Anybody on here doing "Optavia"?
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malloriegabbert wrote: »AS an OptaVia coach, I love the p[program and loving on my clients. This is far from a "money-Making Scheme," and focuses solely on helping clients in every phase of health.
That's very noble of you. So you provide your products to your 'clients' for free and don't make efforts to recruit people into your downline to increase your profits? And what education and training in health, nutrition, exercise, physiology, etc. has Optavia provided to assist you in furthering your knowledge? Or is it like Beachbody and all of the other MLM scams, where you just pay your fee to them and are labeled a "coach", with no training required?
MLM schemes are "far from a money making scheme" for most people who try them. I know several people who have gotten into MLM scams (Beachbody, ItWorks, DoTerra, Plexus, etc.) and every single one of them spent considerably more money than they made. Not to mention that they ended up blocked by many of their friends and family members on social media outlets because of the incessant sales/recruitment pitches. Every one of them so far has been done and out of it within less than a year because they discovered that it didn't live up to all the hype and promises and was ultimately just a money pit for them.19 -
malloriegabbert wrote: »AS an OptaVia coach, I love the p[program and loving on my clients. This is far from a "money-Making Scheme," and focuses solely on helping clients in every phase of health.
That's very noble of you. So you provide your products to your 'clients' for free and don't make efforts to recruit people into your downline to increase your profits? And what education and training in health, nutrition, exercise, physiology, etc. has Optavia provided to assist you in furthering your knowledge? Or is it like Beachbody and all of the other MLM scams, where you just pay your fee to them and are labeled a "coach", with no training required?
MLM schemes are "far from a money making scheme" for most people who try them. I know several people who have gotten into MLM scams (Beachbody, ItWorks, DoTerra, Plexus, etc.) and every single one of them spent considerably more money than they made. Not to mention that they ended up blocked by many of their friends and family members on social media outlets because of the incessant sales/recruitment pitches. Every one of them so far has been done and out of it within less than a year because they discovered that it didn't live up to all the hype and promises and was ultimately just a money pit for them.
not to mention I have a friend who bought some MLM product. she had no liver issues before hand. once she started taking a few products(wont say which MLM). 3 months in and she started having liver issues to the point that it was close to being in failure.
she was not on any other meds to cause this either. once she stopped taking the meds her liver issues started to improve and she has not taken another product. she was told they were safe because they were all natural, and there were no side effects(we all know everything can have side effects) and so on. I have a few friends who have become sick in different ways taking these MLMs just nothing as serious as the one above.8 -
It's expensive processed food and it teaches nothing about proper diet. Each little bar or fueling is just over 100 calories. It's crazy.5
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clowemarykay wrote: »I am on the second week of optavia. They had me on 900-1000 calories as a fitness instructor. I did not lose any weight, had a "coach" call me names and insult me. It is very sales driven and it has been a very very very negative experience for me. I will take away the eating high protein small meals more frequently but that is about it. It was very expensive and full of propaganda. You could not post anything on their site on facebook unless you it about losing weight. When i tried to ask why i was not losing, they deleted my post. Terrible program
I'd like to hear more about your experience. Sounds awful! PM me if you prefer.5 -
malloriegabbert wrote: »AS an OptaVia coach, I love the p[program and loving on my clients. This is far from a "money-Making Scheme," and focuses solely on helping clients in every phase of health.
What qualifies you to evaluate the claims made by OptaVia about their products? What education and skills do you bring to the table outside of their “training” that allow you to understand their promotional materials within the broader context of human health?11 -
I know 2 people in real life that have followed the Optavia program. One lost 40+ pounds in 6 months, the other has lost 15+ pounds in 1 month. Each love the program, claim they've never felt better, said that it contains vitamins/minerals and has the option to do soy free. Who am I to judge them if they believe in their hearts that it works for them? To each their own. I've seen people lose weight eating a fast food diet everyday as well. Of course those who go the fast food route seem to get more praise than someone who eats "processed" meals. It's all about personal preference and how you would like to lose the weight. The bottom line is, can you maintain afterwards? That's why 99% diets fail, even the ones who "clean" eat and exercise and throw heavy weights around and claim that their lifestyle is the ONLY way to go. But if you aren't consistent with keeping it off, then you're basically wasting your time. How you get to the goal is all up to you. But that's just my humble opinion. Go ahead woo me if you'd like...In my head I'm right, and that's all that matters.
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jamesontherun wrote: »clowemarykay wrote: »I am on the second week of optavia. They had me on 900-1000 calories as a fitness instructor. I did not lose any weight, had a "coach" call me names and insult me. It is very sales driven and it has been a very very very negative experience for me. I will take away the eating high protein small meals more frequently but that is about it. It was very expensive and full of propaganda. You could not post anything on their site on facebook unless you it about losing weight. When i tried to ask why i was not losing, they deleted my post. Terrible program
I'd like to hear more about your experience. Sounds awful! PM me if you prefer.
