Fat burners are among the rather controversial supplements. Some athletes can't afford them, while others categorically reject them. But the aim of today's article is not to talk about whether fat burners are useful or whether they are a completely useless dietary supplement that is worth avoiding. We have already covered this topic several times on MyFitnessio, for examplecan fat burners really help with weight loss? Today we will focus on the issue of dosage of fat burners, more precisely on the risks associated with their overdose.
This article is loosely based on our previous articles focusing onon creatine overdose or protein overuse.
What are fat burners?
The very term "fat burners" pretty clearly describes what the purpose of these supplements is. They serve, of course, to help athletes with fat burning and weight loss. But don't be fooled by the enticing name and the hilarious marketing of some sellers. Taking fat burners alone certainly doesn't mean that you will magically lose weight and achieve your dream physique with your left rear. The reality is that even with the help of fat burners, one must respect the basic rules of weight loss. The most important one, of course, is maintaining caloricdeficit, i.e., expending more calories than one takes in. You can read more about calorie balance in our article Weight loss in the new year, which is applicable at any time.
So how exactly do fat burners work? The effect of individual products can vary as they all have different formulations. As a rule, however, they contain substances that affect fat metabolism, help energize your workout, increase the conversion of energy into waste heat, regulate appetite and so on. Because of this, fat burners can actually promote weight loss, but they will never work if a person doesn't train enough and watch their diet.
What substances do I need to pay attention to?
As mentioned in the previous paragraph, the list of substances used always varies from product to product. Therefore, below we will only look at a few of the most important and most widely usedmost common fat burner ingredients that you can find in most products.
L-Carnitine
Without a doubt, the most frequently mentioned substance in the context of weight loss is L-carnitine. It is often referred to as an amino acid, but this is not entirely accurate. In fact, it is a derivative of the amino acids lysine and methionine, which the body can create itself in the liver. In the human body, L-carnitine is involved in the important process of transferring fatty acids into the mitochondria of cells (called "fatty acid transfer"). Beta-oxidation), where they are subsequently used in the process of creating the cellular fuel ATP. Beta-oxidation of fatty acids is a process that most people know simply as fat burning.
Synephrine
Synephrine is an alkaloid that you will encounter in the natural diet, mainly in citrus fruits. Its role in fat burning is mainly to increase resting metabolism and thermoregulation of the body. The best effect of synephrine is achieved in combination with caffeine, with which it acts synergistically.
CLA
Conjugated linoleic acid (abbreviated CLA) is a non-essential fatty acid that is popularly added to fat burners. The main reason is its ability to stimulate metabolism and suppress hunger. In addition, it is not a stimulant, so it can be taken even at later hours as it does not affect the quality of sleep.
Green tea extract
Much has been written about the effects of green tea. This popular stimulant not only plays an important role in fat burning, but is also important for its positive effect on joint quality. Green tea supports fat metabolism, speeds up resting metabolism and is also a very important antioxidant.
Cayenne pepper
Pepper itself has no miraculous effects on weight loss, but it is an important source of capsaicin and piperine. Capsaicin is known for its ability to thermoregulate, but it also promotes the use of fat as an energy source and speeds up resting metabolism. Piperine, on the other hand, improves the bioavailability of some of the other substances found in fat burners.
Maximum intake of individual substances
The recommended dosage of substances contained in fat burners varies, of course.The recommended dosage for some ingredients is quite difficult to determine. In addition to weight, age and gender, the amount often depends on genetic predispositions, level of training, intake of other substances and so on. In this regard, we will again focus only on the most widespread substances that you can encounter in fat burners.
The recommended daily dose of l-carnitine is about 500 mg to 3 g. However, according to some sources, some negative effects of excess l-carnitine can already be seen with regular use of doses of 3 g. In the case of synephrine, a dose of around 20-30 mg per day is often discussed. However, the dosage of caffeine should also be taken into account when dosing synephrine. Their ratio should be roughly 1:10 (e.g. 20 mg of synephrine and 200 mg of caffeine). As far as CLA is concerned, studies suggest that it is possible to take up to 6 grams per day, withHowever, it is recommended to take at least 3 grams per day for ideal effect. And capsaicin, for example, can be taken in amounts ranging from 100-400 mg per day.
However, it is necessary to remember that there are many more substances in the burners and many of them act synergistically. Therefore, with excessive use of burners, you take into the body a large of stimulants, which can pose quite a serious health risk.
Negative effects of excessive use of fat burners
Overdosing on stimulants is definitely not to be taken lightly. After all, these substances affect our nervous system and an excess of them can therefore have very unpleasant effects. This can include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhoea or even an unpleasant smell. Excessive intake of green tea has been linked to liver damage, for example, and its high caffeine content is also potentially dangerous. Thermoregulatory substances can also pose quite a serious danger due to excessive overheating of the body. In short, it is not the best idea to take fat burners in excessive amounts, as this carries many risks. Moreover, high doses definitely do not mean a better effect, so it is definitely not worth trying.
For whom do fat burners make sense?
For the sake of completeness, I think it's worth pausing for a moment on a question that anyone considering buying a fat burner should answer. Does a fat burner actually make sense for me? As mentioned above, fat burners are not some miracle products that automatically make you lose weight without any exercise. Quite the opposite. Their effect will only become apparent when you have already sorted out the basics of diet and training. Only in such a situation is it possible to consider that a fat burner would actually help you with weight loss. However, if you don't play sports and don't address your diet at all, there is definitely no point in trying to tweak your swimsuit shape with a fat burner.
But if you've got the basics figured out and you want to give the end result a little boost after all, a fat burner might actually make sense for you. But you need to remember that it is only the imaginary top of the pyramid, which comes at the very end.
Which fat burner do we recommend?
Choosing the ideal fat burner can be quite complicated, becausethere are countless products on the market and all of them have quite complicated formulations. For this reason, I recommend visiting our ranking of the best fat burnersin which we have compared all the relevant products on the market and analyzed their biggest advantages and disadvantages. Our review of Extrifit Thermogel, which came top in the ranking, can also help you decide.
What to take away from the article?
Fat burners can be a useful aid to weight loss, but they are certainly no miracle cures.They're nota panacea that will help you achieve your dream figure if you haven't got the basics of training and diet sorted. When using them, always follow the manufacturer's recommendations and don't exceed the dosage. In the vast majority of cases, fat burners contain stimulants that, in excess ofin excessive amounts can pose quite serious health risks. Always consult your doctor in case of health complications related to the use of fat burners.
That's all from us for today. If you have any questions about the topic, we'll be happy to answer them in the comments below the article.
Why can you trust us?
Sport has been my lifelong passion, I have been close to it since I was a child. For a long time I was primarily involved in athletics, which also eventually led me to the gym. Every good sprinter knows that to get one tenth of a start, he must therefore sacrifice hundreds of hours in training. And it was this toil behind the curtain, which no one sees, that was my greatest passion.
Every kilo in the gym helped me to move a little closer to my goal and I fell in love with the gym very quickly. Even though I don't race anymore, nothing has changed in my relationship with uncompromising training.