buildleanmuscle
10-13-2003, 04:12 PM
The Truth About Fat Burners
Okay, pay very close attention to this one because I think it's one of the biggest reasons people give up on their fat loss goals.
A fat burner is not the key to your fat loss.
Reread that sentence as many times as it takes to make it sink in.
Okay, now I'll explain. Too many people have been sucked in by the wonderful marketing job these companies have done. They've led you to believe that all you nee to do is pop a few pills a few times a day and watch the fat melt away. Believe me, I know. I get numerous emails from people who don't want to start any program until they have their trusty fat burner.
Ah, if it were only that simple. Unfortunately, it is not.
Let's start with the basics. A pound of fat contains 3,500 calories. So in order to burn off one pound of fat, you must create a calorie deficit of 3,500 pounds through a combination of exercise and nutrition.
Now, the vast majority of people have a metabolic rate that burns approximately 2,000 to 2,800 calories a day. Some, not so much, and others more, but the majority fall into that category. Keep in mind, I am talking about calories burned for the whole day, not just your resting metabolic rate, which is lower.
Studies have shown that restricting calories too much (1,500 per day and lower) will lead to loss of muscle (which slows down your metabolism), bodyfat storage (due to the starvation mechanism kicking in), and a lower resting metabolism, which just compounds the problem, leading to a downward spiral and the inevitable rebound effect, where you gain back all the weight you lost and more.
What does this mean? It means that through nutrition alone, you most likely won't be able to creat a caloric deficit of more than 500 calories a day, which equates to a pound of fat loss per week. You may be able to burn off another pound of fat per week through exercise.
Most fat burners (the one's that work) may boost your metabolism by 5 - 10%. Let's be generous and say 10%. Let's say your resting metabolic rate is 2,000 calories a day (which would be a high resting metabolic rate). In addition, you eat the same number of calories that you burn each day.
You will burn an additional 200 calories a day by taking the fat burner. That means you will lose a pound of fat every 17 1/2 days or less than 2 pounds a month. In other words, you are probably better off spending that money on good nutritional products like protein powder and meal replacements.
Keep in mind, that's actually significant progress. Almost 2 pounds a month, is almost 24 pounds in a year's time. What I am pointing out, is that the fat burner is not they key to your fat loss and if the other components of your program aren't in place (training and nutrition), the fat burner will not work on it's own.
As an example, a study done a few years ago, showed a fat burner that increased the resting metabolic rate by 4.1%. This is actually a good number. However, the resting metabolic rate of the participants was 1,399 so it increased that number to 1,451, or 52 calories a day.
At that rate, every 69 days, you'd lose a pound of fat from the fat burner. That's, of course, if you were not eating too much. Let's say you were burning off exactly what you ate. You then added the fat burner, but also added a large apple to your daily nutrition plan. You'd completely negate the positive effects of the fat burner.
Do the high quality fat burners work? Absolutely. Are they the key to fat loss? Not by a long shot. They can help jumpstart a sluggish metabolism, they can help you shed those last few stubborn pounds, but they are no miracle cure.
When combined with a well formulated weight training, cardio, and nutrition plan, a fat burner can help you get results.
However, you must work out with weights, develop a good nutrition plan, and combine them so that you are burning more calories each day than you are taking in, and you will lose weight.
Check out my articles at http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/greg.htm
Okay, pay very close attention to this one because I think it's one of the biggest reasons people give up on their fat loss goals.
A fat burner is not the key to your fat loss.
Reread that sentence as many times as it takes to make it sink in.
Okay, now I'll explain. Too many people have been sucked in by the wonderful marketing job these companies have done. They've led you to believe that all you nee to do is pop a few pills a few times a day and watch the fat melt away. Believe me, I know. I get numerous emails from people who don't want to start any program until they have their trusty fat burner.
Ah, if it were only that simple. Unfortunately, it is not.
Let's start with the basics. A pound of fat contains 3,500 calories. So in order to burn off one pound of fat, you must create a calorie deficit of 3,500 pounds through a combination of exercise and nutrition.
Now, the vast majority of people have a metabolic rate that burns approximately 2,000 to 2,800 calories a day. Some, not so much, and others more, but the majority fall into that category. Keep in mind, I am talking about calories burned for the whole day, not just your resting metabolic rate, which is lower.
Studies have shown that restricting calories too much (1,500 per day and lower) will lead to loss of muscle (which slows down your metabolism), bodyfat storage (due to the starvation mechanism kicking in), and a lower resting metabolism, which just compounds the problem, leading to a downward spiral and the inevitable rebound effect, where you gain back all the weight you lost and more.
What does this mean? It means that through nutrition alone, you most likely won't be able to creat a caloric deficit of more than 500 calories a day, which equates to a pound of fat loss per week. You may be able to burn off another pound of fat per week through exercise.
Most fat burners (the one's that work) may boost your metabolism by 5 - 10%. Let's be generous and say 10%. Let's say your resting metabolic rate is 2,000 calories a day (which would be a high resting metabolic rate). In addition, you eat the same number of calories that you burn each day.
You will burn an additional 200 calories a day by taking the fat burner. That means you will lose a pound of fat every 17 1/2 days or less than 2 pounds a month. In other words, you are probably better off spending that money on good nutritional products like protein powder and meal replacements.
Keep in mind, that's actually significant progress. Almost 2 pounds a month, is almost 24 pounds in a year's time. What I am pointing out, is that the fat burner is not they key to your fat loss and if the other components of your program aren't in place (training and nutrition), the fat burner will not work on it's own.
As an example, a study done a few years ago, showed a fat burner that increased the resting metabolic rate by 4.1%. This is actually a good number. However, the resting metabolic rate of the participants was 1,399 so it increased that number to 1,451, or 52 calories a day.
At that rate, every 69 days, you'd lose a pound of fat from the fat burner. That's, of course, if you were not eating too much. Let's say you were burning off exactly what you ate. You then added the fat burner, but also added a large apple to your daily nutrition plan. You'd completely negate the positive effects of the fat burner.
Do the high quality fat burners work? Absolutely. Are they the key to fat loss? Not by a long shot. They can help jumpstart a sluggish metabolism, they can help you shed those last few stubborn pounds, but they are no miracle cure.
When combined with a well formulated weight training, cardio, and nutrition plan, a fat burner can help you get results.
However, you must work out with weights, develop a good nutrition plan, and combine them so that you are burning more calories each day than you are taking in, and you will lose weight.
Check out my articles at http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/greg.htm