First of all.. I AM a regular client of LA Weight Loss. I follow plan and I check in 3 times a week.

I am currently on week 4....and beginning to think that they are a joke. They only want $$$ I dont think they actually no anything about nutrition. Everything they are telling me to do- I already know to do.

I paid $500 to them to sign up... If I want to cancel do you think I can get any of that money back as a refund???

Well, then I guess you need to ask yourself - If you already know what to do, "what was keeping you from doing it before you joined?"

Most of the counselors are not nutritionists, nor do they claim to be.. I used to laugh when I'd see them in their little white coats.. HOWEVER... No matter what I think about the management of the business (crappy), the plan is solid, and nitritionally based..

As for them wanting $$$, show me a weight loss business that doesn't... Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem, Weight Watchers.. They are all VERY expensive...

All this said, you're not alone in being concerned with the care you get at LAWL... but for some, the simple accountability and guidlines are worth the cost..

I knew nothing about the right way to eat, and as a result, I ended up at 300 lbs.. With the program, I lost 110 lbs in a year and have been able to keep it off..

So while the management of our franchise was horrible, the plan itself is solid..

LA did not help me lose any weight. I felt it was a scam. Dan, I have to disagree with you. Any diet that REQUIRES you to buy their bars (I personally did not like them) is not sound. Why add all that extra carbs/sugar? I prefer to get them elsewhere in my diet in things "I" choose, not others!

As for expensive? I suppose it depends on the group. HOw about finding a plan that teaches you HOW to eat? The difference between bad carbs and good? bad fat and good? That explains how your body reacts to certain foods? And as we all know everyone is different! What might trigger hunger for you may be alright for me!

I have found a plan that works for me, and only costs me my food! I was able to pick up the book at a local used store for only $2, so that was nothing! And I eat the foods I like! Come check us out on the beach! South Beach.

As for your question, I recieved a letter in the mail several months back saying LA went bankrupt and I might be entitled to some of my costs.

I guess any diet that requires I purchase their "brand" of anything is a red flag! Rather, choose one that encourages you to find the right plan for you!

Somehow I think there is a missing piece of information ... Tiffany, are you losing weight?

We all need different things in our life, and not every plan works for every person ... if it did, we wouldn't have so many different plans out there to lose weight.

For example, I have done South Beach, Atkins, Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, etc. This one works best for ME.

It may not for someone else out there reading this any more than South Beach worked for me (I lost almost nothing, but learned more about foods, so I got something out of it, just not enough).

I learned with Jenny Craig that if someone else plans and cooks my meals I never learned how to eat on my own, but I lost weight, quite a bit of weight, but gained it all back.

I did Atkins, and lost a ton of weight, almost 100 lbs, but it was a diet and not a way of eating I could maintain, so I stopped and gained it all back.

I did weight watchers ... again did great, but being a semi smart person, I figured that if I really wanted something I just had to starve myself and save up the points for the day ... not a real healthy way to eat. I learned how to cheat the system and cheated myself.

The point is people do well on all these diets and more. Most people like us who have fought weight are very food savey and for many of us there isn't much you can tell us that we don't already know.

BUT

Knowing and doing are not always the same thing.

I am 5'6 and got up to 308 lbs. I knew how I was eating was horrible. I knew what I should be eating, and for the most part how much of it I should be eating, but I didn't. I needed that little journal that had those lovely little boxes.

This was what I needed. You may need something else.

All those plans I mentioned. They work. They wouldn't still be around if they didn't. You just need to find yours.

I, like Dan, think this one is great, to me it isn't a diet ... it is training me to eat they way I know I should be eat, but wasn't.

Good Luck with whatever you decide. On this site, we only hope for everyone to be healthy and happy, and we help each other to get that way. If you stay, "Welcome", if you don't "Good Luck".

Hi there! I'm not with LA, and my knowledge of it is limited, but I'm curious. Have you brought up your concerns with your counselor? Or... maybe you're with the wrong counselor? (I'm not sure if you can choose )

I'm sure most people who work there would love to help sort this out with you and help you find the right path. However if you decide it's not the right thing for you at all, there are many more options out there! Best of luck with whatever you decide!

I hope you get some answers you are looking for but I just wanted to encourage you to be honest to yourself. LAWL will give you a plan w/o bars if you want to go that way, you just need to ask assertively. Also are you following the plan to an absolute tee?.. that includes water intake, measuring accurately and so forth. Are you getting more active? If it is not for you, then I encourage you to find something that suits you more or ask for a different plan at your LAWL center. Loosing weight is literally no piece of cake, that is why I am encouraging you to find what works for you and figure out what you can live with. If you are following plan given, you WILL lose weight. Something is just not adding up. Hang in there and don't give up on your dreams!~

My wife and I both joined LAWL in January. I am down 25 lbs and my wife 22lbs, The one thing they really dont talk about is salt. Lay off salt completely.....If you need some salt go by NU salt(its potassium chloride). You have to stick to the plan nearly 100%, however having said that i researched things and found a protein bar (it wont let me post the URL just google detour bars) that we use. Costco sells them in 15 packs for $15, the great part is i only need half a bar in the morning and half in the afternoon. the half bar meets all the criteria of an LA bar with a lot less sugar.

