Thank you for explaining this to everyone, you nailed it perfectly! Unfortunately this has been a big problem for us over the years and our forum isn't unique to this type of marketing. I do agree with you that the newbies in this thread seem to be genuine. When I google the pink method, we have very high search results so we're probably going to get more new members curious about this diet.

I greatly appreciate the members sharing their unbiased reviews to help everyone see both the pros and the cons of this plan. :)

I have a friend who just purchased it and was disappointed to find out she had to "diet" for 14 days first and lose 10-15lbs before she is to begin working out with the DVD's. For those 14 days are a strict diet of no whole grains etc. I watched the Dr. Phil show with her that day but I don't remember them saying people had to diet before they start working out. Did anyone else hear that or did I miss it at some point.

I ordered the program, because I have been counting calories and going to a Zumba class for about 6 weeks. I have lost around 33 pounds so far, but it has started to get really hard for me to stick to it. Thanksgiving really messed me up. I thought if I tried something new it might help. I haven't gotten the program yet. I decided to order because I posted on the woman who created its website and she wrote me back within a few hours and answered my question. She seems really genuinely nice, but I have emailed them 3 times because I have never gotten access into the VIP portion of the website. I have gotten no response at all. I am just really frustrated.

Absolutely, Suzanne.

This is a great site and I am constantly making recommendations to people I know to come here, and the last thing I want is for someone to feel bashed or shunned.

Weight loss is a hard journey, and 3fc is the most wonderful tool. I would never want to take that away from anyone.

For all the newbies:
:hug:

If this doesn't work for you, please don't give up. Research the site, find something you can stick with, and get to that healthy weight. We are ALL here for you, through thick and thin. ;)

The calories are the same for everyone, but they are not counting calories. There is a very specific menu that must be followed throughout the 9 week program.

The first phase (Reset) offers the least calories, mainly because no added fat (olive oil) is allowed, and the protein is more limited than later on. Those with the highest weight:height ratio are on the Reset for a longer time period, but no one stays on Reset past two weeks. You're supposed to lose between 5 and 10 pounds during this time, and then move to the second phase. Then a tablespoon of olive oil is added per day, along with an extra portion of protein. This is a streamlined version of the diet! They also differentiate between "slow" and "fast" fruits, related to their glycemic index. Only slow fruits are allowed during Reset.

There aren't different programs to choose from, but you get to pick your protein: turkey, lean beef, salmon, beans, or quinoa (for example).

The greater number of calories happens after the Reset, when the exercise begins, in order to fuel the extra activity. This comes in the form of adding "fast" fruits, olive oil, and little extra protein.

Caffeine is cut *way* back (only green tea during Reset; later 1 cup of coffee is allowed daily). And *all* processed foods are eliminated, along with any kind of sweetener (diet or full) except for stevia, and I bet there is some withdrawal there, too. I also expect people may be getting dehydrated. It's unfortunate there is no mention that withdrawal is likely to happen, and how to deal with it. I'm already eat similarly to the program, so wouldn't expect those problems, but I do occasionally eat cake!

It is, and there is speculation that it's not "real" hunger. People are allowed to eat an unlimited amount of raw carrots, green pepper, and celery.

According to one person on the site (Joy Morris), she was one of the original beta testers for the program, and started the program in the very beginning, only six months ago. She was/is a professional physical trainer, and lost 10 pounds in six months, "but would like to lose more". She said she was one of the people offering a testimonial on The Doctors. She obvious couldn't have had much to lose in the first place. This didn't instill much confidence in me as to any history or track record with "real" people.

It's rumored on the site, that the wife of the producer (and relative of Dr. Phil) for both TV shows the PINK Method debuted (Dr. Phil/The Doctors) was/is a client of the creator of the PINK Method.

They have been overwhelmed with orders since the appearance on these two shows. When I first logged on to their website after ordering my kit (Nov. 28), there were 1000 members. By the next day, there were 7000. I don't know how many now, the counter seems to have disappeared! (I think I saw 10,000 somewhere.) With everyone asking questions, it's not possible for the "experts" to answer them and give the support they promised on the TV shows. The site itself was poorly developed, and offers information for many other diet plans unrelated to the PINK method, but it's difficult to decipher which is what!

The support forums are virtuously useless in the chaos (not organized like 3FatChicks, and most any other forum on the Web), so they've moved over to using FaceBook. I haven't visited them on FaceBook, as I already figured I had better stick with what was already working for me, and avoid their confusion.

If you like the mass excitement of belonging to a new club, being in on something from the beginning, and enjoy this as entertainment, it may be worth the $75 or so. I think these are the only added benefits than what you can find elsewhere for free.

