BodyMedia Revs up Calorie Burn with New 'FIT Coach' & Jillian Michaels Program

LAS VEGAS, Jan. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The BodyMedia FIT™ armband-based body monitoring platform designed to energize your weight loss efforts now offers two new ways to light your calorie-burning fire: BodyMedia FIT coach, a software upgrade providing the market's first personalized feedback system capable of recommending activity and dietary adjustments based on each user's actual calorie expenditure and food intake for the day; and a partnership with America's favorite tough-love fitness trainer that has resulted in the new Jillian Michaels 360 degree Weight Loss Navigator program for exclusive use with BodyMedia FIT.

Both new offerings leverage the ability of BodyMedia's Armbands to track calories burned, steps taken, level of physical activity and sleep patterns that affect health and weight, utilizing a proprietary four-sensor system that collects 5,000 data points per minute. Available models include the new BodyMedia FIT CORE Armband ($179 MSRP), the slimmest and trimmest in the BodyMedia family; and BodyMedia FIT LINK Armband ($199 MSRP), which uses Bluetooth® wireless technology to communicate directly with a smartphone for real-time data.

The FIT coach is included with BodyMedia FIT's online Activity Manager online software ($6.95/month after a free three-month trial period).  The Activity Manager stores and analyzes Armband data, allows users to set individualized activity goals and document daily food intake, and integrates heart rate data from select Garmin fitness devices to enable easy one-stop access to information from both systems. The new FIT coach feature analyzes each user's daily calorie burn and food intake, compares the results Whether you are missing, meeting or beating your target for daily calorie burn

• Multiple activity options for making up shortfalls in daily calorie burn goals (e.g. "Hop on the treadmill and walk for about 1 hour at a speed of 4 mph and you can hit your calorie burn goal today"), based on your actual burn rates
• Nutritional analysis of each day's eating  patterns, along with relevant recommendations for correcting problems such as excess fat intake
• Your overall progress toward your weight loss goal, along with advice for staying on course

The Jillian Michaels 360 degree Weight Loss Navigator ($4/week after a free 30-day trial period)  – fully integrated with data from the BodyMedia FIT CORE Armband, food logging, and Armband data review – offers a complete toolkit of weight loss support aids utilizing Jillian's tough-as-nails approach. This premium plan developed specially by Jillian includes:  

• Custom cardio and fitness planner tailored to your fitness level and body type
• Meal recommendations with more than 1,000 recipes
• Fitness videos
• Regular challenges and support from Jillian's thriving community
• Daily feedback personalized by Jillian herself

"With our new FIT coach as well as the help of Jillian Michaels, we are expanding the capabilities of the BodyMedia platform from monitoring to mentoring. We have now coupled the ability to track calorie input and output with actionable information to promote weight loss and – for the first time – a way to automatically tailor that advice to each user's actual behavior," said BodyMedia CEO Christine Robins. "This is a big step forward in using technology for weight management."

The BodyMedia FIT CORE Armband is sold online at www.bodymedia.com and select retailers.  Both the BodyMedia FIT Activity Manager and the Jillian Michaels 360 degree Weight Loss Navigator program can be purchased at http://www.bodymedia.com/Support-Help/Get-Started The Jillian Michaels 360 degree Weight Loss Navigator is also available at www.jillianmichaels.com/360

BodyMedia is exhibiting in North Hall 3435 at the International CES conference that opens today in Las Vegas.

About BodyMedia, Inc.

When your body talks, BodyMedia listens. BodyMedia has been unlocking and deciphering secrets of the body since 1999. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, BodyMedia is the pioneer in developing and marketing wearable body monitors that equip consumers with information they can use to make sweeping changes to their own health and wellness beginning with weight management and soon to include management of other conditions affected by lifestyle choices. The BodyMedia platform is the only system of its kind that is registered with the FDA as a Class II medical device and that has been clinically proven to enhance users' weight loss by up to three times (data on file). For more information, visit www.bodymedia.com.

SOURCE BodyMedia, Inc.