Margaret Josephs admits diet and exercise are not behind her slimmer physique.<br /><br />The “Real Housewives of New Jersey” star revealed to People Tuesday that she’s lost 22 pounds by taking peptides and undergoing hormonal replacement therapy.<br /><br />“It’s been life-changing,” Josephs told the magazine.<br /><br />“And it’s not about being fat or skinny; it’s about every aspect of my wellness coming together.”<br /><br />She added, “I wanted to feel healthy and get my body to a place where I’m supposed to be. I feel so lucky to have found something that’s really working for me.”<br /><br />Josephs, 55, said she sought medical attention after she found it “very hard” to “maintain” her weight loss in recent years.<br /><br />“I’d be working out, eating healthy, running around all the time and nothing — and everybody knows I don’t even drink alcohol, so that wasn’t it,” the fashion designer explained.<br /><br />“I just wasn’t feeling my best self. I was feeling tired and sluggish. I struggled to find energy in the way I had in the past. I was dealing with some brain fog.”<br />Josephs’ physician assistant Jamie Gabel PA-C told People that he put the reality star on a wellness program that included hormone replacement, peptides to maintain her muscle mass and strengthen her joints, and a mixture of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1).<br /><br />He said GLP-1 is utilized in the treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity, and GLP-1 receptor Semaglutide is commonly sold under the names Wegovy, Rybelsus and Ozempic, the latter of which is known for being used as a “quick fix” weight-loss drug in Hollywood.<br /><br />It is unclear whether Joseph’s cocktail contains Ozempic. However, the “RHONJ” star has been on her peptides since April 2022 and takes one daily, another shot five days a week and a third, once a week.<br />However, Gabel noted that his office does not use a “one-size fits all model” for all patients and also pointed out that the medications can cause “gastrointestinal-related” side effects such as nausea and constipation.<br /><br />Josephs, for her part, is thrilled with her results and gushed to People, “I’m 126 pounds now, give or take a pound depending on the day, and I haven’t been that weight since I got married the first time in 1994.”<br /><br />“It was the right cocktail for me,” she added. “My swelling has gone down in my arm. My skin’s gotten tighter. My bones stronger. I’m sleeping better, I have more energy.”
