Semaglutide Weight Loss Treatment
Are you considering adding semaglutide to your weight loss routine? Starting the process can feel much more manageable when you know you’re taking the right steps for your body. When you partner with an experienced doctor who will guide you through care, rather than simply writing a prescription, you can enjoy real peace of mind.
Dr. Robert Fortino has helped patients across Philadelphia and South Jersey with medical weight loss for nearly 30 years. He’ll take a tailored approach that shapes your semaglutide plan around your health, your goals, and how your body responds. He’ll also provide you with a planned exit strategy to help you maintain your results. Schedule an evaluation to find the right treatment for you.
Start Semaglutide With a Plan, Not Just a Prescription.
Tailored dosing, side effect support and a step-down plan from your first visit.
What Is Semaglutide & What Are Its Benefits?
Semaglutide is a weight loss injection that is given once a week. It mimics a hormone your gut releases after you eat, signaling your brain that you’ve had enough and slowing digestion. That may help you feel satisfied sooner and for longer, which can support weight loss and make everyday eating habits easier to manage.
Smaller Portions, Fewer Cravings
Semaglutide may help one plate feel like plenty at family dinners and nights out, so seconds become a choice, not a habit. It’s also designed to help you stay fuller between meals, so that Wawa stop for a soft pretzel you weren’t hungry for may start to feel optional.
Less Eating Through Stress
Stress eating rarely has much to do with hunger, which makes it hard to shake. With semaglutide quieting the physical pull, the urge to eat after a rough day may feel easier to ride out. That pause leaves room for mindful eating habits that help with the stress itself.
Support for Fat Loss
The goal for most people is losing fat while keeping their strength. Semaglutide may help your body utilize stored fat as you eat less, while protein and strength training can help preserve lean muscle. At your check-ins, seca scans show where the change is coming from.
Steadier Blood Sugar
Energy crashes after lunch can trace back to blood sugar swings. Semaglutide helps your body release insulin when blood sugar rises, which may lead to steadier levels. Dr. Fortino tracks this through your labs, along with markers like blood pressure and cholesterol.
Start Your Weight Loss Journey
GLP-1 Weight Loss Doctor Near You
As an alternative to FDA-approved branded products, where appropriate, a provider may prescribe a compounded drug, which is prepared by a state-licensed sterile compounding pharmacy partner. Although compounded drugs are permitted to be prescribed under federal law, they are not FDA-approved and do not undergo safety, effectiveness, or manufacturing review.
Zepbound and Wegovy are FDA-approved for weight loss. Ozempic is FDA-approved for type 2 diabetes treatment, but may be prescribed off-label for weight loss at a healthcare provider’s discretion.
Your Semaglutide Plan, Phase by Phase
Semaglutide is one piece of a bigger plan, and knowing what comes next can take a lot of the stress out of treatment. Dr. Fortino’s care follows four phases, each with its own purpose. Your pace is based on how your body responds, and your plan adjusts along the way.
Phase 1: Evaluation
Before medication is prescribed, you’ll get a clear look at where your health stands. Our team discusses your goals, reviews your health history, orders labs when necessary, and takes a seca body composition scan that separates fat from muscle. Dr. Fortino and his team use all of that information to decide if semaglutide is a good fit for your life and desired results.
Phase 2: Active Weight Loss
During treatment, you’ll meet with your medical team regularly, and there’s no extra charge for follow-up visits, so you can come in as often as your plan calls for. At each visit, we look at how you’re feeling, how your body is responding, and whether your dose makes sense for where you are. If you have questions about side effects or meals, these appointments are a great chance to get the answers you need to feel at ease.
Phase 3: Transition & Taper
As you get closer to your goals, Dr. Fortino adjusts your dose in stages while watching how your appetite, energy, and body composition respond. The habits you’ve been building take on a bigger role here, so the shift feels less abrupt.
Phase 4: GLP-1 Maintenance
Reaching your goal isn’t the end of your care, which can be a relief to hear. Maintenance keeps your check-ins going as life changes. You’ll receive regular body composition scans and have detailed conversations with your care team. It’s all part of a planned exit strategy, built around how your body responds rather than a set schedule.
Why Patients Choose Dr. Fortino for Semaglutide
Dr. Fortino has spent nearly 30 years in medical weight loss, and listening has always been at the heart of his care. He gets to know your routine, your concerns, and your goals, so taking semaglutide can feel like a seamless part of your life.
Osteopathic, Whole-Person Care
Weight is rarely just about the number on the scale, and your care shouldn’t treat it that way. As a doctor of osteopathic medicine, Dr. Fortino looks at how lifestyle factors like sleep and strength connect with metabolic factors like blood pressure and blood sugar. That whole-person view shapes every decision about your semaglutide plan.
Tailored Dosing
Side effects are one of the biggest worries people have before starting, and how your dose is managed can make a real difference in how you feel throughout care. Dr. Fortino starts low and increases only when your body is ready, rather than following a one-size-fits-all schedule. That tailored approach is designed to help keep side effects manageable as you go.
A Step-Down Plan From Day One
It’s easier to commit to a treatment when you know where it’s headed. Your planned exit strategy is mapped out at your first visit, so you aren’t left wondering what happens after you reach your goals.
Seen Within Two Business Days
Once you’ve made the decision, you shouldn’t have to wait weeks to act on it. In most cases, new patients are seen within two business days after completing their online paperwork.
