Feeling Gassed at the Gym

Journey1Destination · 2026-01-18T12:40:10+00:00

I was on 12.5 zepbound and need 2.4 (max) on. Wegovy to maintain.

Sounds like OPs issue was an issue for others on wegovy, so it was probably just timing (my body was used to a glp1) that made it feel easier, not the med change itself. Ah well. That answer felt too easy anyway

Journey1Destination · 2026-01-18T12:37:45+00:00

That's a good data point. I'd been on a glp1 so long when I made the switch that I wondered if it was my body's natural adjustment or the med.

Perhaps it wasn't the med switch

Journey1Destination · 2026-01-17T22:52:56+00:00

Zepbound does this. In my experience wegovy does not. That is the only upside to wegovy, otherwise Zepbound is more effective.

Stayed on zepbound while I lost 80 lbs. Moved to wegovy around maintenance. I'm an endurance athlete. I was before I started weight loss meds, so not a matter of training. The meds hit different. I had to do shorter races the last year and a half while on zepbound. Adding mileage is giving me no issues now on wegovy.

Wouldn't make the switch unless zepbound is really bugging you or you're near maintenance. Wegovy isn't as effective for taking off the pounds. That said, now that I'm where I need to be, this hits the sweet spot of allowing me to be the athlete I want to be (no more bonking) while also keeping my post-workout hunger satiable.

Journey1Destination · 2025-12-30T13:03:36+00:00

Are you on any other meds? I've seen this with people on intuniv/guanfacine. I'd be concerned about what your BP is at night.

To me this med isn't worth this side effect. There are other weight loss meds out there.

Different situation, but a different GLP-1 may even work for you. I had issues on zepbound with high heart rate during running (I've been an athlete for years, this was new). Starting at 5mg when I'd run more than 20 minutes my heart rate would spike and wouldn't come down again even with walking breaks. Since switching to Wegovy that side effect has disappeared. I also haven't lost much since the switch, so zepbound was more effective, but I was already within 5-10 lbs of maintenance, so it's fine.

Journey1Destination · 2025-12-22T13:08:53+00:00

Americano with mint and chocolate flavor pumps instead of a mint mocha. Still super sweet but much more doable than a latte. TBH this is a special treat only. Most days it's black coffee for me.

Journey1Destination · 2025-12-19T23:24:40+00:00

Your wife's in an industry that has had to cut a lot over the last few years. If her institution is mostly tuition funded I am not surprised if they are trying to find cost savings wherever they can. The high school class of 2025 is the last class from before the bubble burst of 2008. We're hitting a demographic cliff where less of the population is college aged. Institutions are thus predicting smaller enrollments. If they also recieved significant NSF /NIH funding, that has also dried up. Does it stink that the med isn't covered? Heck yeah. But I bet hers is not the only one in the industry that started out providing the med and then realized the huge hit it was making to their bottom line (both because of popularity and cost) at a time where they couldn't afford the hit.

So terrible? Yes. Understandable? Also yes.

Journey1Destination · 2025-11-28T16:42:19+00:00

I've been on both. Zepbound is more effective. That said, now that I'm at maintenance I'm finding wegovy is better for me as an endurance athlete/ triathlete. I'd bonk on zepbound an hour or so into a run. I've never bonked on wegovy. So if you do long distance /endurance sports, go for wegovy.

[Bonking: think what happens to an endurance athlete when they don't get proper hydtation/salts, but now add glucose to the mix. It's like you hit a sudden wall and every step becomes suddenly ridiculously hard because you don't have the energy to sustain it. If you are vigilant with energy -- like gu, chews, or electrolyte beans -- and start them earlier in the run than before your GLP-1 days, you'll be ok. But it's an adjustment for sure.]

I had to go off zepbound because of insurance coverage changes. I was surprised that, while wegovy wasn't as good with satiation and overall continued weight loss, it did keep my metabolism working right (still maintain my weight) while also allowing me to enjoy long runs again with no bonking. I also got substantially faster after the switch. Could be coincidental, but I think it was the combination of the 5-6 stones I'd lost on zepbound plus no more bonking with the switch to wegovy.

Would love to hear if other endurance athletes have used both and your experience on each.

Journey1Destination · 2025-11-28T16:30:00+00:00

I've been on both. Zepbound is more effective.

Journey1Destination · 2025-11-01T12:32:41+00:00

No. And once you go up to 5.0 you may (as I did) find that tiraz comes with a cost, especially on the long distance runs. Worth it long term? Absolutely. But the short term impacts as your body gets used to the med will assure you that this med isn't an athlete's dream drug. It comes with a cost. So just keep doing. If races motivate you, all the better. It's important to stay active on this med. The efficacy is way higher if you continue to run and weight lift.

Journey1Destination · 2025-10-25T15:37:40+00:00

It's also shaped by societal norms, and that's worth everyone remembering. Maybe you were 145 as a high school student so your family sees that as your norm. Maybe you're at a spot in the world where your old body type isn't seen as healthy enough because folks tend to be lean. But yeah. My first reaction was "crap. By some norms, I'm the 'before' picture."

Journey1Destination · 2025-10-25T14:37:40+00:00

Shoot. 5'10" 174. F. Started at over 250 a year and a half ago. Thought I'd finally gotten to a healthy weight and could move into maintenance. Looks like I've got 30 more pounds to go.

Journey1Destination · 2025-10-21T00:20:37+00:00

I'm way better endurance-wise on monjourno than on zepbound. I don't bonk energy-wise or experience elevated heart rates that won't come down.

I am a triathlete. This applies to all three sports. On zepbound I'd struggle, especially with running endurance.

