GLP-1 Maintenance: How to Keep It Off

For weight management, Wegovy (semaglutide) maintains at 2.4 mg once weekly, with 1.7 mg an accepted alternative if the top dose isn't tolerated. Zepbound (tirzepatide) maintains at 5, 10, or 15 mg once weekly. Many people maintain on whichever dose held their weight steady rather than the maximum — but the dose is your prescriber's call.

Once you reach your goal, the job changes from losing weight to holding it. Some people work with their prescriber to step down toward the lowest dose that keeps their weight stable, instead of staying at the maximum. There's no single 'right' answer — it depends on how your weight responds, and it's always a clinical decision.

These medications are designed for long-term, chronic use — there's no official taper protocol, because the intended use is ongoing. In withdrawal trials, stopping led to significant regain (people regained about two-thirds of their lost weight after switching off semaglutide in STEP 4). Many people stay on a maintenance dose indefinitely; if you do stop, a slow taper with your prescriber plus strong habits gives the best odds of keeping it off.

Often, partly — but it's not all-or-nothing. Real-world data suggests just over half of people kept off some or all of their loss at 24 months. The people who keep the most off protected their muscle on the way down and built durable nutrition and activity habits while on the drug. Muscle keeps your metabolism higher, which makes maintenance far more forgiving.

Roughly your maintenance calories (TDEE) for your goal weight — the planner above estimates this from your height, age, sex, and activity. As you lose the deficit, appetite returns, so the key is treating that maintenance number as your new normal and keeping protein high to protect muscle.