Caffeine - Weight loss supplements (and pepper extract)

[kdonnel]

I used to get headaches all the time, especially if I did not get the amount of caffeine I had become addicted to on the proper schedule. It has been over two years since I drank a caffeinated beverage and in that time I have had one headache that was very much sinus pressure related.

I did work out with a personal trainer for many years and he as a proponent of caffeine prior to workouts. After being virtually headache free for the last two years, it is not something I would do.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Thanks!
I usually have just a partial cup of coffee... My husband is a coffee drinker, he starts a pot.
Sadly, it doesn't look like I will be able to do this supplement for a while... (I would def. not do anything like this longer term!)

 

[morgan98]

Probably shouldn't take advice from me because I've been "off my wagon" for about a year now. But, I have found that as far as exercise goes "walks" do nothing to augment my weight loss when that is what I'm striving for. We've all heard that weight loss occurs in the kitchen, not in the gym (well at least 80% of it). I "walked" for years and never shed any weight whether I walked or not. Certainly walking is great for you. But I found if you wanted exercise to be part of weight loss versus just fitness, you have to ramp it up a bit. HIIT works well for this. For me, I ended up doing Couch to 5K and once I got into Week 3 of the program, the weight started really coming off (and this was being over 50 years old and in menopause). It was super hard for me because I am not a runner and I do have knee and foot issues, but I kept it at a really slow pace. Sometimes I actually could power walk faster than I ran; however, I read that the actually "motion" of running/jogging is more of a calorie burner. From my own experience, I found it to be true. Unfortunately, due to my foot issues I couldn't keep it up, but it was a good little experiment.

Besides eating well, I think if you could find a way to incorporate something a little more high intensity outside your walks (and it doesn't have to be for an hour), you might see those last few pounds move.

I agree with this. I know everyone is different, but I find walking to be good in terms of some activity is better than no activity. I tend to be a fast walker and move quickly anyway, so for a walk to really make a difference, I need to do more of a hike, 6-8 miles type of thing. I completely agree with HIIT. I do all sorts of treadmill running (since I exercise at 5:15am and am not going out alone at that hour) including interval training. I have also been watching various HIIT videos on YouTube and have taken to some of those exercises and movements as well. I also jump rump...different jumps, different intensities, different lengths of time.

However, weight training, in my experience is a true differentiator We have a very well equipped home gym and alternating weight training with cardio makes a huge difference and as I near 50 will say may be even more beneficial than intense cardio. It is good to change you muscle mass, as that impacts your metabolism as well.

All of this to say, diet does make a difference. I am not always as disciplined here as I should be, but overall I eat primarily lean proteins, lots of fruits and vegetables and almost no processed food. However, good workouts definitely help in the weight loss/weight maintenance for me.

And for the record, I love strong, black coffee. I have French press coffee at home in the morning before my workout while I read the news.

 

[amberpi]

Calories in vs. calories out. Even among healthy food not all are created equal. Look at how many blueberries for instance you can eat vs. 1 banana. Good luck and be healthy!

 

[DLgal]

Probably shouldn't take advice from me because I've been "off my wagon" for about a year now. But, I have found that as far as exercise goes "walks" do nothing to augment my weight loss when that is what I'm striving for. We've all heard that weight loss occurs in the kitchen, not in the gym (well at least 80% of it). I "walked" for years and never shed any weight whether I walked or not. Certainly walking is great for you. But I found if you wanted exercise to be part of weight loss versus just fitness, you have to ramp it up a bit. HIIT works well for this. For me, I ended up doing Couch to 5K and once I got into Week 3 of the program, the weight started really coming off (and this was being over 50 years old and in menopause). It was super hard for me because I am not a runner and I do have knee and foot issues, but I kept it at a really slow pace. Sometimes I actually could power walk faster than I ran; however, I read that the actually "motion" of running/jogging is more of a calorie burner. From my own experience, I found it to be true. Unfortunately, due to my foot issues I couldn't keep it up, but it was a good little experiment.

Besides eating well, I think if you could find a way to incorporate something a little more high intensity outside your walks (and it doesn't have to be for an hour), you might see those last few pounds move.