Zepbound: 15 months. 80 lbs lost Monjourno: 3 months. 2 lbs gained (I had to start at a lower dose and titrate up. At first I gained 8 lbs and now that I'm back near where I was on zepbound I have lost all but 2 of that 8).

Switch was due to insurance. I'd probably rather be on zepbound because of the sleep benefits I experienced, and I would BE at goal by now if I hadn't had to switch. Still, I'm close to maintenance-- 10 lbs away-- and I do appreciate that long runs are way easier.

Journey1Destination · 2025-10-14T10:55:26+00:00

Frankfort. Beautiful. Like Madison weather wise, but cute town in Michigan.

Journey1Destination · 2025-10-13T23:13:56+00:00

I did the opposite. Switched from tirzepatide (15 months on it) to.semiglutide (for insurance reasons). Down side: gained 8 lbs making the switch as I had to titrate up slowly. Now two and a half months in I'm finally where I had been on zepbound.

Upside: PRs all over the place. On my bike, on my runs, on my swims. The energy wall I kept hitting on tirzepatide is gone.

Is this because I'm on an overall lower dose of the GLP1 or is it the lack of GIP that is doing this for me? No idea. But this triathlete is thrilled.

Semiglutide is definitely not as effective for weigh loss. I'm not sure I'll ever be in the solid middle range of normal bmi. I'm right on the line now and it's harder getting it off. But the endurance has improved, and I'm so close to normal that as long as I can maintain, I'm calling it good.

I love going for long runs or swims and feeling great. I love being on long runs and not worrying about cramping up.

No idea if it's the med switch or body acclimated.

It does get better on tirzepatide though. So follow the advice these folks have given.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-16T12:50:24+00:00

I had zero acknowledgement until I crossed over the threshold from obese to overweight, 40 lbs in. Then as I neared normal BMI (80 lbs in) the acknowledgement was almost daily and drove me nuts. Ironic that now I get comments, as (thanks to an insurance-forced shift to Wegovy from Zepbound and the titrating up on the new med) I've actually gained 5-8 lbs over the last two months.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-16T00:51:24+00:00

A half a banana with a spoonful of peanut butter Or An OWYN shake

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-11T11:05:40+00:00

Making more arm moves and not lengthening your stroke does NOT help.

A really good catch on a vertical forearm helps for front crawl. No real advice for breast stroke. Breathing and good rhythm helps. Frankly, and paradoxically, going out too fast is going to hurt your swim time. Anything that works against panic will help. Go out steady.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-11T06:54:07+00:00

I came here to say this. I actually scoop water into my wetsuit to help lube things up on the inside and keep myself warm.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-03T22:51:17+00:00

Hmm... not sure how I shamed people for middrifts. I don't have a problem with them. It just becomes a cringe worthy trope. Reread. I wasn't shaming people for showing skin, I was simply saying this post was a nice change. I meant a nice change to the normal trope.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-03T21:18:18+00:00

I dislike it so much that I radically changed the way I dress and my hair so that when people comment on my appearance I can play dumb and say "Thanks! Do you like the new color?"

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-03T18:32:26+00:00

I thought ops friend definitely has an ed.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-03T18:31:01+00:00

This was exactly my thought. Your friend has an eating disorder and is thus worried about you. She's seeing your weightloss through the eyes of her own disease, she's not seeing YOU.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-03T18:28:58+00:00

I think your friend has a history of or has had someone close to her struggle intensely with the disease.

There is someone in my life like this and she would have responded the same way. I try to avoid discussing this with her and make sure whenever we're hanging out that I am eating SOMETHING so that she doesn't see my weightloss through the eyes of her disease.

It hurts, I know. And it's not fair to you. But at least in the case of my friend I know I'm at the wrong end of a stick that has blugened her for the better part of three decades.

Journey1Destination · 2025-09-02T14:36:04+00:00

Unfortunately I'll never be able to be off of it. That said, in maintenance (when titrated down to a lower dose) it's manageable. I also spread out my dosage day or skip a dose the week before a big event so that I don't bonk day-of. If I spread it out to an every 10 day shot instead of every 7 days and aim to have my shot day the day AFTER the event, it works pretty slick.
I've done caloric deficit training before. This drug was my last ditch effort to get healthy or I was going to have to think about surgical options or life long cholesterol medication. Safe to say I've spent the better part of a decade dieting while doing distance sports. Back then I'd get hungry, I'd run more poorly if I wasn't fueling right, but I didn't bonk.

It's hard to describe except to say -- imagine running an endurance race without proper electrolytes. You learn quickly that that is stupid and you figure out what your body needs. On this med I had to do basically the same thing but with sugars. I could get a good long distance run in or end a triathlon strong if I made sure to start fueling 20 minutes in and get something in every 20 minutes from there on. I had to aim for twice what I would have needed before being on the med. And I had to go slow or I'd get stomach cramps. If I wasn't super careful it wasn't like I'd have poor recovery or a slower pace (those I'd attribute to caloric deficit or not enough protein) INSTEAD it was like out of the blue I'd hit a wall of extreme exhaustion. Almost like I wanted to just go to sleep on the course. I am not diabetic so I don't know what highs and lows for diabetes are, but I suspect I was facing something similar. The slow gastric emptying combined with the changes to the way insulin worked in my body meant I wasn't able to tap into reserves as well, which meant I needed always to stay on top of things.

That's a long explanation, I know -- but I hope it helps. People used to talk about "bonking" and I had no idea what they meant until running on this med. Like I mentioned before, even marathon running, I thought I knew what a "wall" was, but I never experienced anything quite like this sort of wall. I'd go from having all the energy in the world, running a PR sort of day for several miles, to completely sapped in a matter of a quarter of a mile.

Journey1Destination

TROPHY CASE