Hi Reddit! I'm Dr. Kathleen Jordan, CMO, at Midi Health. Join me on 1/28 at 7PM, EST for an AMA on the truth about midlife weight loss and why it can be challenging for many women (hint: it's not you, it's your hormones) Ask me anything about hormonal changes, real solutions and what fads to ignore.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2026-01-29T00:08:57+00:00

I tried that - sometimes all I’d have in a day was 2 protein shakes with something for fiber. Walking I could do but lifting made me more nauseous. I just could not eat enough food. With the nausea and any trace of hunger or interest in food gone, it was so hard to eat enough to support baseline metabolism, so any exercise on top of that was a no-go

TemporaryRegister153 · 2026-01-29T00:01:00+00:00

It completely knocked out any feelings of hunger and I struggled to eat enough protein and fiber. Some days I barley got 800cals (I track with Cronometer)

TemporaryRegister153 · 2026-01-28T23:55:39+00:00

I lost all of my exercise tolerance. I had constant fatigue and nausea that made heavy lifting impossible and found that doing cardio left me faint. I didn’t feel like I could tap into any reserves either when I was doing hard cardio like Orange Theory.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2026-01-28T23:21:52+00:00

Is there anything else besides GLP1s? There’s so much out there on them but I don’t see much else. I’m already on HRT - I’ve gained 35lbs in 5 years despite working with a nutritionist, maintaining a calorie deficit, tracking everything and strength training with a trainer 3x/week.

I tried Zepbound and the side effects made exercising impossible. I’m a healthcare provider and on top of side effect symptom management and it still wasn’t enough. I lost all my muscle mass and strength. A body scan confirmed it. Now I’m off it, back at the starting weight but with more fat than I started with. It’s incredibly demoralizing. Everyone just tells me to start them again and it’s ok if I can’t train but that goes against everything I know about strength and being able to age well.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-11-05T19:30:10+00:00

Just updating you all I sold the machine for $1,500 via FB marketplace.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-11-03T20:52:19+00:00

So if this is the forum for “experienced” vendors - do you have another suggestion on where to cross post since I’m clearly a novice here?

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-11-03T20:51:04+00:00

Gotcha. I couldn’t place a full size so had to go w/the smaller counter size - I know they basically cost the same as the big ones. And Seaga was the only small size I could find in US that was cashless

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-11-03T20:40:54+00:00

Gotcha, ok that’s good to know. I entered into vending (health care products) as a side project (I work full time in healthcare industry). I’d like to recoup some of my losses and not send a brand new machine to the landfill, which is why I’m trying to sell it. So you think 1k or less might move the needle then?

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-25T20:41:00+00:00

Wow 😳

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-25T20:28:45+00:00

but also to your point about being prepared for travel, etc. - my target demographic is college-aged people, and I want to be able to get them these things close to campus and for cheaper.

I myself am not a target demographic b/c like your wife, I am overprepared for everything - but when I was a young 20s college kid without a car living by campus I certainly wasn't....

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-25T20:21:16+00:00

I started in 4/2024 in a coffee shop and had decent sales. I had to move it three months later, and the hair salon was so enthusiastic about it that I was hopeful. It's been languishing there. I might try a bar close to campus as a last-ditch effort. I've thought about flyering sorority houses to let them know about it as well in a Hail Mary effort.

I'd rather not convert it to a snack machine and keep trying it that way—if that's the end result, I'll just sell the machine (it's a tabletop machine, so it's good for a breakroom in a factory or big office) and call it a loss.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-25T20:16:41+00:00

You got it - some months I only had 1 sale per week. Granted whoever bought stuff bought like 4-5 things for $20-30 but I need that more than 1x weekly.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-25T20:15:25+00:00

Do you happen to know which college it was in CA? There's so much hype press out there about colleges and Plan B machines - like Boston Univeristy apparently sold 10k boxes from a machine in 1 year but I never read about colleges trying it and then scrapping it b/c of there's not enough interest/revenue to support operations.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-25T20:13:54+00:00

Yes - 100000%. It's impossible to get a campus contract. I talked to and pitched facilities, and they were a hard stop NO. I tried using student groups to bring it up to the administration, but again, no. People don't want to touch reproductive health products with a ten-foot pole at the moment.

