Nutritional Supplement Reviews by Real People Like You

Eric from NY

I have been taking Xenadrine for about the past week and really have not had great results. The main problem has been, surprisingly, a lack of energy. I was always pumped up and generally in good spirits while on Hydroxycut. But the jury is still out with Xenadrine. Different things work differently for different people. I think the main thing you have to realize is this: These thermogenic pills do one main thing to help you lose weight. They raise your metabolism. So by working out, you are not only burning the calories from the food you have eaten that day, but you are also cutting into the stored fat calories in your body, the "plump." So, working out (lifting weights, cardio, running, stationary bike) and getting your heart rate up is essentially burning more calories while you are on the pills. I really wouldn't recommend taking any kind of dose listed on the bottle. What might be a good idea is to take the half a dose only the days that you are working out. The stimulants in the pills probably are not the best thing for a young, growing body, so in your case, less is more.

But if you do decide to start taking this, make sure that you are working out. An hour and a half in the weight room 3 or 4 days a week should definitely give you results. Just be very careful with the caffeine, and drink water, water, water. My personal opinion is that the only supplement someone in high school should be worried about is protein. Coupled with lifting weights regularly and changing your diet, this will get your muscles toned within a few months.

As far as changing your diet goes, this is what has shown me the greatest results. I have all but cut out fatty foods from my diet. No hamburgers, french-fries, ice cream, chips and the like. I drink probably 12 glasses of water a day, drink diet pop when ever I drink pop at all, eat a lot of low fat yogurts, went from 2% to skim milk, eat hardly any pizza, never eat after about 7pm, get plenty of sleep, take a daily multivitamin such as Centrum. All these things help in their own right, and the more you do, the better your results.

My opinion is that your "chubbiness" (and chances are that you are being overly critical of yourself) is caused by two factors. First, your body is in starvation mode. You're not eating enough, so your body is desperately holding on to every ounce of fat it can. Long-term, this will screw up your metabolism. Second, high-glycemic carbohydrates cause an insulin spike in your system. Insulin is an extremely important hormone, but one of its purposes is to shuttle calories into fat cells. Your body is likely in starvation mode, so it relishes the opportunity to beef up fat stores. Insulin spikes are only going to make this worse.

My advice is to forget Xenadrine for now. It's not what you need. Get your diet in order, and I bet you will see all the results you desire. Now, I may not have told you what you want to hear. If you don't believe what I have to say, do at least this one thing; print out your question and my response and show it to someone who understands nutrition. This could be the school nurse or a coach, but preferably someone with credentials (like a registered dietician). Let them read this and see if they agree. The key is your diet man! And besides, you are sixteen. That's an awesome age and deserves a heck of a lot more than lettuce sandwiches!

My name is Lauren and I am also 16. I have never tried Bio-energetic, but I have used Hydroxycut. With Hydroxycut you have to take four pills, three times a day, and you have to wait a half hour before eating. These pills contain some herbal caffeine and mainly just removed my excess water weight. I just started on Xenadrine a week ago, and I have already lost five pounds. The five pounds is not much. I used to be a fitness guru until I suffered a concussion from diving into a pool. Through my fitness period, I have gone from 138lbs at the beginning of my sophomore year to 115 now. If Xenadrine is working now, without working out, I know that once I go back into my normal routine, it will work double time.

You have to add more nutrition to your diet. Bagels, lettuce sandwiches, and vegetables won't cut it. Make sure that you take vitamins, especially A, B, C, D and K. Try Optiplex for a multi-vitamin. If you want the weight to drop faster, cut out the carbohydrates. Replace the bagel and sandwich with fruit. As for vegetables, don't eat corn or potatoes, they are very high in carbs. And don't eat just a banana for breakfast. Have at least two pieces of fruit. Your weight should also go with your height and the size of your frame. Drink plenty of water and spread out your meals so that you are eating four to five meals so your metabolism keeps on going. But with Xenadrine helping you, you may not have to. I want to lose maybe five to seven more pounds. Also, don't just lift weights, add some cardio into your workout. And remember that muscle weighs more than fat!

On this page, I noticed a lot of criticisms of your diet. I don't eat much better. Coffee for breakfast, a V8 Splash for lunch and a regular dinner with meat and salad. I drink a few cans of Pepsi throughout the day and consume at least 8 glasses of water. I feel great, and it really keeps my weight down. Good luck, man.

Sweetie, let me tell you a little hint of help. I don't know if you have begun taking the supplement yet, but the container specifically says "not intended for persons under 18 years of age." There is reasoning for this, and this goes for the other two 16 year old girls too. People's bodies are not ready for supplements such as these at the age of 16. The side effects can be twice as bad for you guys, and twice as dangerous.

What might help you out is changing your diet. You sound like you are quite active, and that's great, but you are eating straight carbs. Throw more protein in your diet, like chicken or tuna or eggs. You can even go buy some of those high-protein shake mixes for breakfast, they're great. Another way to boost your metabolism is eat about 5 times a day, but not to the point that you are full. And drink plenty of water. You see, you may feel that by eating less, that you will lose weight...that is a very popular myth. But it is just that, a myth. By eating less, your body freaks out and stores everything as fat, mainly because it feels it must or it will starve. So please take my advice.

And to the girl that drank a numerous amount of cokes a day, you should change that to water, and your results will sky rocket.