Lean Xtreme & AMP2 stack - need opinions!!

[MuddRunner]

Hi!

I am considering trying a stack of Lean Xtreme & Ergolean AMP2 and I'm in my preliminary research stage. I'd appreciate any insight or opinions about this stack - from your experience..

About me:
Female - 37 y/o

5'-5"

145 lb (want to get to 125)

Cardio: run 3 miles 3x a week (have trouble being motivated to do it consistently tho)

Weights: I do a little bit of free weights - just for toning-- nothing major

Core: I am planning to resume my Pilates routine when I get outta the 140s...

Diet: pretty clean - mostly low fat protein (a lot of non-fat Greek yogurt smoothies, chicken, tuna, leafy greens)

About 10+ years ago, i was very lean and active. I was an avid cross country runner, ate clean, and was very successful with the old EC stack before the Ephedra ban/limits. I'm also 10 years older, which changes a lot

I take primatene tabs and caffeine now... But it just isn't the same. I wanted to kick start myself into shedding fat so I won't feel like such a self conscious load in my running clothes... I really do love to run, but I wanna lean out kinda quick so I can really get the full enjoyment from running.


Anybody try the Lean Xtreme / AMP2 stack and have any tips or warnings to share??

Thanks so much!

MuddRunner

 

[HIT4ME]

If you run 3 miles 3X per week and working out like that, you should be seeing some results if your diet is in check. I'm hardly a hard-nosed diet-has-to-be-perfect kind of guy, but you sound like you are burning calories, so if you aren't losing weight, you are eating too much. This may be because you are eating the way you did when you were even more active and you don't realize how much or how little you need.

If it were me, I would start carrying a small pocket notebook and weigh/measure everything I eat and log it in that notebook. After a week, you can go through everything you ate and figure out exactly how many calories you took in, compare it to how much weight you gained/lost, and come up with the changes you need to make for yourself.

As for lifting weights to "tone" - that's just not really possible. The only thing lifting weights can do for you is to make your muscles bigger and stronger and to burn calories. They don't tone or shape anything. You should change your thinking on this to a more serious one - lifting weights is the best form of exercise out there. You should go all-in on the weights and use it to get stronger and build muscle. It will ramp up your metabolism, and help you function in life better (being strong and able to move is important after all)

 

[MuddRunner]

Thanks-- I guess what I should be asking about is a supp with decent appetite suppressant qualities. The problem that I am not running as consistently as I should- because I am absolutely snacking. My main diet is pretty clean (no fast food, pizza, desserts etc) but I get kinda hungry thru the day and might snack on apples, goldfish crackers etc.

I know that more cardio will burn the calories, but I am also looking for something that will help me to get my mind off food. I was looking at Xtreme Lean and AMP as a possibility because I've read where people have had their appetites dry up on it.

I'm trying to just lose about another 6 or 7 pounds where I won't be so embarrassed in my running clothes to be seen in public lol.... Let's face it - I'm a 40 y/o woman (pretty much) and sometimes to chicks, that kind of stuff really does play into our motivation levels....

So I guess, yeah, not really looking for a cutting stack-- more like an appetite suppressant so I don't gain back the weight I'm (slowly) losing over the next couple if weeks- if that makes any sense.

FWIW - 10 years ago, I lost 15 pounds by cutting food intake WAY back on EC stack... Then I started running and lost another 20 or so pounds - and kept it off for about 7 years... I'm coming out of a funky kinda thing and need to get back in the rails...

 

[MuddRunner]

Also - it might be of note that I sorta struggle with dopamine depletion induced depression at times... It's pretty mild... And regular exercise totally knocks it out... So it's kinda like a catch-22 I'm in... Just trying to get my butt into a rhythm and get the momentum going so I can do more cardio... If that helps.... Not too dissimilar from people with certain strains of ADD.

