To the people who are gonna tell me that diet pills are not the way to go..PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND. Now, to everyone else and those who have taken Trimspa, am I supposed to take it on an empty stomach? It just says to take 4 a day(2 in the morning, 1 b 4 lunch, and 1 b 4 dinner)...Someone, anyone that has or is taking it now!!!

Since hearing from my recruiter that military is about to select me for OCS in about a month, I'm now in a hurry to lose 20-30 pounds or 8% body fat to make the cut or else they'll change their mind on picking me. I already know about mixing in even amount of lifting and cardio days each week. I hear better to do cardios on empty stomach cuz your body will fuel up on some of your body fat rather than calories you may have taken in from eating first.

With the dieting, I know I gotta lay off foods that are junk, got flour, starch, or sugar. I heard it's ok to indulge one day a week; should I even keep those cheat days moderate as well? So far I've been eating 5-6 portioned meals/day (spread out by 1.5-2 hours apart): fruits/veggies, soy protein powder mixed with milk, protein RTDs, protein bars, etc...

Recruiter suggested I double (or even triple) the cardio workouts to double (or triple) the calorie-burning, even wear a trash bag on me.
I also hear trying to get enough sleep helps with a speedy weight loss as well. What if I have some scheduling conflict (summer classes in morning and work in late night)? On top of proper diet and exercise, would I lose weight faster working out first thing for the day on empty stomach and not enough sleep, or get enough sleep by another hour or two, eat first, and then workout some time later?
I know definitely good idea to stick with water for fluids. Will drinking diet soda on cheat days interfere with the weight loss effort?
I've heard from this one Army guy (I'm trying out for Navy) that besides proper diet and exercising regularly, he sometimes lay an iron (low heat) on his stomach. Does that really help in the weight loss or burning fat?

Nobody still answered this question. Which way is faster in losing weight?
a) Not enough sleep, workout on empty stomach, and then eat after
b) Enough sleep, eat first, workout after