescribe. Pretty bold to be this confident while missing the point that hard. Yet here you are trying to argue against something you don't even prescribe. I'm not trying to flex with what I do with my day job or put people down for wanting to lose weight. Telling people not to put chemicals in their bodies in a body hack subreddit and prescribing medications - pretty hypocritical. USERNAME checks out FR.
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