FDA_TrackerJim said:

I want to bring up the cardiovascular angle on cardiovascular risk.

Filing a mild objection. Mild because I might be wrong; an objection because nobody has addressed the case that does not fit. The "earlier than weight loss explains" argument is weaker than this thread makes it sound. Blood pressure and inflammatory markers move fast and are downstream of early weight loss, so the mechanism is not as cleanly separable as the summaries imply.

I would rather be corrected than agreed with, if it comes to it.

gary_naperville said:

My reason for being on this is cardiovascular rather than cosmetic, which puts me in a small minority in most of these threads.

Senior perspective on cardiovascular risk: I'm 68 years old and started this journey skeptically. My internist recommended it after years of failed interventions.

12 months later: down 36 lbs, more mobile, pain reduced, medications simplified. My quality of life has improved dramatically. I wish this existed 20 years ago.

To other older adults hesitating: the SELECT trial proved benefit in our age group. You deserve to feel good in your body regardless of age.

PharmacoVig_BOS said:

The "earlier than weight loss explains" argument is weaker than this thread makes it sound.

I'm 62 years old and want to share my perspective on cardiovascular risk as an older member of this community.

My doctor was initially hesitant because of my age, but the SELECT trial included patients up to 72 and showed consistent benefit across age groups. We started at the lowest dose with closer monitoring.

14 months later: down 61 lbs, off atorvastatin, A1C from 8.2% to 5.2%. My cardiologist is thrilled. cardiovascular risk is absolutely relevant for older adults — don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

A narrower follow-up, since the general answer is now clear:

What did you change at the same time, and can you separate the two now?

LibrarianMeg said:

I'm 62 years old and want to share my perspective on cardiovascular risk as an older member of this community.

Continuous metabolic monitoring dashboard for cardiovascular risk — I track everything in a spreadsheet and here's the month-over-month trend for my key markers:

Weight: consistent downtrend, -1.9 lbs/week average
Fasting glucose (finger stick): stable at 84 mg/dL
Blood pressure (home): 119/74 average
Resting heart rate: 64 bpm (down from 80)
Waist circumference: down 14 inches total

The resting heart rate improvement correlates with cardiovascular fitness gains. Everything is moving in the right direction.