If that's the case then I'm really disappointed to hear that :( A diet program should be tested for 2 years, IMO, before going to market. They should include a large group of participants with varying amounts of weight to lose including the very obese. Then the true test is maintaining the weight loss for one year. Only THEN should the product be marketed. Losing weight is only the beginning of the weight loss journey. If this began just 6 months ago, there's is no real success story to be told yet. Realistically, it's still in testing.

The creator Cynthia has said that this is the diet she has used on her clients for years, but she has just now written the program out. I ordered it,so I will let you know how it goes. From what I have heard from other people the first part of the diet is similar to others being really low carb at first. It reminds me off the Take off part of LA weight loss, just no Take Off juice or even the first part of South Beach.

I agree, and brought this up on the PINK "forum". However, most of the people posting on the site don't value scientific testing. In fact, they were quite articulate in explaining they value anything new that can reignite their motivation to lose. For a good number of people, the PINK Method is just the next diet in line of a long string, and they don't expect it to be the last. Some say they get bored, and can't wait for the next best thing. They have basically said the $70+ was worth all the excitement and hullaballoo. I think these are valid reasons to explore the PINK Method, if that's what floats your boat.

Personally, I don't want to ride those waves. I want to learn how to live day-to-day without my diet taking center stage, and still be healthy. I'm still finding my way with that! But I see nothing wrong for people who experience joy from those waves.

Then there are others who will not listen to anything they perceive as negative about the program. They take it personally, or as a personal attack against the creator of the PINK Method. They excuse all the problems, and accuse people who express their frustrations of being unrealistic and impatient, and request they leave the forum unless they're willing to "go along". They react as though there is a character flaw in the people who take issue with the problems.

The website and PINK Community are what is supposed to set this "designed just for women only" program apart from any other. The problems with the website are too great to overlook, IMO. I would suggest, if this is important to you, to wait until PINK 2.0 to join!

I have not gotten into PINK VIP yet, so I am not sure what that aspect of the program is. I like that fact that Cynthia wrote me back on fb asking if I had gotten taken care of yet. I didn't choose to do it because it was new. I was more interested in the exercise portion of it and needing a new diet because I am struggling with my calories and need more structure. I do like the fact that Cynthia seems so happy to help but I can't comment really on the diet or exercise yet, since my package comes today.

It may be a good fit for you. It can be nice to have a diet and exercise schedule to follow. There are a lot people happy with their loss of pounds so far.

I hear Facebook is working much better for the community portion, and helping to ease the confusion in the VIP website, but I haven't looked into it myself. The creator of the program is also having "video chats" to answer the onslaught of questions. There are a few "back doors" to the VIP Access Website, so be aware ahead of time that information and posts you make there are really public.

I hope I end up liking it after investing the money into it. I still have yet to get access to VIP, so I have no idea what it is like. I am really frustrated.

The good news is there's a 30-day money back guarantee. :)

Information provided by the VIP site is misleading as it pulls content from another site (exercise dot com). I don't know what the relationship between the PINK people and their host site is, but they've been *very* careful in wording the difficulties! There are problems the ground up with the site. The host site is also fairly new. The oldest posts date to about ten months ago, and show up in the PINK VIP area. The PINK posts also show up in the rest of the site, which is accessible to the public on the web.

You *will* be able to access a daily menu, but it won't contain any of the substitution choices, or the recipes for the menu.

There are diet tools (calorie and exercise trackers) whose functionality is suspect. For example, the calorie tracker gives everyone an arbitrary amount of daily calories to consume, without even entering your weight, height, or gender stats! The caloric amount suggested is way beyond the 900+ contained in the menu; this continues to cause mass confusion. In reality, all calories counts are supposed to be ignored.

I regretted my purchase when I realized this program couldn't live up to its claims for me. I don't know how long it will take for them to return my money, as they are still inundated with filling orders. But I think I've learned to be a little more patient after this!

You still might be pleased with what you get, especially if their "expert" support is of no consequence to you (It was to me!), you can live with the restrictions (not me!), and can keep up with the exercise videos (I can't; my personal trainer customizes each workout for my fat old bod!). If not, you can get your money back, and will have learned a little more about what you like and don't like.

(BTW, if anyone is looking for reasonable personal training, check your local colleges. My sessions cost about $13 each, and are taught by phys-ed/nutrition majors students. They're being trained to work with all body types, ages, and physical conditions.)

I read through the PINK Method journal last night. I am supposed to be on the Reset part for 14 days, which puts me being on it right over Christmas. I am going to try and get through Reset and start the first week of exercises and see how it goes, if I dont like it I am going to return it since it will be within the 30 days. I have no looked at the exercise videos yet.

I have tried slimquick, hydroxycut, fasting and low calorie diet and none of them worked. What has been working for me has been calorie counting which I started October 16. I still ate normal foods but in a moderation. Since October I have lost 15 lbs and for the first time in over 10 years I saw 149 on the scale.

Agoin1, what do you think so far?