Factor Meal Delivery Promo: Free $200 Withings Body-Scan Scale
I will confess to be afraid of scales – the ones that weigh you down, not those of a snake. And so my first reaction to the idea that I would get a free body analysis scale with a Factor Meal Kit subscription was something akin to “Oh no!”
It’s always bad or shameful news, I thought, and maybe nothing I don’t already know. But it turned out I was wrong on both counts.
Factor is, of course, the prepared food brand from meal kit giant HelloFresh, which I tested while reviewing dozens of meal kits last year. Think TV dinners delivered, but actually fresh and never frozen. Factor meals are intended to be cooked in the microwave, but I discovered when I reviewed Factor last year that the meals actually tasted much better if you air-fry them (ideally using a Ninja Crispi, the best reheating appliance I know of).
In particular, Factor excels at the low-carb, high-protein diet, which has become equally fashionable among people who want to lose weight and those who like to lift it. Hence this scale. Factor would like you to be able to track your progress in gaining muscle mass, losing fat, or both. And then probably continue using Factor to achieve your fitness or wellness goals.
Although your first week of Factor is currently discounted, regular-priced meals will be $14 to $15 per serving, plus $11 shipping per box. That’s less than most restaurant deliveries, but definitely more than if you prepared these meals yourself.
If you subscribe by the end of March, the third Factor meal box will come with a free Withings Body Comp scale, which typically costs north of $200. The Withings doesn’t just weigh on you. It analyzes your proportions of fat, bone and muscle and indirectly measures stress levels and the elasticity of your blood vessels. It’s actually WIRED’s favorite smart scale, sort of like a fitness watch for your feet.
Either way, to redeem the deal, use the code CONWITHINGS on the Factor website or follow the promo code link below.
Is this my body
The scale that comes with the Factor subscription is as fancy as it gets: a $200 Body Comp scale from high-tech fitness monitoring company Withings. The scale uses bioelectrical impedance analysis and other proprietary methods to measure not only your weight, but also your body fat percentage, lean muscle mass, visceral fat, bone and water mass, pulse rate and even artery stiffness.
To obtain all this information, you just need to stay on the scale for a few minutes. The scale will recognize you based on your weight (you’ll need to be specific in your description when you set up your profile for this to work), then take a series of measurements before giving you a cheery weather report for the day.
Withings
Body Comp Smart Scale
Your electrodermal activity – the “skin response via stimulation of the sweat glands in your feet” – provides a measure of stress, or at least arousal. The Withings also claims to measure your arterial age, or stiffness, via the speed of your blood with each heartbeat. This sounds esoteric, but it has some scientific basis.
Note that many doctors caution against taking indirect measurements of body composition as gospel. Other doctors counter that previous “gold standard” measurements aren’t perfectly accurate either. It’s a big old debate. For my part, I tend to take measurements on the smart scale as a convenient way to track progress, and also as a good indicator at home when there is a problem that may need a doctor’s attention.
And of course, I was petrified. So much bad news to receive at once! I thought.
