Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge Hoodia

I'm talking here about the South African cactus, not hooded sweatshirts.

I've been hearing Joe Gannascoli on the radio a lot lately (the actor who plays gay Vito on The Sopranos). He lost 160 pounds using hoodia (I would kill to lose about half that). His website links to this site.

I did read an article about it but that article focused mostly on the tribe in South Africa that discovered it and how the huge influx of money will change their lives.

So I know it's a cactus. I know it's a natural appetite suppressant. And I know the real stuff is supposed to taste like arse.

Can anyone add anything? Is anybody using it? Has anybody heard of any negative side effects, especially regarding people with high blood pressure?

THX.

found these maybe this will help ya
http://bodybuilding.com/store/hood.html

check there forums also lots of reviews from people

Ugh, body builders.

I'm looking for objective information. I don't trust sites that sell the stuff.

Lurking around the forums I haven't seen anything on hoodia (they don't appear to have a search feature). Plenty of other generic advice on nutrition and ephedrine (I know that stuff can be bad news for people with high BP).

Thanks.

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So far all I've seen are the good testimonials and a few "it did nothing for me" testimonials. Still looking for the bad testimonials.

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The only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you take in. There are no magic bullets but there are things that can help you take in less than you burn. Losing about 40-50 pounds could be the tipping point that makes exercise possible. Yes, I'm in that bad of shape.

To me the most encouraging thing about hoodia is that it occurs in nature - it wasn't created in a lab like most of the crap out there.

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There are no magic bullets but there are things that can help you take in less than you burn.

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Yeah, by tasting like arse . Hey, why not try arse could be more fun anyway .

It could backfire. If hoodia tastes like arse, it'll take an awful lot of chocolate syrup to get that taste out of my mouth.

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why don't you ask Adey what is working for him???

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Probably arse.

john,

my main concern would be the actual source of the product--making certain that you're not getting synthetic arse as opposed to naturally grown arse. remember supplements are not regulated.

i might be able to drum up some infor for you by the weekend--remind me if i don't get back to you by saturday.

mert

Last year sometime I bought a bottle of Hoodia for my wife on the net. If I remember correctly it was from a reputable seller. It's an appetite suppressant, but the results were not measurable. Good old-fashioned diet and exercise at the gym four times a week is now working for her slowly but surely.

Whatever supplement you choose, stay away from anything ephedra based. I was glad to see ephedra based products banned in this country and it worries me that the ban may be lifted. I have first-hand experience with the long lasting harm this supplement can do physically and psychologically.

Regards,

Tom

Mert: That's another concern - how it's processed, and what other junk they add to it. I think the main reason some people have little or no benefit is the low percentage of hoodia actually in the capsules.

Tom: Ephedra = evil. I saw a show once that interviewed families who had loved ones drop dead taking the stuff. Some of them had no history of heart problems or high BP and poof! Gone.

John, I lost a lot of weight using Nutri Systems Food. It does work. You have to buy their food and it's about $300 per month. They provide all of your food, and it's delivered to your door. I never felt like I was being starved or depraved. The reason that I quit it was having to pay for the month's supply of food all at one time. They have a website. I am a little concerned about using pills.
Dave

I recently lost 30-40 pounds and went fro a 40 jeans to a 32-34. I do some weights when I can and sometimes some cardio but I mostly changed my lifestyle. I use to be very active, hiking, biking, kayaking, etc. All I did was get back to a better lifestyle. I am pushing 40 with two young children and did not like the fact that I could not keep up with them. I also do not like to workout. So I just changed the way I do things. Instead of driving the kids to the beach or park I put one in the jogger and the other in a backpack and WALK there. If I have to run to the store I take the bike (pedal powered). I have returned to my activities from before children. And now I am getting my children into the same lifestyles. My daughter just picked out her new pair of hikers and a backpack. At four she is doing moderate skill level hikes and hikers I see can't believe a four year old is capable.
It's funny everyone I see says "wow you look great what did you take to lose that weight?". Fools!
My wife and brother-in-law both work for nutrition companies and I can tell you there are no magic pills. Even if this stuff works are you willing to take it forever? Even if it's grown from the earth so is poison ivy, foxglove, lily of the valley and many others. Many can kill you! Has anyone been taking this stuff for long periods? Any studies on the long term effects of the digestive system, liver, kidneys, intestines? What will happen if you lose weight and stop taking it, maybe eat like a starving cow and gain more weight than ever before??? I say use will power and common sense.
I have had many injuries, 9 concusions, couple thousand stiches, metal in face, head, knee etc. so health is important for me.
I use to be a boxer and studied nutrition for many years. I mastered the metoblism. Do the same and you WILL get results. Also remember ANY and ALL activity is effective. Even five minutes, even one minute. Don't be fooled that you need to do this or that by someone trying to make money on your health. Most people just need to stop making food such an important part of their life and get off their ******! On average we Americans eat 2-3 times the caloric intake needed to sustain good health. And much of that is bad calories. The only supplement I take now is omega3 which almost all americans are deficient in, and I get all I the supplements I want for free.
Funny thing is after 6 months of my born again lifestyle I tried counting calories (two things I never recommend is counting calories and using a scale) just for the heck of it. I do still eat alot, often 5000+ calories a day. But my metabolism is so active that it does not matter.
Anyway good luck and if you want some more detailed info or help feel free to PM me.