I'd like to hear more about why you're trying to collect names of people with bad experiences. Just saw you do the same on another old thread.9 -
kshama2001 wrote: »jamesontherun wrote: »clowemarykay wrote: »I am on the second week of optavia. They had me on 900-1000 calories as a fitness instructor. I did not lose any weight, had a "coach" call me names and insult me. It is very sales driven and it has been a very very very negative experience for me. I will take away the eating high protein small meals more frequently but that is about it. It was very expensive and full of propaganda. You could not post anything on their site on facebook unless you it about losing weight. When i tried to ask why i was not losing, they deleted my post. Terrible program
I'd like to hear more about your experience. Sounds awful! PM me if you prefer.
I'd like to hear more about why you're trying to collect names of people with bad experiences. Just saw you do the same on another old thread.
I'm embarrassed to say that I have tried OPTAVIA in the past. It wasn't for me. People seem to get sick using the products and I'm interested in learning more about others' experiences. The name I was asking for is not a forum member, it is the name of the doctor mentioned in the other thread.1 -
alixehrhardt wrote: »I'm sorry, the responses here are soooo unsupportive! What works for some may not work for all!
Just because someone has an idea doesn't mean it's worthy of support. One of the greatest things about this forum is that it has an outstanding bull-dung-ometer and has no problem providing quality advice and not just blind support.
In fact they're being genuinely supportive by helping someone avoid a pitfall rather than just being a cheer squad for someone trying to take an expensive (and most often temporary) short cut. A cocaine habit is also usually effective for quick weight loss, but I doubt you'd find anyone here that is supportive that expensive quick fix solution if someone proposed it either.16 -
CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »clowemarykay wrote: »I am on the second week of optavia. They had me on 900-1000 calories as a fitness instructor. I did not lose any weight, had a "coach" call me names and insult me. It is very sales driven and it has been a very very very negative experience for me. I will take away the eating high protein small meals more frequently but that is about it. It was very expensive and full of propaganda. You could not post anything on their site on facebook unless you it about losing weight. When i tried to ask why i was not losing, they deleted my post. Terrible program
how were you not losing on 900-1000 calories? thats very low for even most people and should have resulted in weight loss
I would think because she has only been doing it for 1 week ( " I am on my second week..")
Not that I am defending this MLM at all, I think all such scams are rip off nonsense - but not losing after 1 week is not unusual with any plan - fluctuations can mask what is happening in only 1 week of data.
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paperpudding wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »clowemarykay wrote: »I am on the second week of optavia. They had me on 900-1000 calories as a fitness instructor. I did not lose any weight, had a "coach" call me names and insult me. It is very sales driven and it has been a very very very negative experience for me. I will take away the eating high protein small meals more frequently but that is about it. It was very expensive and full of propaganda. You could not post anything on their site on facebook unless you it about losing weight. When i tried to ask why i was not losing, they deleted my post. Terrible program
how were you not losing on 900-1000 calories? thats very low for even most people and should have resulted in weight loss
I would think because she has only been doing it for 1 week ( " I am on my second week..")
Not that I am defending this MLM at all, I think all such scams are rip off nonsense - but not losing after 1 week is not unusual with any plan - fluctuations can mask what is happening in only 1 week of data.
I somehow missed the week part . yeah 1 week means nothing3 -
MLMs are not set up to give money to the referrers and personal coaches. They are set up to strip money from the referrers and personal coaches, and send that money "up the chain of command to a massive company profit." It is mathematically impossible for all the lower level people to ever recoup their investments, because MLM's are pyramid schemes.alixehrhardt wrote: »And anyone that thinks that ALL companies are not created and designed to be "money making schemes" needs to educate themselves. Yes, MLMs are set up to give money to the referrers and personal coaches. Rather than it all going up the chain of command to a massive company profit like most operate. How is that worse or better? I've been with several MLMs over the years and they all had their pros and cons (as did the multiple Fortune 500 companies I worked for throughout my career). Geez, so judgey without merit.
[post edited by MFP mods]
Yes, I'm judgey. But there's plenty of merit behind my judgement.21 -
Evelyn_Gorfram wrote: »
MLMs are not set up to give money to the referrers and personal coaches. They are set up to strip money from the referrers and personal coaches, and send that money "up the chain of command to a massive company profit." It is mathematically impossible for all the lower level people to ever recoup their investments, because MLM's are pyramid schemes.alixehrhardt wrote: »And anyone that thinks that ALL companies are not created and designed to be "money making schemes" needs to educate themselves. Yes, MLMs are set up to give money to the referrers and personal coaches. Rather than it all going up the chain of command to a massive company profit like most operate. How is that worse or better? I've been with several MLMs over the years and they all had their pros and cons (as did the multiple Fortune 500 companies I worked for throughout my career). Geez, so judgey without merit.