Tiffany,
If you really really have decided that it is not for you, you may be able to get a refund. I stopped going to my center....not because I didn't like it, but because my life was not making it very easy for me to drive 20 minutes each way 3 times a week. I called corporate and told them my situation, and asked for a refund. They refunded me for all of my unused weeks. I don't know if that is the norm, but it surely cannot hurt to ask. I was very polite and kind.....and it worked for me. I'm sure you can find a reason in your life why going to the center no longer works for you to convince them. I do hope you stick with it......and even if you don't......I hope you stick with us. Together, WE make a great support system for each other
XOXO

Hmm... sorry you're having a bad time with them.
For me, it wasn't so much the information, i could have dug out the old weight watchers books and done this myself. the key for me is going 3 times a week, getting motivation that I don't get from home, and being accountable to the program.

You can choose not to do the lights, if you don't want to argue tell them they upset your stomach. You'll go to a different plan with no LA lites, and save yourself some money.

I'm not sure if you're losing weight or not, but hopefully you're just having a bad day.

I guess LAWL isn't for everyone, but try it a bit longer, of not than maybe there's a different plan that's better for you.

Take care!!
H

Tiffany, I'm sorry things aren't working out for you. You were so positive when you first showed up on here. This is the first time I've read about you having any issues. Hope everything else in your life is going okay.

I just want to add my 2 cents addressing the things that stuck out to me in this thread.

I've never ate a Lite.
I've never bought any of their products.

I have been taught an entire new way to eat and live. I now eat a very balanced and nutritious diet that is all made up from foods I buy in a grocery store.
My counselors have addressed how different foods affect my body and weight loss. They have gone so far as to help me journal to most effectively use my foods for the day.
The only time this program doesn't work for me is when I put off-plan foods in my mouth. Or don't journal.

I, too have tried every other diet out there. This is the only one that makes sense to me. I feel like I'm eating like a normal, healthy person should eat. I personally, did not know how to do that before I joined LAWL.

I was often discouraged with LAWL, but they provided me with an education. It was frustrating when the counselors kept telling me conflicting things and changing my plans every three days, but I immediately called them on it and had a very positive experience. I lost almost 100 lbs in a year w/ LAWL, something I never could have done on my own. I now know how to make healthy choices. I suggest you hang in there and bring all your concerns to their attention. At this point, you owe it to yourself to give it a chance.

p.s. I never did lites or any supplements either I was upfront with them, and I asked them not to try to sell me anything, and they were ok In time, when they saw I was kicking butt w/o their products, they were pretty impressed

Tiffany, I also had moments of feeling ripped off, but really spending that money made me SERIOUS about sticking with the plan, so it was good for me. I've lost weight so many ways in the past, and never really stuck with it for long enough for it to become a habit. Some counselors I knew way more about weight loss then they did. Some of the counselors were hugely helpful to me though. If I had had a streak of the annoying sales pitchy insulting ones, well sometimes I got that same attitude that you have.

The thing is that it is a good plan for learning how to lose weight and keep it off. I've known more people who were long term weight maintainers with this plan than any other. That is why I joined. Not to drop weight in a short period of time. LAWL isn't particularly wonderful that, it is a healthy and safe and sane weight loss. It IS good for losing weight and keeping it off for a long, long time. I had been on so many diets and regained the weight usually faster than I had lost it!

Sure I still have my ups and downs and all, as no weight loss guarantees that the scale will never blip up on you again if you cheat.... but I've kept the weight off for about a year now.

I didn't like the way Weight Watcher's leaders were always pushing products, so I definitely would not be able to tolerate the higher pressure sales pitches that LAWL is known for. I have no doubt it works for many people, and that many are able to assertively refuse the extras without stress. I'm just not one of those people. The cost is another issue for me. I am not someone who values a plan more just because I've paid alot for it.

You've got to know yourself though. If paying a lot of money keeps you more motivated, then it's money well spent. I also know alot about nutrition (what to do, not necessarily how to make it doable), and found that for me a weekly weigh-in and group support are stronger motivators than the plan itself or the financial investment, so I chose TOPS (taking off pounds sensibly). It's a non-profit organization, and it's cheap ($24 per year, which includes a magazine subscription, and a monthly dues generally of $5 or less, in our group it's $3 and for every 10 lbs you lose, you get the choice of free dues for a month or a charm for a charm bracelet). Any healthy diet plan can be followed (we have memebers who are former Weight Watcher's, LAWL, Jenny Craig, Nutrasystem... members). Many still follow their old programs. The "official" plan is an exchange based plan, much like LAWL.

So you really have to know yourself and then find the plan that works with you as much as for you. Most plans do work for some people, but no plan works for everyone. If you think LAWL is "a joke," you're not going to get much from the program, and should try to get your money back, and find something more suited to your needs.

I could not agree more with Shorty. I believe that the premise behind this company is sensible, I just think that their execution is extremely flawed. First of all, I did the express program for 4 months simply because no one cared enough to ask or perhaps actually look at my file...and I obviously had no idea i was only supposed to do that for four weeks. I thought that was just my plan. One person -- ONE-- out of all the people who work at my center is actually a trained nutritionist. I've stopped going in for my weigh ins because they are a waste of time. Five minutes of someone telling me the exact same thing every single week, no matter what the change in my situation, gets tiring. Easter? Avoid starch! Busy week? Avoid starch! No weight loss? Avoid starch! I get it. But I only need to be told one time. I go in there and its like "Okay yes I know...uh huh....yeah I know....Okay bye." I was stuck at 150 for 2 1/2 months, and since I stopped going , I've lost weight. I don't really regret paying all that money, though. It was worth it for the kick in the behind that I needed, and now I know, specifically for me, how much I should be eating. Valuable information!