Happy Valentine's Day

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Update: Baseball Fans Support Haiti

Fans of a Minor League Baseball Team in Maryland donated more than $2,000 to help with relief efforts in Haiti. The Bowie Baysox held a two-week raffle for a pack of season tickets at a cost of $10 per raffle. The team announced today that Tony Miller of  Annapolis, MD was the lucky winner. More than 100 fans participated in the fundraiser. One-hundred percent of every raffle ticket sold went to the relief efforts and were given to the U.S. Fund for UNICEF.

Biggest Loser Gives Big Picture

The Weight of the Weight

From the career woman to the couch potato there is no doubt many women are struggling to hold on to a notorious New Year’s resolution. How do you lose weight and keep it off? Celebrities make it look pretty easy. Marie Osmond is 50 pounds thinner, since joining the Nutrisystem program. Valerie Bertinelli recently showed off her sleek, curvier figure, in a two-piece bathing suit. Bertinelli’s dramatic weight loss comes courtesy of Jenny Craig. Now on the quest to shape up and slim down is respected, adored and admired actress Phylicia Rashad, also a Jenny Craig client.

The upper-hand all possess over the average woman is 24-hour access to personal trainers, personal chefs and the cash to trim the fat, after the fact. Despite that reality, when a celebrity goes from obese to awesome, the before and after photos are inspirational and unforgettable. The photos we don’t see are the ones that document the battle of the bulge.

One television series that appears to fill in the blanks left by celebrities who privately slim down but openly share the end results, is NBC’s “The Biggest Loser.” The show, now in its sixth year is a raw and real spin on what it takes and how it feels to change your body from fat to fit. “I find it motivational and entertaining,” says Deidra Sampson.

Sampson is a faithful fan and is on a personal quest to lose 40 pounds. She is one of millions who tune in every week. Contestants sweat, scream and succeed on a number of levels at shaking a very powerful health hazard, obesity. “The Biggest Loser” serves as entertainment and the images of everyday people have a lasting impact. There are moments when contestants laugh and have fun as they exercise. However, there’s also the harsh reality of their weight.

Every week they hit the scale. Some of the men and women are more than 400 pounds. The amount of weight loss per week by each contestant keeps the person on or off the show. “It has scared me into action. The health risks and physical limitations associated with obesity are too great,” says Sampson. To motivate and educate the contestants and the general public, fitness trainers Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels team up and workout with the contestants. “Because of the show I am getting a personal trainer to push me toward my goals. I need a Bob or Jillian who is educated on the body and how it works and to push me beyond the limits I set for myself.”

Unlike some weight loss reality shows where the prize may be a man proposing to a woman at the end or where celebrity judges rate contestants on their overall weekly weight-loss and their dance routine, “The Biggest Loser” stands out. The grand prize is $250,000 and a slimmer look. “I like it because it’s amazing to see the amount of weight the contestants lose and to follow their journey throughout the season,” says LeAnne Morman.

As bold as the average person appears on “The Biggest Loser” facing some of the biggest critics, millions of people every week, at least one celebrity is scheduled to turn the mirror of the world onto her image transition. Later this year Kirstie Alley, is scheduled to premier her show on the A & E network. Alley has lost and won several times a very public battle with weight. Two years after dropping down to her ideal weight, the celebrity picked up all 85 pounds she’d lost. The show is about how she’s going to keep it off this time around.

Please forward all comments to Maniko Barthelemy at newsheels@gmail.com