[post edited by MFP mods]
Yes, I'm judgey. But there's plenty of merit behind my judgement.
Yes, my job does profit the people at the top. But here's a key difference: I never have to pay them to work. I'm not paying for "starter packs" or for training. They're happy to take my business as they would any other customer (they're a retailer), but they're also fine if I never ever purchase anything from them. They're happy if I refer someone qualified to the company, but they're also fine if I never refer anyone. Also, they pay me regularly and provide me with benefits. The money they say I'm going to make is given to me regularly and it will be given to me as long as I'm employed by the company.
The differences between MLMs and actual jobs are pretty stark.14 -
malloriegabbert wrote: »AS an OptaVia coach, I love the p[program and loving on my clients. This is far from a "money-Making Scheme," and focuses solely on helping clients in every phase of health.
mmmkay
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alixehrhardt wrote: »I just restarted the OptaVia program two months ago
If it worked so well, you wouldn't be "restarting."
MLMs are created to take advantage of people. Why else would they choose to use the model that results in 99% of their consultants losing money? The fact that *anyone* can join and become a pseudo expert on health and fitness is a huge red flag.10 -
I checked out the website. If she had $199 and didn't mind the prospect of financial ruin, apparently I could sign my cat up to be an Optavia "Fitness Coach."jillybeansalad wrote: »alixehrhardt wrote: »I just restarted the OptaVia program two months ago
If it worked so well, you wouldn't be "restarting."
MLMs are created to take advantage of people. Why else would they choose to use the model that results in 99% of their consultants losing money? The fact that *anyone* can join and become a pseudo expert on health and fitness is a huge red flag.
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Evelyn_Gorfram wrote: »
I checked out the website. If she had $199 and didn't mind the prospect of financial ruin, apparently I could sign my cat up to be an Optavia "Fitness Coach."jillybeansalad wrote: »alixehrhardt wrote: »I just restarted the OptaVia program two months ago
If it worked so well, you wouldn't be "restarting."
MLMs are created to take advantage of people. Why else would they choose to use the model that results in 99% of their consultants losing money? The fact that *anyone* can join and become a pseudo expert on health and fitness is a huge red flag.
I think you meant if she didn't mind a feline-ancial cat-astrophe10 -
Evelyn_Gorfram wrote: »
I checked out the website. If she had $199 and didn't mind the prospect of financial ruin, apparently I could sign my cat up to be an Optavia "Fitness Coach."jillybeansalad wrote: »alixehrhardt wrote: »I just restarted the OptaVia program two months ago
If it worked so well, you wouldn't be "restarting."
MLMs are created to take advantage of people. Why else would they choose to use the model that results in 99% of their consultants losing money? The fact that *anyone* can join and become a pseudo expert on health and fitness is a huge red flag.
Heck, even Beachbody is cheaper than that - for the mere sum of $39.99, you're a "coach". Just like Optavia, no qualifications or knowledge needed, except for the desire to peddle shakes and annoy all your friends, family members, coworkers, etc. until they block you from all social media and run the other way when they see you coming.
MLM peddlers are "coaches" about the same way a guy in a trench coat who offers to give you a free physical exam in the back of his van with no windows is a "doctor".
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Good one.happytree923 wrote: »Evelyn_Gorfram wrote: »
I checked out the website. If she had $199 and didn't mind the prospect of financial ruin, apparently I could sign my cat up to be an Optavia "Fitness Coach."jillybeansalad wrote: »alixehrhardt wrote: »I just restarted the OptaVia program two months ago
If it worked so well, you wouldn't be "restarting."
MLMs are created to take advantage of people. Why else would they choose to use the model that results in 99% of their consultants losing money? The fact that *anyone* can join and become a pseudo expert on health and fitness is a huge red flag.
I think you meant if she didn't mind a feline-ancial cat-astrophe(now to steal your joke and run away with it...)
That poor cat! She lost her shirt on BeachKitty, and then she took a bath with ShakFlea. She spent fat stacks on MediCat, coughed up way too much for FurBallLife, and finally blew through a slew on MewLaRue.
... That's how she wound up living in the dish drainer.
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Evelyn_Gorfram wrote: »
Good one.happytree923 wrote: »Evelyn_Gorfram wrote: »
I checked out the website. If she had $199 and didn't mind the prospect of financial ruin, apparently I could sign my cat up to be an Optavia "Fitness Coach."jillybeansalad wrote: »alixehrhardt wrote: »I just restarted the OptaVia program two months ago
If it worked so well, you wouldn't be "restarting."
MLMs are created to take advantage of people. Why else would they choose to use the model that results in 99% of their consultants losing money? The fact that *anyone* can join and become a pseudo expert on health and fitness is a huge red flag.
