1/5 FANGDONG L. 2 years ago on Google
I
started
the
program
on
June
28,
2019,
weighing
60kg.
I
paid
up
front
(along
with
signing
a
set
of
physical
damage
waivers)
and
signed
up
for
a
6-month
routine
of
diet
and
gym
routine.
The
600-calorie
no-salt
diet
did
make
me
quickly
lose
8
kgs
of
water,
fat,
and
muscle
in
the
short
term,
but
it
also
landed
me
in
a
hospital
emergency
room
for
hyponatremia
(sodium
deprivation
causing
fatigue,
headache,
and
vomiting).
The
exercise
gave
me
quadriceps
enthesopathy
(kneecap
tendon
injury)
and
patellar
tendinopathy
(patellar
tendon
injury)
so
I
wasn't
able
to
walk
anymore.
I
quit
the
program
after
1.5
months
and
received
a
refund
for
the
unused
gym
sessions.
Coming
out
of
the
program,
I've
spoken
to
Consumer
Protection
Ontario
(a
government
agency).
I
wish
I
had
known
before
entering
the
program:
1)
Personal
trainers
is
not
a
regulated
profession
in
Canada
so
there
are
no
set
rules,
diets,
or
regimes
to
follow.
2)
Alex
being
a
"nutritionist"
is
a
self-proclaimed
title.
Unlike
a
"dietitian",
a
"nutritionist"
is
not
a
certified
or
regulated
professional
designation.
That
could
explain
why
he
does
not
understand
the
life-threatening
danger
of
sodium
deprivation
that
he
imposed
upon
all
his
clients.
1)
The
diet
The
no-salt
diet
was
meant
to
deplete
water
retention
in
the
body
for
accurate
daily
weight
loss
tracking.
It
would
last
through
the
entire
program
(6
months).
My
blood
pressure
was
low
to
start
with
(120/60)
and
by
the
time
I
quit
the
program
in
1.5
months,
it
had
dropped
to
89/49.
I
experienced
various
levels
of
discomfort
including
dizziness
(light-headedness)
,
fatigue
(no
energy
and
only
wanted
to
sleep
through
a
whole
day),
and
sudden
vomiting
during
sleeping
(this
was
super
dangerous
as
I
could
have
died
from
choking
myself
during
sleeping).
My
family
(e.g.,
my
in-law
who
is
a
nurse)
has
expressed
concerns
from
the
get-go.
I
constantly
communicated
with
Alex
(gym
owner)
and
my
trainer
Maryann.
I
sent
them
pictures
of
lower
and
lower
blood
pressure
reads.
The
responses
were
1)
Maryann:
thousands
of
people
can
graduate
from
the
program
so
why
can't
you?
You
must
trust
the
program.
2)
Maryann:
you
must
"stay
clean"
or
I
will
report
you
to
Alex
3)
Alex:
the
blood
pressure
meter
at
Shopper's
is
not
accurate
4)
Maryann:
your
mother-in-law
is
a
nurse,
not
a
doctor
so
you
should
not
listen
to
her
5)
Maryann:
the
Pharmacist
at
Shopper's
is
not
a
real
doctor.
You
cannot
intake
salt
until
you
get
a
doctor's
note
and
then
Alex
"may
reconsider
letting
you
take
salt".
My
family
worried
about
me
so
much
and
my
husband
was
concerned
about
the
cult-like
language
from
the
trainer.
Eventually,
I
was
not
able
to
move
my
body
and
my
husband
sent
me
to
the
emergency
room.
The
doctor
told
me
that
everything
I
was
experiencing
were
symptoms
of
Hyponatremia
(sodium
deprivation).
He
said
each
person
needs
2-4
grams
of
sodium
per
day.
Hyponatremia
can
have
deadly
consequences.
I
told
my
trainer
Maryann
what
the
doctor
said
but
she
suddenly
took
a
U-turn:
1)
the
diet
was
Alex's
responsibility
"it
is
his
diet"
2)
she
was
a
nursing
program
drop-out
so
she
knew
about
the
danger
of
sodium
deficiency
3)
she
wanted
me
to
"educate
Alex"
about
the
importance
of
sodium
so
that
"he
can
learn"
and
won't
harm
others.
That
is
when
I
realized
that
I
had
had
enough
of
Maryann's
hypocrisy.
2)
the
gym
sessions
In
addition
to
the
diet
at
home,
each
of
my
exercise
sessions
started
with
jumping
jacks
and
then
were
followed
by
various
squats
and
burpees
because
the
hips
and
the
thighs
are
the
biggest
muscles
and
are
the
easiest
to
burn
off
calories.
By
early
August
(5
weeks
into
the
program)
I
developed
knee
pain
and
could
not
walk
downhill
anymore.
Throughout
this
Maryann
was
still
urging
me
to
go
back
to
the
gym
to
exercise
so
that
she
could
get
paid
(she's
paid
by
piecework).
I
took
x-rays
and
ultrasound
images
and
was
diagnosed
with
both
quadriceps
enthesopathy
and
patellar
tendinopathy.
It
costs
more
money
to
take
the
pills
and
the
prescribed
chiropractor
therapies
and
physio-therapies
than
the
6
weeks
of
exercising
from
Maryann.
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