My Personal Investigation of the Acai Berry Phenomenon - The Results

So, I read the article on the Acai Berry weight-loss phenomenon and ordered my miracle pill quick fix. I have gotten them in the mail and I have recorded all the stats and given the background so you know a little more about me. (See previous article bookmarked here) Now it is the time for the real work. The study begins.

It seems to me, that the introduction to this personal investigation was a lot easier than this portion of the study. After all, I got myself organized and set my start date. Now, the hard part begins. I must continually remember to take these pills on a daily basis and record how they have made me feel.

For those of you who did not read the previous article, here is my starting stats:

Start Date: Sept. 27, 2010 Weight: 195.4 lbs Body Fat: 41.1%

Chest: 44 in. Waist: 35.5 in. Hips:44 in. rt. Arm: 13.5 in. rt. Leg: 24.5 in.

The first week on the diet and I am excited and nervous all at the same time. I can’t wait to see what my results are, and even though I am skeptical, I am trying to stay positive.

Here are my stats:

Date: Oct. 4, 2010 Weight: 193 lbs Body Fat: 40.7%

Chest: 44 in. Waist: 34.5 in. Hips:43.5 in. rt. Arm: 13 in. rt. Leg: 24 in.

Results:

Weight: - 2.4 lbs Body Fat: -0.4%

Chest: same Waist: -1 in. Hips: -0.5 in. rt.Arm: -0.5 in. rt. Leg: -0.5 in.

Looking at the results, I will admit, I am VERY disappointed! Not that I was expecting much, but the results really could be an error in measuring or just a variation of water weight. While the numbers don’t lie, they can be smudged a little. After one-week of no fail pill popping, I would have to say it is so far not the miracle pill I was promised.

Week One Overview:

While I don’t plan on recording my results based on a daily basis (unless the need arises) I will point out my views and feelings throughout the week.

Overall, week one is a telling week. The first day I took the supplements, I didn’t notice much of a change. I did not take the pills until the afternoon (since I was waiting for the shipment to come in the mail). It was a stressful day for my life in general. After taking the pills out of the mailbox, I found a little homecoming treat (disgusting at most) and spent a lot of my time trying to get that under wraps. Therefore, I couldn’t tell if the pills did anything to me; I was otherwise distracted.

On the second day, I did however, and I will note this, ate breakfast, which is something I never do. After all, it really is necessary to eat breakfast so you can take the pills early in the morning. I didn’t want to chance the pills interfering with my sleep because the next day I had to work. This is the day I really felt the pills kick in. After eating breakfast and taking the pills, I found myself disgusted in general with my unorganized house. Once my son was in bed, I set off to cleaning. While I was only intending on doing a quick clean, I ended up spending two hours scrubbing the floor on my hands and knees. This was incredible. I was full of energy. I was running around the house like a mad woman. I also felt like I was starving. Therefore, while I may have had more energy, I couldn’t stop eating. My stomach growled almost every half hour like clockwork. This to me seems counterproductive. Anything the pills may have burnt off, I have consumed! I noticed I have probably doubled my caloric intake to ease my tummy growls.

As the week continued, I kept up with eating breakfast and taking the pills. Unfortunately, after a hard days work, the pills seem to have no effect on my energy levels. I was still beyond levels of exhaustion. I did however notice it made me very shaky. While it wasn’t uncontrollable, I did notice it made it hard for me to do my job. After all, I am a barber and I cut men’s hair for a living. It is hard to blend a haircut with your hands feeling like you are on a caffeine high. On another note, I will have to admit I was having a bit of a coffee problem this week. I probably drank a whole pot myself a couple times this week. So, I am not completely sure if the jitters were from the pills or more from the coffee. However, after I came down from my coffee and diet pill high, I did sleep like a baby!

So the second week starts. After being a little disappointed with the results, I continue to push on, hoping this is the week that things start to change.

