Find your new maintenance calories and protein target after stopping Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, or Saxenda.
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Protein Target
Optional: Modest Deficit
These are estimates using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation. Spend 8–12 weeks tracking your actual intake and weight to confirm your real maintenance. This calculator does not provide medical advice — stopping or changing a GLP-1 medication is a decision for you and your prescriber.
GLP-1 agonists like semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro) suppress appetite and slow gastric emptying. When you stop, those effects reverse within weeks. Hunger returns, often stronger than before treatment. Your calorie need, meanwhile, is now permanently lower because you weigh less.
The STEP 1 extension trial (Wilding et al., Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 2022) tracked 327 people who stopped semaglutide after losing an average of 17.3% of their body weight. One year later, they'd regained two-thirds of what they lost. The drug works while you take it. When you stop, weight comes back unless you actively manage intake.
This isn't failure. The medication revealed your target weight. Now you hold it the way anyone holds a weight: by eating at maintenance and tracking honestly.
A smaller body costs less to run. Basal metabolic rate drops by 10 kcal per kilogram of weight lost — that's the Mifflin-St Jeor coefficient. If you lost 15 kg, your BMR dropped by 150 kcal. Your TDEE drops more, because you also carry less mass through every movement.
Take someone who weighed 100 kg, dropped to 85 kg, and has moderate activity (1.55). Before treatment, their TDEE was around 3,011 kcal. At 85 kg, it's 2,856 kcal. That's a 155 kcal difference just from the 15 kg change. If they eat to appetite and hit their old 3,000 kcal intake, they're running a 144 kcal surplus every day. At roughly 7,700 kcal per kilogram of body mass, they regain about a kilogram every 53 days — faster if appetite overshoots further.
The gap compounds when people mistake hunger for need. Hunger says eat more. The body's ledger says you're already over.
Maria is 42, 170 cm, female. She started treatment at 95 kg and stopped at 80 kg after 38 weeks on semaglutide. She trains three days a week, so lightly active (1.375).
Maria's maintenance dropped by 206 kcal. If she stops the drug and eats 2,300 kcal — less than she ate before treatment — she's still 222 kcal over her new maintenance. Weight comes back at roughly 860 grams a month.
Her protein target is 96 to 120 grams daily (1.2 to 1.5 g/kg at 80 kg). If she wants to keep losing, a small deficit of 1,778 kcal (−300) or moderate deficit of 1,578 kcal (−500) would work. But the smart play is holding 80 kg for twelve weeks first, learning what that actually costs, then cutting if needed.
Track everything. Weigh daily, average weekly. Log every meal with a tool that records grams, not guesses. Your appetite will lie to you — the drug suppressed it for months, and now it's back with interest. Trust the numbers, not the feeling.
Aim for maintenance, not another deficit. You just spent months in a deficit. Jumping straight into another one often triggers rebound eating. Hold your current weight for two to three months. Prove to yourself you can do it. Then decide if you want to cut further.
Protein becomes critical. Aim for 1.2 to 1.5 grams per kilogram of current body weight. Higher protein intake preserves lean mass when calories are still adjusting and appetite is unstable (Almandoz et al., Obesity, 2024). It also improves satiety, which matters when hunger is climbing back.
If the scale climbs 1–2 kg in the first month, don't panic. Some of that is glycogen and water coming back as your calorie intake normalizes. A real trend takes four weeks to confirm. Adjust your target only after watching the weekly averages for a full month.
Most people regain some weight. The STEP 1 extension trial (Wilding et al., 2022) tracked 327 participants one year after stopping semaglutide. They regained two-thirds of the weight they'd lost. Appetite returns, and the body now needs fewer calories than it did at the higher weight.
A smaller body costs less to run. Mifflin-St Jeor BMR drops by 10 kcal per kilogram lost. If you lost 15 kg, that's 150 kcal lower before any activity multiplier, and 180–285 kcal lower total depending on how active you are. You're also carrying less mass through every movement.
1.2 to 1.5 grams per kilogram of current body weight. This is higher than the RDA because it helps preserve lean mass while your appetite and calorie intake are still adjusting. If you weigh 80 kg now, that's 96 to 120 grams per day.
Maintain first. Your appetite is still recovering, and jumping straight into another deficit risks regaining everything quickly. Spend eight to twelve weeks holding your current weight. Track everything, learn your actual maintenance, then decide if you want to cut further.
Regain becomes almost certain. Appetite returns fast, but your calorie need is now permanently lower. Without tracking, you'll eat to appetite and overshoot maintenance by hundreds of calories daily. The STEP 1 extension data shows this clearly: weight came back.
That's a medical decision. Restarting often works, but it requires a prescription and a prescriber who agrees it's appropriate. Some people cycle on and off; others stay on maintenance doses long-term. This calculator doesn't give medical advice — talk to your doctor.
Most people notice increased hunger within two to four weeks of their last dose. Semaglutide has a half-life of about one week, so it clears slowly. Tirzepatide clears faster. The appetite effect fades as the drug leaves your system.
Medical Disclaimer: This calculator is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Stopping or changing a GLP-1 medication is a decision for you and your prescriber. The numbers here are estimates from Mifflin-St Jeor, not a treatment plan. Talk to your doctor before you change how you eat or whether you stay on the drug.