Thermogenic preparations
Fat is the number one enemy not only for the bodybuilder, but also for any person. Accumulation of fat on the sides and butt is associated with a huge number of diseases. It is known that obesity provokes the development of atherosclerosis, heart disease, diabetes.
That’s why in the world spend a lot of money to find new fat-burning drugs, and store shelves are filled with a variety of bottles and cans, designed in a record time (and record prices) to give you a stunning slim figure. Unfortunately, without thinking it over you run the risk of, at best, emptying your wallet and achieving nothing, and, at worst, of seriously damaging your health.
Principles of Building Thermogenic Blends
In order to successfully attack fat deposits, it is necessary to have a fairly versatile impact on the mechanisms of fat accumulation and expenditure. Synergy is often used: combining active ingredients so that the overall effect of the mixed product exceeds the sum of the effects of the individual components. The combination of ephedrine and caffeine (20 and 100 mg per dose, respectively) mutually enhances the effects of these substances. It is also known that the addition of aspirin (1 tablet) further prolongs the effect of this “explosive mixture”.
The vast majority of the thermogenics tested are based on this exact combination, with some differences in composition. Hydroxylimonic acid is included in various weight loss products (such as Hydroxycut) along with ephedrine and caffeine. These preparations are very effective, but not cheap. Since the IOC and most sports federations have listed ephedrine and caffeine as banned drugs, preparations that do not contain these compounds have recently emerged. These drugs are commonly advertised as “the new word in the fight against fat.
Nevertheless, their effectiveness is questionable. Supplements prefer to use natural sources of active ingredients. For example, caffeine is present in the form of guarana or kola nut extract, hydroxylimonic acid – garcinia extract, ephedrine – ephedra extract. In addition to the main component, they contain various biologically active substances, especially flavonoids.
Some of these substances enhance the effect of the drug and alleviate the side effects. The composition of thermogenic blends include other components – methionine (mild hepatotropic agent), vitamins and betaine.
Recommendations for choosing and using thermogenic mixtures
First of all, determine your goals. Estimate how much fat you want to lose and in what time frame you want to do it. A realistic fat loss rate is no more than 1 kg per week, otherwise you may have health problems. Make a diet plan. Then look through the catalogs of dietary supplements, reading the composition carefully, and find the most suitable product.
In most cases, a combination of ephedrine and caffeine is optimal. Dosages are 20-30 mg of ephedrine + 100-200 mg of caffeine 2-3 times a day, morning and afternoon (in the evening after 5 o’clock is not necessary, so as not to disturb sleep). Preparations with large doses of the active ingredient are appropriate only in particularly difficult cases. To speed up the process, especially if you need to remove the last, particularly “stubborn” hundreds of grams, a compound of ephedrine-copheline-hydroxylimonic acid, such as Hydroxycut, works well. Sometimes you can double or even triple the dose, but you shouldn’t do it all the time. There may be side effects (dry mouth, hand tremors), which usually go away within a month.
If you have any heart disease, especially mitral valve prolapse (this condition occurs in more than 10% of the population), ephedrine is contraindicated. In this case, you should also avoid taking preparations with large amounts of caffeine. The best choices are carnitine and hydroxylimonic acid.
You should not take such drugs for longer than 1-2 months in a row. Very often an intermittent regimen of taking the drug is optimal: take it every other day, every other day, or every other day. You can also try burners based on components such as carnitine. However, don’t expect them to have a strong enough effect. They are more suitable for maintaining body composition.
And most importantly, do not use untested, although heavily advertised mixes, especially those containing unknown components. For example, now advertised “Thai pills” contain highly potent substances that can lead to heart and brain diseases. Thermogenic mixtures can also be used as energy supplements during intensive power trainings (first of all, speed and power trainings and also high intensity aerobics).
In this case they are taken 10 to 20 minutes before the workout. In general, by using these products correctly, you can not only get rid of the annoying fat, but also significantly improve your performance. Carefully follow the above recommendations, and the result is assured
