Effectiveness of fat burners: personal experience of a weight loss champion

Author: Khobta Vitaliy - weight loss champion.
2016-03-25

Good day. First of all, I want to clarify: I am not a doctor, dietitian, fitness trainer, etc., and I am sharing solely my experience. I do not urge anyone to buy specific brands. I ask you to take your health very seriously and not to repeat my mistakes. Let's get started.

I would like to remind you that earlier on the site, my weight loss story was published, where I described in general terms, but quite thoroughly, the whole process of losing weight and my first year and a half of training. This is to provide context for why I decided to write this at all.

In general, when I began to get rid of extra pounds, being a person well-acquainted with the internet, I started studying various sources. For some reason, I thought that therapeutic fasting would be a very good method. After successfully enduring a few 2-day fasts and losing some kilograms, I realized: either this doesn't work at all, or it's not for me specifically. I dropped the idea and moved on to more traditional methods, immersing myself in various videos and articles on the subject.

Essentially, the same advice was reiterated everywhere. It all boiled down to the Russian saying: “Patience and work will grind all.” While I could somewhat reconcile myself with the second part, I couldn't stand the first—patience was lacking. After sitting on a super-strict diet for 3.5 months and achieving very good results (from 148 kg to 91 kg), I realized that my capabilities were limited only by my patience. And I simply did not have enough of it.

So, I began searching for a magic pill. For what purpose? Well, for starters, for muscle mass growth. Here I suffered a crushing failure. I didn’t want to take truly magical pills (steroids) due to concerns about my endocrine system, and testosterone boosters and oral peptides yielded practically no results on their own. At that time, I had only a vague idea of what a bulking meal plan was and, for some reason, didn't really believe in it. It's amusing to think about now. Ultimately, the issue with muscle mass was resolved with the arrival of a wonderful trainer in my life who convinced and helped me get on the right path.

Lipo6 by Nutrex

After reaching 120 kg, not only from fat, and correctly moving towards "cutting," the question of magic pills arose with renewed strength. But now in what seemed to me a simpler variant: fat burning. Why simpler? Because any sports nutrition store has a section or display dedicated to them—fat burners. My trainer never particularly supported my desire to accelerate this process and strongly advised against taking anything extra. But I thought I was "the smartest."

The first one I chose was Lipo 6. A thermogenic. I started taking it. After about a week and a half (or so), I had to stop. Not only the intake of the supplement but also my workouts. I felt very much like I was experiencing a hypertensive crisis. Moreover, while using Lipo 6, I did not see any significant fat loss results.

Ephedrine

After stepping away from Lipo, I decided to pause the search for a while and just train. However, under "cutting" conditions and with significant carbohydrate restrictions, I was catastrophically lacking energy. After diving back into YouTube, I learned about ephedrine. Incidentally, the first thing I found out about it is that it is banned. You can't buy it. In its pure form. Only in the form of cough syrup. But what about fat burners from sports stores? It turned out they use extract of ephedra. It’s about 10 times weaker than ephedrine and probably that much less effective. I decided to give it a try.

I managed to buy a bottle with a striking name "Yellow Demon," which contained 100 tablets, each with a whopping 150 mg of ephedra extract. Recall that during my first cutting phase, I did 40 minutes of cardio before strength training and 30 minutes after, four days a week. And another three days of 65 minutes without strength training. To say it was hard would be an understatement. After taking the first tablet, I realized that time had accelerated. Cardio flew by in a breeze. I felt neither hunger nor fatigue. An amazing effect.

Unfortunately, this didn't last long. About 10 days later, the effect significantly weakened. From there, I needed either to increase the dose or take a break. I took a break for reasons beyond my control. I caught my first-ever overtraining. I should note that in those 10 days, I lost 6-7 cm from my waist, and the result was impressive.

Overtraining is perhaps the most unpleasant thing that has happened to me in a long time. Dizziness, extreme weakness, tachycardia. It was a torturous state. And, of course, there was a break from training. After resting for a week, I realized a simple truth (not a new one, by the way): nothing comes for free. To be able to do cardio effectively for a long time comes at the cost of a week’s downtime.

