How do I know how many milligrams or units of Semaglutide or Tirzepatide to take?
This is a question I get every day as part of my weight loss practice. There are two very important things to keep in mind when discussing Semaglutide and Tirzepatide dosing. First, how many milligrams (mg) of the medication do I take. Second, how do I figure out this dose in milliliters (mL) or units on a syringe.
What is your Semaglutide or Tirzepatide dose in milligrams?
Both Semaglutide and Tirzepatide are dosed in milligrams (mg). You should be starting on the lowest dose and titrating up depending on 3 factors:
- How many weeks have you been at your current dose? It is recommended that you stay at each dose for a minimum of 4 weeks before increasing the dose. This allows your body to acclimate to the medicine and prevents any unwanted side effects that can occur by increasing the dose too quickly.
- Are you having any side effects at your current dose? If you are having side effects at your current dose it is not recommended that you increase your dosage until these side effects have resolved. Doing so will likely make any side effects you may be experiencing worse.
- Are you losing weight at your current dose? I recommend a consistent weight loss of 1.5 lbs to 2 lbs per week as a target weight loss goal. If a patient is losing this much weight consistently, I do not recommend increasing the dosage. I only recommend a dosage increase if you fall below this threshold or your weight loss plateau’s.
How do I convert my dose in milligrams to milliliters or units on a syringe?
Every medication has a concentration that is expressed in mg/mL. To put it simply this reflects how many milligrams of Tirzepatide or Semaglutide is in 1 mL of the liquid medication. Every 1 mL of liquid is equal to 100 units on a syringe.
By knowing both the concentration of the medication in mg/mL and how many mg of medication you wish to inject you can calculate how many units of medication to draw up in the syringe for the appropriate dose.
The calculation is as follows:
Your Desired dose in mg / Concentration of the medication in mg/mL = # mLs of medication to administer
An example for the starting dose of Semaglutide would be:
0.25 mg / 5 mg per mL = 0.05 mL of medication.
To get this number in units on your syringe you can simply take the medication dosage in mL and multiply it by 100. 1 mL of medication equals 100 units on the syringe.
So 0.25 mg of Semaglutide is 5 units on the syringe for a bottle with a concentration of 5 mg/mL
How do I figure out my dose of Tirzepatide or Semaglutide in mg based on how many units I am taking weekly?
This is another common question I get from patients that are new to my practice. I have a lot of patients that join my practice that were previously being given the medication by another provider or med spa. It is a common occurrence that patients are being told how many units of the medication they are being given but they are uncertain what this equates to in milligrams (mg). To calculate this you will need both the number of units you are taking and the concentration of medication you are being provided..
The calculation is as follows:
(Dose in units / 100) x ( Concentration of the medication in mg/mL) = Dose in mg
An example for one of my patients taking 44 units of Tirzepatide with a concentration of 17 mg/mL would be:
(44 units / 100) x (17 mg/mL) = 7.5 mg.
So 44 units of Tirzepatide drawn up on a syringe is equal to 7.5 mg of the medication.
Tirzepatide and Semaglutide Dosing for Good Hearts Health Patients:
The following are dosing guidelines I use for my patients based on the concentrations of Semaglutide and Tirzepatide that we currently prescribe.
For Semaglutide: The initial dose of the medication is 0.25 mg weekly. This is 5 units (0.05mL) on the insulin syringe provided.
Fore Tirzepatide: The initial dose of the medication is 2.5 mg weekly. This is 15 units (0.15 mL) on the insulin syringe provided.
Semaglutide 5 mg/mL Dosing Schedule:
0.25 mg or 5 units weekly for the first 2-4 weeks.
0.5mg or 10 units weekly for 4 weeks
1 mg or 20 units weekly for 4 weeks
1.7 mg or 34 units weekly for 4 weeks
2.4 mg or 48 units weekly for 4 weeks
Tirzepatide 17 mg/mL Dosing Schedule:
2.5 mg or 15 units weekly for 2-4 weeks
5 mg or 30 units weekly for 4 weeks
7.5 mg or 45 units weekly for 4 weeks
10 mg or 60 units weekly for 4 weeks
12.5 mg of 74 units weekly for 4 weeks
15 mg or 88 units weekly for 4 weeks
Please remember, the goal is to take the lowest effective dose of the medication. If you are tolerating the medication well and losing weight you do not need to increase the dose of the medication. My recommendation is to continue taking your current dose as long as you are seeing consistent weight loss in the 1.5lb to 2 lb per week range. If you plateau at any point after 4 weeks on your current dose you have the option to increase your dose.
One of my mentors used to tell me, “Life is complicated, but medicine makes sense!” I hope you found this review on Semaglutide and Tirzepatide dosing helpful. Thanks for taking time to read it and I look forward to helping you on your weight loss journey.
This Post was Prepared by:
Dr. Mario Quiros
Diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine
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