The American showman P.T. Barnum famously said, “there’s a sucker born every minute,” And with the huge potential of the weight loss market there’s always going to be people who are trying to capitalize on it. Losing weight is without a doubt one of the hardest things for people to consistently do, which is why so many fail at it or never even start it at all.
Generally, we the people would take the easy road to towards fat loss instead of putting in some good old-fashioned hard work. It’s true there are certain ways to accelerate and enhance your results, but for the most part everybody has to play by the same rules.
With our eagerness to take shortcuts to burn off our bellies we are willing to fall for some of the biggest scams in the fitness industry. The B.S. alert always goes on in my head when I see the latest fitness trends as well as the late-night infomercials on TV. Even though the majority of them are complete garbage, there are a few diamonds in the rough that are worth taking a look at.
But if you find any kind of program promising easy and overnight results then you’re probably barking up the wrong tree. By now I hope you know there are no magic pills for permanent and lasting results when it comes to weight loss. In this blog post I’m going to share with you what I think are the 5 biggest scams currently going on in the fitness industry that you should definitely be aware of.
1. Before & After Pictures
The number one thing that really boils my water with fitness marketing is the “professionally” taken before and after pictures that to the trained eye are 100% baloney. These are the before and after pictures that you see in the professional magazines for fitness, and it’s far too easy for marketers to deceive consumers into buying their products with false representation of body transformation.
Most the time the before picture is of the professional fitness athlete or bodybuilder who is currently in their off-season so they’re eating a lot more junk food than they would regularly. Additionally, they are more pale than Casper the Ghost dowsed in baby powder. The photographer is also using horrible lighting to enhance their grimly appearance. Then all they have to do is diet for a short time to get back to where they were, get a tan and with the magic of lighting they’re instantly transformed to the beautiful and attractive physique in their after picture.
Now this is very deceiving to us because even though they may or may not have been taking that supplement or using that fitness product it’s going to take a lot more effort than their workouts and nutrition to get that desired physique. Just because he started using the same magic ab wheel or taking the latest weight loss supplement doesn’t mean you’re going to get near the same results as these fitness models.
I remember when I was first eating started training consistently and I saw an ad in Muscle and Fitness magazine promoting a supplement called Ripped Fuel. Of course, there was a guy with an attractive physique that I was trying to emulate in my own workouts. So I ended up going down to my local supplement shop and picking up up all of the ripped fuel supplement. At the time I really didn’t know what I was taking so it was shocking how fast my heart started racing when I took it. The results I got from taking it were minimal, and all it effectively did was help me bounce off the walls with energy at the gym. But, I learned a valuable lesson from taking it to not trust a supplement marketing.
2. Power Balance Bands
You probably seen professional athletes wearing the power balance bands before to supposedly improve their physical performance. You’ve also probably seen the physical demonstration of its “effectiveness” by putting it on somebody who previously fell over when somebody put downward pressure on their shoulder while standing on one foot. Then magically after wearing the bracelet the guy instantly improves their balance as somebody else puts the same downward pressure on them. This is another scam that I wanted to try out, and I have discovered with 100% certainty that these things do not work.
The company claims their magic holographic discs embedded in their bracelets work instantaneously to restore optimal electromagnetic balance by promoting free flowing energy pathways. Seeing the popularity of them I decided to give it a shot for myself. Honestly, I felt a little embarrassed just wearing the bracelet on my wrist because I knew it was most likely hogwash. Although I have to admit the one-legged balancing trick also worked for me so there might have been something to it. After reading a couple research studies on the Power Balance bracelets I found that it was nothing more than a placebo effect. So if you’re thinking about picking one of these bracelets up just be aware that it’s nothing more than a really expensive good luck charm that will probably wind up with you embarrassing yourself like I did.
Recently, Power Balance admitted that there is no scientific evidence to prove their claims and they offered to give anybody who was dissatisfied a complete refund.
3. Ab Gadget Infomercials
Without a doubt the abdominals are the most desired body part on both the sexes. Men want the 6-pack abs and women want a flat stomach. This is obvious reason why you see so many abs equipment machines and exercise videos. And they are almost always 100% B.S.
I’m going to let you in on a little secret…
There’s no such thing as 7 Minute Abs!
If you want 6-pack abs or a flat and firm stomach then you’re going to have to earn it. Abs specific training programs will help to build muscle and tone up your stomach, but to really get results you’re also going to have to have a solid nutrition program as well. Of course, there are other factors you should be aware of that are going to cause you to store belly fat but for the most part you shouldn’t give the time of day to any program promising you abs without any work.
4. Diet Pills
Even those who know they shouldn’t be taking diet pills will take them anyway because they think they actually work no matter how taboo they may be. Most of the ingredients you’ll find in these diet pills will just get your heart rate pumping through the roof while you pee out more water than you’re probably taking in.
Now, there are some supplements that will naturally help you to lose fat naturally while also enhancing your health such as the ones I recommend from BioTrust. But then there are those dirty diet pills that use deceiving marketing to drive you to buy them even though we all know they’re giving you false hopes.
So don’t listen to all the hoopla about diet and weight loss pills. Even if you do get some results from them make sure you know that it probably wasn’t healthy and you most likely will gain it all back rather quickly. So the best thing you can do is to ignore those sneaky little diet pills and instead focus on the healthy supplements that will enhance your fat loss rather than deceiving you into thinking you’re losing fat.
5. Fitness Info-gadgets
Watching an infomercial for the latest fitness gadget is like taking crack for the average consumer. The infomercial usually has a cool fitness gadget being used by a beautiful fitness model who has never seen the device before in their lives. Yet, to the average person it’s pretty intoxicating to watch this and think that it could actually work for them.
Fitness info-gadgets such as the Flex Belt, Shake Weight, Thigh Glider and the Belly Sauna are a complete joke. The sell because they look like an easy and cool way to slim down. I’ve honestly never came across a fitness info-gradget that was actually worth a fraction of what they’re charging for them. Yes, they’re THAT bad.
I’ll agree it’s intoxicating to watch these things. They’re entertaining and they give us hope that all we have to do is strap this thing around our bellies and they’ll be gone in the snap of your fingers. Anything promising to give you instant results with next to zero effort is 100% bogus.
In Closing
The main reason I wanted to write this blog post is I’m sick and tired of seeing all the B.S. that decieve people into thinking there’s a shortcut to success. Hard work and following an effective game plan is the true path to real and everlasting success.
If you looking for an effective plan then my Flat Belly Formula program may be for you. It’s not going to be for people who are looking for a quick fix, lazy or unwilling to commit to a program. The question is are you the type who’ll take the shortcut to nowhere or are you ready to take the tried and true path to success?
Josh holds a Bachelor’s degree in Exercise Physiology and Nutrition Science. He’s a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and he’s a Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) by American Council on Exercise. He’s worked as a Strength and Conditioning Coach at the high school and college levels. He has over 15 years of experience as a personal trainer and nutrition coach. He strives to bring inspiration and results for people to live healthier lives through smart diet and exercise.
