Posted By Paul on Feb 6, 2017 | 4 comments

Cobra Labs The Ripper NO BS Revew

Because everything is WAY cooler with skulls.

With a glowering skull and flourescent lettering gracing the label, Cobra Labs’ The Ripper fat burner challenges you from the moment you pick up the product…

Do you have the balls to try our product?

Are you a real man? A real woman? Are you ready to “RIDE THE LIGHTNING!”?

Yeah, maybe.

A cool label does not necessarily a great fat burner make and The Ripper makes many of the usual claims for over the counter weight loss supplements and diet pills…

1. Effective.
2. Fast acting.
3. Delivers clean, consistent energy.
4. No jitters.
5. Fat burning you can “feel.”.

It won’t surprise you to learn – and if it does, this Ripper review will set you straight – that this is standard advertising bullshit.

“Fat burning you can feel?”

Not hardly. Oh, and…

WTF is “clean” energy?

The Ripper: Ingredients Breakdown

Unlike your standard weight loss supplements which are delivered in capsule form, The Ripper is a powdered product that is mixed with water. A single serving is 5 grams, has 5 calories, and in addition to Vitamin C, B12, chromium picolinate (helpful for moderating blood sugar levels and a smart addition to any over the counter diet supplement) and pantothenic acid, contains 2 proprietary blends…

I fucking hate proprietary blends. While supplement companies claim such blends protect the integrity of their carefully researched ingredient profiles, the reality is that it prevents consumers from being able to determine which ingredients are included at doses potent enough to be helpful. Label dressing – or including a few milligrams of various ingredients to make the formula appear more impressive than it actually is, is a common issue in the supplement industry. Proprietary blends are “tools” that allow this deception to flourish.

Extreme Muscle Fuel (Proprietary blend of 2,034 mg)

This 4-ingredient matrix includes…

Carnosyn® (Beta-Alanine)

This one made me shake my head.

Now don’t get me wrong; I love beta alanine. It’s an awesome body building supplement (one of my favorites, actually) that works by elevating muscle carnosine levels and yes, its effects on sports performance is backed by some decent clinical data. I’ve discussed beta alanine in great detail in this article here so I won’t get into it here.

That said, it really has no business in a weight loss supplement because, well… it offers no weight loss benefits. So I have to ask…

WTF? Really, WTF?

Is this a weight loss supplement, or a pre-workout supplement?

The Ripper is advertised as a weight loss supplement, which is at odds with the name of this proprietary blend; Extreme Muscle Fuel (although for the life of me I can’t figure out what’s so extreme about stacking beta alanine and caffeine together, which what this boils down to).

In fairness…

There is one argument for the inclusion of Carnosyn that I could think of and it is this; its combination with intense exercise does stimulate the development of lean muscle, which Cobra Lab’s could easily argue (and rightly so) is one the main goals of its customers. That said…

In my opinion, however, the best products address a single goal; weight loss OR muscle growth.

Not both.

It is very difficult to obtain the two at the same time; muscle growth requires surplus calories, weight loss requires a calorie deficit.

That’s why there are “bulking phases” and “cutting phases” in any diet plan.

The skeptical side of me also has to point out that beta alanine is famous for is its side effects of “skin tingling” and “itching.”

A user not familiar with beta alanine might mistake this side effect (harmless, by the way) as evidence of the formula working (i.e., “fat burning you can feel”).

While I have no proof the folks over at Cobra labs added beta alanine simply to elicit a physical response that could support their claims in their customers’ minds, it certainly won’t hurt the products’ “street cred” that you can actually feel something happening when you take it.

Guarana Extract

We’re not told what the guarana extract is in the Ripper, but most of the time, it’s caffeine (I’ll discuss caffeine in more detail in a moment).

Raspberry Ketones

Here’s another shitty supplement we can thank Dr. Oz for making popular.

After all, it was languishing in obscurity until he featured it on his show. Exposure, however, doesn’t necessarily equate to effectiveness (for those of you who don’t know Oz was called out in a U.S. Senate SubCommittee and essentially called a snake oil salesman for his promotion of such supplements), and that’s certainly the case here.

Chances are you haven’t heard much about raspberry ketones lately, and there’s a reason for that; they never lived up to the hype. If you’re interested, you can read more about them here.

At this time however, their relatively insignificant weight loss effects are only confirmed by a handful of small animal studies… there’s no credible human-based study data to suggest they have any effect.

Meet caffeine at the molecular level. It’ll kick your ass!

Caffeine (200mg)

Maybe this is what the folks at Cobra Labs were talking when they talked about “fat burning you can feel.” ‘Cause you can certainly “feel” caffeine.

And with 200 mg plus whatever is else included in the guarana, green tea and green coffee extracts also included in this product, this is definitely going to pack a punch that you can “feel.”

Caffeine, of course, also has weight loss benefits confirmed by multiple different studies – it works primarily by elevating the resting metabolic rate. Just don’t expect miracles – its effects are subtle and will only be noticeable over the long term.

Ripper Shred Matrix (Proprietary blend of 1,106 mg)

This 6 ingredient blend includes…

Taurine

A non-essential amino acid, taurine is an interesting supplement, definitely worth learning more about. In our complete review of taurine, Elissa says, “it’s a compound with (yet unrealized) therapeutic potential, but the evidence to justify its use as a supplement for healthy people is still limited—more research definitely needs to be done.”

‘Nuff said.

Acetyl L-Carnitine HCl

L-Carnitine ingredient is making a comeback in the weight loss world. I’m seeing it more and more often in weight loss products despite the fact that the evidence for its benefit for weight loss is conflicting and contradictory.

