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1.8

Let me start out by saying that I was inspired to join The Camp's 6-week challenge because I was impressed the results of some of my friends on Facebook who successfully completed the challenge. Although I am pleased with my weight lost and fitness goals after doing the challenge, I was not successful according the terms of their contract. I decided to post this review to explain how that happened and why I attribute my failing the challenge to unethical and unprofessional business practices. This post is not intended to spew any hate or negativity, but only to give an honest report from my personal experience. Hopefully, it will benefit anyone considering joining so that a decision can be made with both eyes opened.

The old adage goes, "If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is." I totally expected that as with anything that is free, there would be a catch. So, when first I inquired about the 6-week challenge, I knew that there would be more required than just losing 20 or more lbs. As stated in prior reviews, there are several terms you must follow in order for the program to be free...You must put down a $497 deposit, lose 20 or more lbs by the end of the 6-week challenge, check-in a minimum of 30 times on Facebook (their free advertisement), work out 30 or more times in 42 days, change your Facebook profile pic to their logo for the entire duration of the challenge (again, free advertisement), abide by all the terms of the contract indicating you will "follow the *** instructions" (FTDI) meal plan with an EMPHASIS on remaining positive (negativity will not be tolerated and would cause you to forfeit your deposit). ADDITIONALLY, it was not simply losing at least 20+ pounds to be refunded your $497 deposit, you have to reach or be below your ideal weight which is determined by your gender and height. (For me being female and 5'7", my ideal weight 165.) Not reaching your ideal weight forfeits your deposit and ONLY makes you eligible to "rollover" into another 6-week challenge (with each challenge having the same success marker of losing at least 20 lbs). Some people completed 5+ challenges in order to reach their ideal weight. Common sense tells you that the closer you are to reaching your ideal weight, the rate of your weight loss per week slows making it that much more difficult to successfully lose 20 lbs in a 6-week period. Hence, you likely will lose a challenge and forfeit your deposit. The only alternative to this would be to apply your otherwise forfeited deposit into a gym membership at the "discounted" rate of $127 per month. (The non-discounted rate is $10 more per month which is hardly a discount, nor does it account for the amount of money applied by the forfeited deposit of nearly $500.) I think most people can read between the lines and see how the advertisement of "free" is clearly misleading. It's no wonder The Camp is such a lucrative business and how they can seemingly "give away" such a valuable service for "free". It's because it is NOT FREE!

What else makes it not "free"? From the time of sign up and every work out you attend thereafter, you will be bombarded with advertisements for protein shakes and supplements by ISO FX. There are announcements at the end of each workout where they also push a supplement of the week. I've even heard staff members claim that the reason some have been more successful than others in losing weight is because they have taken the supplements. It's clear that The Camp gets some sorta kickback from the company from pushing it's products.

What makes the program unethical? The false advertisement that the program is "free" and only requires you lose 20 lbs to be successful. The other piece that I believe makes it unethical is the false claim that they have a 97% success rate. I followed the program to the tee and did not succeed. I was not alone and know this is an inaccurate statistic. The other unethical issue is that the trainers consistently encourage gym members to use heavy weights during circuit training. This builds muscle that will reflect heavy on the scale. Any skilled trainer knows that encouraging high reps with low weight, coupled with cardio, would be better suited for successfully passing the challenge. (I only found two trainers at my gym that followed this training style.) It's hard to believe that this approach to training is not encouraged by the owners who have a vested financial interest in people not successfully completing the challenge.

What makes The Camp unprofessional? I was unfortunate enough to have experienced being kicked out of The Camp's support group on Facebook which connects you with other challengers and offers a wide range of support from recipes, to forums, to anecdotal memes, and success stories and pictures. I was not alone in being kicked out. Apparently Sam, part owner of The Camp, has a reputation (as confirmed by several staff members) of being rude, quick and sharp with his tongue, and impulsive in his reactions towards others. He did not like a comment I made on a thread and kicked me out of the group 2 weeks before the end of my challenge. My comment was in response to him making a comment in all caps, starting with the statement "LOOK PEOPLE", where he goes on to belittle and humiliate someone who in his view asked a *** question about what was allowed to eat. In my response, I mimicked another member (who was also kicked out of the group) stating that this forum should be a place to feel safe to ask dumb questions and to seek support. He shot back a response to the effect that if I didn't like it, I could get out. I didn't even have a chance because he kicked me and the other member out of the group. When I brought this issue to the attention to the director of my camp, I was told that this is how he is and that it was unlikely they would be able to get me back in the group because Sam was the sole administrator. I was told that Sam is fully aware of his rudeness towards customers to the point that he advises the managers and directors not speak to customers the way he does because of the negative impact it has on business. Needless to say, this left a very sour taste in my mouth and upset me that I had even given his company my money.

