{"id":1123,"date":"2014-02-15T09:58:19","date_gmt":"2014-02-15T14:58:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bodybuilding.ultimatefatburner.com\/?p=1123"},"modified":"2016-01-04T11:29:57","modified_gmt":"2016-01-04T16:29:57","slug":"test-x180-review-get-huge-freaky-fast","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/bodybuilding\/test-x180-review-get-huge-freaky-fast.html","title":{"rendered":"Force Factor Test X180 Ignite Review: Get HUGE Freaky Fast?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Natural testosterone boosters (i.e., “test” boosters) always sell well, so it’s not surprising to see Force Factor bring Test X180 to the market.If you’ve checked out other natural test-boosting products, you’ll find the claims made for Text X180 are pretty typical…<\/p>\n

… more energy, a big boost in the libido department, and plenty of extra “T” floating around to help you build slabs of lean, rock hard muscle in the gym.<\/p>\n

Update:<\/strong> Force Factor LLC, the makers of this product, is curently being sued<\/a>. The defendants allege that the key ingredients in the product have no proven ability to boost free testosterone. They’re correct. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

However, despite the advertorials (ads made to look like editorial articles) you may have encountered featuring flustered GNC managers who are “unable” to keep the product in stock due to its huge popularity and success, there is absolutely nothing new, novel, or interesting about Test X180.<\/p>\n

Well-crafted advertising uses tactics to overcome “human inertia” and get you to buy now<\/em><\/strong>. Creating the appearance of product scarcity is a good way to do this, regardless whether there is a scarcity or not.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So what’s in Test X180?<\/p>\n

It’s a relatively simple formula and contains only 4 ingredients; Testofen\u2122, ginseng, Tribulus terrestris, and cordyceps (in addition to a B and D vitamin blend). Before discussing the ingredients in detail, it’s worth noting that a single serving of this product contains 400 mg of ingredients. Why is this important? Well, the advertising states…<\/p>\n

“Each serving of Test X180 contains clinically researched levels of Testofen\u2122 the proven, natural fenugreek seed extract that has been shown to help men add pounds of hard, sculpted muscle to their bodies.”<\/span><\/p>\n

If that’s the case, 300 mg of this formula has to be comprised of Testofen\u2122. This is based on the only supporting published clinical data<\/a> in existence (which does not support the argument that Testofen\u2122 raises test levels, but I will get to that in a moment).<\/p>\n

This essentially renders the rest of the ingredient profile moot, since the remaining ingredients are not going to be present in dosages high enough to do much of anything.<\/p>\n

Essentially then, whether this product “works” or not rests entirely on Testofen\u2122.<\/p>\n

So let’s take a closer look. What is it?<\/p>\n

Testofen\u2122 is a proprietary fenugreek extract marketed by Gencor-Pacific. Gencor-Pacific claims to have clinical data (Wankhede et. al., 2006 \u201cEffect of Testofen\u2122 on safety, anabolic activity and factors affecting exercise physiology),\u00a0that supports the argument that supplementation leads to \u201csignificant\u201d body fat loss and an increase in free testosterone, but to date this study has never been published (and, given that 8 years have passed now, it is likely it will never be).<\/p>\n

In-house studies always have to be taken with a hearty dose of skepticism, especially when you consider the people who have the most to gain financially from a positive outcome are the same ones conducting the study.<\/p>\n

When we first encountered this ingredient in a men’s libido product, I asked Elissa, our scientific and technical advisor, to have a look at the in-house study and send me her comments. Elissa’s a trained food scientist, and a former research scientist at the University of California at Davis, so she’s well equipped to filter through impressive looking data and deliver the bottom line.<\/p>\n

Here are her comments…<\/p>\n

A few-odd things leaped out at me on first glance. The first was the usual one: no ranges or \u201cerror bars.\u201d An average result is a combination of highs and lows \u2013 it cannot be taken to mean that everyone experienced approximately the same result. Ranges give some insight as to individual responses.<\/p>\n

The second was that \u2013 despite the magnitude of the change in free T between the test and placebo groups, they pretty much ended up in the same place (p. 10). That\u2019s because, on average, the test group started with lower free T.<\/p>\n

And (\u201cthirdly\u201d) seriously \u2013 no body composition calculations? All they do is give measurements for a couple of skin folds. Why no calculations to determine what these measurements mean in an absolute sense?<\/p>\n

Finally, I can see why this hasn\u2019t been published yet. This \u201cstudy\u201d falls way, way short \u2013 no info is given about diet or exercise \u2013 just the study duration and supplementation schedule. Were the two groups performing the same workouts? Were there any weight changes (positive or negative) recorded? Were they given any instructions about diet or other counseling? Why did 5 people drop out? Why no discussion (for example, I would have liked to see some discussion of why the placebo group\u2019s free T improved too)?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In addition to the human based study Elissa discusses, Gencor-Pacific also uses a couple of animal-based in-house studies to justify their claims.<\/p>\n

In the first study, Testofen\u2122 (5 \u2013 25 mg\/kg) increased mounting frequency and other measures of sexual activity.<\/p>\n

The second study demonstrated that castrated rats given 25 mg\/kg Testofen\u2122 had increases in seminal vesicle, prostate and levator ani muscle weights similar to controls injected with 0.5 mg testosterone.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, this doesn’t jive with the only published clinical study<\/a> for this ingredient, which concluded that…<\/p>\n

“Serum prolactin and testosterone levels remained within the reference range.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Which essentially means it did not elevate test levels. That’s not to say study participants did not experience positive results. They certainly did…<\/p>\n

“… Testofen demonstrated a significant positive effect on physiological aspects of libido.”<\/span><\/p>\n

So it’s not that Testofen\u2122 does not offer value. It seems to work quite well as a libido booster, something that was confirmed when Elissa ran a small test on her husband<\/a>, John, using a different Testofen\u2122-based product. (his test levels actually dipped during the test!).<\/p>\n

It’s just that it has never been shown to raise either testosterone or free testosterone in any reputable, peer-reviewed, published study.<\/p>\n

And that’s the bottom line on Testofen\u2122.<\/p>\n

What about the remaining ingredients?<\/p>\n

Well, as already noted, they are unlikely to present in a dosage high enough to elicit any effect, and really serve only as label dressing. Regardless, let’s discuss them…<\/p>\n