One thing that is certain though is this; it’s under-dosed and present as “label dressing” only.

Even if you want to accept l-carnitine’s weight loss benefits at face value, clinical studies only observed positive results with multi-gram dosages (3,000-6,000 mg). This entire 6-ingredient blend only contains a touch over 1,100 mg, so it’s not possible for an effective dose to be present here.

If you’re interested in experimenting with L Carnitine, you need to take it in isolation, since that’s really the only way you’re goig to get a dose strong enough to deliver any results. If this is you, check out the video “6 Things You Need to Know about Take L-Carnitine for Weight Loss.”

Green Coffee Extract

Althought its been around for a while, green coffee extract (standardized for something called chlorogenic acid) didn’t gain widespread notoriety until it was featured breathlessly on the Dr. Oz show. There, Oz’s in house expert Dr Lindsay Duncan, had nothing but positive things about the supplement.

Fast forward to a few years later to find out that…

1. Dr Linday lied his ass off (he was fined $9 MILLION by the U.S. FTC for falsely claiming that green coffee caused significant and rapid weight loss).

2. The clinical study used to support his claims is now retracted and discredited.

Yes, there are still a few small human and animal studies that show some green coffee weight loss benefits, but they are not, as you probably won’t be surprised to hear, earth shattering. In other words, if it helps at all, green coffee is no miracle pill.

Green Tea Extract

Green Tea helps with Weight Loss

Although it’s not revealed how much is green tea is included, nor what the extract is, I’m hoping its the catechin EGCG, or epigallocatechin gallate, as it offers the most value from a weight loss perspective.

Subtle as they are, green tea offers a number of weight loss benefits which I discuss in complete detail here so be sure to check it out if you want to learn more.

Cinnamon Bark Extract

Studies show cinnamon bark extract can improve insulin function, improve the glucose and lipid profiles of diabetics, as well as deliver other weight-loss related benefits.

This study, for example shows that Cinnulin (a water soluable cinnimon extract) can lower both systolic blood pressure and fasting blood glucose levels.

Cinnamon bark – if it’s dosed properly (and we have no idea whether it is or not in this proprietary blend) – is a worthwhile addition to any weight loss supplement.

Olive Leaf Extract (40% Oleuropein)

The botanical name for the olive tree (and/or its fruit), olive leaf extract is occasionally included in weight loss supplements, although its benefits in this regard have not been established.

One small animal study suggests a thyroid stimulating effect (although that has not been confirmed in humans), and it’s also part of a 4-ingredient blend that generated some weight loss in a product called “Weighlevel.”

Of course, Cobra Labs’ The Ripper doesn’t contain the other 3 ingredients in the Weighlevel profile, which makes this a moot point, but I thought I’d throw it in here anyway.

Testimonials, Feedback & Side Effects

Given that “The Ripper” is marketed to young, primarily male gym rats, it’s not surprising that most of the reviews and testimonials have been positive (it gets an 8.7 out of 10 on BodyBuilding.com).

Most people love the energy, and the fact that it “wakes them up” and gets them motivated for a session in the gym. Others love the fact that they can access a fat burner without dealing with the pills, and still others note the tingling (a common but harmless side effect of beta alanine), as proof of it “working.”

Any way you want to slice it, slugging back a glass of “Ripper” before heading to the gym is going to dramatically increase the likelihood that you’re going to be killing it while you’re there, instead of trying to chat up that cutie on the treadmill, or wandering aimlessly from station to station.

Side effects wise, the only real concern is high level of caffeine and the danger it poses to those with high blood pressure and other related maladies. Tingling or itching in the extremeties is also reported, but this is a common (and entirely harmless) side effect of Carnosyn / beta alanine (if you’re a beta alanine fan who wants to know how to deal with these side effects, see my video here!)

Cobra Labs The Ripper Review Wrap Up

At the end of the day, Cobra Labs’ The Ripper is not the “ultimate fat burner”, nor is it one of the most effective and fastest fat burners on the market. What it is, however, is a shit-load of caffeine in combination with a handful of other ingredients – some of which may offer some minor weight loss benefits, others have been largely discredited – at dosage levels we can’t confirm.

It also contains Carnosyn (a patented form of beta alanine), which is a sports performance supplement. Accordingly, its inclusion is a bit perplexing, leading to me to wonder whether The Ripper suffers a bit of an identity crisis…

Am I a fat burner or a pre-workout supplement?

It’s like it can’t really make up its mind, and decides to walk the middle ground between both.

But that’s not to say it doesn’t offer value, or that most people in their target market won’t like it.

They will.

Taken before a workout, The Ripper is going to give you a nice shot of artificial energy that will propel you forward at rocket speed. It’s not an expensive venture (around $30 for a 30 day supply) if you take it once daily.

At the two dose per day level it’s a different story altogether, and my recommendation is to consider switching to dedicated pre-workout supplement (or fat burner) if you’re considering two-daily doses.

Carnosyn, if it’s included at an effective dose (the proprietary blend prevent us from confirming this) is also a worthwhile ingredient for anyone working out, even if it doesn’t directly help with weight loss.

Bottom line?

I highly doubt anyone is going to be disappointed with the effects of The Ripper. If you’re looking for a shot of energy to get you through your workout, I have no doubt this will do exactly what you want.

The only question I have is, are you better off with a product that “knows” exactly what it is? In other words, either a dedicated pre-workout or fat burner?

That’s a decision for you to make.

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Oh, and don’t forget to leave a comment below. Have you tried “The Ripper”? What did you think?