There are a million fat burners in the market today and many more will certainly be introduced in the years to come. Obesity is a serious problem for much of the Western world and it is not going away any time soon. In other words, there is a large market for these miracle, weight loss products that promise consumers to melt the fat away with no effort on their part.

I call bs on all those claims. The average consumer must be really stupid to think that by consuming a few fat burner pills which are essentially a high dose of caffeine will magically melt all the fat stored in his/her body while adding lean in its place. Seriously people, how naive are you to believe such claims.

And I would not have had a problem if there existed properly conducted clinical studies that proved these claims to be true. In all cases of fat burners that I have come across, only laboratory data exist as proof. By we all know that laboratory data can be easily faked especially when a private industry stands to make a lot of money from a product.

In conclusion, I will once more repeat myself even though I am starting to sound boring to my regular readers. If you want to lose weight and gain muscle, then stop eating fast food and start working out. It is really that simple.

The weight loss formula that works is simple: Calories In < calories burned = weight loss.

Yet, millions of people spend millions of dollars each year on a dietary supplements and miracle diet pills, i.e., Anoretix, that don’t work and in most cases may cause bodily harm. Just yesterday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned people against taking the diet supplement Hydroxycut because it has been found that it causes liver damage. In fact, it has even caused the death of a 19-year old in the United States. In the past, Xenadrine had also been found responsible for cause cardiovascular problems to some people who used it regularly for weight loss and energy boosting.

Why are people willing to spend money to take supplements that can cause serious harm to them when they can easily get in shape by following the simple formula I presented earlier? What is it that people in North America want everything 5 minutes ago? Stop acting like a bunch of idiots and start using your heads people. Proper eating and exercise is the only sustainable and healthy way to lose weight and get in shape.

The truth is that a magic diet pill that melts fat away does not exist. Moreover, most diet pills in the market today are practically useless. The only weight loss pills that had any effect were those with an Ephedrine, Caffeine, and Aspirin (ECA) mix. These pills were outlawed a few years ago because some people abused them and ended up dieing of heart problems.

The ECA stack is making a comeback, however, in the Ephburn 25 diet supplement from AE Labs. Each serving will provide you with 25mg of Ephedra/Ma Huang extract along with the other two ingredients Caffeine and Aspirin in the proper percentage for maximum weight loss. The Ephedrine-free supplements that were developed after the ECA ban were never anywhere near as good as the original ECA on helping people lose weight. Ephburn 25 promises to bring back the good old days.

You still have to exercise and eat properly when using this supplement. More importantly, it is a good idea not to abuse it and talk with a doctor before starting on it. In addition, only use it for a short-term weight loss program as prolonged usage can have some nasty side effects; I mean, what is the point of looking great if you are dead. Like the ancient Greeks used to say, “Everything in moderation.”

Subscribers of the myFoodPhone service create a multimedia log of what they eat, i.e., take photos of the foods they eat, and then upload it to the myFoodPhone website. A nutrition specialist views the photos and provides feedback about the value of the foods consumed offering valuable advice that would otherwise be hard to obtain.

Taking pictures of what you eat and following your buddies’ and advisor’s advice put you on the right track for healthy eating. There is a deep and rich body of scientific literature that proves that keeping track of what you eat with some kind of food diary has shown to be very helpful in achieving dietary changes. With MyFoodPhone, it’s even more efficient. Since you record your food with a picture, that is before you eat, you pay attention to your food choices and reflect on it. In addition, with the MyFoodPhone personalized feedback service, your Nutrition Advisor does the same for you, gives you advice and provides you with the information you need to improve your healthy eating.

The service is not free and a monthly subscription that costs $10 is required. If you ask me, the cost is nothing compared to the access to specialists that myFoodPhone provides and the convenience of doing everything online using a mobile phone.

The company has big plans for the future. They want to provide additional services, in what Business 2.0 magazine has termed Telemedicine 2.0, including Doctorphone and Babyphone.

Red Savina habanero 350,000-580,000
Jamaican Hot pepper 100,000-200,000
Thai Hot 60,000
Jalapeno 2,500-79000
Tabasco sauce 2,500-5,000

the bhut jolokia pepper has 1,001,304 Scoville units in comparison. By the way pepper spray used for protection has a Scoville count of 2,000,000-5,300,000.

So how does alli work? Well, essentially, the pill prevents your body from absorbing the fat in the food you eat. So, the amount of calories from food that your body consumes is reduced. The end result is lower calorie intake and hence automatic weight loss.

