Supplement Question

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Leigh14
Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Is anyone taking any supplements from the GNC line, be? (ex: be-HOT, be-DEFINED, be-BUFF, etc.)

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  • ♥Faerie♥
    ♥Faerie♥ Posts: 14,053 Member
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    Not yet, but am very intrigued..... would love to know how they work???
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    The active ingredients in the 5-pill pack are: chloride, potassium, NAS, green tea, niacin, caffeine anhydrous, grape seed extract, alpha lipoic acid, capsicum fruit extract, bioperine, sertia, vitamin E, EPA, DHA, MCT, LA, oleic acid, and GLA. I just started taking them this morning. I was taking Rhodiola Rosea, but think I developed a tolerance to it after finishing my 100-pill bottle.
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    *bump* :flowerforyou:

    Okay ... lemme be a little more specific. I just started taking the be-HOT line today (the active ingredients in those pills are listed above - that isn't for the entire "be" line). Does anyone have any experience with any of those ingredients in any supplement? I'm most curious specifically about thermogenics.
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    Alright ... well, here's a review of day one. I took three of the pills with breakfast (gold, pink and red). Around noon, I had a cup and a half of coffee and felt fine. I took the other pink and red pills around 2 p.m. I didn't workout till 6 p.m. and by 7, I was completely drained. I really felt like I had no energy - and a bit of heartburn. My workout lasted till almost 8 p.m. It's 8:54 now and I am *so* ready for bed!

    I am going to try taking the entire pack of pills tomorrow around 4 p.m. before I go to the gym at 5. :flowerforyou:
  • dkcj4fox
    dkcj4fox Posts: 35
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    Have never tried those, but in my experience GNC supplements are usually overpriced or under dosed.


    For example....

    A good liquid Fish oil provides 800mg EPA and 500mg DHA in 1 tsp. ( I take 3 tsp /day)
    That GNC pack looks like it has 90mg EPA and 60mg DHA. You'd need about 9 of those pills just to = 1 tsp!!!

    Also, most studies I've read on CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid) for weight loss recommend 4-6 grams.
    That GNC pack looks like it has 250mg, so you need 4 pills just for 1 gram. 16 pills for the 4 grams.


    But at least the 200mg of caffeine looks good for 1 day.
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    Wow, really? Thanks for the reply!! Other than the dosage issue, does the combination of ingredients look good to you?
  • dkcj4fox
    dkcj4fox Posts: 35
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    They look ok, but I think you'd be better with:

    1. A good multi-vit

    2. Fish Oil

    3. A Green Tea Extract OR just plain caffeine tabs ( if you really think you need the extra caffeine for energy- they are cheap)

    4. The CLA can be found in 1000mg caps, but again 4 caps a day can get expensive and results take 4-6 weeks.
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    They look ok, but I think you'd be better with:

    1. A good multi-vit

    2. Fish Oil

    3. A Green Tea Extract OR just plain caffeine tabs ( if you really think you need the extra caffeine for energy- they are cheap)

    4. The CLA can be found in 1000mg caps, but again 4 caps a day can get expensive and results take 4-6 weeks.

    I thought I replied to this last night, my I don't see my post! Ah well. :smile: Just wanted to thank you again for the advice. I think I am going to finish the box that I bought (it's a 30-day supply), assess how I feel, then move on and possibly try something else. I'm not one of those "magic pill" people, never have been. But, I am interested in how these supplements will be affecting my body. I've been researching the heck out of them.

    It's a little after 2 p.m. right now and I've got 2 hours before I take the pill pack and 3 hours before I workout.
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    Update: I took the pills on Friday, but felt SO tired I didn't even work out. Instead, I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned at home. But, then I had a headache.

    On Saturday, I took the pills all at once in the morning. I did lots of dishes, laundry and got a really long application filled out online. Then, I crashed. My eyes started burning and I had to take a nap. But, one thing I did notice ... my appetite was not nearly as crazy as it usually is on Saturdays.

    On Sunday, today, I didn't take any of the pills. I thought back to Saturday and Friday and the difference between when I took those pills and how they made me feel. I realized that on Friday I had two cups of coffee and on Saturday, I had none. All together, I had a better reaction on Saturday than on Friday, even with the crash (it happened probably six hours after I took them). So, tomorrow I am going to try having no caffeine and taking the pills later in the day again.
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    Just wanted to post an update in case anyone was wondering about these supplements. :flowerforyou:

    I've been taking them consistently and no longer feel the "crash" that I was feeling. It does feel a lot like I've had a cup or two of coffee not very long after I've taken them, though, so I've been taking them in the a.m. and reserving my ritual coffee for the afternoon before my workout. Mostly because I eat yogurt in the morning and find it easier to put all my pills (including a multi, calcium and allergy med) into my yogurt than to take them with water. :smile:

    I've noticed my appetite has declined, mostly up until 3 or 4 p.m. Whether this is a placebo effect or there is some actual appetite suppressant value to the pills ... I don't know. But, I like it because I feel more in control than I have felt for a few weeks.

    I know I've lost weight this week. I stepped on the scale mid-day and was up 2 pounds, but my typical mid-day weigh-in will yield 5 to 7 pounds more than my actual weight. I'll weigh-in again Friday morning.

    I'm sticking to eating 1240 calories this week (the amount of calories I'd have to take in to lose 2 pounds per week without exercise) and taking a break from working out. I've noticed that everything plateaued about a month ago, I took a week off, then started losing. Trying that again.

    :flowerforyou: If anyone has any experience with these supplements, feel free to leave a message here or PM me!
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
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    And, another update! I should just put these in my blog ... :laugh:

    So, I have been consistently taking the pills. Not sure how many days now. :indifferent: But, I think my body has built up a resistance to the caffeinated feeling I get from them. Now, I just experience a little "awake and alert" feeling, which is nice.

    I have been pushing myself this week a little harder than usual. In addition to three days of cardio and two days of strength, I've been starting each morning with a little workout and ending the day with it, too. It goes like this: two sets of 10 push-ups, two sets of 10 side crunches, two sets of 10 squats, two sets of 10 lunges (each leg), two sets of 10 crunches and two sets of 10 reverse crunches. I do all these without a break between them and burn around 60 calories for each session.

    I have been noticing that I can feel my muscles a lot more - especially in my upper arms and my bum. :blushing: My clavicle bones are starting to show a teeny bit, but just the very inner part (near the base of my neck). I feel smaller, but not sure if she scale has moved any this week. Hoping so! :glasses:
  • allykat8
    allykat8 Posts: 237
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    I take xenadrine and I swear by it!

    I took it a few years ago and helped me lose about 15 lbs. It surpresses your appetite and you get full a lot faster!

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