The Basics of Fat Burning Supplements
Fat burning supplements are a great way to safely accelerate the weight loss process. There are a number of good products on the market which approach the fat loss process from different pathways. We broke them down in simple terms below to help you pick the best option to support your fat loss efforts.

Lipotropics
Theoretically, lipotropics don’t burn fat. But what they can do is motivate your liver to expedite the flow of bile and fat from the gall bladder while reducing the amount of fat deposited. So rather than being stored as simple sugars, fat can be used to produce readily available energy. Lipotropics include products like BioRhythm Olio, MSI Liposlim and Intek CLA/ L-Carnitine.

Starch Inhibitors
Some of the most popular starch inhibitors are standardized bean extracts from Phaseolus vulgaris. They work by inhibiting the activity of alpha amylase, the digestive enzyme in charge of shuttling the hundreds of complex carbohydrates from your super-sized #3 to your stomach, legs and rear.

Starch inhibitors prevent carbs from being utilized by normal metabolic processes, allowing them to be swept away to toilet heaven.

Solid products in this category include Irwin Naturals 3 in 1 Carb Blocker and BSN Cheaters.

Thermogenics
By definition, thermogenic translates to “creating heat”. And where there’s heat, there’s hope. They work by stimulating and speeding up the bodies metabolic processes. This ultimately affects how many calories the body is able to use in the production of energy. Thermogenic formulas usually contain supplements such as7oxo DHEA, Bitter Orange, Guarana, Geranium extract and a long list of others.

Among the best thermogenics are Intek Thermogenic, MSI Diet Revolution, and BioRhythm Adrenalean.

Cortisol Suppressors
Judging by today’s high stress, road rage-centric way of life, it’s a miracle that we all don’t weigh in somewhere above the 300 lb range. When you get stressed, be it from exercise, bar brawls or being chased by your boss with a machete, your body releases a stress-induced catabolic hormone called cortisol. Not only does it have an influence on how much fat you store, it can also leave you depressed, sluggish and unmotivated. Supplements such as phosphatidyl serine help balance how much cortisol your body releases after stressful situation.

To reduce cortisol and keep your body from storing fat try NOW Foods phosphatidyl serine, BioRhythm Relax and Chill or BioRhythm Synthrolean.

Essential Fatty Acids
We haven’t become such a grossly obese nation because we’re eating too much fat. It’s because we’re not eating enough. At least, not enough good fat. Yes, there is such a thing as good fat. And without it, your body becomes prone to storing the overwhelming amounts of saturated fats you scarf down on a daily basis. Mono and polyunsaturated fats (especially the essential fatty acids Omega-3 and -6) actually make it possible for your body to utilize the total fat from your diet more effectively, provided that you’re getting them in balance.

For fat loss purposes try BioRhythm Olio, or MSI Liposlim both of which use the ideal blend of EFA’s with CLA and other potent ingredients for mobilizing stubborn body fat.

Appetite Suppressants
Do you have an appetite that just won’t stop? If so, it’s more than likely you’re struggling to have success with weight loss since you can’t stop eating! Many people deal with this issue, not only because of a high physiological hunger, but also because of psychological factors at work with our appetite. Ever walk through the food court in the mall and find yourself feeling slightly hungry? Odd how you were not hungry beforehand.

Appetite suppressants typically have some level of stimulants in them so make sure you understand your tolerance to stimulants before choosing a product. Some of the best in this group are MSI Diet Revolution, Rocket Fuel, and Intek Fat Burner Evolution.

Thyroid Regulating Fat Burners:
For other individuals, their thyroid may not be producing enough of the hormones to keep their metabolism working at an effective rate. When this happens, a slowed metabolism results, often accompanied by a weight gain, feelings of fatigue, and feeling cold all the time. Thyroid regulating fat burners serve to fix this issue by supplying the two main substances that the thyroid would normally produce, guggulsterone and forskolin. They also often contain a combination of other ingredients that help to increase the metabolic rate and keep the thyroid working effectively.

Best in class products for optimizing thyroid performance include BioRhythm Synthrolean, Tri Pharm Incinerate, and Ultra Lean FX from BioRhythm.