Except for a couple of problems one of which is the most hilarious side effect for a drug that I have ever come across.

The first problem is that taking the pill by itself will not have a huge effect on your weight unless it is accompanied by a strict low fat diet. In other words, alli will help you lose weight but it won’t lose the weight for you. Kind of the same way that exercising will help you lose weight but you have to do more than just buying a membership for the local gym keeping your card in your wallet but never stepping a foot in it. And if you don’t believe me, this is what the manufacturer says about the alli diet plan on their own website,

“If you are ready to take responsibility, alli and your hard work can help increase your weight loss by 50%. That means if you could lose 10 pounds with dieting alone, you could lose 15 pounds working with alli…The alli program requires a commitment to healthy eating habits.“

Okay, so we now have established that alli is not a miracle pill that will allow you to live your life on the couch eating potato chips and getting thinner. So, what is alli’s second and rather hilarious problem?

It has to do with one of alli’s side effects. Taking this pill will make you literally shit your pants! And this is not just any kind of shit. It is oil, i.e., the same fat that the pill will not allow your body to absorb will end up coming out your behind. I mean, it has to go somewhere and if it enters your mouth then gravity will make sure it exits from your ass.

The worst thing about shitting oil is that it can happen unexpectedly and there is nothing you can do to avoid it! In fact, the manufacturer cautions alli users,

You may feel an urgent need to go to the bathroom. Until you have a sense of any treatment effects, it’s probably a smart idea to wear dark pants, and bring a change of clothes with you to work.

And for good measure take a note of the following,

You may not usually get gassy, but it’s a possibility when you take alli. The bathroom is really the best place to go when that happens.

In other words, the benefit from taking this pill is not going to be in its advertised medical abilities to block fat but from its ability to scare the shit out of you from eating fat in the first place. Unless of course you want to live the rest of your life in your bathroom shitting.

Maclean’s magazine explains how white asparagus is harvested,

Harvesting white is as painstaking as an archaeological dig: each spear grows deep underground and must be carefully uncovered by hand and cut with an 18-inch knife, taking care not to disturb the smaller shoots next to it. Asparagus farmers work seven days a week, cutting twice a day when it’s hot, since asparagus grows faster than most weeds. It will grow an inch in a couple of hours if the conditions are just right. If you miss a spear and it breaks ground, it turns purple, then green and comparatively worthless: it will fetch only a third of the price.

You should be able to find white asparagus in any major grocery store although supply is often seasonal and limited since much has to be imported from Europe; as a result, white asparagus also tends to be more pricey. If you like eating out then know that white asparagus can often be found in the cookbooks of gourmet chefs. Asparagus in general is great food since it has low calories, no fat and lots of fiber. It should certainly be part of a well balanced diet. Asparagus has been a favorite food since the Greek and Roman times.

So the real question now is how much protein do I eat and what foods to eat to help me build muscle?

A high protein diet is a diet that is mostly protein, a little bit of carbohydrates and low fat. You see the muscles in the body actually crave protein, and when you eat protein then your body breaks up the protein into amino acids which then help your muscles to grow and when your muscles once were fat and now they are turning into muscle then you are getting rid of the fat.

To maximize muscle building, you need to consume one gram of protein per pound of your body weight each day. So for example if you weigh 200 pounds then you need to eat 200 grams of protein a day, no more no less. This will support your muscle growth and give your muscles enough protein to really be able to build muscle.

So what kinds of foods make up a high protein diet? Other the augmenting your daily menu with a fitness supplements such as protein bars and protein shakes, you can also get lots of protein from natural foods found in your neighborhood supermarket. Update your grocery list to focus on lean meats such as fish chicken and turkey along with lots of green leaf vegetables and fresh fruits. If you must eat carbohydrates then focus on rice or breads that are whole grain. Stay away from fatty fried meats such as fried chicken and stay away from junk foods and sugary drinks.

A high protein diets should not be your long term strategy; once you have achieved your muscle growth and weight loss goals, you should slowly shift to a more balanced diet including all types of food. One problem with a high protein diet is that it can lead to the over consumption of cholesterol. All that meat and cheese, which is allowed by the diet, can be very unhealthy. Also, this diet can lead to kidney problems due to the low carbohydrate intake; in addition, since carbohydrates are a source of energy, not eating them can potentially make you feel weak and tired.

So, remember that if your goals are to build muscle or loose weight or both then a proper high protein diets combined with regular weight lifting at the gym is your ticket to success.