Okay, like I really needed another reason to discourage you from shopping at one of those vitamin and supplement stores in the mall. As you know, I think the vast majority of the supplements that they sell suck. Most have no science to back up any of the claims, and you would basically do just as well giving me half of your money and burning the other half.
The reality is that those stores are staffed by people with absolutely no clue about basic nutrition, never mind about the thousands of worthless products on their shelves. Not only are the employees clueless, they are clueless and on commission.
My 18 year old nephew just got a job at one of these pill chain stores at the mall. His qualifications? He happened to shop there for his protein powder.
Don’t get me wrong. This is not a slam against my nephew. Very smart guy. Top 10 in his class, going to a good college in the fall on a full ride, Eagle Scout.
Also eats at Taco Bell. But, he also mows my lawn, so I’d be foolish to slam him.
In fact, if I was 18 and needed a summer job, I’d do the exact same thing as him. Lots of pretty girls hang out in the mall. The job is easy, pays an hourly rate with sales commission on top, and he gets his protein powder at the employee discount now.
This is a slam against the vitamin store though. His training basically consisted of “Push the stuff with the highest margin, as that will give you the best commission.” Sure, he got a book that explained what the stuff was, but let’s not pretend that there are any real facts in this book.
It isn’t a book filled with independent research studies backing up the claims on the bottles. It is a book on how to tell customers what they want to hear in order to sell the most expensive (and worthless) pills.
People actually think because he works there, he knows what he’s talking about. The come in and actually ask some random 18 year old what they should take for their arthritic knee, or what will make them more mentally alert, or what will get them ripped and huge.
Are you kidding me? Like I said, my nephew is a smart kid, but please. If your arthritic knees hurt, go see your doctor.
You want to get ripped, huge, and be mentally alert? How about eating right and exercising and not asking an 18 year old on commission which pill to take? I’m sorry, but the only person more clueless than my nephew in that store is the dope who thinks he is qualified to give out health and nutrition advice.
Like I said, save your money. The vast majority of the stuff in these stores (GNC, Vitamin World, etc., they’re all the same) is crap. Search through the previous posts and you’ll see what few supplements I take and recommend.
Trust me, there aren’t that many.
~Dave
About the Author
Dave Soucy is a coach, trainer, motivator, husband, dad, and former fat guy. His goal is to teach as many people as possible how to achieve a life of health, fitness, and wellness through simply eating right and exercising. Click here to learn more about Dave.
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