What is cleansing?
The body is capable of self-cleansing but modern lifestyles can overwhelm it with toxins causing weight gain, cellulite, and all forms of skin problems to appear. People who understand cleansing, eat nutritious food and periodically use a Detox product which makes cleansing easy. Think of it like sweeping a floor. Detox gently sweeps the digestive tract helping to eliminate any unwanted buildup or toxins that have accumulated in the body.How often should I Detox?
It varies with the individual. People with specific weight loss goals generally do 3 or 4 days per week or every other week until they achieve their goal. Those who wish to maintain, or gradually improve, their weight or overall health, generally decide on a pattern: several days a week, 7 to 10 days a month, etc.

What is in Detox and Cleanse?
Detox and Cleanse is a blend of 12 herbs, which is consumed in a capsule form. It is designed to help the body cleanse itself by supporting the liver, kidneys and colon.

What is the connection between Detox and Cleanse and weight loss?
Detox and Cleanse makes cleansing easy-you feel neither hunger nor discomfort.
The extended period without hunger or cravings breaks bad eating habits.
In other words, Detox aids in short-term weight loss through cleansing, and long-term weight loss because we no longer desire the foods which caused weight gain in the first place.

Supplementation of BCAAs has been shown to trigger significant and preferential losses of visceral body fat. Located in the deeper layers of the body under the subcutaneous fat, this visceral fat tends to be resistant to dieting and is hard to lose. In one study, 25 competitive wrestlers were divided into 1 of 3 diet groups: a diet high in BCAAs, a diet low in BCAAs, and a control diet. The wrestlers stayed on the diets for 19 days. The results showed that the high BCAA group lost the most body fat, 17.3% on average. Much of the fat lost was in the abdominal region. This may give credence to BCAAs effectiveness at “spot reducing” the abs. In another study 2 groups of climbers were divided into a BCAA supplemented group and a control group. Both groups lost weight but the BCAA group actually gained muscle mass while losing fat and the other group lost muscle mass. One theory as to how BCAAs exert their substantial fat burning and muscle building effect is this: When present in high amounts during exercise, the body senses high levels of BCAA in the bloodstream which is typically a sign of excessive muscle breakdown. So the body stops muscle breakdown and uses more fat for fuel. At the same time the extra BCAAs in the blood stimulate insulin so the BCAAs are driven directly to the muscle. So the result is people lose body fat and gain muscle at the same time. In order to benefit the most from the fat loss aspect of BCAAs you should make sure you limit carbohydrate consumption during the 2 hour window before your workout.

If you’ve never heard of mTOR (and even if you have), listen up as this is one of the most under-rated anabolic pathways to increase protein synthesis. And chances are you’re not even coming close to maximizing its enormous potential. mTOR (Mammalian Target of Rapamycin) is a large proline-directed serine-threonine protein kinase that’s responsible for a wide range of physiologic and metabolic functions in several cell types, including both fat cells and muscle cells. Among its many roles, mTOR is responsible for hypertrophic growth (an increase in muscle cell size), protein synthesis and tissue morphogenesis.

A wide range of data have suggested that amino acids are capable of directly regulating mTOR signaling pathways in skeletal muscle including the possibility that they activate some of the cell signaling elements upstream from mTOR in the insulin/growth factor signaling pathway. Of the amino acids which can have this effect BCAA’s are the most effective with L-Leucine being at the top of the list. In practical terms taking in BCAA’s before or during a workout can speed recovery and build muscle.

The name of the game in pre-workout products seems to be stimulants and more of them. But can too much be a bad thing? This depends on the person and you need to monitor how you feel both during your workouts as well as throughout the day. If you are feeling chronically tired, having mood swings, or a reduction in sex drive you may want to consider adjusting the dose of stimulants you are consuming. The main culprit for the negative effects is geranium extract which is listed in many products as 1,3-dimethylamylamine. Don’t misunderstand me; I am not saying this ingredient doesn’t work or that it doesn’t have its place. I have personally had some great workouts while using it. I am just trying to make the end user aware of some of the potential negative effects which may be experienced by some people. If you have experiencing any of these problems we recommend taking 2-3 days off and getting some extra sleep and then starting back up with a pre-workout that is using caffeine rather then geranium (1,3-dimethylamylamine). Also keep in mind that because these products are allowing you to train harder you may need more days off and possibly extra sleep to recover. It only makes sense that if you are taxing your body to a greater extent that recovery becomes that much more important. You should also be taking a good post workout recovery product like AfterGlow.

