Medifast sells structured weight loss and metabolic health programs under its OPTAVIA brand, primarily through the 5 & 1 Plan — a regimen where clients consume five proprietary meal replacement "Fuelings" (shakes, bars, soups, etc.) plus one self-prepared meal per day. Products ship directly to clients and are purchased on a recurring auto-ship basis, making the model largely subscription-like. The key distribution mechanism is a network of roughly 16,100 independent coaches who recruit clients through word-of-mouth and social media; about 90% of coaches were clients themselves. Coaches do not hold inventory and are compensated based on client purchases, so coach productivity — measured as revenue per active earning coach — is the primary leading indicator of financial performance. Gross margins are high, giving the business meaningful operating leverage in both directions. Medifast manufactures about 40% of its unit volume in-house, with the remainder produced by co-manufacturers using proprietary formulas. The emergence of GLP-1 weight loss drugs around 2022 significantly eroded demand for traditional diet programs, and Medifast has responded by repositioning as a broader "metabolic health" company, framing its coaching and nutrition programs as complementary to GLP-1 medications. New product lines — including OPTAVIA ASCEND for GLP-1 users and a new metabolic health line expected in late 2026 — support this repositioning. Medifast is currently unprofitable but debt-free, with roughly $167M in cash and investments, and is targeting a return to profitability in Q4 2026.