doctor<\/a> warns against \u201cgoing cold turkey\u201d and stopping the drug entirely, suggesting reducing the dose could help ease patients off the medication. <\/p>\n![\"Ashley](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image1.jpeg\")
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Ashley Nickson, 36, managed to lose more than six-and-a-half stone by using weight-loss drug Mounjaro (Ashley Nickson)<\/p>\n
Ashley Nickson, 36, managed to lose more than six-and-a-half stone by using weight-loss drug Mounjaro after finding herself stuck in a frustrating cycle of dieting, losing weight, and gaining it all back again.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince I was 16, I have done Weight Watchers, Slimming World, and every daft diet going,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019d lose a few stone, then life got busy, and it all crept back on.\u201d<\/p>\n
The mother-of-two from Liverpool weighed 17 stone 10 lbs at her heaviest and started taking Mounjaro 13 months ago through Voy, an online obesity clinic. She has now been off it for seven months, but has maintained her progress.<\/p>\n
Weight-loss injections, also known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, work by mimicking the natural hormone which regulates blood sugar, appetite and digestion.<\/p>\n
They can be prescribed to lower blood sugar in people living with type 2 diabetes, but can also help people to lose weight by reducing food cravings and slowing down how quickly food is digested.<\/p>\n
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Ms Nickson kept the weight off after using Mounjaro (Ashley Nickson)<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I started Mounjaro, I committed to doing reformer pilates – I had to make time for it. Once I got into the habit, I started going back to the gym too,\u201d Ms Nickson said, adding that she has received advice along her weight-loss journey. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou learn to deal with yourself differently. The food noise quietens down, and you start thinking about what\u2019s good for your body. As long as you change your habits while you\u2019re on it, you\u2019re fine.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, without guidance on diet and exercise, many people struggle to keep the weight off. <\/p>\n
Kim Pearson, a nutritionist who specialises in weight loss, told The Independent: \u201cWeight-loss injections work largely by reducing appetite and food noise. When someone stops taking them without having worked to establish healthy habits, appetite and cravings typically return and people are left relying on willpower alone which is rarely sustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Pearson explains eating regular meals that contain plenty of fibre, protein and healthy fats four to five hours apart can help reduce hunger cravings. <\/p>\n
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The mother-of-two said guidance on diet and exercise helped her keep the weight off (Ashley Nickson)<\/p>\n
She stressed eating enough protein is \u201cnon-negotiable\u201d because it supports satiety, stabilises blood sugar and protects muscle mass, which is critical for long-term weight maintenance. <\/p>\n
\u201cMany people regain weight because they lose muscle during rapid weight loss and never rebuild it,\u201d Ms Pearson added.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen it comes to food noise specifically, eating enough, eating regularly and eating foods that genuinely satisfy us helps reduce the constant thoughts of food. Avoiding addictive ultra-processed food, which is designed to drive overconsumption, is also essential.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr Earim Chaudry, NHS GP and chief medical officer at Voy, also suggests reducing the dose of weight-loss drugs in addition to making lifestyle changes. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d usually never recommend coming off cold turkey once you\u2019ve finished your treatment. That isn\u2019t how these medications work most effectively or safely. A maintenance programme that allows you to slowly reduce your dose, gives the body time to adjust and lowers the chance of weight regain,\u201d he told The Independent. <\/p>\n
\u201cMaintenance programmes can generally mean applying a customised dose that leads to the right balance of food noise. <\/p>\n
\u201cSome patients may manage to taper down over a number of months and come off the medication and sustain the weight loss. Others may need that long term, but we may find that we’re able to come down to a lower dose.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":375774,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[102,6591,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-375773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-health","tag-medication","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=375773"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375773\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/375774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=375773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=375773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=375773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}