Proteins provide the body critical amino acids that serve as building blocks for the formation of new muscle. But not all dietary proteins are equal. The major proteins in milk are casein and whey. These two milk proteins are both excellent sources of all the essential amino acids, but they differ in one important aspect-whey is a fast-digesting protein and casein is a slow-digesting protein.

Whey stimulates protein synthesis
Fast-digesting whey means it is emptied from the stomach quickly, resulting in a rapid and large increase in plasma amino acids. This translates into a quick but transient increase in protein synthesis, while protein breakdown is not affected. Whey also has higher levels of leucine, a potent amino acid that stimulates protein synthesis. Whey protein is superior at augmenting protein synthesis rapidly, but this positive effect is short-lived. Consuming repeated doses of whey allows for sustained high levels of blood amino acids and repeated bursts of protein synthesis that provide superior effects on muscle protein balance.

Casein offers a positive protein balance
Casein is the most abundant protein in milk. It is relatively insoluble and tends to form structures called micelles that increase solubility in water. During the processing of milk, which usually involves heat or acid, the casein peptides and micelle structure become disturbed or denatured to form simpler structures. As a result, a gelatinous material is formed. This is the basis for why casein has a slower rate of digestion, and results in a slow but steady release of amino acids into circulation.

In one study, researchers gave healthy subjects 30 grams of either whey protein or casein protein and made several measures of the anabolic and catabolic effect for 7 hours after the meal. Whey protein resulted in a rapid increase in blood amino acids and protein synthesis, but it was short-lived. Casein, on the other hand, resulted in a prolonged increase in blood amino acids that resulted in a 34% reduction in protein breakdown. The net protein balance remained more positive after intake of casein protein over a 7-hour period. The superior long-lasting effect of casein was attributed to a delayed gastric emptying and slower absorption rate from the gastrointestinal tract to the blood.

Whey and casein are better together
Since whey rapidly increases protein synthesis and casein blocks protein breakdown, a combination of both would be ideal.

A recent study compared the effects of supplementing with either a combination whey and casein protein versus carbohydrate on several markers of muscle anabolism during strength training. Untrained men participated in a 10-week resistance training program and either supplemented with 40 grams of carbohydrate or 40 grams of protein containing a mixture of whey and casein. Half of the supplements were consumed one hour before and then immediately after exercise on workout days. The results were overwhelmingly positive for the combination protein group. Despite similar background diets and identical training programs, supplementation with protein resulted in greater increases in several measures of muscle anabolism, including greater increases in lean muscle mass, thigh muscle mass, muscle strength, anabolic hormones and muscle specific proteins.

In a similar study that lasted 14 weeks, untrained men performed resistance training and received either 25 grams of carbohydrate or 25 grams of a combination whey and casein protein one hour before and immediately after exercise. The combination protein group had significantly greater increases in muscle fiber size compared to the carbohydrate group. These studies provide strong evidence that a combination protein consumed before and after workouts increases muscle size.

Renowned muscle researcher Dr. Bill Kraemer has published a handful of excellent studies showing that the acetylated form of L-Carnitine increases androgen receptor content following whole-body resistance training workouts.

Kraemer showed that 21 days of supplementation with acetyl-L-carnitine led to a significant increase in the androgen-receptor content of the vastus lateralis muscle in the thigh. (The vastus lateralis is the traditional spot from which to take muscle biopsies and if the number of androgen receptors increased there, they increased in all muscles.)

Additionally, Kraemer noted that the athletes’ blood levels of Testosterone plummeted after a workout. While that initially sounds like a bad thing, it’s not. Instead, it shows that something good happened.

Since the “roads” (blood vessels) had less Testosterone flowing through them, it meant that Testosterone had pulled off the road and “parked” in the new Testosterone receptors found on the acetyl-L-carnitine user’s muscle.

Since there were more parking spots for Testosterone to park, it leads to more protein synthesis, which literally means more muscle.

Furthermore, the temporarily low level of free Testosterone in the blood stream tells the brain (the pituitary-gonadal axis), through negative feedback, that it needs to start producing even more Testosterone.

Look for Acetyl-L-Carnitine in ANS TNT.

Taking protein before working out has become more popular as it has been shown to increase protein synthesis which has been assumed will lead to increases in strength and muscle gains.  The research on this is mixed in that it does show some increase in protein synthesis but that has not equated to long term gains in lean muscle or strength.

