"Show me the pout. Come on. Work it! Work it!"

When our web design team puts together emails and web promotion pages, sometimes we have great photos from the catalog we get at Fitness Camps, the Hawaii Trip, or other resources.

It occurred to me this week when I saw this image of "Girl with Banana Mouth" on the meal planning page at MyBeachbody that it would be a lot more fun and representative of the Beachbody community to feature more photos of customers whenever possible.

This blog post is an invitation to send us any digital photos you can so we can add them to our library of images for use within the Beachbody.com family of websites.

Alison picks many of the photos we use, and is excited at the prospect that we might be able to feature more customer shots. Here's what she asked me, to as you to send us:

Food/Diet Photos
- You and your family eating healthy.
- cooking or preparing smoothies.
- posing with food (see odd banana shot above)




Exercise Photos
- Strike a yoga pose, grab those dumbbells and smile!
- How about some push ups from a fun angle?
- Let's see your best imitation of a Turbo Jam cover!




Show off!
- Fun images of you or your kids showing off: flexing, posing like a model, carrying ten bags of groceries at once... Something that shows the positive effect in their personal life of their fitness



Community
- Photos with Tony, Debbie, Chalene or other trainers
- Photos of you with other customers
- Photos of you on the computer using our online community. It's hard to make a photo of a person using a laptop fun, but it can be done



The important thing is for you to get creative and play with camera angles and color a little (Think; Red shirt - Red hat - Red resistance band... that kind of color repetition).

The images I have included in this post are just examples. I hope you just go for it. We'll crop them to fit on the site. The images throughout the community are changed every week, so the more photos the better!

Send your photos (with names of the people pictured) as attachments to MyBBPhotoFame@beachbody.com

It's On! Sign Up!

Yes! Tony's New York camp is (finally) taking reservations. And the page even has exciting video to show how much fun you'll have getting to rub shoulders with the Mayor of Fitnessville, Mr. Tony Horton.

Ok. Here's the bottom line. We don't make a lot of money on these events. But there is a HUGE benefit to getting people together: People ramp up their commitment to the program when they see a meeting with THE MAN coming across the horizon... and that translates into even better success stories than we thought we'd get form the next wave of Power 90 folks.

So if you're looking for a reason to press the pedal to the metal, look toward New York, Tony's packing his chaps for a weekend at the dude ranch, so KICK IT INTO GEAR!

"Easy" Won't Get You Ripped

Traci Does P90X Plyo


Yesterday I was working with Ned, the filmmaker behind the look and feel of P90X. We were digging into the infomercial, looking for the best way to tweak the show to motivate reasonably fit people to dig down and reach for the ultimate physique in just 90 days of extreme work, with this unprecedented program.

The voice in my head said "just make it look easier, that's what they do with other infomercial fitness products."

That's when I "got it". That's when I realized what sets apart the customers who buy P90X and get the results, from those who look at it, see the sweat, and turn the channel, resting instead on the latest pitch for the "Bun and Thigh Rocking Chair" or the latest "Ab-flattening Lawn Lounge".

It's "easy" to get ice cream and chow down before bed. It's easy to drive through McDonald's instead of having a healthier option prepared for your lunch. It's easy to skip workouts when you're busy. It's easy to take the elevator instead of the stairs. "Easy" is a creeping entitlement that has resulted in the global trend of obesity, passed down from parents to their kids. "Easy" is why being lean and ripped is so uncommon.

I am not above wishing fitness was easier. But I also know first hand that if being fit were easy, there would be a lot less demand for Beachbody products. It's an achievement, because it's NOT easy.

If you are contemplating getting into a new fitness program, don't look for the one that looks easy. Look for the one that looks hard enough that the money you're spending will not go to waste. Look for the one that turns sweat into results. From programs that get you up and moving like Turbo Jam or Yoga Booty Ballet, to the muscle grinding body shredding intensity of P90X, set aside the expectation of "easy" for just three months, and see what you can achieve when you accept the challenge.

When you transcend that expectation, soon enough you'll find out, that's exactly the choice your body has been waiting for all these years.

Happy Anniversary Beachbody!

With today, the first birthday of this blog, I wanted to also commemorate the 7-year anniversary of our very first Beachbody order on May 11th, 1999 from a woman named Hope Putnam.

Hope ordered the Great Body Guaranteed™ collection.

Since then it's been a constant struggle between celebrating the excitement of success and constant innovation while working hard to keep up with demand and the constant pressure to improve systems during dramatic periods of growth (like, um, now.)

Happy anniversary to Beachbody, its employees, investors, customers, and friends, and to everyone who has signed-on to make this a great place to gather to achieve real results!

Faux Sweeteners Creating Real Problems

Generally, I am not in favor of things that are labeled "artificial". And artificial sweeteners are a good example. Whether they're in diet soda, coffee, cereal, whatever, the growing body of evidence against the pink, blue, and yellow alternatives, is clear: Unless you want to be an unknowing lab rat in the long term public study of the effects of sweeteners, avoid them.