I just completed my 6-week challenge a week ago and lost a total of 17.4 lbs. I worked out 36 times in 42 days, faithfully followed the meal plan (including the carb-cycling and "Talapigus" plan structured to speed up weight loss toward the end of the challenge) and I still failed to lose 20 lbs. Sure, most of the other challengers in my challenge cycle met their goal, however, most that did had much more weight to lose than I did. I initially weighed in at 187 and needed to weigh 167 or less to met the challenge. At the end of 6 weeks, I weighed in at 170. All and all I am happy that I lost weight, that I am more fit to continue towards my fitness goals, and that I made a lot of great connections with people that I plan to keep in contact with. But, for me, I cannot continue to support a business that I have experienced to be unethical, misleading, and unprofessional. My money will be better spent elsewhere.

Reason of review: Unethical practices.

Monetary Loss: $497.

Preferred solution: Let the company propose a solution.

The Camp Transformation Center Pros: People and the facility.

The Camp Transformation Center Cons: Super unprofessional, Unorganized.

Location: Corona, California

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Guest

Thank you for posting this information, I was thinking of signing up for next monthโ€™s challenge, Iโ€™ll jus stick to my $10 a month gym membership thanks

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-1897565

Sam sounds like the biggest *** and so I am not to give him my hard working money, people are saying he bought a wife who is 25 years old and he is 50 years old wow far away from this place

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-1897565

well, sam died, and yes, he was crass. He was smart enough to change all of the rules while I was there to benefit the camp while destroying the people in it. But he's dead so there you go

Guest

Your review of TC is on point. I too was lulled to try the program because of the โ€œfreeโ€ six week challenge.

I recognized the scam while signing the contract. I believe itโ€™s around paragraph 6 or 7, where they indicate you must meet their proclaimed ideal weight for my height. I pointed this out to the representative and made my decision to NOT follow any of the โ€œfreeโ€ marketing requirements. The weight they indicated was ideal for me at 5โ€™7โ€ was the same as yours.

I havenโ€™t weighed that amount since junior high or earlier. Having said that, I did the first challenge and followed the meal plan to a tee. I missed the 20lbs by 3lbs (but I already knew I wasnโ€™t getting my deposit returned). The work out/circuit training works without following their extremely restrictive meal plan which became monotonous real quick due to my pickiness (I donโ€™t like Brussels sprouts, asparagus, seafood, eggs, chicken breast, prefer wings & thighs, etc.).

I decided that I didnโ€™t want to be controlled by this same FTDI meal plan for eternity. I felt it was best to use portion control and good damn sense. The program was good in changing my water drinking habits. I drink a minimum of a gallon a day...just because I now like water.

Some of the trainers are amazing and they are good at keeping you encouraged. Iโ€™d prefer they never use rock as the genre for workouts (unless itโ€™s classic rock). Itโ€™s hard to do reps when the music lacks a rhythm. Lastly for me was their change in available memberships and military discount.

I chose to get an annual โ€œanywhereโ€ membership. This would allow me to work out close to home, work, and other places (I travel for my job). When I went to renew, I was told that this option was no longer available. You had to select one location and you couldnโ€™t move around.

If you went to an alternative location, you had to pay for a day-pass. Ridiculous! In addition, I asked about a military discount with my initial challenge registration. I was told that they didnโ€™t have one.

This REALLY annoyed me. I donโ€™t generally patronize companies that donโ€™t honor & respect our troops (active duty & retired). I have had some companies choose to extend the AAA or AARP discount (10-20%). The representative said they would contact Sam and ask for consideration of this request.

I was told he said no discount. I was advised to put it in the suggestion box...I did that week after week. When It was time to renew my membership, I was given the sad news about multi-site usage going away AND I was advised that a 10% military discount was available. The discount wasnโ€™t retro, it was only applied to renewals and/or new memberships going forward.

I am pleased that they had a change of heart and are now extending this offer. They donโ€™t, however, market this discount at the time of registration. If you donโ€™t know to ask, you wonโ€™t be able to take advantage of this enhancement. It would be nice if they provided a list/legend of ALL available discounts.

Overall, I lost 35-40lbs.

My body was extremely toned, I felt amazing, and I looked incredible. I suggest this program for ALL levels of work-out person you are; beginner, advanced, young, old, male, female, any ethnicity, any cultural background, short, tall, etc.

Guest

I just lost 20.2 lbs in 6 weeks. I missed a week cause I got really sick.

