Throughout my teenage years, I struggled to lose weight, from being last in gym class to being nicknamed “Pillsbury”. If you are able to relate to these experiences, you are not alone. In spite of this, I have lost 47 pounds since I began using Saxenda a few months ago. In order to advance my weight-loss journey, I thought it would be beneficial to write about my Saxenda experience and my diet plan.
In order to discuss the foods to eat and avoid while taking Saxenda, it would be necessary to first describe Saxenda (Liraglutide), which has been on the market since 2012 as a weight loss medication. In its original prescription, Saxenda recommended an oral diabetes medication that helps patients to maintain a normal blood sugar level by increasing their insulin sensitivity. The drug is probably the most widely used diabetes drug in the world, but it is not a cure for the disease.
A person with type 2 diabetes has reasonable control over blood sugar levels, but there are also some risk factors for developing the disease, such as obesity or high cholesterol. Along with its use for treating Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, Saxenda is also being used to improve weight loss through increased insulin sensitivity and decreased appetite and body fat storage.
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Drug-induced nausea and vomiting (DINV) is the most common side effect associated with Saxenda. Inhibiting 5-alpha reductase, Saxenda prevents testosterone from being converted into dihydrotestosterone. In order to achieve its effects, it increases the levels of messenger hormones. Additionally, Saxenda increases insulin and glucagon concentrations in the blood, which is beneficial for people with type 2 diabetes.
To improve weight loss, Saxenda affects the way you sleep (similar to semaglutide in Ozempic pens). By stimulating tryptophan hydroxylase and cathepsin G enzymes, it assists in the breakdown of tryptophan (an amino acid produced during sleep) to create energy.
By taking Saxenda with meals or supplements such as protein balls or whey protein powder, your body becomes more capable of digesting tryptophan for energy. Taking more food than usual after waking up from sleep can reduce your need for tryptophan at night. Now let’s look at which foods you should avoid and consume while taking Saxenda.
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Foods to Avoid with Saxenda
Taking Saxenda is associated with a long list of foods that should be avoided. There is no need to overconsume these foods in any diet.
- Sugar-sweetened cereals or white flour products such as bread or pasta
- Bakery products such as cakes, cookies, and cornflakes
- There are three types of flour: flour, buckwheat, and oatmeal flakes
- A pancake; a cereal bar
- A variety of pasta, including noodles and macaroni
Bakery products made with wheat flour, such as doughnuts and cookies; crackers made with wheat flour, such as Pumpernickel bread and Ezekiel bread without basting.
Now I understand what you are thinking. In the list above, there are all the good foods, and I am instructed not to consume them? It is a very difficult task. My struggle at the beginning was no different from yours. Once you begin to see a few results, I am confident that you will be more motivated than ever to continue on your weight loss journey.
If someone else has taken this medication within the past two weeks, they may also be allergic to it, so be aware of their reactions as well. In the event that you believe this medication may be causing you problems, you should speak to your general practitioner immediately as they may need to adjust the way it is prescribed in order to avoid side effects of this nature.
Although they may ask your general practitioner if there are any foods you should avoid eating while taking Saxenda, we do not recommend you do so without first consulting your healthcare advisor.
Carbohydrates and Saxenda
Initially, I had difficulty giving up carbs, but Saxenda helped me by pushing the ride and pasta to the side (hard for an Italian like myself to do). There is a group of complex sugars called carbohydrates that can be found naturally in fruits, vegetables, and grains. It is estimated that carbs contribute about 20% of a person’s daily caloric intake, which makes them a vital source of nutrition.
It is likely that you have heard of carb-cutting, carb-cycling, or the ketogenic diet, which is one of the most popular diets today. Each of these diets involves the elimination of carbohydrates (to a certain extent). You may be able to achieve the results you desire when you combine Saxenda with this weight-loss philosophy.
However, this is not simply a matter of personal preference or choice. For some individuals, carbohydrates may have adverse effects on their health and may be addictive or dangerous. In addition to increased hunger and feelings of fullness after eating large amounts of carbohydrates, there may also be unhealthy behaviors and habits, such as excessive exercise or watching television after eating a meal (which can result in excessive calorie burn). Taking Saxenda may minimize your carbohydrate consumption by enhancing your sense of fullness.
Health problems such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease are often the result of people making poor food choices. When trying to lose weight, it is not always easy, but if you take the time to think about what you eat, your body will thank you because it will function better than it did before! The most common place I have seen this raised is in Reddit and social media comments. When taking Saxenda, many people wonder how they should avoid eating foods high in carbohydrates.
There is a simple solution to this problem: consume enough carbohydrates. Saxenda does not promote weight loss through fat-mediated mechanisms, which means all of those “carb bombs” go straight into your bloodstream, where they can cause more harm than just being present.
It is important to limit the amount of carbohydrates you consume while taking Saxenda. Although the medication will reduce your appetite, you will have the responsibility of choosing between good and bad carbs.
Protein Shakes with Saxenda
Is there a healthy type of protein? In reality, the answer to this question is much more complicated than most people are aware of. It is important to note that there are numerous different types of protein, and each type can be beneficial or harmful to your health, depending on its source. It is well known that whey protein can be easily digested and assimilated by the body in hours (thereby leaving your metabolism very quick and producing minimal cravings).
Unfortunately, it is not so good if you are trying to lose weight because it is difficult to digest and metabolize. However, soy protein is not recommended for weight loss either, as it causes your metabolism to slow and sluggish.
The phytates contained in soy (which bind with calcium) put pressure on your bones, resulting in low bone density and osteoporosis in later life (as well as insulin resistance). However, if you wish to gain mass and build muscle without putting too much stress on your bones at all times, whey protein may be your best choice.
In order to keep myself energized while taking Saxenda, I drank whey protein shakes. It is true that the Saxenda is so effective that sometimes it is even difficult to swallow my whey protein shake. In order to ensure that your body receives the correct macronutrients, it is important to consume those much-needed nutrients.
Calorie Counting with Saxenda
Ultimately (and I know it is a pain in the behind), calorie counting is effective for weight loss. If you are interested in expediting the use of Saxenda, I highly recommend that you begin counting your calories right away.
When you are able to determine how many calories you burn per hour, it becomes easier for you to predict your calorie consumption. Although you may believe that you will lose weight by reducing your calorie intake, how can you be certain? As part of my exercise program, I use a “calorie counter,” which counts the number of calories burned.
A company called Fitbit has developed an app that measures daily steps and calculates calories burned while walking or running. A comparison is then conducted between the data recorded by the device and the data recorded by the user in their Fitbit account.
You can also have someone else track your activity and then compare it to the data they have collected. In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, it was found that accelerometers (worn by mice) are more effective than wristbands in reducing movement activity than accelerometers worn on the body (which measure movement rather than steps taken like a pedometer).
Due to the fact that both devices record motion, every moment is compared against the other. Both devices measure movement rather than steps, which allows them to distinguish between different types of activities, including walking and running (where step counting would be incorrect) as well as rest periods and other types of inactivity. Taking weight loss seriously requires you to consume fewer calories than you burn.
When it comes to dieting, this is a relatively simple but essential fact. The metabolic rate can be increased by many other factors, including exercise and stress (hello, exoskeletons). The reason this works is that the more calories you consume, the higher your metabolism becomes, and the less likely you are to burn them off.