I think you meant if she didn't mind a feline-ancial cat-astrophe(now to steal your joke and run away with it...)
That poor cat! She lost her shirt on BeachKitty, and then she took a bath with ShakFlea. She spent fat stacks on MediCat, coughed up way too much for FurBallLife, and finally blew through a slew on MewLaRue.
... That's how she wound up living in the dish drainer.
FurballLife
Just say no meowtiple level marketing schemes everyone.
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I don’t know about MLM schemes. I know I’ve lost over 100 pounds on Optavia, and I help a few other people do the same. I’m healthy and happy. I’m honest about what I do and don’t know. I know how to do this program and lose weight. I don’t have to scam anyone to do it. I make enough money to offset the cost of the program for myself. If other people higher up make more, I’m okay with that.
I think there are many ways to lose weight. Some are healthier than others. I think you pick the one that works for you, that you can stand doing for a lifetime, then you do it. This is mine
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You "help other people to do the same"
How?
By selling them products and " coaching them" ???8 -
denadoobug wrote: »I don’t know about MLM schemes. I know I’ve lost over 100 pounds on Optavia, and I help a few other people do the same. I’m healthy and happy. I’m honest about what I do and don’t know. I know how to do this program and lose weight. I don’t have to scam anyone to do it. I make enough money to offset the cost of the program for myself. If other people higher up make more, I’m okay with that.
I think there are many ways to lose weight. Some are healthier than others. I think you pick the one that works for you, that you can stand doing for a lifetime, then you do it. This is mine
You should know, seeing as how you're actively supporting and promoting one. 9 -
JillianSunday wrote: »I started Optavia on September 6 & lost 20lbs in the 1st month, which I couldn't believe. There's a lot of comment s on here about it being MLM & expensive- it is. It's $400 per month, & you eat 5 of their meals (bars & stuff) throughout the day & then have a "Lean & Green" meal - 5-7oz of meat depending on which protein you choose, & 1.5 cups veggies.
😱
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Very interesting thread! I work with someone who does Optavia. He began losing a lot of weight, liked it so much that he is now a coach. He started recruiting me right away. But I'm not that gullible. He is 26 years old and has never dieted before. Losing weight for him was easy the moment he went into a calorie deficit. I'm 52 and have battled my weight since I was 12 years old. I have no doubt that I could shell out $400 a month and I might lose weight quickly, but would it really change the behavior and the complicated issues that I have with food? I don't think so and that is why I have resisted his recruiting. Sure it's tough to see him and a few other people who are who are now on the plan losing weight so quickly. But will they keep it off once they are no longer on Optavia? I don't know, but I do know that I am not willing to eat processed foods, limit my cooking creativitiy, and pay that much money to ensure that I don't gain the weight back.
I understand that a company wants to make money. I give WW my money so that I can have the accountability of a weekly weigh in and learn to develop healthier eating habits. But even WW can't make me change my behavior with food. That has to come from within. I've lost almost 50 lbs over the last two years. It might not be as fast as my friends who are on Optaivia, but I'm learning to undo a lifetime of bad habits and emotional stuggles and figure out how to eat in a way that I can sustain for the rest of my life. I'm OK with that. 8 -
Optavia is crap. Set a calorie goal and eat real food.9
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I have been on it for about 6 weeks. Previously started at 186 lbs, lost weight with changing my eating habits (and tracking all with MFP) and running/working out about 50lbs. Then gained some back (about 15 lbs) due to a bunch of things - no need to detail.
Cut long story short, my friend was doing Optavia and lost a lot of weight, I only wanted to drop about 15 lbs. I also want to keep working out. Friend was doing the 5&1 - too little for me, and doesn't recommend working out while on it. However, the 4-2-1 program (look it up), works great for me.
I agree, it is MLM and there is a "cult-like" mentality. Of course, their interest is to get you back as often as possible, so my recommendation is that if you decide to go on Optavia, get on the website first, figure out which program is best for your weight, goals and lifestyle. Then find a "coach" and order. I ordered "a-la-carte" rather than buying their kit. Also - be well-informed, know your goals and that's it. The coaches wanted me to do 5-1 (which is super restrictive), and after a while I was firm and told them, NO.
They have Facebook groups - which are super cult-like. My recommendation is - either avoid them, or be selective what you use them for (mostly support).
Remember: you can eat one of their "fuelings" (bar/shake etc), which are 110 calories, but once you are at your goal weight, or if you cannot afford it, you can eat an Oikos Triple Zero yogurt with the same calories... etc.0 -
Remember: you can eat one of their "fuelings" (bar/shake etc), which are 110 calories, but once you are at your goal weight, or if you cannot afford it, you can eat an Oikos Triple Zero yogurt with the same calories... etc.
or you could just eat whatever is the same calories that you want and can afford in the first place ............4 -
Is this MLM legal in the USA? because pyramid selling isn't.0
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