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I want to lose a few kilos before an event. Should I try a GLP-1?

An honest answer for anyone eyeing a weight-loss injection before a wedding, a holiday or a big day.

GLP Guidebook teamUpdated 5 Oct 20263 min read10 sourcesWritten from published sources
The short answer

Probably not. GLP-1 medicines are meant for type 2 diabetes, and for obesity or overweight with a related health problem, not for a few kilos. They take months to reach full dose, often upset the stomach, and the weight usually returns when you stop. There are better ways to feel good on the day.

Read this page first. It covers why these medicines aren't meant for a few kilos, what happens after, the fakes and what works instead. At the end, three guides take you further, in order.
On this page
  1. Why it isn't meant for this
  2. Would it work in time?
  3. After the event
  4. The fakes problem
  5. What works instead
  6. What to read next
  7. Sources

Why isn't it meant for this?

These medicines treat a disease. They aren't meant for fine-tuning your weight.

Wanting to look and feel your best on a big day is completely normal. But GLP-1 medicines aren't approved for that.

In the US, Wegovy's label covers adults with obesity, or with overweight plus a weight-related health problem.1

India's 2025 obesity guideline, from the Endocrine Society of India (ESI), says a doctor may consider these medicines from a BMI (body mass index, your weight compared with your height) above 27.2 Or above 25 with a condition like diabetes or high blood pressure.2 Ozempic is sold in India for type 2 diabetes, so using it for weight is off-label, meaning it isn't approved for that use.3 And a government statement of 1 April 2026 said only three kinds of specialist can prescribe them: endocrinologists (hormone and diabetes specialists), internal-medicine specialists and cardiologists (heart specialists).4

Would it even work in time?

Not really. The dose goes up slowly, over about 4 months.

Wegovy starts at 0.25 mg and steps up every 4 weeks. It reaches the full dose of 2.4 mg after 16 weeks.1

Feeling sick and diarrhoea were the most common side effects in STEP 1, the main semaglutide weight trial. People there got either the medicine or a dummy injection with no medicine in it. More people stopped because of stomach effects on the medicine.5

Out of every 100 people, how many stopped because of stomach effects:

STEP 1Semaglutide 2.4 mg (Wegovy), weekly

1,961 adults with obesity or overweight and no diabetes, 68 weeks.5

Semaglutide4.5 in 100
Dummy injection0.8 in 100

Bars are drawn on a scale up to 10 in 100.

Not ideal in the weeks before a celebration.

What happens after the event?

The weight usually comes back once you stop.

A year after stopping semaglutide, people followed up from STEP 1 had regained about two-thirds of the weight they lost.6 Most of their gains in blood pressure, sugar and cholesterol faded too.6

What about the fakes?

Fake pens exist. Buying without a prescription, from unverified sellers, raises the risk of getting one.

The WHO has found falsified Ozempic in Brazil, the UK and the US.7 Fakes may be missing the medicine, or contain a different one, such as insulin.7 Some batches of licensed Indian generics were recalled in July 2026; ask your pharmacist if yours is affected.8 In India, these medicines aren't sold over the counter.4

Get help now. If you've injected a pen of unknown origin and feel shaky, confused or faint, call 112.

So what works instead?

A plan built around food and movement, started as early as you can.

The WHO says medicines alone won't solve weight problems. Healthy eating and physical activity remain the base of treatment.9 Guide 3: Your options sets out what the evidence says about each option.

And if your weight is affecting your health, that's a different conversation. Guide 1: Weight, diabetes and health helps you check where you stand.

Your optionsConsidering it for weightStopping

What to read next, in order

These three guides go deeper. Each one ends with a link to the next, so you can read them one after another.

  1. 1Should I consider a GLP-1? And when not toGuide 4 of 9DecideThe section on losing a few kilos: who these medicines are for, and who they're not for.
  2. 2Your options, and where medicines fitGuide 3 of 9DecideFood, activity and other options, with what the evidence says about each.
  3. 3Stopping and the long termGuide 9 of 9Live with itWhat happens to weight, and to your body, when people stop.
Was this page easy to understand?

Sources

  1. Novo Nordisk. Wegovy (semaglutide) US prescribing information, revised June 2026. Sections 1, 2.2, 5.2, 5.3, 5.5, 8.3, 17. (US label.) PDF
  2. Madhu SV, Kapoor N, Das S et al. ESI clinical practice guidelines for the evaluation and management of obesity in India: an update (2025). Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2025;29(4):355–365. Recommendations B.1 and D.3. DOI
  3. Business Standard. Novo Nordisk launches Ozempic in India at ₹2,200/week amid patent battles. 12 December 2025. Link
  4. Outlook India. Inspections, surveillance to continue against unauthorised sale, promotion of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs: Govt. 1 April 2026. Link
  5. Wilding JPH et al. Once-weekly semaglutide in adults with overweight or obesity (STEP 1). NEJM, 2021;384:989–1002. 1,961 adults without diabetes, 68 weeks. DOI
  6. Wilding JPH et al. Weight regain and cardiometabolic effects after withdrawal of semaglutide: the STEP 1 trial extension. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 2022;24(8):1553–1564. 327 people followed for a year after stopping. DOI
  7. World Health Organization. WHO issues warning on falsified medicines used for diabetes treatment and weight loss. 20 June 2024. Link
  8. Medical Dialogues. Recalls by Dr Reddy's, Torrent put spotlight on quality standards in India's semaglutide market. 10 July 2026. Link
  9. World Health Organization. WHO issues global guideline on the use of GLP-1 medicines in treating obesity. 1 December 2025. Link
  10. Novo Nordisk. Ozempic (semaglutide) injection, US prescribing information and Medication Guide, revised May 2026. Sections 4, 5.3, 5.5, 5.6, 7.2, 8.5. (US label; India's CDSCO label is not published online.) PDF

Last checked 5 Oct 2026 · Next review due Jan 2027

How this page was made. Written by the GLP Guidebook team from the sources above: drug labels, published trials, Indian and international guidelines, and named news reports. It's general information, not medical advice. Talk to a qualified doctor before starting, stopping or changing any medicine. How we write