The 30-second summary
- There is no official Wegovy diet. The NHS says to eat a healthy, balanced diet while you use it. The useful question is how to eat well on a much smaller appetite.
- Protein first, every meal. Put protein on the plate before anything else. Your daily target depends on your weight and dose, and the calculator works yours out.
- The first 16 weeks need the most care. The dose climbs every 4 weeks, and vomiting, diarrhoea, constipation and nausea are very common side effects. Smaller, plainer meals are easier while it does.
What Wegovy does to eating
Wegovy is semaglutide. Its UK prescribing information describes it as a GLP-1 analogue, close in structure to the GLP-1 hormone your gut makes after a meal, acting on GLP-1 receptors that include parts of the brain involved in appetite. The NHS lists semaglutide as Wegovy when it is used to treat obesity, and as Ozempic or Rybelsus when it is used to manage type 2 diabetes. (See what to eat on Ozempic.)
In the STEP 1 trial, adults with overweight or obesity lost an average of 14.9% of their body weight over 68 weeks on semaglutide 2.4 mg, compared with 2.4% on placebo, and half of those on semaglutide lost 15% or more. Weight lost on that scale includes some muscle as well as fat, which is why what you eat still matters. (See why muscle is the number that matters.)
The plate, in order
- Protein first. Chicken, fish, eggs, Greek yoghurt, cottage cheese, tofu, beans or lentils. When appetite gives out after a few bites, you want those bites to have been protein. (See protein on a GLP-1.)
- Vegetables and fibre next. Fibre, taken with enough fluid, is the usual first step for constipation, one of Wegovy's very common side effects. (See constipation on a GLP-1.)
- A little starch or fat to finish. A few potatoes, some rice, a spoon of olive oil. Part of the meal, not the centre of it.
The 16 weeks that need the most care
Wegovy's dose climbs in four-week steps. Its prescribing information sets them out as 0.25 mg a week for weeks 1 to 4, 0.5 mg for weeks 5 to 8, 1 mg for weeks 9 to 12 and 1.7 mg for weeks 13 to 16, reaching the 2.4 mg maintenance dose after that.
Each step is a change your digestion has to adjust to. While the dose is climbing:
- Eat smaller amounts, more often, if a normal plate sits heavily.
- Choose plainer food over rich, greasy or fried meals while your stomach settles.
- Keep drinking through the day. Diarrhoea and vomiting both cost fluid.
The prescribing information allows for this. If gastrointestinal side effects are significant, it says to consider delaying the next increase or going back to the previous dose until they improve. So tell your prescriber rather than pushing on.
Alcohol and contraception
Alcohol. The NHS says it is best not to drink alcohol while using semaglutide, because it can increase side effects such as feeling or being sick. (See GLP-1 medicines and alcohol.)
Contraception. The NHS says that if there is a chance you could get pregnant, you will need to use contraception while you are using semaglutide. (See GLP-1 medicines and birth control.)
A day of eating on Wegovy
This is an illustration, not a prescription. Each dish is a full recipe with its portion stated and its nutrition calculated from the ingredients:
- Breakfast: Strawberry and vanilla overnight oats
- Lunch: Tuna and cannellini potato bowl
- Dinner: Turkey and mushroom stroganoff
On a low-appetite day, a smaller portion of each is fine, and every recipe page lets you switch to one. For more, browse the high-protein GLP-1 recipes or the GLP-1 soup recipes.
What to do with this
General advice is a starting point, not your number. The calculator works out your calorie target, your protein floor and how much you are likely to manage at your dose. The worked examples show what that looks like for Wegovy 1 mg at 88 kg and Wegovy 2.4 mg at 95 kg.
Sources
- Wegovy 2.4 mg FlexTouch solution for injection in pre-filled pen: Summary of Product Characteristics. electronic medicines compendium. emc
- NHS. Semaglutide. nhs.uk
- Wilding JPH, et al. Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults with Overweight or Obesity. N Engl J Med 2021. PubMed
Medical disclaimer: Articles in the foodose research library are educational, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber or a dietitian about your own nutrition. See our full medical disclaimer.