SILVER SPRING, Md., Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ — Viewers will be seeing double when the National Body Challenge-Discovery Health’s fifth annual weight loss and general wellness campaign-launches with a four-part television event following four sets of identical twins with an identical problem-obesity. Premiering Monday, January 7, at 8 PM (ET/PT) and airing four consecutive nights, NATIONAL BODY CHALLENGE: TWINS EDITION chronicles their 15-week journey to unload the fat, get fit and conquer the National Body Challenge.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071211/NETU054 )
Many experts believe that individuals eating habits are influenced by those closest to them-and these twins are proof positive of that theory. Their food-addicted, sedentary lifestyles have left them at greater risk for high blood pressure and diabetes, and years of sensitivity about their weight have wreaked havoc on their self-esteem. Now, with guidance and inspiration from the National Body Challenge, they will acquire the tools for a lifestyle makeover that will leave them both happier and healthier.
Led by Discovery Health’s health and fitness experts Drs. Pamela Peeke and Lydie Hazan, along with a variety of fitness trainers, dieticians and nutrition consultants, the twins are placed on a strict weight-loss regimen in an effort to lose at least 10 percent of their body weight. With the tools and inspiration provided by the National Body Challenge team-and more important, support and encouragement from each other-these twins learn and implement life-saving diet and exercise changes that will help them reach and maintain a healthy weight and active lifestyle.
Meet the participants from NATIONAL BODY CHALLENGE: TWINS EDITION: -- The Thiel Twins: Jeff and Jim Thiel's passion for pizza has led them to run a successful Italian restaurant. Along with running the restaurant, the twins are also actors-but because Jim is now 50 lbs heavier than Jeff, chances are slim at getting an acting job together. Their heavy weight also has more serious consequences-both suffer from high blood pressure and prediabetes. -- The Dawkins Twins: Kameena and Khalilah Dawkins are inseparable. Together, they've navigated a series of personal crises-but because they've always turned to food for comfort, these twins have packed on the pounds. Kameena also works for a chocolate-covered fruit basket company, so her sweet tooth gets no break during the workday. -- The DiStefano Twins: Vanessa and Fiona DiStefano can pinpoint exactly when they began to gain weight-all the way back to the age of 12! Both twins currently work in industries where delicious food is readily available-Vanessa is a pastry chef at a chic hotel in Los Angeles, and Fiona works on movie sets as a freelance makeup artist. -- The Boyce Twins: Moni and Desi Boyce run a small production company together. Though the twins had different body types when they were younger, their busy careers have caused them to grab fast food on a regular basis, and the long workdays have prevented them from squeezing in workouts.
For updates on the twins’ progress since production wrapped, viewers can visit discoveryhealth.com. The site also invites visitors to enroll in the National Body Challenge, and offers an array of meal plans, fitness information and health advice from renowned experts Dr. Peeke and Dr. Mehmet Oz.
On Friday, January 11, at 8 PM (ET/PT,) Dr. Peeke asks the question, “If you had to, could you?” with FIT TO LIVE-the exhilarating special that explores the role physical fitness plays in helping humans survive life-or- death scenarios. Dr. Peeke challenges five ordinary people with varying body types to determine if they have the basic level of endurance, strength and agility to survive extraordinary circumstances-such as making it up 30 flights of stairs to the roof of a burning skyscraper or simulating an emergency rescue with a dummy the weight of an average adult.
Over the course of only four weeks, Dr. Peeke and her team perform amazing mental and physical transformations-pounds are shed, muscles grow and medical conditions are reversed. The perfect companion to the National Body Challenge, FIT TO LIVE is about real life fitness-being mentally and physically strong enough to manage 21st century living challenges such as running to catch a plane, sprinting to snatch a child back from the curb, or even pulling yourself out of a car submerged in water.
NATIONAL BODY CHALLENGE: TWINS EDITION and FIT TO LIVE are produced for Discovery Health by LMNO Productions. The book, FIT TO LIVE, was written by Dr. Peeke and published in 2007.
Discovery Health Media includes the Discovery Health and FitTV television networks and online assets including http://www.discoveryhealth.com/, as well as its Continuing Medical Education (CME) business and Discovery’s first stand-alone VOD service, Discovery Health On-Call. Discovery Health Media is part of Discovery Communications, the number-one nonfiction media company reaching more than 1.5 billion cumulative subscribers in over 170 countries. Discovery’s 100-plus worldwide networks are led by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, The Science Channel, Discovery Health and HD Theater, with digital media properties including HowStuffWorks.com. Discovery Communications is owned by Discovery Holding Co. , Advance/Newhouse Communications and John S. Hendricks, Discovery’s founder and chairman. For more information please visit http://www.discoverycommunications.com/ .
Imagery available for download at http://www.press.discovery.com/.
Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071211/NETU054AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN8PRN Photo Desk, [email protected]
Discovery Health
CONTACT: Chris Finnegan, +1-240-662-7589, [email protected] Katie Crockett, +1-240-662-2707, [email protected], both forDiscovery Health
Web site: http://www.discoveryhealth.com/http://www.discoverycommunications.com/
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