The good news if you like it sweet, there is an alternative that seems to be both sweet, AND healthy, and I use it every day.

Splenda® looks like it might be a real danger with the wave of products it will appear in, largely in response to the low-sugar concerns of dieters. It is being touted as the great savior of the sweet tooth.

Responsible experts are on one side of the argument saying that Splenda is unsafe — the latest sweetener that starts off claiming to be a healthy choice, only later to be proven to be full of side effects. How about this: Some authorities are saying that Splenda has more in common with DDT than with food. DDT. That's poison I think.

So be careful, and be informed.

Splenda -- Products sweetened with Splenda can be labeled “natural” because of the FDA-approved claim that Splenda is made from sugar. Splenda is made from a synthetic compound called sucralose, two molecules of sucrose (sugar) and three molecules of chlorine. YES... SPLENDA IS 2/3 CHLORINE. Sounds like I'd be better off pouring a packet into my jacuzzi than I would pouring it over Ava's cereal.

Apparently those chlorine molecules get stored in your fat cells and it may take years to figure out whether they’re influencing your health. I am willing to guess it's not good. The manufacturer's own short-term studies showed that sucralose, the chemical name for Splenda, caused shrunken thymus glands and enlarged livers and kidneys in rodents. But those were rodents, and we love them. As for humans, well, in this case, the FDA decided that because these studies weren’t based on human testing, they were not conclusive. There are no long-term studies. So WE are the long term study (although it is likely Splenda SHOULD be banded from rodent use. Sorry, Mickey.)

Some evidence shows side effects from Splenda, including skin rashes/flushing, panic-like agitation, dizziness and numbness, diarrhea, muscle aches, headaches, intestinal cramping, bladder issues, and stomach pain. These show up at one end of the spectrum — the people who have an allergy or sensitivity to the sucralose molecule. But like I said, the affects of the chlorine build up are unknown. That's my real point here.

By the way, almost all the independent research into aspartame (Equal) found dangerous side effects in rodents. The FDA did not to take these findings into account when it approved aspartame for public use. And within 15 years those side effects appeared in humans who were vulnerable to the chemical structure of aspartame. Tough break.

It's important to note that as food additives, artificial sweeteners aren't subject to the same FDA scrutiny and trials as pharmaceuticals. Most of the testing is funded by the food industry, which has a vested interest in the outcome. So the fox is guarding the hen house. Bet them are some sweet hens!

Some of the chemical ingredients in artificial sweeteners are well known hazards. Side effects depend on your biochemistry. Manufacturers are "hoping" that the body won’t absorb much of these compounds at any one time. But with the Splenda explosion that's happening, you won't know the effect on you until you’re already sick. Some scientists are calling Splenda a mild mutagen based on how much you absorb. Hey, maybe you could get a cool mutant power and be the next member of the X-Men! A mutagen! Unreal. We won't know the health implications for decades. But mutants are fun to watch. So stay tuned.

For people trying to be healthy, artificial sweeteners can seem like the best of both worlds — sweetness without calories. But the risks as I've outlined can be just as great, or worse. Time will tell.

Aspartame, the main ingredient in Equal and NutraSweet should be avoided by most people, but particularly in those with neuropsychiatric concerns. Recent studies in Europe show that aspartame use can result in an accumulation of formaldehyde in the brain, which can damage your central nervous system and immune system and cause genetic trauma. I had a twitch in my neck this weekend and thought, "Did all those years of Equal in my coffee add up to this?" I hope it goes away soon.

Aspartame has also been linked with MS, lupus, fibromyalgia and other central nervous disorders. Possible side effects of aspartame are: headaches, migraines, panic attacks, dizziness, irritability, nausea, intestinal discomfort, skin rash, and nervousness. Some people have woken up and been a completely different race after ingesting a packet of aspartame. Oh. Wait. That was the movie "Watermelon man". Anyway, some researchers have linked aspartame with depression and manic episodes. It may also contribute to male infertility. That alone would make me sad.

Saccharin, was the first widely available chemical - I mean artificial - sweetener. Most researchers agree that in sufficient doses, saccharin is carcinogenic in humans. The question is, how do you know what your "sufficient dose" is? (Figure it out, and consume just a little bit less, and you'll be a-ok.)

Some practitioners think saccharin in moderation is the best choice if you must use an artificial sweetener. It has been around the longest and seems to cause less problems than aspartame. Party on.

Bottom line, these artificial sweeteners are body toxins. They are never a good idea for pregnant women, children or teenagers (unless the teenager is being really difficult, then it's probably justified) despite the reduced sugar content — because of possible irreversible cell damage. Like smoking... if you decide it’s worth the risks, then go ahead, but would you put a cigarette in your kids hands so they would consumer less sugar?

So here's the good news... sugar substitutes don’t have to be artificial. There is an alternative, and it's "Stevia". They are the natural alternatives to artificial sweeteners. For many years, diabetics have used products sweetened with polyalcohol sugars like xylitol, malitol, and mannitol. These are natural sweeteners that do not trigger an insulin reaction. (Xylitol comes from birch tree pulp.) They have half the calories of sugar and are not digested by the small intestine.