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not to mention the mild side effects like nausea, flu, headaches, blurred vision, uncontrollable bleeding, etc.

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Don't forget "oily discharge"
FJ good luck man. I've slipped into some soft shape the last couple years too, ironically because of worrying about health, etc. I can say that just getting a little more active helps. Even a little. Not necesarily "working out", but a little here and there. Stand instead of sit for a bit, etc. Every little bit helps! then you build on it. And drink LOTS of water.

I lost forty pounds of extra non necessary baggage in 2005. I was always athletic as a youngster and allowed myself to drift out of it over a period of 16 years or so.

Drank way to much recreational beer as well. Typically I was a six to eight beer a night guy every night of the week for many years.

I made a decision last Summer to fix the problem and for whatever reason the mind set took. I now go to the gym at least five times a week and do a minimum of 20 minutes cardio and another 1/2 hour to 45 minutes of resistance training.

I now weigh 182 at six foot one which mirrors pretty much what I weighed in my twenties, thirties and forties before I let myself go. I weighed 225 last year with very poor muscle tone and a nasty spare tire around my midsection.

I used some fat burners early on but I dont know if they really helped that much. I eat quite a bit now but I need to with the increased activity. I only drink beer on occasion now.

I miss the beer cause I really love beer. I just dont like all the extra carbs it adds to the diet. Plus more than a few every night is just "medicatin" all the time ..and has a negative impact over time.

Some body builders do indeed use "exotic fat burners" simply becuase they want to constantly boost their metabolic rate to ensure they dont add that silly millimeter of fat around their championship abs. They can cheat on their intake a bit and the increased metabolism burns off the extra instead of storing it as fat.

My wife and I started dieting at the same time. She took Hoodia and no other changes. I did the Atkins deal of carb cutting. She lost zero and I've lost almost 20. Granted the first 20 were fairly easy. It's the next 50 that will be difficult. I think one of the reasons I'm in the diet zone is my 2 Harley buddies are bigger than me. I keep hearing that the Harley market is bloated (pun intended) with middle-aged fat guys. I need to be "That trim looking gentleman on the Triumh."
Mike Sr.

i second diet and exercise. thought i would share my experience since i'm currently right in the middle of it:

my wife, who recently gave birth to our first child, was looking for something sensible to knock off the weight. i had been hearing really good things about the "fat smash" diet by Dr. Ian Smith (the guy who does the celebrity fit club tv show) and after buying the $10 book - which took about 1 hour to read and really comprehend - we decided to go for it. that was 16 days ago and i'm down 15 pounds. the program is really about lifestyle change (portion control, excercising, etc), which is the only way you're going to lose the weight and keep it off. there's a 9 day detox period that was fairly tough (no coffee, meat, dairy, alcohol, etc) in the beginning, but it truly has set a good foundataion going forward. i really recommend this diet, or any other one that isn't a gimmick/fad/"yoyo" diet but teaches lifestyle change instead.

oh, and i found out the other day that you can burn more than 2,000 calories walking a single round of golf!

anyway, good luck with whatever you decide upon.

