Can I start Wegovy at 1.7 mg?

If you’ve been prescribed Wegovy (semaglutide), you may be wondering if, rather than spending months ramping up to a maintenance dosage of 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg, you can simply start with the Wegovy 1.7 mg dose. 

If you ask your healthcare provider, “Can I start Wegovy at 1.7 mg?” they’ll likely tell you “no.” Skipping ahead and starting with the Wegovy 1.7 mg dose can lead to intense side effects, which is why the gradual dosing process is recommended. 

Read on to understand why a gradual dose escalation is recommended to get the most out of your Wegovy treatment. 

Wegovy is a prescription medication that’s approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for two indications, when used along with diet and exercise:

1. Weight loss and long-term weight management in people with obesity or overweight and a weight-related health condition

2. Reducing cardiovascular risk in people who have heart disease and obesity or overweight

The medication belongs to a group of drugs called GLP-1s, which work by mimicking a gut hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). These drugs slow down digestion, alter your brain’s sensation of hunger, and reduce your food cravings. Together, these effects help you feel full sooner, give you more control over your appetite, and cause weight loss. 

No, you should not start Wegovy at 1.7 mg, as your body needs time to adjust to the medication and its side effects. Starting with the Wegovy 1.7 mg dose can increase your risk of serious side effects. The starting dose of Wegovy is 0.25 mg weekly. Your healthcare provider will gradually increase your dose every four weeks until you reach your maintenance dose of either 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg, depending on how you respond to the medication. 

Following this dose escalation schedule, it can take up to 13 weeks, or around three months, to reach the 1.7 mg dose (and 17 weeks, or four months, to reach the 2.4 mg dose). Healthcare providers call this type of dosage schedule titrating. Titrating your dose keeps side effects manageable as your body gets used to a new medication. Basically, titrating sets you up for success so you can tolerate your maintenance dose of Wegovy when you reach it. The maintenance doses of Wegovy are 1.7 mg and 2.4 mg for most people. 

Note that if you’re having trouble tolerating a dose during the escalation process, your healthcare provider may recommend staying at that dose longer than four weeks before increasing to the next step.

It’s understandable to be excited and want to jump right in and start Wegovy at 1.7 mg, but we encourage you to trust the process. Wegovy starts working once you start taking it, and many people experience weight loss well before they reach the 1.7 mg dose. In one study, people lost 2% of their baseline body weight within the first month of taking Wegovy. By the time they reach the 1.7 mg dose (just over three months), people lose an average of 6%, or nearly 15 pounds.

Wegovy’s side effects can be a lot to manage, especially in the beginning. The good news is that most of these side effects—especially nausea and diarrhea—tend to be most frequent and intense when titrating your dose, before lessening with time as your body acclimates to the medication. Here’s an overview of the common side effects of Wegovy 1.7 mg:

• Nausea

• Diarrhea

• Vomiting

• Constipation

• Abdominal pain

• Headache

• Fatigue

• Upset stomach or indigestion

• Dizziness

• Abdominal bloating

• Belching

• Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) in people with type 2 diabetes

• Flatulence

• Stomach flu

• Heartburn

• Common cold

Other, more serious side effects are possible. While not a complete list, serious side effects that have been reported with Wegovy include:

• Severe gastrointestinal reactions

• Sudden problems affecting your pancreas, gallbladder, or kidneys

• Increased heart rate

• New or worsening depression, including suicidal thoughts or behaviors

Stay in touch with your healthcare provider throughout the titration process, and let them know if you are experiencing any side effects that concern you. They can slow down the titration process or provide guidance for managing side effects. Some side effects, such as nausea and vomiting, are more common with higher doses of Wegovy.

The maximum recommended dose of Wegovy is 2.4 mg, but both 1.7 mg and 2.4 mg are effective maintenance doses. If you titrate up to the 2.4 mg dose and the side effects are too much, your provider can bring you back down to the 1.7 mg dose.  After a few more weeks on the Wegovy 1.7 mg dose, they may have you try the 2.4 mg dose again.