Here are my stats:

Date: Oct. 11, 2010 Weight: 193 lbs Body Fat: 40.7%

Chest: 44 in. Waist: 34.5 in. Hips:43.5 in. rt. Arm: 13 in. rt. Leg: 24 in.

Results:

Weight: - 2.4 lbs Body Fat: -0.4%

Chest: same Waist: -1 in. Hips: -0.5 in. rt.Arm: -0.5 in. rt. Leg: -0.5 in.

As I continue to analyze the results, I am still very VERY disappointed! I am still skeptical. These pills are not giving me much of a positive vibe. I don't feel the increased energy they described nor do I feel my pants starting to get loser. I am still giving them a chance, especially since I am not through the entire experiment.

Week Two Overview:

Every Monday and Tuesday is my day off work. Even after a full week of pills in my system, I don’t feel like my energy levels have been lifted. Therefore, I took off the whole day on Monday and sat and vegged and did nothing. I made best friends with my chair and my computer. I watched TV and surfed the internet. Tuesday was the same story.

As the week progressed, I honestly notice nothing. The only evidence that I am still taking these pills are that I am still jittery. This week, I have not been drinking a whole ton of coffee, so it is obvious to me that these pills are the source of my shakes. I have however noticed these pills have been affecting my mood. I have been bitchy, emotional, whiney and mean. I have also felt bloated and fat. Okay, so, here is the complication, but this is life. In strikes PMS. So, does my mood have anything to do with the pills or is more just the symptoms of womanhood. While some may say it is that, I do believe the pills have intensified my crabbiness. As the week came to an end, the PMS continued and my menstrual cycle started. I still feel bloated and fat, more so than normal. And my bitchiness has joined me on my emotional rollercoaster and has been the worst it has ever been. I think I even cried a little at the end of a funny movie.

It is only the third week. I am halfway through this experiment and I can’t really say much other than wow… I have been scammed!

Here are my stats:

Date: Oct. 18, 2010 Weight: 192.2 lbs Body Fat: 40.6%

Chest: 44 in. Waist: 34 in. Hips:43.5 in. rt. Arm: 12.75 in. rt. Leg: 24 in.

Results:

Weight: - 3.2 lbs Body Fat: -0.5%

Chest: same Waist: -1.5 in. Hips: -0.5 in. rt.Arm: -0.75 in. rt. Leg: -0.5 in.

After looking at the results, I have come to the conclusion before ending the experiment these little pills aren’t really doing much at all. Now while this comes to no surprise, I find that maybe my negative attitude towards the pills are making me aggressively hold on to the weight… just so I can prove them wrong. This week I set the goal to try and stay positive.

Week Three Overview:

This week has been a stressful one. I have still continued to take the pills, yet I find myself more stressed and more irritated and more and more hungry. The only thing I am finding is that I am starving. I find once I take the pills I am craving food within a half an hour. I am hoping this is due to the jumpstart in my metabolism. The problem is, I have been so busy I have failed to go grocery shopping. This means my lack of food in the house has forced me to also eat fast food when I am at work. While I am no stranger to fast food (since my family has a highly busy lifestyle between my husband’s, my kid's and my schedule), I have been on a good trend of bringing snacks and lunch to work with me. This week seemed to be the exact opposite. I have been eating fast food nonstop.

The other main thing to note this week is it has been a stressful one. My first day to work for the week and I get a phone call because the babysitter forgot to pick up my kids from school. The day after, I get a call because of a gas leak. I will admit, I am a bit of a stress eater. Luckily for me, I am hungry anyway.

As for the pills, my energy levels are about the same. I feel overly jittery this week and because of the stress any extra energy I might have had has been eaten up by having to deal with unusual circumstances. Honestly, I wish this week was just over.

It is my final week of taking the pills. So far, I am not seeing the massive amounts of progress that I was hoping for, after all, I could have just cut out soda and probably got the same results.

