What is that, you ask? It's this amazing nutritional system. Seriously. I tried it out in April of this year and I loved it.
If I loved it so much, why am I inactive? I'm not going to lie. It's because of the price tag.
I'm sure that my coach is probably flipping her shit right about now. I know that it's taboo to mention the price tag without using the "You plus two, them plus two" slogan. Well, if no one you know wants to join you and you are barely making bills as it is, $326 for 60 meals is just a bit pricey (especially considering that doesn't cover snacks or lunches). I'm sure that I spend way more on eating out than I ever did on the shakes. I'm sure that what I eat is not as healthy and beneficial as Isagenix. But I literally cannot make it work right now. I have a part time job that barely keeps me afloat, and I get extremely uncomfortable talking phone-to-face about these products. Everyone I have tried to pitch to knows that they're being pitched to.
And honestly, that's not me. I'm not a glossy saleswoman who could get a poor wood cutter to buy firewood. I prefer to tell the truth.
Truth is, I love the products.
I didn't at first. Because I don't drink artificial sweetener or diet sodas, the IsaLean Shakes read as way too sweet on my tongue (there's stevia extract as well as fructose that's used), and the strawberry didn't taste right unless I added in extra strawberries (which you're not supposed to do in the first 30 days, but I had to because I didn't like the strawberry powder). But it was incredibly convenient to just toss breakfast and dinner into the Vitamix and not have to think about anything but lunch and snacks. I managed to get my sugar cravings under control, which was amazing. I always crave sugar. I still craved carbs like pasta and bread, but I supplemented with quinoa and brown rice, and always made sure that I had plenty of protein during those meals too, to balance them out.
I credit the extra protein (from the whey powder) with a faster build of muscle. I didn't work out for the first week because I wanted to see how much weight and inches I could lose on diet alone. Not as much as I was expecting, if I'm honest. But Rome wasn't built in a day, so I began a three day a week running regimen. I hadn't gone for a jog in about six months, but was able to run further, faster, and longer than I had before. I managed three miles each day and my cool downs between each sprint only lasted about twenty seconds. It was amazing. I've never felt stronger.
The best part of the system is the cleansing. I would cleanse two days a week, every week if I could get away with it. Basically you're supposed to have five "shake days" between each one day cleanse and ten between each two day cleanse. A "shake day" means two shakes a day, sensible eating between meals at at lunchtime, and 100 oz of water (which is half my bodyweight in ounces of water). On cleanse days, you drink this delicious cleanse fluid instead of eating, and can take these protein wafers that help keep your blood sugar level. I never felt so clear and refreshed as on a cleanse day. They were hard, though, because my mind kept telling me to eat when I was bored, but I love a good mental challenge. I drank 100oz of water on those days as well. Talk about invigorating. I never slept so well. And the best part about the cleanse is that it's not a bowel flusher, so you don't have to make sure to stay near a restroom for the whole day.
I really really love the Ionix Supreme. It became like coffee in the morning. Because I had worked at Starbucks until I tried this system, I was thoroughly sick of coffee (I don't like Starbucks coffee; the only reason I drank it was because it was free...). It was hard to get over the flavor of it in the beginning (and the grainy texture of the powder), but once I figured out I could drink it warm, I fell in love.
I tried the protein bars once. Normally I would eat half a Cliff Builder's Protein Bar as a snack, but I found my stomach roiling after those. I felt the same way that I did when I ate too many gummy bears or twizzlers, probably because of all the concentrated sugar in those bars. But the Isagenix Isalean bars never made me feel like my blood sugar had spiked out of control. I felt smooth and normal after eating those babies. They weren't too sweet, either.
The vitamins were pretty great too. I still have a week's worth of those bad boys in my bathroom because I keep forgetting to take them. I also still have some of the IsaDelight green tea + dark chocolate bites hiding somewhere in the house, for when I start using the products again.
There's also this amazing community on Facebook. I have met so many wonderfully kind and positive people because of this system. They have your back, they answer questions, they support you no matter what. They're mostly gym rats and insanely dedicated to what they do (selling the product, using the product, being the face of the product). They demand introspection and personal growth. It's not hard to get caught up in the fever that is Isagenix.
