Does Zepbound Stop Working?

And are higher doses coming?

Does Zepbound stop working? Are there higher doses coming? I get asked these two questions on a weekly basis. Here’s the best data and info we have so far, and it is quite compelling…

According to the longest study ever done on tirzepatide, people were still losing weight and maintaining their losses after more than 3 years.

This wasn’t a fluke, the data is solid and the effectiveness was sustained.

The SURMOUNT-1 extension trial followed people with obesity and prediabetes for a full 176 weeks. That’s over three years on tirzepatide, the same drug molecule in Zepbound (and Mounjaro).

Here’s what they saw:

✅ 22-23% average weight loss

✅ That weight loss was maintained at 3 years

✅ Many participants were still losing beyond the two-year mark

✅ Most of this happened on the 15 mg dose

This was the massive takeaway for this study:Participants also saw a 94% reduction in their risk of developing type 2 diabetes.The treatment didn’t wear off. The outcomes got better the longer they stayed on it.

Now, before we go any further, we don’t have this long-term data yet for people with diabetes.This was a non-diabetic population with prediabetes, which means their results may not fully apply to everyone.

But the takeaway is loud and clear:

Zepbound doesn’t stop working.

But stopping Zepbound? That’s another story.

In the SURMOUNT-4 study, people took tirzepatide for 36 weeks.Then half the group was switched to a placebo.

What happened?

• People who stayed on Zepbound kept losing weight

• People who stopped gained back half their weight in under a year

• Many lost the metabolic progress they had made

• 
  

This is how obesity works. It’s not a moment. It’s not a phase. It’s a chronic disease that requires ongoing treatment.

Just like high blood pressure. Just like depression. Just like type 2 diabetes.

When you stop treating it, it comes back.

So when someone says “Zepbound stopped working,” what they might mean is:

• They hit a plateau (which is normal)

• Their dose isn’t right (many need 15 mg to sustain)

• Or they’re expecting continued weight loss when they may have reached maintenance

And maintenance? That’s not failure. That’s the goal.

Key Takeaway:

We now have multi-year data showing that Zepbound can help people lose significant weight and keep it off, especially at the 15 mg dose.But it only works as long as you take it.

If you’re feeling stuck or frustrated, don’t assume the medication stopped working.Talk to your provider. Reevaluate your dose. Look at the full picture.

Because the real danger isn’t that Zepbound stops working.It’s that people stop before it has a chance to work long enough.

For Those Looking for Higher Doses:

Lilly is also investigating higher doses of tirzepatide, beyond the approved 15 mg, specifically in people with type 2 diabetes, where we currently lack long-term (3‑year) data. According to the ClinicalTrials.gov entry for NCT04657003, this Phase 2/3 dose-ranging study is actively evaluating 20 mg and 25 mg doses in adults with T2D and overweight/obesity. The trial is listed as “active, not recruiting”, with a projected primary completion date in February 2026, with full readouts likely later that year. If these higher-dose arms deliver strong metabolic effects, we could see submissions and real-world use of 20–25 mg tirzepatide in T2D patients sometime in late 2026 or 2027. Around the same time we get retatrutide.

Stay tuned to OnThePen.com for more updates and in-depth analysis on the latest developments in weight loss and diabetes treatments. Sharing this article is a powerful form of advocacy that brings us closer to our goal of educating the masses and reducing the stigma of obesity. If you found this article insightful, please share it within your networks, especially in Facebook groups and Reddit forums dedicated to GLP-1 medications and diabetes management. Together, we can make a difference.