VH1 Announces Celebrity Fit Club Online Weight Loss Service  2/21/07

Rodale and VH1 to Launch The Celebrity Fit Club Online Weight Loss Service Based on VH1's Hit Series Fans Will Be Able To Access Advice on Celebrityfitclub.com From The Top-Rated Show's Medical and Health Experts to Customize Their Exercise, Diet and Wellness Plans

NEW YORK, Feb. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Rodale Inc., the authoritative source for trusted content in health and wellness worldwide, VH1 and St. Martin's Press today announced plans to launch celebrityfitclub.com, an online fitness and weight loss program featuring the #1 New York Times bestselling The Fat Smash Diet, written by the program's medical/diet expert Dr. Ian Smith. The show's fitness guru Harvey Walden IV and in-house psychotherapist Stacy Kaiser will also contribute to the site by providing expert advice, workout tips and planning tools for subscribers' fitness and wellness plans. Now, fans of VH1's hit TV show Celebrity Fit Club and The Fat Smash Diet, can have access to the one-of-a-kind eating plan, fitness routines and motivational advice that can lead to lifestyle changes and permanent weight loss with the subscription- based interactive celebrityfitclub.com.

The subscription-based weight loss site will launch in early April to coincide with the debut of "Celebrity Fit Club 5" premiering April 15, 2007. The new site will compliment VH1's existing online efforts for the show, including video clips on VSPOT at VH1.com and "Dr Ian's Diet Tips" text alerts from VH1 Mobile.

"Our viewers have grown to expect creative and interactive extensions of our on-air programming in a number of ways -- from exclusive video content on VSPOT at VH1.com, to on-the-go versions of our shows on VH1 Podcasts and VH1 Mobile," said Tom Calderone, Executive Vice President and General Manager, VH1. "Our new partnership will offer fans of Celebrity Fit Club a way to interact with other fans of the show while getting helpful tips from the show's medical and health professionals."

On Celebrity Fit Club, eight overweight stars are divided into two teams and challenged to get fit and lose weight over a 100-day period. The paid- subscription Web service features The Fat Smash Diet and gives members the tools to create a personalized diet and exercise plan designed to meet their individual goals.

"We are thrilled to be working with VH1 and St. Martin's Press to support Celebrity Fit Club through our online efforts," said Bill Ostroff, President of Rodale Interactive and Chief Marketing Officer, Rodale. "Celebrityfitclub.com is an exciting and user friendly program that allows its users to achieve their weight loss goals."

The celebrityfitclub.com interactive membership features all the tools needed to succeed, including a meal planner and tracker (day/week); an exercise planner and tracker (day/week); a weight tracker; a personal dashboard; getting-started guide and program information, along with food lists, shopping lists and more than 200 recipes. Members will be able to gain access to experts via articles, video, message boards, and customized meal plans & exercise plans. They will also be able to set and track their personal goals like weight, body fat, dress size and energy level via personalized progress charts. The site features content in nutritional, motivational and fitness categories, along with tips, frequently asked questions, video clips, articles, polls, panic button and success stories. Online community activities such as discussion boards with expert involvement, personal blogs and profiles, expert profiles and blogs will round out the site. Other featured information will include a food database, complete with nutritional information, an exercise database, and an automated phase selector.

The Fat Smash Diet is a four-phase diet plan that starts out with a natural detoxification phase to clean impurities out of the system. Once the nine-day phase is completed, the next three phases encourage the addition of everyday foods that promote significant weight loss. In just 90 days, most dieters will complete all four phases and be inspired towards a thinner lifetime of good health. Best of all, there is no calorie counting, and Dr. Smith guarantees there never will be. There are more than 50 easy-to-cook, tasty recipes in the book that make it easier to adhere to his plan.

"Dr. Ian Smith and his Fat Smash Diet have clearly struck a chord with weight conscious people everywhere. Now millions more will have the opportunity to follow his program which will be vividly brought to life via the online experience," said Matthew Shear, Senior Vice President and Publisher, St. Martin's Press.

About VH1's "Celebrity Fit Club"

VH1's Celebrity Fit Club is a one-hour reality series in which eight celebrities compete in two teams of four to lose weight and get in shape. In each episode, the celebrities attend a "Fit Camp" where they take part in a range of physical and motivational activities designed to shed pounds, increase team spirit and win prizes. The next day, they face the scales where they're individually weighed in by a panel of experts: a doctor, a psychotherapist and fitness trainer.

The cast of the upcoming "Celebrity Fit Club 5" includes Maureen McCormick (The Brady Bunch), Dustin Diamond (Saved By The Bell), Tiffany (pop star), Cledus T. Judd (country music artist), Da Brat (hip hop artist), Ross "The Intern" Mathews (The Tonight Show), Kimberley Locke (American Idol) and Warren G (rapper). The cast for season five of "Celebrity Fit Club" is our fittest yet so drill sergeant Harvey Walden IV has plans to work them harder than ever. Also back are nutritional and diet expert Dr. Ian Smith and host ANT. This season welcomes a new psychotherapist, Stacy Kaiser.

SOURCE VH1

-0- 02/21/2007