Herbalife Criticism
Herbalife Criticism
A fellow fitness professional linked to this image on Facebook the other day and it really shocked me….
The image originally came from jasondwarika.com and I think it is a genius piece – genius in its simplicity and its message.
Herbalife is a multi level marketing (MLM) company that recruits sellers (distributors) to sell their products. Each distributor in turn is then expected to recruit more distributors, expanding their network and taking a percentage profit from each person they bring into the business.
Companies like Herbalife love personal trainers – with a client base of people looking to lose weight, they are an ideal target for a Herbalife rep! I bet in Herbalife circles bagging a busy PT as a distributor is like landing the jackpot in roulette! Not a week goes by where I don’t receive an email from a distributor, offering me an ‘amazing opportunity’ or other such crap. Awful products aside, I find it a horrible, disingenuous way of doing business.
But onto the point of my Herbalife criticism. Herbalife market their meal replacement products as healthy, nutritionally sound etc. Their meal replacement ‘Formula 1’ shake nutritional information is listed below…
The meal images tell the real tale. On the right is a typical meal for a healthy, lean average woman. The collective calorie count of the meal is 719, with all calories coming from a healthy, natural source. The Herbalife shake is represented on the left, with the food equivalent shown. This is a meal REPLACEMENT – not a supplement.
Essentially, using Herbalife meal replacement you will lose weight. You will lose weight because of the drastic calorie restriction – in effect you are starving yourself and taking in very, very few vitamins and minerals of any real quality. This isn’t healthy – in fact it is actually damaging to your health.
If you are serious about your health and your long term weight loss, you really need to be following a well structured diet and exercise plan. Eating/drinking this crap isn’t going to work in the long term for most people. You will lose weight at first, but reduce your muscle mass and metabolic rate, resulting in long term weight gain. I have seen it countless times before with these dramatic approaches.
Don’t be blind to marketing and false claims – this stuff is garbage and any personal trainer who is serious about helping their clients shouldn’t be selling this junk. It isn’t helpful to your clients or the fitness industry.
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These nutritional values shown are incorrect. For a start, there is 18g protein per serving of Formula 1 shake if made up as directed. The portion sizes on the food shown are also showing incorrect nutritional values. Misleading and false information is stated in this article.
Lucas, I took the info from a site. If it is wrong, then I apologise. As for the portion sizes of the food being wrong, tell me how you can say that without any degree of accuracy?
More importantly…
Are you suggesting using Herbalife replacement shakes is a healthy thing to do? A sound nutritional suggestion for people?
Just a little correcting here. Its not only a replacement for a meal. You can also take it with a healthy meal. Ive asked a Herbalife supervisor about this because its not all of us that wants to loose weight. And he said that for us who don’t want to loose weight, we take the shake with a healthy meal, like for example the one you show us on the picture above. Im not trying to criticise you, because you have a point. But if you take the shake with a meal, it has a completely different meaning.
Linn, the meal replacement statement came from their website – it’s not something I’ve made up to criticise herbalife.
With regards to your chat with the supervisor, of course you could take them with a meal, but what’s the point? A healthy meal is enough nutritional benefit without adding a herbalife shake.
A herbalife supervisor would suggest you take it with a meal – it means he sells more product.
Thank you. This is important intel. Certified trainers already know this goes against the Code of Ethics.