This summer, I purchased a package from Thrive Drip Spa for Emsculpt Neo, which promised to build…read moremuscle and remove fat in my abdomen (they stated 25% more muscle and 30% less fat on average.)
I have been very athletic for years, training 4-5 days a week, practicing yoga, tracking macros, etc. but my midsection fat was stubborn no matter how low my weight went down, so this seemed like a great option.
They stated that it uses radiofrequency heat which causes the fat cells to be permanently damaged and slowly removed from the body over 4-6 weeks. The price was very high ($3000 for 4 treatments,) but after some consideration, I decided that if it did the trick, it would be worth it in the end.
After following their guidelines of having a treatment every 5-7 days, and waiting for 5 weeks after the final treatment, I had no visible results whatsoever. I came back in and told them this, and was offered 3 more treatments free of charge. I was then questioned on my diet, as now apparently I needed to modify my diet for it to work. This completely goes against what I was sold originally, which was that the heat breaks down the fat, so as long as i wasn't eating in a caloric surplus and building more fat, why would it matter?
Having no other option, I went along with this, and followed their diet suggestions, and did three more treatments. I then scheduled my follow up appointment in four weeks to take my "after photos."
Since I did not see any improvement again, I decided to have a DEXA scan done on the same morning as my after photos, which is a body scan that provides a very accurate depiction of your body composition. The scan (which I had been doing annually since 2018) showed that my abdominal region had actually LESS MUSCLE AND MORE FAT than before, while my total body weight was constant.
I emailed this information to Thrive, and requested my money back, because as I told them, this is a lot of money to pay to walk out with a worse physique than what I walked in with. Especially given the fact that the story kept changing. First the diet doesn't matter, then it does, but then it the end it didn't. At all.
I sent this email two days ago, and they have not even bothered to respond.
Clearly this business is not reputable and I advise everyone to stay clear.