Thursday, January 25, 2007

February Success Story Contest!


As the 1st of February approaches, I wanted to remind members of the Million Dollar Body club that you have just one week left to take a current after photo, update your profile, and submit your success story - deadline is midnight Thursday Feb 1!

We'll be awarding $26,000 to male and female success stories in four age groups:
18-29, 30-39, 40-49, and 50+

Six of the eight winners get $1,000, and the two best male and female success stories get $10,000 each. HELLO! All eight winners are then eligible for the grand prize $250,000 to be decided after twelve months (even more reason to keep pushing play for the entire year!)

Last month there were some age groups in which we only got a couple entries, and one category where we got NO entries. So the chances of winning money for all your hard work and discipline have never been better!

We'll announce the January winners in the first week of February. Look for a new video online from the hosts of the Million Dollar Body Game here on February 5th!

Thursday, January 18, 2007

A THOUSAND BUCKS!

Today is Thursday, and so far this week we still have not seen a thousand dollar daily prize winner in the Million Dollar Body Game.

The $1,000 mystery day is still alive this week!
So as you consider whether you workout or not the rest of this week, especially as the numbers tend to get a little light over the weekend, remember that the big bucks are still on the table!

(I know it's really about getting healthy and fit, losing weight and getting toned, but a thousand smackers is a thousand smackers! I'm just saying!)

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Thank You FTC!

When this news was published a couple weeks ago, I got a bunch of emails from people who were wondering if this meant anything to Beachbody and Million Dollar Body. As far as I am concerned, it's great news, because the more publicity there is saying that a healthy lifestyle doesn't come in a bottle, the smarter our balanced approach looks.

There just is nothing better than achieving weight loss through fun fitness, simple portion control, and a peer support system that helps you stay on track. If you want to lose weight you need to balance calorie expenditure with calorie consumption to create a daily deficit. And if you want to keep it off, you have to support your metabolism with food and resistance training. That's the solution. Anything else is like borrowing a skinny suit for a weekend with the penalty of feeling lousy and gaining more back soon after. Can some supplements help you get results? Sure, in a supportive role to a healthy lifestyle. The pill pushers recommend diet and exercise in the fine print, when our community knows better. Bravo FTC!


FTC fines 4 diet pill makers for false claims
Marketers of popular weight-loss drugs misled consumers, FTC says
The Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The Federal Trade Commission on Thursday fined the marketers of four weight loss pills $25 million for making false advertising claims ranging from rapid weight loss to reducing the risk of cancer.

FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras said the products would remain on store shelves, but that the companies would have to stop making the false claims.

“What we challenge is the marketing of the claims,” she said. “The marketers are required to back up the claims with the science and if they can’t do that they can’t make the claim. But we don’t ban the products from the shelves.”

The FTC investigated a variety of claims made — including rapid weight loss and reduction in the risk of osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s and even cancer, Majoras noted.

Fines were levied against marketers of Xenadrine EFX, One A Day Weight Smart, CortiSlim and TrimSpa.

Telephone calls to the marketers seeking comment were not immediately returned Thursday.
Majoras said that some of the money paid as civil fines would be returned to consumers. “We always try to get money back when consumers have been deceived,” she said. “In this instance I’m pleased to say that I believe we’re going to get millions back from some of these products to be able to return it to consumers.”

The largest fine was levied against two marketers of Xenadrine EFX, made by New Jersey-based Nutraquest, Inc., formerly known as Cytodyne Technologies. The marketers will pay at least $8 million and as much as $12.8 million. A federal lawsuit has been filed in Newark, N.J. The marketer was identified as RTC Research & Development, LLC, based in Manasquan, N.J.
A $12 million fine was assessed against seven marketers of CortiSlim and CortiStress. The marketers were identified as Window Rock Health Laboratories, based in Brea, Calif.
The Bayer Corp., based in Morristown, N.J., will pay a $3.2 million civil penalty to settle the claims and agreed to stop ads that say the multivitamins can increase metabolism. TrimSpa, based in Whippany, N.J., will pay $1.5 million.

Placebo more effective Majoras cautioned the estimated 70 million Americans trying to lose weight not to turn to pills.

“You’re not going to find weight loss in a bottle of pills,” she said.
She said the FTC investigation found that the marketers of Xenadrine had a study that said those who took a placebo actually lost more weight than those taking the pill.

“They not only didn’t have studies to support the claim, they actually had a study that went the other way,” she said.

Some of the products marketed their claims through infomercials or celebrity endorsements. Anna Nicole Smith, for example, has endorsed TrimSpa.

“Testimonials from individuals are not a substitute for science,” Majoras said. “And that’s what Americans need to understand.”'

Friday, January 05, 2007

Our First $1,000 WOWY Winner!



What a week! Yes, we're still ironing out/testing some issues with the Million Dollar Body site to get it all live, but in the meantime, WOWY is on fire.





1,179 people worked out in WOWY yesterday -- I think that's a record. And we seem to be adding 100 or more new participants a day this week.

It doesn't hurt that people have started to see that we are truly giving away real cash and prizes, including $1,000 to our first "mystery day" winner, member "2007HIBride!"





One thing I've noticed working out this week is how important it is to be a member of a few select WOWY groups. That way, when you log in to workout, you're grouped with the same people, and you start to see who is working out in the same hour as you. The group "Turbo Jammers" is the most dominant right now, but "Slim in 6 Newbies" and "MySpacers" are making a strong showing. The "Agent Xers" group has the most consistent WOWY turnout per member, and is likely to be the most help if you ever get surrounded by thugs in a dark alley.



The judging has begun on the first MDB Club success story contest where we'll be giving away $26,000 to a group of eight winners for January, including $10,000 to the best male and the best female success story of the month! Once the final tallies are in from the judges and the announcements are ready, we should have the first big reveal in early February. Meanwhile, make sure to keep your member page updated and submit your before with a current (taken that month) after-photo by February 1st to be considered for the February contest.

Things are happening! And I am looking forward to seeing the WOWY numbers grow as more of the community catch on to the reality of how easy it is to log in and be eligible to win the daily contest, and how helpful it is to have a close-knit group of buddies to look for you online each day.



For that matter - I'll see you in WOWY at 7AM PT Saturday!

Monday, January 01, 2007

Why Are You Working Out Today?

(A message to myself)

Carl,

You've started a new workout program on January 1st since you were 14. Some years you've gotten in shape, for a while. Some years you didn't. Each year you learn.

Today you are working out for three reasons:

1) To feel good, to be healthy and lean.
2) To show other people that it's possible to make fitness a part of a very busy life.
3) To build your business on a wave of individual involvement. It starts with you.

This is a big year. Put the music on. Let's get started.

Bring It,

Carl