 

[HIT4ME]

I am in the same boat. I have struggled with weight since I was a kid. In High School I became more active and lost all the weight and kept it off until after graduating from college. Over the past 10-11 years I have put on about 100+ pounds and about a year ago I started to take it off slowly. In college I had lots of experience with lipokinetix, ECA, etc.

IMO, you won't see ANY appetite suppression from Lean Extreme. I'm not sure how much Primatene you are taking, but for me I have to take 25-50 mg before I really start losing my appetite. If you are taking 12.5 mg tablets one at a time, you may need to try 2 tabs. Don't forget that caffeine is important in this mix and you should be taking 200 mg with that.

The best appetite suppressant I have found among the new fat burners is Norcodrene. When I stacked this with Diablo (not recommended) I couldn't get myself to eat. It was great.

I am going to say this again, because I really believe it and I know women don't like to hear it - but you should use weight lifting to build muscle and that should be a BIG focus for you if you are trying to lose weight. Most people start losing muscle mass after about age 30 and, according to some people, this can be quite dramatic loss too. The less muscle you have the less shape you have and the slower your metabolism will be. I've seen so many people lose weight by dieting and they don't realize it was all muscle and they wind up being fat and skinny and then they wonder why they don't look like they want.

Lifting weights is the way to go for permanent fat loss. Most women are afraid of "getting too big" which is just ridiculous. You can work your butt off lifting weights, it is harder to get big than you think, many people on this board will attest to this. If the males on this board can put on 5-10 pounds of muscle in a year, naturally, that is good progress. Women will gain mass even more slowly.

 

[MuddRunner]

I really appreciate your insight- thanks so much!

I totally understand about the increased muscle being important to metabolism.

The kind of running that I do (or want to get back into, I should say) isn't your everyday road-running cardio that leaves you looking like a wilted string bean.... I do off-road trail running on soft dirt in a very hilly terrain in Pennsylvania. I'm blessed to have 170 acres of private woods behind my house that someone cut dirt bike trails through....up and down hills, jumping over rocks and roots, etc. Up until about 2 years ago (when I got into the rut I'm in now) I had a lower body like a rugby player- lol.... You see, when running on asphalt, you get a "bounce back" effect which helps to propel you. Not so with trail running ... The soft earth absorbs a good deal of your energy, and you HAVE to have muscle to push your body forward (think running on sand, yet not as dramatic). I could definitely work with weights more on my upper body tho, I guess.... And the Pilates core conditioning is imperative for trail running, as running over uneven terrain makes you a contortionist at times lol ...

However, that level of trail running (which is almost spiritual for me) requires a foundational level of conditioning that I lost over the past 2 years....so I have to stick to the very flat dirt walking trail in my neighborhood until I build up a little more agility and mileage - then I can take it to the woods where I really run like a 4x4 machine. I just don't want to feel like such a dumpy load on the neighborhood trail, in public, while I work to get back into a more intense training regimen...

I have a good book for women's weight training that I used to use about 8 years ago called Body Fitness For Women - published by musclemag or something like that. I'll have to dust it off and get back into that-- I built a couple of good routines from that....

Thanks for the heads up on the supplements too... I will investigate...

I get to be a little stim resistant at times. I have taken (by prescription) adderall, Wellbutrin, & phentermine along with trials of about 7 different ADD meds and antidepressants. My doctor was script happy I think part of all of this is getting my brain chemistry back in balance after that medication roller coaster ride he had me on.

Thanks again for your awesome supportive advice ...I'm feeling pretty danged motivated now, actually!

MuddRunner

 

[HIT4ME]

Yes, that sounds like it is a bit more intense than just long-distance running. That is very good.

The weight lifting does NOT have to be anything dramatic, just focused, intense and progressive. In your case, I would focus on deadlifts, squats, bench presses and pull-ups. You don't even probably have to do much more than those to reach your goals and build a substantial base. I'm not sure if you've ever practiced doing heavy deadlifts and squats, but I have no doubt they will move you toward your goals. If you want a strong core, I think those two exercises will go a long way.