FJ,

I think that you need to need to avoid thinking (or even perhaps hoping) that there are supplement pills that will burn away the excess weight you mentioned.
In the case of Hoodia, I remember talking about it with someone more knowledgeable and he mentioned that it is a controlled product in South Africa and that access to it is very difficult, which casts doubt on the ability of companies to obtain the "real" stuff and that they probably obtain supplies grown in other countries (or whatever).
I also understand that this (accessability) is why a major Pharmaceutical company (I think it was Pfizer) is spending millions in trying to develop a product based on Hoodia (or a synthetic replicant thereof).

I think your best bet is to set a not too ambitious plan, say over the period of one year
to lose the 80 pounds you mentioned (I think losing 6-7 pounds a month is easily achievable).

I agree with Kars on the metabolism suggestion. He mentioned he mastered it and perhaps it would be helpful if he elaborated a little.
I believe that anything one has to do to speed up metabolism will help the weight loss process immensely.

Which reminds me, I also have to lose the 20-25 pound spare tyre around the waist I accumulated during the past 3 months whilst being inactive, recovering from my smashed ankle.

Good luck to you (us).

I had a friend who lost mucho weight...when asked what was his secret diet...atkins, southbeach, pills, nutrasystem...his answer was simple....

"I eat less and excersize more"

I am starting to do the same...Good luck John...it's tough (I know) to break the "lazy" habit!

Now If I can just give up the damm smokes!!! AND still not gain the weight!!!

one day at a time!

I would consider hoodia pills, except I have no idea how much hoodia is in them, whether there is enough of the active ingredient in them to do any good, and what other garbage, fillers, etc. they add in while processing the cactus. I'm willing to drop some cash to try it out (strictly with the understanding that it's an appetite suppressant, not a magic bullet), I'm just soliciting feedback to try and figure out if there's any chance my heart will explode (like ephedra-based products).

All this being said I weighed myself this morning and I'm down another five pounds. So my slight increase in activity lately and calorie-awareness (sorta like counting but not that detailed) is having some effect.

FJ,
I'll ask my friend later today (it's 06;00am here) as I know he actually took Hoodia and I know he researched it quite extensively.
Perhaps he can furnish us with something useful in terms of info.

That would be excellent. Thanks.

One thing that I find to be very critical in any wieght loss program is too stop eating after your evening repast.

I found this to be very hard. If you are watching TV or whatever the tendency for a late night snack that is usually full of carbs and fat content is typically hard to resist.

A subastantial snack before bed time is not a good thing because the bodies metabolic rate slows dramitically of course when we lay down to sleep and those carbs and extra fat/sugar content will be processed and saved as the body has absolutely no need for them as immediate sources of energy.

It can take some serious will power but ...no snacks after the last meal of the day goes a long way when combined with reduced caloric meals during the day.

Good Luck on your continued effort.

hoodia info

john,

here is a little info. from what i have read and recall, Hoodia is not grown here. Most of what is avaiable is either synthetic and/or what does get processed here might not contain active components of the plant.

please consider a more "lifestyle" oriented approach to weight loss. Not a diet per se; but more of what you have mentioned about the last 7 pounds. a little more movement and reduced calories.

chances are if you are carrying considerable extra weight, your organs are already strained, something funky like hoodia or ephedra could really wreak havoc.

if there is a health care practitioner you have positive regard for please talk to her/him for nutritional recommendations.

okay...i'll step off my earthycrunchy cereal box now.

mert

I found a few more articles for you I also posted my original post as a place to purchase from thats reputable. As for Hoodia i have read tons of mixed results from multiple people some love, some hate it. One main complaint of hoodia products is the lack of actual hoodia in the product.

http://www.bodybuildingforyou.com/articles-submit/mike-adams/hoodia-gordonni-diet-pill.htm

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/11/18/60minutes/main656458.shtml

Do a search for the Master Cleanser. It's a lemonade fast. Youd do it for a couple of weeks. You can find the booklet on e-bay sometimes for a couple of $$.

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oh, and i found out the other day that you can burn more than 2,000 calories walking a single round of golf!

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did you maybe mean 200 calories?
2,000 calories is quite a bit exaggerated--quite a bit.

mert

200 sounds more like it.

I'm lead to believe a round of golf is around 4 - 4½ miles (I'll find out tomorrow as I have my first game )

It's the same distance as my daily walk and the little stepper thingy says I'm burning around the 200 mark.