What it is, how it works, side effects and science

Simply put, VSHRED is a series of virtual training and nutrition programs.

You’ve probably seen VShred advertised all over social media, with its ubiquitous rep, Vince Sant, promoting the company in extensive videos and in featured customer testimonials ripped within 90 days.

But the more you delve into VShred’s nutrition programs, the more complicated it becomes. And I say that as a registered dietitian with decades of experience helping clients achieve their nutrition goals.

Watch or read VShred’s marketing materials and you’ll notice claims about hormones and metabolism – and especially that VShred says it’s using a secret loophole discovered by Harvard to help people lose weight. To deepen the mystery even further, VShred states that the rest of the world knows nothing about this loophole.

Furthermore, this loophole would allow people to lose weight little effort, although the company tells potential customers that their program is only for people who are “dedicated and serious about getting fast results.” VShred announces that more than 100,000 people have given the program a positive review.

Although VShred does not appear to have a large celebrity following, Dr. Drew Pinsky has appeared in numerous marketing materials talking about the benefits of the service.

I spent several weeks analyzing the details of the VShred nutrition program, and I consulted a top researcher in the field of nutritional sciences to help me decipher what VShred is selling, the supposed research behind the plan, and whether it all works .

What is the VShred Diet?

The VShred diet is an eating plan that involves VShred workouts and supplements.

The diet is primarily built around one fundamental concept: that your body type should determine what you should eat. More specifically, VShred builds its meal plans around three body types:

• Endomorphs: people who naturally have more fat and muscle. They tend to gain weight more easily than other types.
• Ectomorphs: People who are naturally slimmer. They tend to gain weight less easily than other types.
• Mesomorphs: People with a natural ability to gain muscle and lose fat.

From there, VShred offers two options for its diet plans: one based on carbohydrate cycling, a nutritional practice with the goal of muscle growth and weight loss, and the other on counting macronutrients (or “macros”): protein, carbs, fat.

VShred offers you basic meal plans for these diets and then the option to pay for a customized meal plan.

The basic meal plans are low in calories, with some under 1,200 calories per day. Otherwise, the foods on the meal plans include normal, everyday choices that most people can find in a grocery store. Sweet potatoes. Blueberries. Chicken breast.

How much does the VShred diet cost?

It depends on.

Each program is advertised for between $47 and $99, but there are plenty of upsells, including meal plans and supplements.

Does the VShred Diet Work?

That is possible, at least for the short term. But that’s not because of a little-known scientific loophole or a diet plan designed for your body type.

Let’s take VShred’s first claim: that Harvard-backed weight loss loophole.

The ‘loophole’ is actually the hormone irisin, which Harvard did indeed study in 2012, but very little has been published on it since then from a solid scientific research perspective. For me as a dietitian, that is a red flag.

VShred diets also mention TRPV1, a receptor that helps produce brown fat, a type of fat that can help burn calories. TRPV1 has Also studied … in mice and laboratory dishes; not people. (Another flag.)

Then let’s look at body type specific diets.

“The reality is that there is no evidence to support these body types and no evidence to suggest that you should eat differently based on someone’s classification of your body compared to these ‘body types,’” says Layne Norton, Ph.D. ., a food scientist. To put it more precisely, “VShred’s marketing makes many claims, but is completely devoid of evidence,” says Norton.

In summary, while VShred does link to studies in marketing materials and points to the glowing testimonials as proof that their diet works, most of that research is preliminary and inconclusive. And so far, no specific clinical research has been done on the VShred diet. (I’ve looked.)

To back up a bit, yes, you can still lose weight after following a VShred diet. But this is not due to fancy loopholes in the law or plans adapted to body type. That’s because the VShred diet is low in calories. Any time you can maintain a calorie deficit for an extended period of time, you will lose weight.

But just because a diet helps you lose weight doesn’t mean it’s good for you.

Is the VShred diet healthy?

Not really, especially when you consider a broader definition of “health” – one that doesn’t just take into account how you look.

The diet does not contain content around that of a person relation with food, body positivity or emotional health.

Requiring both carb cycling and macro tracking a lot of of weighing and tracking at each meal. I don’t believe either is a simple, intuitive way of eating.

And while VShred meal plans involve very little decision-making, which some people may find easy, many people will not thrive on a diet that is so restrictive and regimented. Restrictive diets generally do not allow freedom in food choice, regardless of your situation. This can make the diet extremely difficult with travel, socializing, and *living.*

VShred diet meal plans are also very Eurocentric. There doesn’t seem to be any room for foods from other cultures, which can make it even harder for certain populations to follow.

Besides the fact that you can be hungry all the time, restrictive, low-calorie diets can lead to nutrient deficiencies over time.

Ultimately, the VShred diet is smoothly marketed with little scientific support. It is low in calories and using meal plans does not teach you how to manage your food choices.

Interestingly, a section called “testimonial support” at the very bottom of the VShred website lists the results of a survey conducted by the company on its diet and fitness programs. I didn’t find them particularly convincing.

According to Norton, your diet should be about what you can sustain, not empty promises about which diet is “better.”

“You as an individual should choose the dietary preference that makes it easiest for YOU as an individual to adhere to it. Unfortunately, that’s not as sexy for marketing as claiming you’ve found a magical loophole that saves you from having to take responsibility wear.”