This is me also. I can walk at a very brisk pace (16 min mile) for 5 miles, every day, and the scale doesn't budge. If I don't do fairly intense cardio at least 5 times per week, my weight creeps slowly upwards over time. I often do the 5 mile walk AND a cardio workout on the same day. I am baffled how people can lose weight simply by walking. My only explanation is that they were completely sedentary prior to taking up walking.

Weight loss is, for me, 99% diet, 1% exercise. My biggest problem is how hungry exercise makes me. It's so tricky to get the balance right. I won't lose any weight if I just lower calories and stop exercising altogether (tried that). I won't lose if I keep eating whatever and JUST add exercise. I will lose weight if I do both, but it is VERY hard to not overeat because I feel hungry all the time when I do exercise

Caffeine is proven to improve workouts in 2 ways. It gives you more energy and increases your calorie burn (usually as a result of the energy burst it gives you making you increase the intensity). I drink a cup of half caffeinated coffee every morning and eat a square (1oz) of high quality dark chocolate before a workout. I like 70% cacao chocolate.

 

[ronandannette]

Exactly how those made me feel too. I took it for 3 days and instead of getting used to them, it was getting worse. It made my heart racing like crazy.

Even the healthy stuff may have bad side effects, read this:

Urgent liver transplant prompts green tea warning.

I believe you. I'm a regular coffee drinker and drink at least 6 cups a day with no ill-effects other than a withdrawal headache if I'm forced to go without. Only once ever have I tried a weight loss supplement and it was a popular national brand one based on green tea. Within a day I was convinced I was on the verge of a heart attack. I found the caffeine-like compounds in green tea to be way, way more stimulating than coffee. I'm extremely careful about even drinking the occasional cup now, much less taking a concentrated supplement.

 

[wenrob]

This is me also. I can walk at a very brisk pace (16 min mile) for 5 miles, every day, and the scale doesn't budge. If I don't do fairly intense cardio at least 5 times per week, my weight creeps slowly upwards over time. I often do the 5 mile walk AND a cardio workout on the same day. I am baffled how people can lose weight simply by walking. My only explanation is that they were completely sedentary prior to taking up walking.

Weight loss is, for me, 99% diet, 1% exercise. My biggest problem is how hungry exercise makes me. It's so tricky to get the balance right. I won't lose any weight if I just lower calories and stop exercising altogether (tried that). I won't lose if I keep eating whatever and JUST add exercise. I will lose weight if I do both, but it is VERY hard to not overeat because I feel hungry all the time when I do exercise

Caffeine is proven to improve workouts in 2 ways. It gives you more energy and increases your calorie burn (usually as a result of the energy burst it gives you making you increase the intensity). I drink a cup of half caffeinated coffee every morning and eat a square (1oz) of high quality dark chocolate before a workout. I like 70% cacao chocolate.

I walk to help maintain/eat more. I’d like to say I do it for my health but that’s a lie, I like chocolate.

I’ve been a FitBit user for years but at Christmas my DH gave me an Apple Watch. Because the AW determines exercise calories differently I realized I’d become very complacent with my walking pace without even realizing it. The FB gives you credit for exercise for *any* sustained movement over 10mins no matter the pace while the AW expects a certain heart rate and pace before it gives you credit. I was getting the same amount of steps/miles but I was no longer putting in a full effort without even realizing it. Add in your body becoming more efficient the fitter you are and you have to work harder and longer to get the same results.

When it comes to weight loss/maintenance my first order of business is portion control and if for some reason that’s not working I bust out the food scale because just like getting complacent with exercise “calorie creep” is a real thing. I (and most people) have a tendency to make portions bigger without realizing it over time.

In the end it’s just a numbers game no matter how you get there.

 

[wgeo]

I think we all tend to overestimate how much we exercise and underestimate how much we eat. For sure that was one of my issues. I got a hand me down Fitbit for Christmas and was incredibly surprised to see how few steps I was really taking a day. I consider myself to be a fit active person and I was barely doing 3 miles a day. Even now 3 months later, I'll sometimes be quite surprised after an afternoon of doing things to see how few steps I really took. But overall I've increased my steps to an average of 8-9 miles a day and it has made a huge difference.

And I started counting out serving sizes and paying much better attention to calories in. Made some daily changes like I stopped putting sugar on my cereal, and stopped having my crackers/cheese while I make dinner.

I had hoped to lose about 5 pounds and am at 15 pounds and counting since Christmas, so watching calories/ walking has very much worked for me.