Here are my stats:

Date: Oct. 18, 2010 Weight: 190.8 lbs Body Fat: 40.3%

Chest: 43 in. Waist: 34 in. Hips:43 in. rt. Arm: 12.5 in. rt. Leg: 24 in.

Results:

Weight: - 4.6 lbs Body Fat: -0.8%

Chest: -1 in. Waist: -1.5 in. Hips: -1 in. rt.Arm: -1 in. rt. Leg: -0.5 in.

I am still a little disappointed but this week is going to be the push. I am hoping by the end of the experiment I am able to say this has been a positive experience. Overall, with a lack of results, it is hard to stay motivated to take these pills everyday, especially with the jitteriness it has been causing. On a positive note, I have seen some of the numbers to come down, unfortunately, it was in my chest. I guess that is the part of weight loss though, the chest is usually the first to go!

Week Four Overview:

This once again has been another stressful week. I feel like I am never sitting down. Our basement has been leaking and my one year old son has me constantly on my toes. I am up early and I never seem to sit down. Whether this is a conscious choice because I have too much energy to deal with is doubtful. I am pretty sure if I had the chance to sit down, I would probably fall asleep.

My energy levels are starting to fall. I assume my body has become used to the pills and therefore, the first week energy boost is now gone. I have reverted back to my habit of coffee. I need the extra boost to get everything done that is needed. Unfortunately, this often adds to the jitters I was already experiencing with just taking the pills.

With this being the final week taking the pills, I notice my emotions have been severely heightened. Watching commercials and even the occasional cartoons have brought tears to my eyes. These aren’t typical things I would normally cry at either. They were not even close to being sad. I am not sure if the emotional outbursts are due to an overwhelming amount of stress or if the pills are the effect of my emotional overload. In fact, as the month goes on further and further, I find myself becoming more sad, discontent and moody. While earlier weeks I have noticed a bit of an emotional rollercoaster starting, this week has been the top off. Taking a step back, the mood changes are downright scary; almost as if I feel like I am going to lose control.

The final weigh in is here. I can honestly say it didn’t come fast enough. Not only did I have difficulty cancelling my membership so I didn't recieve more pills, but it has been a trying time keeping up with this project. (Read about the scam from these pills here… http://hubpages.com/hub/I-should-have-known-better) I have thought deep about my conclusive results, based not only off the numbers, but also how it has personally affected me on a different level.

My starting stats:

Start Date: Sept. 27, 2010 Weight: 195.4 lbs Body Fat: 41.1%

Chest: 44 in. Waist: 35.5 in. Hips:44 in. rt. Arm: 13.5 in. rt. Leg: 24.5 in.

Final weigh-in:

Date: Oct. 25, 2010 Weight: 192.6 lbs Body Fat: 40.4%

Chest: 43 in. Waist: 34 in. Hips:43 in. rt. Arm: 12.5 in. rt. Leg: 24 in.

Results:

Weight: - 2.8 lbs Body Fat: -0.7%

Chest: -1 in. Waist: -1.5 in. Hips: -1 in. rt.Arm: -1 in. rt. Leg: -0.5 in.

Overview:

Based off my four-week study, I would highly suggest you put your debit card away and save your money. These pills are not the miracle that you are looking for. I gave these pills a shot and did this study not only so you could see these results for yourself, but maybe so I can also realize there is no miracle pill out there as well.

Weight:

As you can see, based off the numbers, I took the pills for an entire month and only saw a weight loss of 2.8 pounds. For a pill promising so much more, this is downright pathetic. Not to mention, the average person can fluctuate weight based off of water retention. Now, remember, during this study, I did not change any of my normal habits. The only thing that changed was me taking these pills. Therefore, I am not saying if you add a proper diet and exercise, these pills won’t be beneficial. Unfortunately, people who are often looking for these miracle pills are also looking for a quick fix, whether it is because they are too lazy to do the proper diet and exercise or just because they don’t have time. These pills are not a quick fix. Without the proper lifestyle change, you are just wasting your money. Overall, these pills did nothing to change the number on the scale!

