The internet is buzzing with stories of celebrities and TikTok creators losing weight using medical weight loss injections, known as semaglutide but marketed as Wegovy or Ozempic. The injections promise to help people drop weight with minimal effort, but they aren’t without side effects or long-term drawbacks.
Before noting some precautions, let’s be clear: I believe not only that the BeBalanced weight loss program takes a more natural approach to losing weight and keeping it off, but that it also can be a potent adjunct to weight loss injections if the latter work for you. I personally lost more than 50lbs 4 years ago and have kept it off! I feel and look younger and healthier, I was borderline diabetic and now well in the normal range.
The way injections work is by helping to regulate blood sugar levels and decrease appetite – while you’re on the medication. Ozempic and Wegovy belong to a class of medications known as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, or GLP-1 They mimic the GLP-1 hormone, which is released in the gut in response to eating.
One role of GLP-1 is to prompt the body to produce more insulin, which reduces blood sugar (glucose). For that reason, health care providers have used semaglutide to treat Type 2 diabetes. But GLP-1 in higher amounts also interacts with the parts of the brain that suppress your appetite and signal you to feel full. When used in conjunction with diet and exercise, it can increase weight loss in people who are obese or overweight. On average, the loss can be as great as 15% of your body weight over 15 and a half months. (That’s 30 pounds for a 200-pound person over 68 weeks.)
At BeBalanced, we believe that losing weight, especially for women over 40, is more than a function of calories in vs. calories expended, or medications that mimic hormone production. We’ve demonstrated that you can stimulate your body to produce the right hormones that help you lose weight simply through natural supplements, stress management and the types and amounts of foods that you eat. In the case of our actual clients, that weight loss averages 15-21 pounds in the first 30 days, all without the nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, headache, fatigue, dizziness, heartburn and other common complaints associated with weekly injections.
Other longer-term impacts of injection-based weight loss can include a decrease in muscle mass and bone density, and a lower resting metabolic rate, all conditions commonly associated with aging. The bigger problem for most patients is that, after they stop taking the injections, they are prone to gaining back even more weight than they’ve lost!
Research published last spring in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism (https://bit.ly/DOandM) indicates that once people stop using Wegovy or Ozempic, any weight they’ve lost is likely to return. According to the study authors, these findings reinforce the need to continue treatment to maintain the benefits of the medication.
Who really wants to live the rest of their life on injections? While a medication can make you feel less like eating, it can’t tell you what to eat to maintain a healthy weight, energy and hormone levels. But the BeBalanced program can. In lieu of or following medication that overrides your body’s natural ability to balance blood sugar and curb cravings, a holistic approach and easy-to-follow dietary instructions involving right-sized portions of proteins, fruits, vegetables, carbs, and healthy fats, can work with your body to bring it into balance naturally.
I can’t tell you how often I’ve counseled people who tell me, “I know what NOT to eat, but nobody will tell me what I should eat to further or maintain my weight loss!” I’ve helped so many, just like you. We not only can answer that question, and for a small fraction of the cost of weight loss injections, we have a recent survey to prove it!
● The average weight lost in the first 30 days of the Becoming Balanced program: 18.01 lbs.
● Percentage of clients who said that the program was manageable: 97%
● Percentage of clients who maintained their weight loss for more than 6 months: 62%, compared with the national average percentage of people who lose weight and keep the weight off for more than a year of 20%.
● 74% said their mood improved, 82% said their sleep improved, 82% had more energy, 74% reduced hot flashes and night sweats, 71% experienced less bloating and fluid retention.
● And, the percentage of clients who reported they would recommend BeBalanced: 92.45%
Scan our ad in this issue for more information, but then come talk to us about how you can turn injection-induced weight loss into a healthy and satisfying way of life. We combine a whole-food, hormone balancing diet with natural supplementation to target liver support, gut health, increase insulin sensitivity, and balance your hormones naturally. We even offer stress management techniques, one-on-one coaching and accountability for a program that is customized to your needs, and community support. Call today for your free consultation: 571-258-4782.