Wegovy is injected once a week, on the same day each week. You can take it at any time of day, with or without food. The important thing is to inject Wegovy on the same day each week, and to rotate through the injection sites with each injection. The injection sites for Wegovy include your thigh, abdomen, and upper arm. You’ll administer the injection subcutaneously (just under the skin, which tends to be relatively painless compared to intramuscular shots, where the needle goes deep into the muscle). 

Each Wegovy pen comes pre-filled with a single dose of the medication, so you’ll inject the entire dose and then dispose of the pen in an FDA-cleared sharps container. Wegovy should be stored in its original carton in the fridge (36°F–46°F or 2°C–8°C). It can also be stored at room temperature (46°F–86°F or 8°C–30°C) for up to 28 days.

A carton of Wegovy contains four pens, each of which contains a single dose of semaglutide ( Wegovy’s active ingredient) in a liquid solution. Wegovy is available in five dosage strengths:

• 0.25 mg of semaglutide per 0.5 mL of solution (0.25 mg/0.5 mL)

• 0.5 mg/0.5 mL 

• 1 mg/0.5 mL

• 1.7 mg/0.75 mL 

• 2.4 mg/0.75 mL

The recommended dosage schedule for Wegovy starts with 0.25 mg weekly. Every four weeks, your healthcare provider will increase your dosage to the next dosage strength until you reach a maintenance dosage that works for you, like this:

The two maintenance dosages for Wegovy are 1.7 mg and 2.4 mg. The higher 2.4 mg dosage is recommended, but some people may find the side effects to be more tolerable at the 1.7 mg dose. 

If side effects become too much at any point during the titration process, talk to your healthcare provider. They can slow down the titration process to give your body more time to adjust to the drug. Do not skip a week of Wegovy.

What affects Wegovy dosing?

There are no special dosing adjustments for certain health conditions with Wegovy. The main thing that affects Wegovy dosing is your response to side effects. These side effects can be a lot to get used to, and some people are more sensitive than others. That’s one main reason why some people stick with the Wegovy 1.7 mg dose instead of increasing to the 2.4 mg maintenance dose.

Stay in touch with your healthcare provider throughout the titration process. If the side effects start to feel unbearable, your healthcare provider can slow down the titration process and keep you at a lower dose for a longer period of time. If side effects still feel difficult to tolerate at either 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg, your healthcare provider may recommend a different GLP-1 medication, such as Zepbound (tirzepatide) or Saxenda (liraglutide).

You can get Wegovy online or in person. You’ll need to meet with a licensed healthcare provider who can write you a prescription, as Wegovy is not available over the counter. Once you have your prescription for Wegovy, you can fill it at a local or online pharmacy.

Without insurance, the cost of Wegovy starts at $1,349, depending on the pharmacy you use. If you’re eligible for the Wegovy Savings Offer, you may be able to get Wegovy for less than $500 or even completely free. If you’re not eligible for the official savings program, you can still save on the cost of Wegovy using Wegovy coupons from websites like SingleCare, GoodRx, and Optum Perks.

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Starting Wegovy at 1.7 mg might seem like a shortcut to faster results, but it can actually backfire. Wegovy’s gradual dose escalation process—known as titration—is designed to help your body adjust to the drug’s side effects so you can stick with the medication and experience the most weight loss success.

• The starting dosage of Wegovy is 0.25 mg weekly. This slow start helps your body adjust to the medication, keeping side effects like nausea and vomiting more tolerable.

• Titration takes time on Wegovy—at least 13 weeks to reach 1.7 mg and at least 17 weeks to reach 2.4 mg. Your dose will increase every four weeks, and you should follow this timeline unless advised otherwise by your healthcare provider.

• Early weight loss is possible before reaching the highest dose. Many people begin losing weight within the first month of taking Wegovy, with an average 6% body weight reduction by the time they reach 1.7 mg.

• Both 1.7 mg and 2.4 mg of Wegovy are effective maintenance doses. While 2.4 mg generally leads to greater weight loss, 1.7 mg may be better tolerated by some people, since the higher the dose, the more side effects you are likely to experience.

• Wegovy’s side effects can be managed with your provider’s help. If you're struggling, your provider can slow down your titration schedule or switch your medication if needed.