I'm too scared to try the diet pills although they are very tempting. I think I just needed something to help keep me honest and it turns out the fitbit is doing a good job of that for me.

 

[John VN]

I walk to help maintain/eat more. I’d like to say I do it for my health but that’s a lie, I like chocolate.

I’ve been a FitBit user for years but at Christmas my DH gave me an Apple Watch. Because the AW determines exercise calories differently I realized I’d become very complacent with my walking pace without even realizing it. The FB gives you credit for exercise for *any* sustained movement over 10mins no matter the pace while the AW expects a certain heart rate and pace before it gives you credit. I was getting the same amount of steps/miles but I was no longer putting in a full effort without even realizing it. Add in your body becoming more efficient the fitter you are and you have to work harder and longer to get the same results.

When it comes to weight loss/maintenance my first order of business is portion control and if for some reason that’s not working I bust out the food scale because just like getting complacent with exercise “calorie creep” is a real thing. I (and most people) have a tendency to make portions bigger without realizing it over time.

In the end it’s just a numbers game no matter how you get there.

Good post. Quick fixes often see weight disappear but then return when "old habits" prevail. Just have to keep trying to find the routine that works, is OK to live with and be true to the continuation.

BTW --- Adding ground black pepper extends the digestive process allowing more nutrients to be absorbed.

 

[PollyannaMom]

it is VERY hard to not overeat because I feel hungry all the time when I do exercise

That's exactly what happens to my DH. And it's miserable to be hungry all the time! What works for him (when he gets really motivated) is:
- keeping snacks on hand that "fill the space" for fewer calories (like popcorn instead of ice cream) and
- eating more slowly.

 

[Cubbiecakes]

The only thing supplements are good for is creating expensive pee.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Hey!!!
You guys can 'discuss'... and that is good!
I would def. try this supplement again, short term, if I thought I could tolerate this, with the caffeine.
I did put a lot of consideration into all the ingredients, etc.

But, just for the record.
1. WALKING is GOOD for me.
I also do the old Leslie Sansone walking/excercise videos - which are lower impact. Can be very real workout!
When you are physically limited... and really, for most anybody, high impact exercise IS hard on the body, Walking is great.

2. the whole CICO thing is great, in theory, and does apply in most cases.
Not-so-much for those who have 'less than normal' bodies, conditions, metabolism, etc... (yes, this does exists)
Believe me... I eat way better, and way less, than the huge huge percentage of Americans.
Whenever possible I eat only natural healthy non / minimally processed foods.
I cook here at home.
I do limited portions. (rarely finish a 'whole' anything)

I am off to cook St Patrick's Day food.
Lots of fresh cabbage, carrots, onions, etc....
Been looking forward to this!!!!

 

[wenrob]

Hey!!!
You guys can 'discuss'... and that is good!
I would def. try this supplement again, short term, if I thought I could tolerate this, with the caffeine.
I did put a lot of consideration into all the ingredients, etc.

But, just for the record.
1. WALKING is GOOD for me.
I also do the old Leslie Sansone walking/excercise videos - which are lower impact. Can be very real workout!
When you are physically limited... and really, for most anybody, high impact exercise IS hard on the body, Walking is great.

2. the whole CICO thing is great, in theory, and does apply in most cases.
Not-so-much for those who have 'less than normal' bodies, conditions, metabolism, etc... (yes, this does exists)
Believe me... I eat way better, and way less, than the huge huge percentage of Americans.
Whenever possible I eat only natural healthy non / minimally processed foods.
I cook here at home.
I do limited portions. (rarely finish a 'whole' anything)

I am off to cook St Patrick's Day food.
Lots of fresh cabbage, carrots, onions, etc....
Been looking forward to this!!!!

Regardless of any condition you may have creating a calorie deficit is the ONLY way to lose actual weight. It’s science. It may be harder, it may take longer and you may need medication for your condition but the bottom line is that you have to take in less than you burn.

 

[Klayfish]

Regardless of any condition you may have creating a calorie deficit is the ONLY way to lose actual weight. It’s science. It may be harder, it may take longer and you may need medication for your condition but the bottom line is that you have to take in less than you burn.

Yep, in ALL cases calories in calories out applies. Kind of hard to argue with science. There are factors that make that equation more challenging for some, but it still applies.

