The short answer
Many people who lost less than 5% of their weight in the first 12 weeks later passed that threshold. This was a selected group who stayed on treatment—not everyone who started.
Who was studied?
Jamy Ard and colleagues revisited SURMOUNT-1 data from 1,545 tirzepatide-treated adults without diabetes. Participants had received at least 75% of assigned doses and had weight measurements at four required visits.
Of these, 278 had lost less than 5% at week 12.
Percent of the selected group, not amount of weight lost
Original visual based on the study.
| Group or measure | Result |
|---|---|
| By week 24 | 70% |
| By week 72 | 90% |
What happened later?
Among those 278 slower starters:
194 people (70%) reached at least 5% weight loss by week 24.
250 people (90%) reached it by week 72.
These percentages describe reaching a threshold, not the amount of weight lost.
What does it mean?
Early progress did not tell the whole story in this analysis. However, the study excluded people without the required adherence or measurements. It cannot predict every new patient's outcome or establish how long an individual should continue treatment. Diet and activity differences were not assessed.
Sources
Ard and colleagues, Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 2025. Funded by Eli Lilly.