What Will Be America's Next Great Fitness Obsession?

NEW YORK, Aug. 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Over the last decade, a rising health consciousness has led 30,000 fitness clubs to open across the country, serving more than 58 million members annually.  Valued at well over 20 billion dollars, the exercise industry is always on the lookout for the next big idea to continue its rapid growth. With that in mind, on Tuesday, October 20 at 10/9c, Spike debuts "Sweat Inc.," an unscripted competition series hosted and judged by acclaimed health and wellness expert, Jillian Michaels. "Sweat Inc." sets out to find America's next big fitness phenomenon and help turn it into an exercise craze.  The winner of the competition will receive $100,000, the opportunity to develop their brand and launch their program at multiple Retro Fitness locations across the country, as well as a feature in Women's Health Magazine.

Before Soul Cycle®, Zumba®, and Crossfit® were household names, they were one of many workout philosophies waiting to sweep the nation. Michaels and her co-judges will meet aspiring entrepreneurs from across the country, and utilize their keen business sense and vast fitness-industry knowledge to find an undiscovered workout poised to be the next innovative exercise program. Twenty-seven ambitious contestants will be put through their paces, and will have to demonstrate that their idea has what it takes to become a mainstream success.

Each episode focuses on a specific fitness category (circuit training, interval training, platform devices, etc.), and highlights three entrepreneurs as they compete to win a spot in the season finale. Every week, the three judges will select one winner from a particular fitness category to advance to the finale. Throughout "Sweat Inc." the entrepreneurs will be judged on their initial idea for an innovative exercise program, the progress of control subjects training in their particular program, the popularity of their program among gym goers, and the development of their initial pitch throughout the entire process. After 10 weeks on "Sweat Inc.," the winning entrepreneur will have demonstrated the highest level of business savvy and innovation, and have a complete workout movement ready for the masses.

Joining Michaels on the "Sweat Inc." judges' panel are fitness industry experts Randy Hetrick and Obi Obadike. Hetrick is the creator of Suspension Training® – the innovative approach to physical conditioning that has become a global fitness phenomenon – and is the founder of TRX, the global leaders in functional training. Hetrick's unique accomplishments include being a collegiate athlete, a 14-year Navy SEAL Officer, bootstrap entrepreneur, multi-patented inventor, and CEO of a company that's earned multiple placements on the rosters of the Inc. 500 Fastest Growing Companies and Outside Magazine Best Places to Work. Obadike is a nationally recognized celebrity fitness expert, trainer and one of the top 10 most influential fitness authorities on the internet. As a Division I collegiate track athlete at Cal State Fullerton, Obadike held school records in 100 and 200 meters and 400 relay events for several years and was a Co-Athlete of the Year. An official spokesperson for OWNZONES and host of "Workout with Obi", Obadike has also maintained a visible presence in the industry gracing more than 50 fitness magazine covers and publishing 100+ articles in fitness magazines. Additionally, Obadike was recently named Writer of the Year for Bodybuilding.com.

In addition to the "Sweat Inc." experts, celebrity fitness judges will join the panel throughout the season to lend their specific expertise to select fitness categories. Guest judges include Tito Ortiz (Bellator MMA), Lolo Jones (US Olympian), Kit Hoover (Access Hollywood Live) and Terrell "T.O." Owens (NFL legend).  Also, the series finale culminates with additional experts from the health and fitness industry to weigh in on the final entrepreneurs' programs.  Final judging authorities like Beto Perez (Creator of Zumba), Alberto Perlman (Co-Founder of Zumba), Kelly Starrett (Founder of San Francisco CrossFit), and Amy Keller Laird (Editor in Chief at Women's Health) will add their valued opinions to our "Sweat Inc." judges' assessments.

Throughout the season fans can watch full episodes on Spike.com or the Spike app, and are encouraged to take part in the conversation by using #SweatInc on Twitter.  Viewers can find out more about each entrepreneur and judge, including videos and photo galleries at sweatinc.spike.com.  Find Spike on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr for the latest in series news and content releases.

"Sweat Inc." is a 10-episode, one-hour series created and produced by 3 Ball Entertainment ("Extreme Weight Loss," "Bar Rescue") with Todd A. Nelson, JD Roth, DJ Nurre, Brant Pinvidic and Jill Goslicky serving as Executive Producers.  Jillian Michaels and Giancarlo Chersich from Empowered Media also serve as Executive Producers.  Sharon Levy is Spike TV's Executive Vice President, Original Series, Chachi Senior is Senior Vice President of Original Series for Spike TV, and Hayley Lozitsky, Vice President of Original Series serves as the network's Executive in Charge of Production.

About Empowered Media
Empowered Media Empowered Media, LLC operates the Jillian Michaels wellness brand. Co-founded by Jillian Michaels and her business partner, Giancarlo Chersich, the company operates as life architects whose sole mission is to inspire individuals to empower themselves to seek healthier, active lives. The products marketed are part of the total life solution platform created by the Jillian Michaels philosophy. America's premier health and wellness coach, Michaels is a New York Times best-selling author, entrepreneur and popular television personality. Michaels is also a passionate advocate, fighting to invoke important changes in all aspects of health and wellness. Michaels' newest book, SLIM FOR LIFE: MY INSIDER SECRETS TO SIMPLE, FAST, AND LASTING WEIGHT LOSS is available now wherever books are sold. For more information about Jillian Michaels, please visit jillianmichaels.com.

About Retro Fitness
Founded in 2004 by entrepreneur Eric Casaburi, Retro Fitness has evolved from a regional Northeast gym concept into a national fitness system with more than 135 gyms open in 16 states. Under Casaburi's leadership, Retro Fitness is expanding its footprint with more than 100 gyms in its development pipeline and plans to open 200 gyms in the next two years in new, major markets, such as Florida, Illinois, California, Maryland, New York, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Each Retro Fitness location is equipped with a full-service fitness center, including 60-100 pieces of equipment supplied by leading manufacturers. The burgeoning franchise has placed in the top 300 of Entrepreneur's magazine's prestigious Franchise 500 list for five consecutive years. For more information, please visit www.retrofitness.com, and to learn more about franchise opportunities visit www.retrofranchising.com. 

About Spike TV
Spike TV is available in 98.7 million homes and is a division of Viacom Media Networks.  A unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), Viacom Media Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms.  Spike TV's Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike TV's press site at http://www.spike.com/press.  Follow us on Twitter @spiketvpr for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.

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