Jump to: Understanding the Mounjaro dosing schedule | Skipping doses may play into the ‘diet break’ mentality | Practical tips for managing Christmas on Mounjaro | Take home message
We recommend maintaining your Mounjaro dosing schedule over Christmas and other annual holidays despite the potential temptation to skip doses.
Skipping doses of Mounjaro may disrupt your progress and play into the all-or-nothing diet break mentality rather than focusing on building a sustainable lifestyle.
The Christmas season is often one of over-indulgence as families and friends gather for the annual festivities.
It’s a societal norm in the UK to overeat to the point of discomfort, and it often becomes a competition within families to see who can eat the most.
If you’re on Mounjaro, this tradition might be more challenging as overeating on the medication can often make GI-related side effects worse due to its impact on slowing down food digestion.
This might create the temptation to skip a dose or two over Christmas to avoid experiencing any discomfort.
However, we don’t recommend skipping Mounjaro doses over Christmas or other holidays for a few reasons, such as:
- Tirzepatide, the drug in Mounjaro, may take up to 30 days before it’s entirely out of your system. This means that skipping one or two doses won’t have the desired effect of alleviating potential side effects if you overeat.
- It could harm your progress and impact your motivation in the long term
- You might experience more side effects when re-introducing the medication
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Understanding the Mounjaro dosing schedule
Mounjaro is designed to be taken once weekly, and maintaining this schedule is essential for several reasons.
Regular dosing helps keep medication levels stable in your body; we call this the ‘steady state’.
When Mounjaro reaches a steady state, it has a sustained impact on lowering hunger rather than its level rising and falling.
If you skip doses, your body’s levels of Mounjaro are likely to fall, and they will need to rise again when you start taking the medication.
When Mounjaro is first taken, it can take 4-8 weeks before it reaches the body’s desired ‘steady state’.
While it’s unclear whether it would take this long to rise again after skipping a dose or two, the period of time required for it to reach its steady state could disrupt weight loss progress.
Skipping doses on Mounjaro may play into the ‘diet break’ mentality
The ‘diet break’ mentality stems from viewing healthy eating as a temporary state that can be paused or resumed rather than a sustainable lifestyle. It plays into the all-or-nothing mindset often observed in chronic dieters.
Feeling like you’re ‘on a diet’ all the time can be exhausting as we can feel like we’re constantly switched on, having to think about food, and never entirely investing in developing the healthy habits that will make a healthy diet sustainable.
It can manifest as cycles of restriction followed by periods of unrestricted eating, which can be counterproductive to long-term health goals.
Research on weight loss maintenance has shown that those who are more likely to keep weight off in the long term shift away from a ‘restrained’ mindset often observed in dieting to one that’s ‘liberated’.
When someone views their health journey as either being ‘on track’ or ‘off track,’ they’re more likely to:
- See temporary changes in routine as complete breaks from their health journey
- Feel that small deviations justify larger ones
- Struggle to maintain consistent habits over time
How to manage Christmas on Mounjaro
Instead of skipping doses, consider these strategies over Christmas:
1 – Planning ahead
Schedule your dose on a day that works best with your main celebrations, and consider taking your medication earlier in the week before major events. This is because side effects are more likely to occur in the 24-48 hours post-injection.
Plan your portions mindfully at celebrations and focus on the foods you truly enjoy rather than feeling pressured to try everything available.
2 – Managing side effects
The key to managing potential side effects during festivities is staying well-hydrated and eating slowly and mindfully during celebrations. Listen to your body’s fullness signals and choose protein-rich foods to help you feel satisfied with smaller portions.
3 – Focus on the other benefits of Christmas
Remember that festivities are about more than just food. Engage in conversations and activities, create new traditions that don’t revolve around eating, and consider celebrating movement by enjoying winter walks or activities with loved ones.
What if you do miss a dose of Mounjaro?
If you do miss a dose of Mounjaro, contact your healthcare team for guidance. Never take a double dose to make up for a missed one. Your healthcare provider will help you return to your regular schedule safely.
If you’re a member of Second Nature’s Mounjaro weight-loss programme, the clinical team will advise you on what to do if you miss a dose. You can also message your health coach if you need guidance.
Take home message
The festive season is a brief period in your longer health journey. While it’s natural to want to participate in celebrations, maintaining your medication schedule will help you continue progressing toward your health goals while enjoying the season’s special moments.
Remember: You can enjoy festive celebrations while staying committed to your health journey. The key is finding balance rather than giving in to the all-or-nothing mindset.
Second Nature’s medication programmes
Second Nature has two medication-supported programmes: a Wegovy weight-loss programme and a Mounjaro weight-loss programme.
Why choose Second Nature?
For peace of mind.
Second Nature has worked with the NHS for over 6 years, providing weight-loss programmes across the UK.
While our Wegovy and Mounjaro weight-loss programmes are private and not currently used by the NHS, we’ve built the programmes focusing on scientific evidence, patient safety, and data security.
We hope that our 6+ years of working with the NHS and building a track record of effective weight-loss results will give you peace of mind to give us a try.