The Importance of Regular Visits With Your Doctor During Semaglutide Treatment
While on semaglutide, regular visits help keep your plan moving in the right direction. Each check-in with Dr. Fortino and his team gives us a chance to see how you’re responding and make small adjustments along the way.
Same Care Team Each Visit
There’s real comfort in not having to explain your history all over again. You’ll see the same familiar faces at each visit, and because they remember what you shared last time, conversations pick up where they left off and your care stays consistent.
Body Composition Tracking
The scale only tells part of the story, especially when it barely budges. Regular seca body composition scans show how much of your progress is fat loss and how well you’re holding onto muscle. That fuller view helps Dr. Fortino fine-tune your plan, and it gives you wins to notice beyond a number.
Side Effects Caught Early
Little things like nausea or fatigue are easier to handle when someone’s keeping an eye on them. Regular visits give you a chance to mention what you’ve noticed, even if it seems minor, before it starts affecting your day. Dr. Fortino can adjust your dose or suggest changes that may help you feel more comfortable.
Accountability and Support
Some weeks feel easy, and others test your motivation. Knowing your next check-in is on the calendar can be the nudge that keeps good habits going when life gets busy. Each visit is also a chance to celebrate progress, talk through setbacks without judgment, and leave with a clear next step for the weeks ahead.
Start Your Weight Loss Journey
GLP-1 Weight Loss Doctor Near You
As an alternative to FDA-approved branded products, where appropriate, a provider may prescribe a compounded drug, which is prepared by a state-licensed sterile compounding pharmacy partner. Although compounded drugs are permitted to be prescribed under federal law, they are not FDA-approved and do not undergo safety, effectiveness, or manufacturing review.
Zepbound and Wegovy are FDA-approved for weight loss. Ozempic is FDA-approved for type 2 diabetes treatment, but may be prescribed off-label for weight loss at a healthcare provider’s discretion.
Semaglutide FAQs
Starting a new medication comes with questions, and you deserve a doctor who takes the time to answer every one. Here are answers to some of the questions patients ask most before they start semaglutide with Dr. Fortino.
How Much Does Semaglutide Cost?
Your first visit evaluation is $100. If semaglutide is medically appropriate, compounded semaglutide starts at $150 for one month at the starting dose, which covers 4 weekly injections.
Disclaimer: The FDA does not verify the safety, effectiveness, or quality of compounded drugs offered at our clinic.
How Long Does Semaglutide Treatment Take?
There’s no set timeline because every patient’s path looks different. How long you stay on semaglutide depends on how your body responds, the goals you set with Dr. Fortino, and how your taper goes. Your plan is reviewed at each visit and adjusted as you go.
Will I Be Hungry on Semaglutide?
Semaglutide slows stomach emptying, which may help you feel full longer, and may help regulate your appetite so cravings are easier to manage. For those looking for an alternative appetite suppressant to weight loss injections, phentermine may be an option. Dr. Fortino will determine which treatment is best for you after reviewing your medical history and conducting a thorough examination.
What Foods Should I Eat While Taking Semaglutide?
Dr. Fortino recommends a low-carb, high-protein diet built around meats, fish, eggs, leafy greens, and healthy fats. Cutting back on refined sugar and processed carbs may also help keep blood sugar steady, so energy holds up and cravings stay quieter.
Can I Drink Alcohol While on Semaglutide?
An occasional drink isn’t automatically off-limits, but it’s worth being careful. Alcohol can make nausea worse, and since semaglutide may lower your appetite, drinks can hit harder on a lighter stomach. Bring it up during your evaluation, and Dr. Fortino can help you decide what makes sense.
What Are the Side Effects of Semaglutide?
For many people, side effects are mild and tend to ease as the body adjusts. Common ones typically include:
- Acid reflux
- Dizziness
- Fatigue
- Headaches
- Gastrointestinal issues, such as diarrhea, constipation, and gas
- Stomach discomfort, including nausea, vomiting, pain, or bloating
Starting on a low dosage and increasing gradually can help keep these side effects manageable, and Dr. Fortino can adjust treatment if any side effect lingers.
What Is the Difference Between Semaglutide and Tirzepatide Weight Loss Treatments?
Both are weekly injections, but they have a key difference: they act on different hormone pathways. Semaglutide targets GLP-1, a hormone that slows stomach emptying and signals fullness to your brain. Tirzepatide targets both GLP-1 and GIP, and the two work together in ways that may support appetite control, blood sugar, and how your body uses stored fat. Because of that dual action, some people may see greater benefits with tirzepatide. Which treatment is best varies from person to person, so Dr. Fortino will recommend one based on your health, goals, and response.
Why Does Weight Loss Sometimes Slow on Semaglutide?
A semaglutide weight loss plateau doesn’t necessarily mean the medication has stopped working. As your body changes, its energy needs shift, so progress can slow. Dr. Fortino looks at your protein intake, activity, sleep, stress, and your seca body composition to understand why this change may be occurring, then decides which steps, if any, make sense to take next.
Start Semaglutide With a Plan, Not Just a Prescription
Taking care of yourself is worth doing thoughtfully, and you don’t have to figure it out alone. Dr. Fortino and his team are here to guide each step at a pace that fits your body. Call or book an evaluation online, and start becoming a stronger, healthier you.
