people who lost a lot of weight using diet pills

When I was in college, I took Hoodia, an appetite suppressant.

After a month on the pills, I stopped eating entirely. Literally. I had absolutely no hunger, so I lived off water and black coffee to keep me awake.

The longest I went without eating a single bite was 11 days. It was also during the beginning of my exams and I couldn't focus or concentrate on anything, so I went back to eating. I threw out the pills and never looked back.

But I did lose about 15 lbs at that point. Just by not eating.

It was SO STUPID.

I'm sure it's because most people using them are still looking for a quick fix easy way out. Most of those who post on this site that they plan to use them are the people who ended up giving up when they realized no pill will make weight fall off. You have to still diet and you have to still work your butt of even more when you come off those pills. I'm not against them. I'm agasint people thinking it's magic and telling others that's the case. Truth to dieting is. Change your life style. WIth or without pills you still need to change that or you will fail.

So if you take them or not. GOOLUCK to you as it will always be a challenge and we're here for you.

I didn't go looking for diet pills for a quick and easy "way out" as you say. My doctor is the one who brought up the fact that I was overweight for my height and suggested putting me on the appetite suppressant. He also talked with me about eating healthy and excercising.

You lost over 50 pounds within 3 months?! Wow, that's a lot more than I'm losing. Actually, after the first three weeks, my weight loss slowed tremendously. There were about three days that I didn't take the phentermine and immediately gained back seven pounds, but that was because I binged for those days. I'm trying to be good.

Such debate over diet supplements/pills Here's my take:

Can supplements 'do it all'? No. Can they help? Yes, certain ones can. Are they unhealthy? I'd stay away from the chemically ones that are based on 'boosting energy' ephedra-style, and go with the herbal ones. (Although, by the way, a *little* caffeine- green tea or a cup of coffee- right before exercise is a good thing.) This does seem to be a touchy subject on here, I think because people who are working hard on diet and exercise are threatened by the notion that diet pills *do* work, and are 'the easy way out'. It's okay people, they support, but don't replace diet and exercise. Just like exercise supports, but cannot replace, a healthy diet. I think some of the herbal/plant based ones, the ones that are actually 'food', can be considered as part of healthy diet, and their positive effects seen as such.

Good point. I think it's the culture of "immediate results" that is a huge turn-off here (and justifiably so.) Do diet pills work? Yes. Do they work long term? Heck no! I say the safest way is to try the gentle herbal ones to give you a push in the beginning of your weight loss plan, but you MUST change your lifestyle, exercise and eat right, and plan a time to stop using them. You have to know that they are a temporary tool. Too many people use them as a miracle cure with no effort involved.

I think there is a huge difference between causation and correlation, and people get confused. A lot of people just starting out on a "healthy living" change, or diet will do diet pills , they will take them at the same time as their big kick start to eating healthy and exercising. All of a sudden they think the diet pills caused their weight loos. Wrong, it correlates to it, but there is no peer reviewed medical journals to prove causation. There ARE peer reviewed medical studies to prove that many diet pills can cause detrimental health effects.
Example of correlation, say every morning I decide to spin around in circle five times while saying "flying monkey butt" and then proceed to eat healthy with my calorie range, do a moderate work out routine and a followed this same plan for a week, pretend at the end of the week I step on my scale and I've lost two pounds. So I decided it was the spinning around saying flying monkey that was the cause of it. Wrong, it was being healthy, that was the causation.

Yah for being healthy! boo for trying short cuts .

Back in the late 90's when phen phen was really popular, I had a very good friend who had a Doctor prescribe them to her. She was a larger girl who struggled with her weight her entire life. She took them off and on for 3 years. She was diagnosed with a damaged heart in 2005 (she was part of the class action suit against the drug company) and she collapsed and died in June of 2006, leaving a 16 year old son. I miss her terribly. I think there is a definite risk that should be considered.

Simple, it's because they don't work, they are not intended to work. Ask yourself this, what kind of business want's to eliminate it's customers? Diet companies have a vested interest in fat people, and all businesses like repeat customers.

