# CLA is it worth the money?



## Mharvey (May 7, 2012)

Has anyone tried CLA, got any good results whilst using it, or is it just a waste of money and would i just be better off buying something else?


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

Save your money unless someone is giving that to you.


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## El Toro Mr UK98 (Nov 11, 2011)

it does have an importent role in fat burning but its not essential, a good omega 3 is the cheaper way to go


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

El Toro Mr UK98 said:


> it does have an importent role in fat burning but its not essential, a good omega 3 is the cheaper way to go


So does L-Carnitine

In one study, 75 percent of participants saw a 20 percent improved ability to exert energy within 25 minutes after exercising.

They recommend giving it to people with heart issues, also helps liver.

I think L-Carnitine would work better than CLA.


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## Mharvey (May 7, 2012)

really i thought L-Carnitine sounded worse than CLA for fat loss


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## 25081 (Nov 24, 2011)

Both L-Carnitne and CLA can aid weight loss but you still need the basics in place (Good diet - calorie defecit). Get your diet sorted and save your money IMO.


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## leeds_01 (Aug 6, 2008)

i have been taking CLA, L-carnitine + evening primrose oil for the last 8 weeks and have seen results


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## bayman (Feb 27, 2010)

CLA - rubbish, unless you're a rat, then it works great.

L-Carnitine - won't do much of anything either, no clinical evidence supporting the claims behind it.


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## Mharvey (May 7, 2012)

seems like a lot of different opinions lol. Sounds like it just depends on who you are, different things work for different people i guess


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## bayman (Feb 27, 2010)

Mharvey said:


> seems like a lot of different opinions lol. Sounds like it just depends on who you are, different things work for different people i guess


No, it's just most people run CLA alongside a diet, so they have no idea if it's the CLA doing the work, or the fact they've tightened up their nutrition. Diet is 90% of the battle in so far as fat loss.


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## leeds_01 (Aug 6, 2008)

bayman said:


> CLA - rubbish, unless you're a rat, then it works great.
> 
> L-Carnitine - won't do much of anything either, no clinical evidence supporting the claims behind it.


bayman post your pics i wana see your physique

if i get time tonight ill post the literature references citing the proven benefits for L-C & CLA


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

I know a store that was going out of business, I bought up massive amount of supplements, I ran the CLA for a long time and I really did not notice anything.

As Bayman said, diet is the factor for weight loss.

Free range cattle have more CLA and good fats in it than regular beef.


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## bayman (Feb 27, 2010)

leeds_01 said:


> bayman post your pics i wana see your physique


What would this add to the debate?



leeds_01 said:


> if i get time tonight ill post the literature references citing the proven benefits for L-C & CLA


If you really want I'll post the ones showing no benefit!  You make a judgement on something based on the weight of the who evidence, not just isolated studies.


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## leeds_01 (Aug 6, 2008)

bayman said:


> What would this add to the debate?
> 
> If you really want I'll post the ones showing no benefit!  You make a judgement on something based on the weight of the who evidence, not just isolated studies.


i would help me judge in my mind whether you know what your talkin bout thats why - i feel you jumped straight in slamming the supps and i feel strongly that they have their place and are effective


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## leeds_01 (Aug 6, 2008)

leeds_01 said:


> i would help me judge in my mind whether you know what your talkin bout thats why - i feel you jumped straight in slamming the supps and i feel strongly that they have their place and are effective


CLA appears to have beneficial properties beyond those of linoleic acid, it has shown to be a powerful anticarcinogen and exhibit a powerful antioxident effect. Of importance for those wishing to maximize lean body mass CLA has superb anticatabolic properties. Cook, M.E. C.C.Miller, Y.Park and M Pariza, 1997. Nutritional control of immune-induced growth depression. Poultry Sci 72 (7): 1301-5

Furthermore a team of Scandinavian scientists found that CLA aided overweight individuals mobilize fat from cells whilst aiding muscle metabolism. Blankson, H. J.A Stakkestad, H Fagertun.2000. Conjugated Linoleic Acid reduces body fat mass in overweight humans. J Nutr 130 (12): 2943-48


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## bayman (Feb 27, 2010)

leeds_01 said:


> CLA appears to have beneficial properties beyond those of linoleic acid, it has shown to be a powerful anticarcinogen and exhibit a powerful antioxident effect. Of importance for those wishing to maximize lean body mass CLA has superb anticatabolic properties. Cook, M.E. C.C.Miller, Y.Park and M Pariza, 1997. Nutritional control of immune-induced growth depression. Poultry Sci 72 (7): 1301-5
> 
> Furthermore a team of Scandinavian scientists found that CLA aided overweight individuals mobilize fat from cells whilst aiding muscle metabolism. Blankson, H. J.A Stakkestad, H Fagertun.2000. Conjugated Linoleic Acid reduces body fat mass in overweight humans. J Nutr 130 (12): 2943-48


Ok, so your first study is on Poultry and Rats. Not to sound like a d*ck, but it's findings have limited applicability to humans. And then, the studies conclusions:



> Thus, CLA is effective in preventing the catabolic effects of immune stimulation.


So we know it potentially stops muscle loss in rats and poultry with induced illness. Wow. Just wow.

As for the second study. This confers with a load of others I've read showing it to have an effect in the obese / overweight on Visceral fat. I've still yet to see any showing it to be effective for the average gym goer at non-obese (<25% BF) levels.

Carnitine is a strange one, as it's only ever been shown to be effective if shuttled to muscle cells alongside a big spike in insulin. So you have two options, 1. Inject synthetic insulin alongside it, or 2. take it with a load of simple carbs. Insulin inhibits lipolysis as I'm sure you're aware...


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

bayman said:


> L-Carnitine - won't do much of anything either, no clinical evidence supporting the claims behind it.


Just did a ton of research on this one.

You are right, all the studies I looked at showed we produce enough and additional amount did zero.

Thanks for pointing that out, I wont recommend it again.


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## JusNoGood (Apr 4, 2011)

I did find if I spent my hard earned money on supps it made me more determined to keep to a diet so the money wasn't wasted...so even if the supplement i naively bought doesn't really improve weightloss it did make me dramatically improve my diet and keep to it...so I did see better results from using them...if that makes sense.

I stopped buying CLA when I realised that lol and kept the losses going at the same rate without it.


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