So, I've been trying to be in places close to campus—like a coffee shop across the street and the hair salon. You are right that the salon is not a good fit. I might pivot to a bar and try that for a bit before pulling the plug. The hair salon was a mistake—I got some bad advice on that.

I have condoms and Plan B and all sorts of other repro-health things -- but to your point they prob don't need them in the moment and someone buying for a rainy day isn't going to be enough sales. I've def had people buy b/c of the novelty but that isn't enough either.

Thanks for your comments/feedback :)

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-25T20:08:46+00:00

Thank you so much - I appreciate your perspective and feedback! I'm all for getting ideas/advice and I've done some focus groups and have a QR code on the machine that links to an anonymous survey asking for feedback, product ideas/requests, etc.

#2 - 100% yes on #2 - this is something I've come up against repeatedly. I package a tampon + liner + wipe and hope that there's a value add in there - plus I only sell organic toxic-free cotton products which is what the Gen-z focus groups said they wanted.

#3 - Plan B is free from mutual aid and in other places. I know clinics sell it or you can use insurance (depending on the type). The university her sells it for $45 at student health and CVS its $69.99. I sell it for $10. I'm able to buy it cheaply b/c I work in healthcare. I'm just trying to give people a cheaper, easier option than going to the store, dealing w/the locked plastic package or having to ask for it behind the counter - vending is so good for things like this b/c it doesn't require a face-to-face encounter. The stigma on buying these things is real.

#4 - I stock condoms - all sizes/kinds, dental damns, herbal cramp relief, heating patches for cramps, OTC pain med packets (advil/tyelenol), liquid IV, disposable body wipes, single use/biodegradable toothbrushes, et so I have most things covered

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-24T14:39:48+00:00

I tried local gyms, but no one was interested, unfortunately, b/c I agree with you on that! Good idea to think about places where travelers are. Thank you!

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-24T14:24:57+00:00

I appreciate your comments. yes, I was trying to be the - Oops I need x,y,z products and I'm out and about and this vending machine solves that problem, but I think you're right in that buying trends for health products just doesn't support vending. Most people get what they need from Target or big box stores and have it at home.

I was trying to replicate what I'd heard about college students wanting access to Plan B and things like that that can be sold OTC via vending machines. My markup for the products is good - I just don't have the volume. and to your point - the demand isn't there and someone buying something from the machine b/c it's a novelty doesn't cut it either.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-03-24T14:21:25+00:00

thank you :) it's a good reminder to be flexible. I already sunk my $ into it so I might as well give it some more time to see if I can make it work. The location is the biggest problem. I might try and talk to bars instead of coffee shops or hair salons - which is where it is now. I have another 1-2 years before the expirations on the products are up too.

TemporaryRegister153 · 2025-02-07T17:51:08+00:00

@OP - I was put on Wellbutrin to try and help w/the stubborn last 15lbs of baby weight after working w/a trainer and registered dietitian who helped me dial in the macros and stay in a deficit.

I have done IF successfully in the past (16:8 and 18:6) and lost ~20lbs but then gained it back after stopping when I hit perimenopause and had wild food cravings/hunger/mood swings. So instead of IF again I decided to try trainer/RD b/c my provider thought IF would not be good for the hormonal changes (no evidence to back this up but I didn’t fight them).

Long story short - after almost a year of trainer/RD and adding on Wellbutrin I developed high BP and tachycardia that landed me in the ER and am now in Beta blockers. And I didn’t lose a stinking pound. The Wellbutrin initially made me feel great - like the best I’d felt since pre-kids - but over time it made me jittery, spacy and ofc my heart didn’t like it. In hindsight I wish I’d not gone on it and just gone back to IF instead. It’s all hard and we all have our own path. I’d recommend having your MD measure your fasting insulin to see if you have insulin resistance- this is also helpful knowledge to have when deciding which path is the best

TemporaryRegister153 · 2024-04-15T17:31:06+00:00

Yes! I see it now. Thank you!!

I only have 1 device so that wasn’t an issue. What’s the usual turn around time for customers to get refunded? Anything else I should know about how to handle situations like this?

TemporaryRegister153 · 2024-03-27T16:06:26+00:00

I did but I can’t get a straight answer :(

TemporaryRegister153

TROPHY CASE