Rigger

I took Phen Fen when I was 16. I went from a size 14 to a size 4 in about 2 months. It made me CRAZY!!!! It also made me develop an unhealthy relationship with food and weight all together. It also gave me a heart condition. I know that for me I could go and lose a bunch of weight quick with diet pills, only to regain it after stopping them. To me the only way is to eat at a deficit and exercise. Eating more fiber makes me fuller as does drinking more water. And I dont have jitters or side effects from a pill.

Cocaine is my choice for rapid weight loss.

Ahhhh.

I hope no one bashes you for this thread. Instead I just hope they answer you and not be judgemental.

Personally, I have used diet pills in the past, to get my weight loss started (by a physician mind you, not myself) and the one I was on was Meridia. It did help me with my appetite, and it did help me lose weight. I was only on it for 2 months... just long enough to get my weight loss started and my appetite under control. I lost 24 lbs in 2 months on it, and then after I went off, I didn't change anything, (because my stomach shrank) and I lost another 60 lbs in 7 months.

I don't down anyone that is using diet pills. Just like I don't down anyone who is only eating 1,200 calories. I've learned... judge not, because it is THEIR business, and THEIR bodies. Do they work? Well.... that was prescription, and it worked for me, and it got me started and that is what I wanted/needed at the time. The other diet pills... I haven't used.

Hope this helps? What diet pills are you referring to exactly?

I really like the way you phrased this, because I totally agree that pills should be totally short-term and to jump-start weight loss. When I was at my heaviest, once I'd lost the first 5lbs, it seemed so much easier to stick with a program. I used a diet pill for a month or so and it created long-lasting habits, so even when I went off of it, I stuck to the same healthful habits. Definitely not a long-term fix, but if I had to choose between being almost 400lbs again and taking diet pills for a month to jump start weight loss, I'd definitely pick the latter.

As a side note, I had WLS about 5 years ago and have kept most of the weight off that I've lost (and am working to getting to my ultimate GW). Diet pills are the same as WLS in this regard... if you eat too much, you stretch your stomach out, and you might as well have not even had the surgery to begin with (which is why WLS is only a tool and not an easy fix). However, for someone who has battled with obesity for most of her life, it is a meaningful, long-lasting lifestyle change. It's all about using these things as a tool to jump start weight loss to create a lifetime of healthy habits.

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I've taken OTC diet pills in the past when I had an eating disorder, but ironically I didn't take them to lose weight. I was working a lot, and ephedra made it possible for me to run on empty a lot longer. My coworkers would bum them off me if they hadn't gotten a good night's sleep; my girlfriends would ask me for them before we went out dancing so they'd have more energy. I finally went off them when I found myself completely unable to sleep, crying from sheer weariness but still wired to the gills. Yes, they were unhealthy, but they helped me to realize overall that the way I was living wasn't healthy. Nowadays, the OTC diet pills are mostly B-vitamins, fiber, and caffeine. So, in a way, I'm still taking diet pills - I pop a B-50 if I have a big assignment I'm working on, I have a cup of really good coffee first thing every morning, and I get about 30 grams of fiber daily from my diet. Much healthier, far cheaper, and a lot more pleasant IMO.

Simple, it's because they don't work, they are not intended to work. Ask yourself this, what kind of business want's to eliminate it's customers? Diet companies have a vested interest in fat people, and all businesses like repeat customers.

Rigger

Shoot me know, I'm agreeing with Rigger......:laugh:

The best thing that can be said for most (not all) over-the-counter products is that they won't kill you.

I just find it funny how most shortcuts (shakes, pills, etc.) have a fine print that reads something like 'must be taken in conjunction with daily exercise and healthy eating,' so really, they do nothing lol.

This is what I found with Nutrisystem. It was here is some freeze dried overpriced crap to eat....now make sure to add in healthy vegetables and fruit.

I was like if i am going to do that I might as well just not eat your junk. It was ridiculus like $280 bucks a month for things you added water to and cooked in a microwave....yeah...healthy.

Nutrisystem/Weight Watchers are basically smaller (correct) portions of foods that you'd eat anyway. LOL. Just make your own food and watch the portion sizes. Much cheaper and probably tastier.