So I would say it does work. It depends on how much you want it. I was at inshap and paid for a trainer which is 200 dollars and it was 4 session for 30 minutes. Now that's a trip off lol.

Its $300 where I'm at and it rolls over to another challenge until you hit your goal weight. Yes, it's a lot of money but you get it back IF you are at your goal weight. Money should be and is a good motivation. You get 6 weeks of classes 7 days straight with trainers.

Better than what I paid for inshape. Plus you can ask questions if your doing this is right. I have a guy here who lost 152 lbs in 8 in a half month. He inspired me to reach for it.

People like him worked hard for it. There are my friends who went once a week who lost 2 lbs a week.. I even had a friend who went 3x a week but gain weight telling me she could not let go of sodas, alchohol and fast food. I go 4x a week and take 2 classes a day sometimes.

It works no doubt about that. It's just determination and will power.

I hope this helps and sorry I seem to be blabbing and sorry if my English is bad lol. I'm trilingual and English is my 3rd language.

Lariya Coo

How about sharing that meal plan? ;-) Thanks for the post.

I had an idea of how the program works.

I also know that you must reach your ideal weight to get your money back. Iโ€™m just interested in joining to lose the last 20 lbs that I have and I need that push.

Guest

So if you donโ€™t lose all the weight, do you have to pay another 497?

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-1715781

or become a member. I did and its worth it because I want it bad, I want a better looking body and I KNOW the only way to get there is go to class almost everyday and do the absolute best you can....everyday.

MAKE it a part of your everyday lifestyle. I had to....because I PAID FOR IT!!! So I HATE the music, I am 65 and I want music from my generation, it makes a huge difference to me. they don't care and they play what they like.

I have to accept that. And I can do without the yelling, just tell me what to do and if you want to do it with me to motivate me, drop down and join me for a bit.

Also the pictures of the trainers on line are all smoking hot, my trainers are all fat and out of shape. not good role models AT ALL!

Guest

Thanks for the insight. I always wondered how this worked.

Ishmeal Jtt

Thereโ€™s nothing unethical about the contract. You were not duped into thinking it would be free unless you didnโ€™t read the contract in which case youโ€™re an idiot and itโ€™s your fault.

They are SO clear about the fact that if you donโ€™t reach your goal weight you will not get your money back. You even have to initial next to your goal weight and the sections that says you understand that (thereโ€™s like 3 of them). So donโ€™t mislead people just because youโ€™re mad you didnโ€™t lose the 20lbs and couldnโ€™t continue. I have successfully completed the challenge and so has a friend and my sister who was at a different camp and youโ€™re wrong about the weights, they train you to push yourself in order to make your muscles work harder so that you continually have a challenging workout!

They do not tell you to lift heavy just push yourself so youโ€™re not wasting your own time. Also, you didnโ€™t have to purchase the supplements so in reality it was your choice to put down 500 instead of 300. Of course they push theyโ€™re supplements line itโ€™s called business (honestly you sound so dumb complaining about this). Just because they push it doesnโ€™t mean you need it or have to buy it.

And lastly, I have seen Sam respond to hundreds of posts which is impressive and he makes sure the question is answered or the misunderstanding cleared up. Heโ€™s never been rude or snappy that Iโ€™ve seen.

There are definitely negative whining complaining people (obviously you) who werenโ€™t pushing themselves and trusting the process and therefore not getting the results. Please people donโ€™t let this lady deter you, the camp is totally clear and straightforward about their challenge contract and they go out of their way to help you reach the goal.

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Ishmeal Jtt

Wow you couldnโ€™t be any more of an *** I am sure after people read your rude *** comment they will believe hers more than your *** talking!

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-1725674

Wow you write this like you work there or own the place! Shame on you!

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Ishmeal Jtt

I'm guessing this is Sam.

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Guest-1728447

My guess too its Sam!

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Ishmeal Jtt

Wow! So incredibly rude! This reviewer definitely makes me believe the original poster even more!

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Ishmeal Jtt

I totally agree with your response. The contract is clear and if you can read it you know what youโ€™re signing up for.

I only paid the $300 and no one pressured me into paying the full price for the supplements. The trainers do tell you to push yourself but you still see a bunch of people half *** it in class or just standing around during workouts.

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Ishmeal Jtt

Did you get paid to say this. You are the dishonest person who darn well knows that Sam is the rudest person out there, as a CEO of a company he sure needs to learn people skills. No wonder people say he is unprofessional and very rude

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Denis Bol

Iโ€™ll just leave this here! Go get a personal trainer and a nutritionist and keep paying them till you lose all your weight and let me know how that works out for you! Iโ€™ll be waiting!!

Guest
reply icon Replying to comment of Denis Bol

You're an ***

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