Inches:

As for trimming off the waistline, these pills proved to be another unsuccessful story. While you can see inches lost, unfortunately, those inches might not be accurate. All it takes is a little smudge higher or lower on your body, or maybe a tighter tug on the measuring tape and you will see the inches climb down. If you do the pants test, my jeans are no looser or no tighter than they were prior to starting this personal investigation.

Body:

Overall, the weight was obviously not falling off, but I did notice how my stomach was cramping and I seemed to spend a lot more time in the bathroom. On top of that, the longer I was on the pills the more jittery I became. Within five minutes of taking them, my hands would be shaking uncontrollably. After my system got used to the pills, the jitters did not lighten up. Definitely not worth your time if you need a steady hand! In addition, for the results that you are looking for, I honestly can't say the side effects are worth the results.

Mood:

This is the portion that intrigues me and scares me the most, both at the same time. After all, I have taken several different diet pills over the course of my life, and I have never once seen them affect my mood the way these did. While I don’t know the science behind these pills, I can tell you what I personally felt. Even after a search, I found no reputable site that gave any side effects for either of these pills. During my month timeframe, I found with each increasing week I became more moody, irrational and on edge. My ability to deal with stressful situations seemed to be on the low side. I angered quickly and unfortunately my family took the brunt of this. Toward the end of the month, not only was I moody, but I was also sad and on the verge of a serious depression. In fact, if conditions don’t improve after I have these pills out of my system, I might find myself in the doctors office for depression.

Now this is the only time I will stress that you listen to my warning… IF YOU are a person who has struggled with depression in the past or are currently under a stressful situation, I would definitely not recommend you take these weight loss supplements. I have in the past been treated for depression and naturally have high anxiety levels. The mood swings and the depression have gotten worse for me upon taking this supplement. I would not recommend a person to use these, if they already struggle with these issues. I would hate to see these conditions become worse in any person. When depression strikes this bad, this is an area where suicidal thoughts may start coming in to play and professional help might be needed. While I am not suicidal, other people might find this as a side effect if depression worsens. (And I am not a doctor so this is just a personal opinion!)

Overall:

Based off my feelings and the results, I find these pills to be a waste of time and money. They did nothing. In fact, I probably could have lost more weight not taking the pills. If you are looking for the quick fix, this is not the answer. The truth is, I don’t think the answer is in any pill form whatsoever.

Now, I can not stop you from buying these supplements if that is something you want to try, but, after reading about my personal investigation, I hope it will make you think a little harder about shoving any type of weight loss pill into your mouth. These pills did not work for me, and I have little hope they will work for you. If you don’t believe me… try for yourself… then write a personal investigation and send me a link. Maybe if we get more personal investigations out there from real people, there will be less people out there who will be reading the paid advertisements promising results.

When it comes to weight loss, there is no miracle fix or diet pill that will ease your transition from fluffy to anorexic (which, by the way, I hope nobody out there has that set as their goal!) The mindset needs to be set at a healthier you, whether this is a fluffy version or a one who is at an ideal weight. Ultimately, it is more important to be happy with yourself. Taking pills is not the healthy course. If you strive to get the extra weight off, remember to do it correctly. The only way to achieve these results is through hard work! You need to exercise, eat right and drink lots of water!

In the end, remember, it doesn’t matter what the number on the scale says, or even how many inches are on the tape measure… you are beautiful! Once you stop stressing about the numbers, the weight will probably melt right off. So, if you find the need to take a pill, here is a pill I am offering to you. It is called the beautiful pill. Take it every morning with a smile and remember, no matter what weight you are, you are beautiful, and you don’t need a miracle pill to achieve those results!

Diet Pills are a serious issue. If you know anybody that has been scammed by these miracle pills, please pass this article on. You never know who you might be helping by sharing this message.