Tom Venuto's Scam? - Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle Scam or Legit?

Tom Venuto's is author of the best selling fat loss e-book Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle. I have done many research on body building and weight loss forums and website, as well as browsing sites like Yahoo answers to find information on Tom Venuto's, and I have to tell you there isn't a lot out there.


Here is what I could find out about Tom Venuto:

- Tom's been body building since 1983 and competing since 1989

- Started writing back in 1988 as a free lancer

- Has been a personal trainer owner and manager of fitness club(s)

- Has a degree in exercise science and two certification ("Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist" (CSCS) and “Certified Personal Trainer” from the National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA) )

- He is written over 200 articles for Mens exercise and body building magazines and web sites


Tom Venuto's certification

I have some doubts about the validity of the Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle program.

Here are results of three steps I have taken to try and verify the information:

One. Tom Venuto lists two accreditations - Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) - http://www.nsca-cc.org.
The NSCA (via their website) offer a verification service. I entered Tom Venuto's details (I had to dig elsewhere to locate a physical address) and received a reply that Tom Venuto holds both certifications valid until Dec. 31st 2008. (Thereafter, he needs to renew the certification for a further 3 years).
This tends to indicate that Tom is qualified at what he does.

Two. Tom talks of a Yahoo group BFFM - With 1000's of members, etc. (and the implication is that they can't all be lying about it). However, Yahoo only gives a BFFM group with few (38 as of time of writing) members, and created on Jan. 4 2008. So, if there was a group with 'thousands of members', it no longer exists.
This tends to indicate some cover-up... unless there is a valid explanation why the old group was closed.

Three. Tom lists some awards that he has won - I have tried googling for them, but have not been able to find a website of a named bodybuilding competition (e.g. Mr. Natural USA) to see if they have a list of past winners.
This tends to indicate some kind of fraud - shouldn't any self-respecting body building competition have its own website?

ConsumerComment
Sifaan
Wattala, Other
Sri Lanka


Some additional things to consider...

I definitely respect Curt for at least taking the time to read the e-book, but I don't necessarily agree with his assessment of the e-book. He said that the e-book 'sucked' but also admitted that is would be useful to someone who doesn't know much about weight loss, which is a huge contradiction.

Additionally, if the e-book does indeed 'suck' as Curt so eloquently stated, then that implies that there are much better sources of information on weight loss. As Jim pointed out, Tom Venuto gives the scientific facts about weight loss - virtually everything you need to know about weight loss is in Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle.

As far a comprehensive scientific analysis of what it takes to lose weight is concerned, I don't think there is one single source of information that covers everything BETTER than BFFM. So, to take Curt's stance would mean that every single e-book ever written on weight loss sucks that contains less information than what Tom Venuto reveals in over 300 pages in BFFM must 'really suck'.

Yes, you could probably find most of the information in BFFM for free on the internet with hours and hours and hours of research, but if you didn't know anything about weight loss, where would you look? Even if you did find some of the information in BFFM, you would still be missing out on a lot of information revealed in BFFM if you didn't know where to look for. But here is the most important consideration:

What if the information you found through your own research led you to believe that you needed to spend lots of money on weight loss supplements in order to lose weight? Unfortunately, this happens EVERY DAY to HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of people who are trying to lose weight, because they ONLY come across information on weight loss supplements. The end result is that they spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars on weight loss supplements and 'magic' diet pills that only help them lose weight in their wallets. That's one of the reasons why the weight loss supplement industry is a MULTI BILLION dollar industry - because people believe the 'quick and easy' sales pitches these companies make.

On the other hand, if these same people find Tom Venuto's e-book, invest $40, and learn about the real, scientific truth about weight loss, how much is that worth? How much money will these people save on weight loss supplements? Jim lost 40 pounds using the methods outlined in BFFM - and thousands of others have been able to lose a lot more weight than Jim did that as a result of getting their hands on BFFM - can you really put a price tag on that? Ash, who got the e-book for free from one of his friends benefited from it so much that he wants to PAY Tom for it!

But here is the ironic thing: writing rip off reports about good weight loss programs like BFFM is what the weight loss supplement companies want, because they don't like it when guys like Tom Venuto tell the truth. I think Curt should start writing rip off reports on weight loss supplements and diet pills...these are 'true' rip offs that Tom Venuto warns people about. I would hope, Curt, that when all is said and done, you will be able to appreciate what Tom Venuto has done to help people lose weight and the lies he has exposed in the process.

Keith
Omaha, Nebraska
U.S.A.


Here's what the rest of the Web has to say about Tom:

Here's just a bit of what you find if you do some research for comments about Tom Venuto and his e-book Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle on other sites and forums around the web.


BFFM is legitimate!

I purchased the Burn the Fat -Feed the Muscle e-book by Tom Venuto. Whether his credentials are valid or not is irrelevent. The material he presents in his e-book is pure science and fact arranged and presented in a way that can absolutely acheive the results that it claims. The material presented is not his opinion, nor a specific program, and it cannot be debated. Since he is presenting facts, how can he be portrayed as a scammer? It was very annoying to see such a post. I lost 40 lbs and am currently maintaining a healthy lifestyle based on many lessons learned in this e-book. That same information can be found all over the intertnet, but BFFM is a sole source container of that information, presented in a coherent manner.

ConsumerComment
Jim-j
Woburn, Massachusetts
U.S.A.


Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle is NOT a ripoff

I am an amateur bodybuilder and fitness enthusiast, and have been dedicated to this lifestyle for the past 7 years. I ordered Tom Venuto's e-book 'Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle' a couple years ago while I was researching the best ways to cut down naturally without sacrificing muscle in the process.

The e-book is most definitely legit. The author of this 'ripoff report' has obviously never read it, and obviously does not know much about fitness or bodybuilding in general.

Venuto's website does read like too much of a sales pitch, in my opinion. The guy is also trying to make a living selling his information in an internet marketplace overcrowded with crap and false information.

His e-book, Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle is solid information and worth every penny for someone trying to get on the right track.

ConsumerComment
Bigvrunga
Albany, New York
U.S.A.


Honesty

Mr. Venuto from what I read and heard is 100% legit and honest.
And, he has replied to email input, although his time is limited and his services are not free.
It is ashamed that misinformed individuals would have to question someone like Mr. Venuto.
Why not question internet scammer Matt Furey?
Selling bodyweight programs that are free all over the net.
That is someone you should look at.

John Jacobs
Trenton, New Jersey
U.S.A.


Tom Venuto is Not a Scammer

I read on Ripoff Report that Tom Venuto is not an actual bodybuilder, and is only known for marketing his fatburning information.

Actually, he has been competing in bodybuilding since 1989, and has won several titles. He is not prominent at the mainstream competitions because he does not build the outrageous bulk of some, and has never used steroids. He wins in the Natural competitions on the East Coast, as well as being a respected consultant for fitness magazines.

Research a little deeper on the Internet, and you will find his credentials and competition photos. His body is perfect, just not huge enough to be on the front cover as Mr. Olympia, etc.

I've read the articles on his site, and as a specialist in the field of fat loss and eating disorders---and a bodybuilder---I can tell you Venuto seems to have much more knowledge than the average person who talks about weight, food and fitness. He also has a e-book that is available in the library system.

No, I don't know him. I only heard about him recently. I just don't like dishonest reports on people.

ConsumerComment
Sunny
Van, British Columbia
Canada


If you are trying to decide if his e-book Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle is worth the money I do not think you have to look any further then at Tom's credentials. He truly is one of the Gurus of the natural weight loss and body building world. Click here to official website: http://www.burnthefat.com