I am not a big fan of protein pre-workout due to the water costs of digesting protein.  It takes a considerable amount of water to digest protein and research has shown that increases in protein can lead to dehydration.  Even very mild dehydration can lead to significant decreases in athletic performance.  You can very easily negate any increases in protein synthesis by losses in performance due to mild dehydration.

Any easy solution is to consume a BCAA product like Intek’s BCAA Evolution prior to your workout rather than a whole protein.  A BCAA product will provide the benefits you would get if you consumed a whole protein (increase in protein synthesis) but will not lead to dehydration and loss of performance.

A Pre-Workout for Enhanced Performance

Powerful results can be achieved with proper pre-workout performance enhancement. That’s why Muscle Sport Mass Revolution is designed to promote muscular pumps that lead to gains in performance.  It’s designed to increase your time to exhaustion and support the oxygen needs of your muscles.  Mass Revolution provides support to absorb, force, and squeeze more oxygen, more glycogen, more electrolytes, more carnosine, more nitrogen, more muscle building nutrients, and more creatine, into the muscle cell.

The Hollow Pump

Every day athletes take pre-workout formulas and other nitric oxide containing supplements in an effort to achieve better pumps during their strength training workouts. Since the achievement of a pump is thought to coincide with the conditions required to stimulate muscle hypertrophy, these products are expected to enhance the gains in muscle mass and performance normally expected from working out.  At first glance, these supplements appear to succeed: Following consumption they often cause your muscles to volumize or swell to a greater extent as you proceed from one set to the next. Some products manage to produce this effect within as little as 30-60 minutes of the first serving. But all too often a closer examination reveals that something is missing as pre-workout users frequently report experiencing little or no increases in muscle size or strength after days, weeks or even months of consuming them. It’s as if any additional pump produced by these products is not a real pump, but rather a hollow pump lacking any real muscle building results or performance enhancement.

The Reason

It’s called the “Hollow Pump”, and many theories have been proposed to explain it. Perhaps the most popular among them is the idea that certain ingredients common to pre-training and other nitric oxide-containing formulas, including certain forms of creatine, cause water to be retained not only inside muscle cells (i.e. in the intracellular space, where it can promote anabolism), but also within the space between cells (i.e. the extracellular space). This presents a problem, since an excess of water and sodium retention in the extracellular space is associated with an anti-anabolic state, muscle atrophy and a loss of muscle definition and hardness -all of which is the very opposite of what an athlete needs and wants.

The other major problem with most pre-workouts is that they are loaded with stimulants like caffeine and geranium and not much else.  Take the popular Jack3D which based off of its proprietary blend has a gram or less of each of its active ingredients.  So the only ingredients that are in effective doses are stimulants.  You have a situation where companies are putting doses of the active muscle building ingredients like creatine, arginine, beta alanine, etc. in doses too small to be effective.

The Pre-Workout Solution

The solution is simple but most companies won’t do it because it is much cheaper to load a product with stimulants rather than with the more expensive muscle building ingredients.

Mass Revolution is not the strongest product for producing a stimulant effect but it just may be the most effective performance pre-workout on the market.  If you are looking for strength, size and improved athletic performance this is the product for you.

The reason Mass Revolution is so effective is very simple all you have to do is look at the label and you will find significant doses of each of the active muscle building ingredients.  You get five grams of creatine, six of arginine, two of beta alanine, two of GPLC, one of Agmatine and the list goes on.  Notice again how each of these doses are the effective doses of real strength building ingredients.<–>

Building muscle requires that you feed your body properly.  Proper training stimulus and proper nutrition will ensure you maximize strength and muscle building.  Below is a simple nutritional strategy that can help add muscle while minimizing any gains in body fat.

This mixture should be consumed 1-3 times per day

Optimum Health Mass 600 1 ½ scoops

Mixed with ¾ scoop of Intek Evolution protein

Consume 4 times per day

1 BioRhythm Olio or Intek CLA

Consume once per day

½ scoop of ANS Diesel Fuel creatine

In determining how many times per day to consume the Mass 600 and Protein mixture you should take into consideration your goals and your body type.  If you are a person who gains weight easily consume fewer servings.  If you are more of a “hard gainer” than you will need to consume more servings to see results.

This protocol is designed to produce gradual consistent gains in lean mass without causing gains in body fat.