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Are fat loss drugs and supplements a rip-off?
Answers from Burn The Fat author Tom Venuto.
6 REASONS WHY A LONG TIME EPHEDRINE "JUNKIE" GAVE UP
STIMULANT-BASED "FAT BURNERS" FOREVER!
Believe it or not, the former "ephedrine junkie"
was me! Remember "Dymetadrine 25," those tiny white 25 mg pills
that came out in the early 90's? Well, I used to pop those
things like they were candy.
Ultimate Orange, Ripped fuel, Xenadrine, Stacker, ECA stacks,
Diet Fuel, Ripped force, Speed Stack, Nitro Force, Thermadrene,
Thermadrol - you name it, I've tried it. In fact, I kept
experimenting until I found the ephedrine-caffeine (EC) cocktail
that had the most "kick."
Two years ago, I quit cold turkey. After a lot of research,
self-experimentation and personal reflection, I made the decision
to dump these "fat burning" and "pre workout stimulant" pills
down the toilet forever.
I've now decided that I will no longer even recommend these
products to my clients. If you've read any of my older articles,
it might have sounded like I was very much in favor of the
EC stack.
Not anymore. I can no longer recommend these with a clear
conscience. Yes, that's right - I CHANGED MY MIND!
I think you'll be enlightened and fascinated by the reasons
I quit. Whether you decide to follow my example is up to you.
REASON #1: A pill will NEVER in a million years be a long-term
solution to the overweight problem that plagues our society today.
Suppose the supplement companies come out with a new thermogenic
"fat burner" that's twice as potent as the current crop of fat
loss aids and has absolutely zero side effects. Or here's one
better: Suppose the pharmaceutical companies finally invent a
100% effective, 100% safe, 100% side-effect free drug that
really did melt off the fat. (This of course, is impossible,
because all drugs have side effects, but just play along with
me for a minute and suppose such a drug is really invented).
Millions of people would rush out to buy it and sales would
rocket up into the billions!
Nevertheless...
THE OBESITY PROBLEM WOULD CONTINUE.
Here's why:
Taking a pill - any pill - whether it's an over the counter
supplement or the most powerful prescription drug for fat
loss, is a mistake because it's confusing causes and effects.
Lazy or ignorant people are always looking for answers to
their problems ONLY in the realm of effects, while totally
ignoring the causes of their problem.
The wise person knows that in a universe that operates by law,
every effect can be traced back to its cause. By eradicating
the cause, you remove the unwanted effect.
Body fat is an EFFECT. The two primary causes of body fat are
lack of sufficient exercise and poor nutrition. Any so called
solution to the overweight problem that does not address these
causes completely, must - BY LAW - be destined to fail in the
long run.
Although our hypothetical fat loss drug might remove the fat
(the effect) quite effectively in the short run, the fat will
always come back with a vengeance becaue the cause has not been
addressed. And supposing the fat does not come back, then "payment"
will be extracted by the universe in some other fashion, as so
many people have unfortunately discovered through the diseases
that strike the sedentary and poorly nourished.
Taking pills for fat loss is skirting the real CAUSE of the
problem: a lousy, lazy lifestyle.
REASON #2: It's all about the Benjamins, baby (money, that is)
Fortunes are being made from the sales of these "fat-burning"
pills. Furthermore, these are the greatest products in the
world to sell because they are addictive and the market
is self-perpetuating by its very nature. 95% of weight loss
efforts fail and it's likely that these statistics will get
worse before they get better because of the prevailing mindset
of the public. That's an endless stream of customers.
Because most of the companies selling these products are
interested in your hard-earned fungolas and not your health
or best interests, they will tell you what you WANT to hear,
not what you NEED to hear.
You want to hear that you can lose 10 lbs this weekend; 30 lbs in
30 days. You need to hear that you should lose one or two pounds
per week.
You want to hear that you can lose fat without dieting. You
need to hear that nutrition is at least 50% of the battle and
probably more.
You want to hear that you can lose fat without exercise. You
need to hear that weight training and cardiovascular exercise
are BOTH necessary as a PERMANENT part of your lifestyle.
You want to hear that losing fat and getting in shape is easy
with XYZ product. You need to hear that nothing good in life
ever comes easy and that everything good has a price attached
to it.
It's hard to get unbiased information when so much money is
involved. Most people who fervently recommend "fat burning"
pills of any kind are profiting from their sale.
You're far better off investing in a gym membership, some
good basic equipment, coaching, personal training, or educational
products that teach you about nutrition and exercise science
than you are giving your money to the pharmaceutical or
supplement companies.
REASON #3: Ephedrine and ephedra based "fat burning products"
are dangerous when abused and may even be dangerous when not
abused
"THE GYM KILLED MY WIFE!"
That was the headline of a full page story in the New York Post
a few Years ago.
A 37 year old woman had a hypertensive stroke right on the gym
floor of a trendy Manhattan health club after taking a popular
"fat burner" made with ephedrine and caffeine. She died in the
hospital later that day. The grieving husband sued the club
and the product manufacturer.
More recently, the August 2002 Issue of Men's Journal magazine
ran an article titled, "THE SPORTS SUPPLEMENT THAT CAN KILL YOU."
