Men's Health & Tips: November 2009

Meltdown Increases Caloric Expenditure And Fat-Burning Before and After Exercise

Meltdown is a weight-loss supplement that includes synephrine, caffeine, phenylethylamine, yohimbine, and hordenine. Each of these substances is thermogenic (increases caloric expenditure). A study by Jay Hoffman and co-workers showed that Meltdown increased resting caloric expenditure by 20 percent for several hours.

Another study by Darryn Willoughby from Baylor University and colleagues found that Meltdown increased caloric expenditure and fat burning before and after a short, maximal bout of exercise in college-age men. They rested one hour, took three Meltdown capsules (500 mg) or a placebo (fake Meltdown), rested another hour, took a maximal treadmill test (approximately 12 minutes of exercise to exhaustion) and then rested another hour. Meltdown increased caloric expenditure by 10 percent during the 2-hour experimental period (rest + exercise + rest) and increased estimated fat use by 6 percent. Blood pressure and heart rate were similar between Meltdown and placebo.

Meltdown increases metabolic rate at rest and during recovery from exercise without imposing additional loads on the cardiovascular system. (Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 5: 23, 2008)

Fat Loss Training

High-Intensity Training Cuts Fat Best

Train hard if you want to lose weight quickly. Conventional wisdom states that low-intensity, prolonged exercise burns fat best. This makes sense because the body uses fat as fuel at exercise intensities below 65 percent of maximum effort. However, high-intensity exercise revs up your metabolism so that you burn more calories for the rest of the day and night.

Australian researchers found that people who followed a highintensity, intermittent exercise program (HIE) for 15 weeks lost more weight and fat than people doing a high-volume, low-intensity training program. HIE involved exercising on a stationary bicycle in which they did repeated bouts of sprinting for 8 seconds and turning the pedals slowly for 12 seconds. The total exercise time was 20 minutes, three times per week. The study showed that 15 weeks of high-intensity intermittent exercise reduced total body fat, surface fat in the legs and abdomen and improved blood sugar regulation. (International Journal of Obesity, in press; published online January 15, 2008)