Methyldrine

After working out for a week without any stimulants, I became quite tired and decided I needed a new plan. The plan was simple: put aside 150 mg tablets for a while and take something with a lower content of ephedra. Thus, Methyldrine from Cloma Pharma came into play. It contained a modest 25 mg of extract. Remembering my previous experience, I started taking half a scoop. Well, there's really nothing more to say about it. It's a decent pre-workout with fat-burning effects. It allowed (and still allows) me to do a large volume of cardio while consuming relatively few carbohydrates. The effect is soft and smooth. It helped me finish cutting during my last bulking/cutting cycle.

Guarana and L-Carnitine

I unjustly overlooked two other pre-workout / fat burners that I used quite actively. These are guarana and L-carnitine. Guarana acts in much the same way as caffeine. It helps to rev up and maintain your heart rate. This can be a problem because, during prolonged, monotonous cardio sessions, the body gets used to it, and your heart rate refuses to stay in the fat-burning zone. I didn't feel the mental clarity that is clearly associated with ephedra extract. There was also no significant fat loss effect. L-carnitine is the old, reliable, but often criticized fat burner. However, it does significantly improve endurance and sweating. I included it as an additional component to Methyldrine.

Overall, my search for the magic pill can be considered a failure since I didn't find it. At that time, I didn't come close to finding anything resembling it. Any fat burner puts a strain on the body to some extent. You need to be prepared for that. The consequences can vary and are not always good. In fact, they are mostly unfavorable. The only thing that truly burns fat effectively is ephedra extract, but it comes with a lot of unpleasant side effects. Ultimately, it's better to work within your body's natural capabilities. However, there are a few ways to expand those capabilities. This will be discussed below.

Well, we have reached the most interesting part. The present time. Remind you—I have already completed 2 years of intense training. I am quite strong and fairly endurance. For example, at a weight of 106 kg, I ran 10 km in 56 minutes (on a treadmill). I bench press 145 kg, squat 230 kg, and deadlift 150 kg. I share this not to brag but to illustrate that to tackle the next set of miraculous tablets, you need to be physically prepared. I'm currently in the second cycle of bulking/cutting, specifically my second cut.

Starting to cut for the second time was both interesting and simultaneously unpleasant because I had a good understanding of what awaited me. Once again, precisely because I knew what awaited me, I decided to approach the cut from a more professional perspective. I am not a bodybuilding professional and, of course, never will be, but I find it interesting to use their methods.

Clenbuterol

What is the bread and butter of real bodybuilding during a cut? Of course, it’s clenbuterol. Let's skip the methods of obtaining it; that is outside the scope of this publication. There’s no point in describing the dosing regimens either (you can find all that on relevant resources). I will say one thing—it works. And it works very well! As a fantastic fat burner, it also acts as an excellent anti-catabolic. That is to say, it allows you to lose fat while maximally preserving muscle mass. All side effects are well documented and known. I only experienced a slight tremor and increased heart rate (and that passed around day 4 of taking it). Well, if you are an experienced athlete who understands your body well, then… you probably already know all about it.

Thyroxine

The next supplement is much more controversial than clenbuterol. A little aside here. Hormones T3 and T4, or thyroid hormones, are extremely effective for fat burning. So, we will talk about increasing their levels, specifically about thyroxine.

Thyroxine (T4) is a hormone produced by the thyroid gland. One could consider T4 a prohormone, which transforms into the main hormone T3 within tissues. A precise description of these hormones' actions can be found online. From my experience, this truly works. Just like clenbuterol, it genuinely works. But naturally, it comes with a set of side effects. Before using it, if you decide to go that route, you should be aware of them. Again, everything is well-documented online. I didn't experience any side effects myself. The fat-burning effect, however, is simply excellent.

Once again, I want to emphasize that nothing comes for free. Everything comes with a price.