Phentermine and Dieting

I would be concerned about the not able to eat, your body needs fuel. Maybe your dosage is too high- if this continues, contact your PC, safety with weight loss tools like these are soo important.

I was given it to help jump start my weight lose. She only wants to keep me on the pills for 2 months due to the fact that I'm not obese but significantly overweight for my height is what she called it. Based on calculators and whatnot I should be eating around 1500 calories a day but I'm confused as to my MFP is saying 1200 daily calorie goal.

If you put "lose 2 lbs per week" MFP will start you on 1200. That's the lowest setting you can get. You can manually increase it or go into your settings and lower your goal to 1 lb a week to get more calories.

It does come in lower dosages (30mg and 15mg, I believe). Maybe ask your doc to lower the dose, or try taking it every other day.

I loved Phentermine. It takes a while for your body to realized what you are putting into it but its obviously an appetite suppressant so it will make you not hungry but you HAVE to eat. It just helps you make better choices when you are not hungry. But make yourself eat at least a salad or a protein bar. Something in your stomach is better than nothing.

I was going to say that too, maybe 1/2 dose would be better.

I tried it years ago but hated the side effects (which I can't really remember right now).

I have been on it for 30 days now. I have only lost 8 pounds but then I am using this time to create a new way of living. I plan my meals and exercise out for each day first thing in morning. If I am busy I put off eating (bad habit but I did the same thing before) so I know how it takes your appetite away. But, you need to eat. You need to use this short amount of time to learn new lifestyle and eating pattern. Making the right choices. Only by doing this will you be able to keep the weight off and continue to live with the syle you have learned. I am not in a race to lose my weight, I have about 80-100 lbs to lose so I will be doing this awhile. I needed the help while I learned a new habit. I do not have the same side effects as the others. I can take a nap on this stuff. I can sit quietly in the library and read a book for an hour or so. I wish I had all the energy the others have. But I do not have the raging hunger. My skipping meals is what got me fat, I was not someone who overate, or ate too often What I did was skip meals, wait too long and then grab the first fast food or hand held item I could find, way late at night. That and not exercising. I think I am rambling but my point is , eat and learn how to eat. You can lose alot of weight fast but it will be a waste if you cannot maintain that loss.

Sorry for the lengthy reply, but I do have a bit to share!

First off.. perfectly normal for you to have no appetite as this is an appetite suppressant. Buuuuuut eating is how you live so you will definitely want to eat. When I first started taking it I had the sensation that my stomach was numb! I know weird to say, but I literally could feel my stomach growling but could not feel the hunger pang. You might have to force yourself to eat for the first few weeks on it. After that you should develop somewhat of a tolerance to the extreme effect it has now, and you’ll likely be able to sit down and eat dinner with the rest of the fam.

I AM a firm believer that eating something protein rich within 30-60 minutes of waking up (after you take your pill) will set the tone for your day of successful caloric intake and portion control. Everyone is different though so you should find something that works for you if the protein thing doesn’t sound awesome.

If you wanted to you could use meal bars as they are small in portions and provide essential nutrients and calories. Some people also incorporate multivitamins because of the radical caloric decrease. I personally ended up making sure I ate something considerably small every couple of hours (ie some turkey jerky or string cheese) and then of course a larger sized dinner consisting of meat, cheese, vegetable, fruit, and a sugar free jell-o for my insatiable sweet tooth!

As for your body going into “starvation mode” on these.. it’s not likely! Phentermine increases metabolic rate (the amount of energy expended in a given amount of time) and blood pressure, making it so that even minimal physical activity, like doing the dishes, results in an increase of calories burned when compared to not being on Phentermine. If Phentermine allowed for this “starvation mode” to happen not a lot of people would lose weight on it.

Many have had the same weight loss success taking the 37.5 mg every other day or even every 3 days as well, and this can reduce the likelihood of you developing insomnia and early on dependency (it is addictive). It will also give you a chance to test out your self control on the day(s) you don’t take it.

I took phentermine a while back for a few months and it literally changed every aspect of my life, relationship with food, and physical activity. Best of luck to you! And keep us updated! :happy:

I have been on Phentermine for 11 days and have lost 11 pounds. I am religiously eating about 1300 cals per day, walking 3 times a week and strength training four days. I started with a half of a 37.5 pill and after a week increased to two half doses- one at 9am with food and one again at 3 with food. I have not had any side effects except for increased thirst and energy. I did have a headache for a few days at first but I attribute that to cutting out all sugar and lowering caffeine to almost nothing.

My meal plan is designed (by a bariatric physician) to optimize the muscle building from strength training. I shoot for 140 grams of protein a day and eat 6 meals of around 200 calories each. I include lots of veggies and sprouted bread for fiber and I do not eat any starches after 5 pm.

I feel a huge decrease in my desire to eat, but am still able to do it 6 times a day. As others have said, i plan ahead on MFP the day before (sometimes a week in advance) and follow my plan, whether I'm really hungry or not. my doctor told me that if i had no appetite, to go back to 1/2 a pill. That would be my advice for you- reduce your dosage and see how you feel. Remember that regular eating throughout the day keeps your blood sugar level and helps your metabolism be more effective. Good luck!

P.S. This is a fake picture of my face on a model's body! I started at 253.6 and now weigh 241.2

I too am on Phentermine for about a month now (15 mg daily). and at first had the same no desire to eat and had to force myself to. I started tracking on MFP and saw that I was getting about 800-900 calories and since then have been making a concentrated effort to get about 1200-1300, and to make them healthy.

I found protein smoothies and healthy shakes were a great way for me to get "meals" since I didn't feel like eating but drinking didn't seem to bother me much. In fact my water consumption shot through the roof!

There are lots of great smoothie and shake threads on the forums if you do a search but I will share my current favorite.

Green coconut protein smoothie

1 cup cococut milk
1/2 cup 100% paturized egg whites
1 cup fresh spinach
1 cup frozen strawberries
4 oz greek yogurt ( i use a greek honey yogurt for more sweetness)

Blend well, makes about 24 oz or so which I sip on over a period of an hour or two in the morning (I add a few ice cubes to the drink while on the go to keep it cold)

I'll warn you its not pretty and not super sweet. but its creamy and keep me going all morning. Lots of protein and good for you greens and berries.