What to eat
The advice for this is usually a list of "foods to avoid", which gets the
problem backwards. You are about to eat much less than you used to. The question is what
goes in the space that's left.
The reframe
Most eating advice is built around wanting more food than you need. On a GLP-1 that
problem is handled — often too well. Some people go from three meals to struggling
through one.
So the risk changes. It isn't excess. It's getting too little protein while losing
weight fast, and the reason that matters is muscle. A meaningful share of what comes
off during rapid weight loss is lean tissue rather than fat, and that share gets worse
when protein is short. You do not want to reach your goal weight having lost a chunk of
your muscle to get there.
Two things reduce it: enough protein, and resistance training. Neither is optional
here in the way they might be on a slower diet.
Protein, by how much room it takes
Ordinary protein lists rank by grams per 100 kcal. That's the wrong axis now — your
limit is stomach volume. This ranks by protein per realistic portion.
| Food | Portion | Protein | Note |
|---|
| Greek yoghurt, plain 0% | 170 g pot | 17 g | Easiest win on the list. |
| Cottage cheese | 150 g | 17 g | Cold, no cooking smell — good on a bad day. |
| Chicken breast | 100 g | 31 g | Dense. Half a normal portion still counts. |
| Tinned tuna | 1 small tin | 25 g | Nothing to prepare. |
| Eggs | 2 large | 13 g | Tolerated when little else is. |
| Whey protein | 1 scoop | 24 g | Drinkable protein when solids are a struggle. |
| Prawns | 100 g | 24 g | Very low fat, so easy on the stomach. |
| Lentils, cooked | 150 g | 13 g | Protein and fibre together. |
| Tofu, firm | 100 g | 17 g | |
| Edamame | 100 g | 11 g | Snack-shaped. |
A common target when losing weight is somewhere around 1.2–1.6 g of protein
per kg of body weight per day, higher if you're training. Your prescriber or a dietitian
should set your actual number — body size, kidney function and what you're trying to
achieve all move it.
Order matters more than it used to
If you can only manage a few mouthfuls, spend them deliberately. Protein first, then
vegetables, then starch. Not a rule about health — a rule about sequence, because the
plate often doesn't get finished and you want the important part inside you when you stop.
What makes you feel worse
| Skip or limit | Why |
|---|
| Large portions of anything | Volume is the main trigger. This outranks
every other item here. |
| Fried and high-fat meals | Fat slows stomach emptying, and so does the
drug. Same direction, twice. |
| Alcohol | Worse nausea, hits harder on much less food, and adds nothing
you need. |
| Fizzy drinks | Gas in a stomach that's already slow to empty. |
| Very sugary things alone | Tend to come back up first. Fine alongside
protein. |
Note that none of these are banned foods. They're the ones most likely to produce a bad
evening, worth knowing so the bad evening is a choice.
Fibre and water, because of the other end
Constipation is as common as nausea and gets talked about a tenth as much. Less food in
means less bulk, and slower transit throughout. Fibre — vegetables, beans, oats, or a plain
psyllium supplement — plus genuinely drinking water sorts most of it out. Thirst signals
get quieter along with hunger, so this usually has to be deliberate rather than
by feel.
Days when nothing appeals
They happen, usually right after the shot. Getting something in beats a perfect meal
you don't eat:
- Greek yoghurt with honey
- A protein shake, cold
- Scrambled eggs
- Clear soup with shredded chicken
- Cottage cheese and crackers
Cold, bland, small. See the nausea page for why cold food is
easier.