Walking is absolutely a good thing, no doubt. Any physical activity is better than nothing. From a weight loss standpoint however, a 2 mile walk each day isn't going to have huge results.

 

[MrsPete]

When I focus on eating plenty of vegetables, my weight goes down.

 

[wenrob]

When I focus on eating plenty of vegetables, my weight goes down.

That makes sense since most veggies are low calorie.

 

[luvsJack]

Op, keep up the walking. I lost almost 90 lbs by watching what I eat and walking. That’s it.

I require each meal to be within a certain number of calories. If I go over, I take it from the next meal. Go out to eat? Just look for the lower calorie items and find something within my range. Same with fast food. I do not limit anything. Having cake? Small slice and eat less next meal.

Oh and drink only water.

Walking can help weight loss. It may not make it come off fast but that’s ok.

 

[North of Mouse]

But, just for the record.
1. WALKING is GOOD for me.
I also do the old Leslie Sansone walking/excercise videos - which are lower impact. Can be very real workout!
When you are physically limited... and really, for most anybody, high impact exercise IS hard on the body, Walking is great.

This is what I've done for years, love them, and works for me too! DH tried one once and couldn't believe the great workout - 'walking' exercise makes it sound easy, but the workouts are great! It takes a daily 'lifestyle' healthy eating routine (no diets for me) plus exercise to keep myself at proper weight.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Yes... I might have first heard about these videos from you, here on the DIS!!!
WALKING VIDEOS.... Sounds like a cop-out.... but you can really end up sweating!!!!
Walk and Kick(boxing) is one I like.
Some of her newer things are more high-impact and demanding.

I would def. have to overestimating walking/excercise right now!
I have been hoping and waiting for warmer weather so that I can get out.
But, most days that isn't happening, yet!
And I haven't had my Leslie Sansone videos out!
I have been feeling pretty bad, and limited.. Have had the stomach flu, and other things.
I am going to do that workout this evening for sure!

I do drink a lot of water. I don't always eat nuts and twigs.
While I do heat healthy, and limited... I do have an occasional hamburger, slice of pizza... So I don't claim to be a tee-totaler.
With my blood sugar, I do better with some proteins and fats. Can't just do veggies and carbs... I would do peanut butter on water-crackers over sweet fruit.... and those calories add up!!!!
When I am out on Saturdays or weekends, those are my cheat days.

Meds can also cause weight gain... That is real.
But, I don't think I am taking anything that would make that an issue.
Thyroid and metabolic issues are very real.
Chronic Fatigue and Fybro limit exercise activity, and that is very real.

 

[wenrob]

Yes... I might have first heard about these videos from you, here on the DIS!!!
WALKING VIDEOS.... Sounds like a cop-out.... but you can really end up sweating!!!!
Walk and Kick(boxing) is one I like.
Some of her newer things are more high-impact and demanding.

I would def. have to overestimating walking/excercise right now!
I have been hoping and waiting for warmer weather so that I can get out.
But, most days that isn't happening, yet!
And I haven't had my Leslie Sansone videos out!
I have been feeling pretty bad, and limited.. Have had the stomach flu, and other things.
I am going to do that workout this evening for sure!

I do drink a lot of water. I don't always eat nuts and twigs.
While I do heat healthy, and limited... I do have an occasional hamburger, slice of pizza... So I don't claim to be a tee-totaler.
With my blood sugar, I do better with some proteins and fats. Can't just do veggies and carbs... I would do peanut butter on water-crackers over sweet fruit.... and those calories add up!!!!
When I am out on Saturdays or weekends, those are my cheat days.

Meds can also cause weight gain... That is real.
But, I don't think I am taking anything that would make that an issue.
Thyroid and metabolic issues are very real.
Chronic Fatigue and Fybro limit exercise activity, and that is very real.

I don’t think anyone here has said those things aren’t real. They do make things harder. As a young adult it was easy enough for me to stop soda, skip dessert and drop ten pounds in a couple of weeks. Things didn’t hurt when I got up in the morning and I was ALWAYS on the move. Now I have to make a concentrated effort to get movement in my day. It takes damn hard work to lose and maintain. The point is, it CAN be done. The only thing holding you back is you. Accept your limitations, learn how to work around them and you will succeed.