It should come as no surprise to you that there are A LOT of junk products in this category. While this has always been the case we noticed that the number of bogus diet products increased substantially after the FDA's "on again / off again" ephedra ban.
The bottom line? Take the advice given by the US Federal Trade Commission (responsible for prosecuting those making false claims about products): Do not believe any claim that a diet pill will help you quickly lose dramatic amounts of unwanted fat without diet and/or exercise. Sure, some products with strong diuretic ingredients cause a decent amount of 'weight loss' without diet or exercise (at first) but it's only water loss - VERY temporary and NOT fat loss, which is kind of the KEY objective here, right? Don't waste your money or time on these products.
Here's what you need to know - yes, certain products contain ingredients that are very effective in helping with fat loss. But, some dieting and/or exercise is needed if you want the best results - as quickly as possible - and most permanently.
So, where do diet pills come in - how do they even help? Well, certain products contain active ingredients that will help you lose fat in three important, distinct ways:
- Certain products contain ingredients that will increase your metabolic rate - help you burn more calories - even at rest - to a meaningful degree. We estimate this to be up to 1/4-1/2 pound per week;
- Certain products contain ingredients that will give you more energy - making it easier to get that exercise done AND causing more calories to be burned during exercise;
- And certain products contain ingredients that will reduce/help control your appetite - a factor 70% of dieters cite as the #1 reason they failed in their dieting efforts.
BUT, keep in mind that a pound of fat has about 3,500 calories in it - no diet pill on earth (ephedrine, prescription, or otherwise) can increase your metabolic rate enough to cause you to lose even a pound of fat per week. So, while it's possible to lose a bit of fat with the right diet pills alone, the best results - the fastest and most permanent results - happen when you combine diet, exercise and certain supplements. There's a very real synergistic effect which can produce results that are significantly greater than the sum of each individual part.
In general, we estimate the results will be about double the results achieved with diet and/or exercise alone. In more specific terms, with the right diet product added to your nutrition and exercise plan, you should expect to consistently see about 1.5 lbs to 3 lbs/loss per week.
How much diet or exercise? Not much is required to see real results. You can cut back on your food intake (moderate dieting) or do some exercise (weights or cardio 2-3 times per week) - ideally both! By the way, both exercise and a bit of calorie restriction are much easier with the right diet product! So, wherever you're starting from, and assuming you're maintaining your current weight, shoot to create a calorie deficit of about 500/calories per day - again, not much. This is a comfortable reduction for most people. Keep in mind that one medium order of fries contains about 400 calories and 30 minutes of jogging will burn about 250 calories. You can find more information on calories in food here and more information on calories burned during exercise here.
Now, on to our recommendations!
► 1. Stimulant X: Made by Anabolic Xtreme, Stimulant X is best for those looking for an all-day energy booster - but it's still a good choice for fat loss as it does boost metabolic rate and assist with appetite control. If you've tried Stimulant X in the past please note that the manufacturer recently changed this product's formulation - we've gotten mixed feedback from those who have used the old formula and then tried this new version. Some find it less potent than the original (and take higher doses to get the same energy boosting and fat loss effects) while others believe this new formulation is stronger than the original. Because of this, we recommend you err on the side of caution and start with just one capsule per day to see how you respond.
Find out more about Stimulant-X...