Inside the magazine on page 66 is a full page of post-stroke CAT
scan photos - with the caption, "This is Todd Weger's brain
on ephedra."
For the record, I don't think scaring people with emotionally-
charged horror stories is the best way to educate, although
sometimes it's the only way to make an impact on people who
are particularly biased, opinionated or otherwise thick-headed.
So far, the FDA has on record over 80 deaths and 1400 adverse -
effect complaints, including strokes, coronaries and seizures.
Sounds scary, but compared to the deaths caused by prescription
drugs and other over the counter drugs like aspirin, ephedra is
actually relatively safe. The truth is that nearly all the
deaths and complications from the use of ephedra are the result
of gross abuse of the product or from use by someone with
previous health conditions who shouldn't be taking stimulants
to begin with. For example, the woman from the New York Post
story had chronic hypertension and was on blood pressure
medication.
However, it's also a fact that some perfectly healthy people
have ended up in the emergency room without explanation. At
the time of his stroke, Todd Weger was a young, healthy thirty
three year old man in his prime. He was an Army ranger who had
received the highest possible score of 300 on his Army physical
fitness test. It seems that some people tolerate stimulants well,
while others do not and there's no way to tell in advance which
category you fall into.
If you play the odds, the chances of having no complications
are in your favor, provided you're in good health and you don't
exceed the maximum recommended dosages. But consider this:
Even if the chances of a stroke or cardiovascular incident
are one in a million, after three surgeries, (the final one
to remove a large portion of his frontal brain lobe), Todd Weger
would probably advise you to think twice about those odds.
REASON #4: Stimulant based fat burning products are
highly addictive
Don't let anyone kid you - ephedrine is highly addictive and
addiction leads to abuse. This is where the real danger lies -
in the abuse, misuse and overuse of these products, especially
by young people who think they are invincible.
I have to confession to make: I never really used ephedra
products for fat burning - I used them for the energy boost. I never believed that the ECA combo helped me get substantially leaner. I always felt that ECA helped me get better workouts, and it was the stimulant-enhanced workouts that produced the increased results.
This "rocket-engine" stimulant boost is quite dramatic and
extremely addictive. Ephedrine and caffeine together are
powerful central nervous system stimulants, giving you a
major rush. Millions of people today are hooked on what is
essentially a mild form of amphetamine.
And speed is exactly what people are using it for: Students are
popping these pills to stay awake and study all night. Partiers
are doing the same. So are truck drivers. These products are
being abused en masse.
Like any addictive habit, once entrenched, it's difficult to
stop. When you first go cold turkey, you crash emotionally and
physically and your workouts really suffer. You go through
withdrawal. That's why many people often get right back on them.
I suppose it's a lot like trying to kick the booze or cigarette
habit. You don't need another addiction.
REASON #5: Taking pills is putting your attention on the
factors that matter the least and missing what matters
the most.
Most people are so influenced by advertising that their attention
has been totally diverted from the fundamentals and the importance
of discipline and hard work. What's really sad is when I'm
approached by a total beginner who hasn't even started eating
right or working out yet and they're totally concerned about
what kind of fat burner to take rather than what kind of
nutrition or training program they should be on.
When a bodybuilding or fitness star is interviewed, what does
the naïve consumer ask? "What kind of supplements do you take?"
Basically, the importance of supplements has been completely
blown out of proportion for the almighty dollar and what's
really important has been shoved into the back seat.
In goal achievement, there's a principle known as the 80-20
rule, which states that 80% of your results will be produced
by 20% of your efforts. In other words, if you have a list of
ten things that help you lose body fat, two of them will yield
80% of your results and 8 of them will yield only 20% of your
results.
Applying the 80-20 rule means that to achieve the greatest
results, you need to concentrate the most energy on the few
critical success factors that will yield the greatest
return on your energy and effort.
In focusing on supplements, you are putting your energy on the
80% of the things that don't matter that much. Worrying about
supplements, especially when you haven't even mastered your
nutrition and training fundamentals first, is what I call
"majoring in the minor things."
Even supplements that work provide only a very small return.
By focusing the majority of your attention on nutrition and
training, you'll get the greatest results for the amount of
time, energy and money you spend.
REASON #6: "Fat burning" pills (including ephedra and caffeine)
aren't effective as the ads say they are.
Don't believe the hype. "Fat burners" do not work the miracles
the ads lead you to believe. Even if they did work that well, why would
you want to give your money to companies that use dishonest and
despicable tactics to try and gain you as a customer?
Have you seen the "games" they're playing with these before and
after pictures lately? Fatten up a professional bodybuilder. Then
pay him to take a fat "before" picture; then diet him down for
a competition and take the "after" picture. Or even more shameful;
snap a post pregnancy photo of a professional fitness model and
call it a before picture? Pathetic.
CONCLUSION
There's one last thing you might want to know. Last September,
I competed in my 26th bodybuilding competition. It was the first
competition I've ever entered without using any "thermogenic"
fat burning products.
I won. My body fat was 4.1%
Trust me when I tell you, you can get as lean as you want to be
without taking any supplements or drugs whatsoever. I did it. You
can do it too. If you need help on what really matters - nutrition,
training and the right mental attitude - that's what I'm here for.
Contact me.
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