I personally recommend the herb Stevia as a natural sweetener. I use it. And good old Trident gum now uses Xylitol in some packages marked as such. Stevia has been used for over four hundred years without ill effect. Stevia has been enormously popular in Japan, now rivaling Equal and Sweet’N Low. It’s 20 times sweeter than sugar, so a small portion of Stevia will sweeten even a strong cup of tea. In fact, when I first started using Stevia, I used too much and thought is was awful. Then I tried again, used less (in coffee by the way) and now drink my coffee feeling a little less guilty.

Stevia is slowly gaining steam as a sugar substitute, despite hurdles. The FDA has approved its use as a food supplement, but not as a food additive due to a lack of studies. Stevia can be used for anything you might use sugar in, including baking. It is naturally low in carbohydrates. You can buy Stevia at most health food stores and over the web. There may be those who have a sensitivity to a substance, but based on reports in other countries it appears to have little to no side effects.

So there it is... that's my opinion. Stay as far away from the chemicals as you can, and if you like it sweet, use some of nature's sugar alternatives like Stevia and Xylitol.

Please note: This information was accumulated from a number of resources, most notably an article titled "Sugar substitutes and the potential danger of Splenda", By Marcelle Pick at http://www.womentowomen.com/nutritionandweightloss/splenda.asp, http://www.mercola.com/2000/dec/3/sucralose_dangers.htm, "The Secret Dangers of Splenda (Sucralose), an Artificial Sweetener" by Dr. Joseph Mercola at http://www.mercola.com/2000/dec/3/sucralose_dangers.htm, and Splenda Toxicity Reaction Samples (Updated 2/13/2006) http://www.holisticmed.com/splenda/ which drew this conclusion from its research: "While it is unlikely that sucralose is as toxic as the poisoning people are experiencing from Monsanto's aspartame, it is clear from the hazards seen in pre-approval research and from its chemical structure that years or decades of use may contribute to serious chronic immunological or neurological disorders."

It's Time To Party!

Jam On! Today it's time to move, to groove, and to burn that stored energy - with reckless intent on success, mutual support, and having fun!

It's the kick-off "house party day" for Beachbody's test of a new fitness/weight loss motivation concept called "Turbo Jam House Party" and the neighborhood slim down. In over 1300 homes across the country, over 10,700 people have RSVP'd to get together today to learn about Turbo Jam, and to kick off the ten-day "Turbo Slim" program.

The point here is to get people together today to commit to following Turbo Slim for the ten days, and see how good you can feel and how much weight you can lose by teaming up for a brief ten day flight of fitness focus starting May 15th. In this case, the real motivation will come from two forces: The fact the people you are partying with today are relying on each other (and you) to keep the promise so they have that added accountability to keep their promise to you. If you don't quit, they won't quit. Second, the second house party (which we are calling the "weigh-out" party) is where people will see the visible results of ten days of consistency.

Ten days... Real results. Summer's around the corner. This one will be a winner.

Success has many fathers and mothers. This one is a group project that was motivated first by Beachbody President Jon Congdon's own Power 90 group which woke us up to the fact that, for some, it is easier to stay motivated by getting together in small groups than it is to work out alone in your living room with the accountability of WOWY to keep you going. The question was, how do we scale that concept? One morning I was reading a press release about a company called House Party, LLC that was helping media companies get fans of TV shows together to celebrate premieres and special events. I called them and met with co-founder Parker Reilly. I liked many aspects of the idea, but was not sure how it would translate to our products and community, except that it sounded a little like something that Chalene Johnson had described in terms of how she and her Turbo team band together in mini-groups to focus on accountability, especially when it comes to proper diet.

In discussion, the phrase Neighborhood Slim Down was being used to describe the motivation concept behind the House Party, and then everything fell into place. Bringing people together 1,000 parties at a time would be another arrow in our quiver to help people get in shape and lose weight without buying expensive equipment or having to join a gym.

After a few meetings and discussions, the concept had traction. And while there were many skeptics even at Beachbody, we know that no improvement ever comes from standing still. Contracts were signed, and the dates were announced. And today is the kick-off party.

So what's this mean to all of us who either didn't host a party, get invited to a party, or who aren't interested in the party aspect of the idea? With summer on the way it means that you can kick off your own "flight of fitness focus" with the rest of the Turbo Jam House Party. Neighborhood Slim Down does not have to be a physical neighborhood. It can be your cubicle. It can be your friends on WOWY. Or it can just be you and the rest of the neighborhoods who are hosting house parties. Whatever it is, we are all launching the ten-day program on May 15th. We'll be talking about it. We'll be supporting each other. We'll be in WOWY everyday.

EVERYONE who participates will benefit by the new friends, the renewed focus, and the spirit of support which is the central point to the neighborhood slimdown and today's Turbo Jam House Party event. I hope you join us and share your experience!