The products promise good things, and as far as I am concerned, they deliver. Even though I lost maybe 3 pounds on the system and maybe an inch from each body part, I felt really good while on the system, and if I ever manage to snag a big girl job (that pays $40k or more a year!), I plan to get back on.
Now comes the juicy part that you've probably been waiting for; the critiques and reservations that I had. I don't plan on saying anything about the science of it; you can do your own research and make up your own mind on that. This is mostly the business aspect.
I don't like that I have to maintain an auto ship every month and spend about $200 on products in order to maintain my "active" status. To make a long story short, being active means that you are eligible to get paid for selling the product. So if you're making $200 a month in revenue from sales, you are basically pumping it back into your business, which is great if all you're trying to do is get your products paid for. I understand completely why it needs to happen (by ordering that product, you are basically reinvesting in your business, plus it keeps your website running and yadda yadda), I just don't like it, especially if you're unable to get others to sign up (like me).
Luckily, there's a team to help pull in a good portion of the revenue, but you have to build that team. That means you have to call people and talk to them and introduce them to the system. Once you get two people invested in the system, you go from being an Associate to a Consultant. (Here's my favorite Isa member to get nitty gritty about the payment system.). From there, you end up getting paid. Here's some light reading on the topic, with another nice video. It is 100% possible to make a living doing this. I have seen a lot of people start to make real money from this system. I haven't made anything yet because of my "air of desperation" when I talk to people, and that turns people off. However, the average YEARLY earning for 55% of associates is under $1000. Not horrid if you're looking to make about $20 extra a week (which, I don't know about you, but that would be so handy for me right about now).
I do like that there is no pressure on me. My coach doesn't force me to sell or anything. The team I belong to is awesome and relaxed. If this system isn't right for you, we do what's called "bless and release", which means, "It's your prerogative." They haven't jumped down my throat for going inactive, they haven't cajoled me to come back. I am free to order or not as I choose.
This is basically network marketing (or multi-level marketing). It's not a pyramid scheme, but they do use the promise of potentially becoming a millionare to lure you in. It is not something that you can sit by and idly let happen; you really need to take the reigns and find a way to talk to everyone you know and then some about this product. Eric Worre's Go Pro book and website are chock full of information if you are interested in learning more about how much effort this will take. Basically, you need to talk to 100 people in order to get 10 people to say yes. I talked to ten and didn't even get one yes. There are people who talk to a thousand people and still get no. I'm convinced it's all about learning how to talk to others in a way that doesn't make them feel pitched to.
But now comes the big thing. If you order the 30-Day System, you get:
- 4 IsaLean® Shake (4 containers of whey protein with 15 shakes in each container)
- 1 Ionix® Supreme (the cidery morning drink that is way more awesome than coffee)
- 2 Cleanse for Life® (this is the cleanse juice I mentioned)
- 1 Isagenix Snacks™ (these are the whey wafers for cleanse days)
- 1 Natural Accelerator™ (a blend of herbs and spices that help to "flush fat")
- 4 Replenish® (Sticks) (each stick makes two 8oz servings of [basically] "Gatorade")
- 1 IsaFlush!® (magnesium capsules cause this much protein has the potential to constipate even Spartacus)
- 1 Guide - 30 Day Pak w/ CD (an overview of how the system works)
This product is obviously aimed at middle-to-upper class people (this is why I have had so many people say no; they're in the same boat as I am). So unless you specifically target that group of people or come up with a really good way to get poorer people to sign up (and not "Do you have two friends?" cause I guarantee that they'll just say, "Yeah, but they can't afford it either."), you're probably not going to get very far.
Hopefully this was at least reasonably helpful whether you were solicited to do the business or you want to try the products or even if you just want to know what all the hype is about. Please also read the disclaimer on the Isagenix website. I know that I am biased, as I have used these products and never tried anything like Herbal Life or Shakeology, but I wanted to share my experiences with others, especially if those others think that this is going to be an easy buck to be made. It's not.
But I want you to make up your own mind. If this feels right to you, then by all means, go ahead! If you get an icky sinking feeling in your stomach, don't do it. (Yes, those are generally my guides in decision making processes).
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