Fad or Effective

[Cafe MichelleP]

This is an informative post put together by one of our mods. The purpose of this post is to help you to make an informative decision in your weight loss journey should you be considering one of the following diets.

Facts/accessible information are first provided, then her opinions/comments will be last  in bold lettering.

[BeckyByVi]

Hi Michelle -

I just wanted to comment on your synopsis of the Body By Vi 90 Day Challenge. I could not disagree more with your post, and wanted to provide some insight. I have personally lost 58 lbs on the Challenge, and recently was a Challenge SHOWDOWN winner. I will be featured on an Online TV Show that is being produced by Ben Silverman, creator of "The Biggest Loser". This is the furthest thing from a scam imaginable. It is real, and the challenge has documented over 15 MILLION pounds lost to date. In addition, there are thousands of testimonials of individuals who have lost weight, reduced or been taken off medications for chronic illnesses, improved their overall health and fitness, completed fitness competitions and achieved countless other successes.

The program does center around a healthy meal replacement shake, as well as several supplements, energy drinks, healthy meal replacement cookies, etc. But it also encourages healthy eating habits with a program that replaces one or two meals a day with a meal replacement, then two healthy snacks and a healthy meal. It is a LIFESTYLE change. There are five challenge kits to choose from depending on each person's individual goals. The program pricing varies from $49 for a balance kit to $299 for a fit kit. There is a program called "3 for Free" in which you can earn your products for free every month as a customer or a promoter by simply refering three friends to do the program with you; those friends in turn can refer three friends in order to get their products for free. I have been getting my products for free since January 2012, and am on the $249 kit.

With regard to ingredients, Visalus uses only top quality tri-sorb protein. And the ingredients ARE listed on their website and are readily available: you can find fact sheets and information about all of their products as well as their company here: http://visalus.com/due-diligence/. While products are not FDA-Approved (because FOOD is not required to be FDA approved) they are produced in facilities that adhere to strict FDA inspection regulations, despite the fact that they are also not required to do so. The products are developed by some of the top scientific minds, for example, Dr. Michael Seidman, who is the Director of the Division of Otologic/Neurotoligic Surgery in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery; Director of Otolaryngology Research Laboratory; Co-Director of the Tinnitus Center; and the Chair of the Complementary/Integrative Medicine Program for a multi-million dollar health center.

Regarding the soy, Visalus uses non-genetically modified soy and removes the isoflavones from the soy, thus making them completely safe and effective, even for someone like myself with hypothyroidism. With regard to the gas and bloating complaints, this is often a complaint due to either a milk sensitivity or intolerance (switching to soy or almond milk usually clears it up) or a lack of adequite water intake. Visalus also tests their products with regard to freshness and retention of vitamin content, however, I'm certain an independent test would be able to prove that these shelf stable products remain just as effective as the day they are produced.

As to Visalus being all about the money and a pyramid scheme, Visalus gives away over $25 million dollars in  vacations, prizes and free product annually. In addition, the Visalus community has donated over 2 Million healthy meals to children and families in need to date, and in one single day gave over half a million healthy meal replacement cookies to Huntington, WV, one of the most depressed parts of the nation. Visalus has a very active Faith and Fitness initiative, which partners with local churches and food banks to raise awareness about health and wellness, as well as provide meals for those in need. In addition, Visalus just launched a new philanthropic initiative, "Vi Cares" to expand their efforts to help in communities throughout the globe. Visalus has proclaimed December 15th 2012 to be Visalus Giving Day and has started an initiative called "A Million Moments of Giving" encouraging all challengers to go out and volunteer in their communities and share their efforts. It is definitely NOT all about the money, however, it is a lucrative business opportunity for those interested in helping others achieve their goals.

For additional information, you're welcome to contact me directly. My email address is [e-mail], or you can visit my website at http://beckybyvi.bodybyvi.com/.

Here's to a HEALTHY future -

Rebecca Chacko
Becky By Vi
[e-mail]
http://beckybyvi.bodybyvi.com/

[HelloSweetie]

I'm Paleo and I will NEVER eat grains, dairy or refined sugar again. Not after knowing what it was doing to my body and how much better I feel now.

To RMT- I think the "30 day" part of the Whole diet there is just a scheme to get people to try that one. Eating whole foods is a lifestyle change, not a diet.

Quoting michiganmom116:

Maybe we're talking about different diets, because I have no intention of ever going back to the SAD, and neither do 99% of the people that try it.

Quoting RMT1995:

If that's the case, what's the point of removing those items from your diet for X amount of time, and not permanently?

Quoting michiganmom116:

Quoting RMT1995:

That's where I'm iffy. I try to eat mostly whole foods already, but I'm skeptical of anything that tells me I can't eat a certain food group.

Why?

Honestly, I was too...until I started reading the science behind it.  Grains have anti-nutrients that cause damage to our bodies.  Lectins cause leaky gut and inflammation throughout our body (arthritis, plaque build up, IBS, etc.); phytates bind to minerals (calcium, magnesium, zinc, copper, etc.) so that we can't use them; then there are things like gluten that cause sensitivities or allergies.

[Nicolle_09]

Bump

I really think this should be stickied again