HealthyWage: Lose weight, gain money: Registration begins for individual & corporate weight-loss competition to pay Wisconsinites $18,000 in cash prizes

Wisconsin Matchup offers cash incentive to get fit; HealthyWage partners with individuals, local health clubs, hospitals and large employers for team-based weight-loss competition fueled by substantial cash prizes

MILWAUKEE, WI, February 15, 2011 – To help Wisconsin residents maintain their New Year’s diet and fitness resolutions, HealthyWage™ (http://www.HealthyWage.com), an online network that pays members who improve their health, today announced registration is now open for “The Wisconsin Matchup” – a state-wide weight-loss contest that will reward top-performing teams with a total of $18,000 in cash prizes. Registration is now open to all Wisconsin residents, and the contest commences with state-wide weigh-ins on March 19th amid National Nutrition Month.

“The Wisconsin Matchup brings the state together in a collective effort to achieve weight-loss and health goals through a fun and lucrative contest,” said HealthyWage co-founder David Roddenberry. “With a full 62% of Wisconsin adults reported to be overweight and with 28.7 classified as obese, we hope this initiative will provide an extra dose of motivation to effect positive change for the region. Competing in teams of 5 against family, friends, and co-workers for added encouragement, bragging rights and big cash prizes leverages our social network model proven to help motivate and sustain weight-loss. Academic research shows that obesity has spread through social networks and will likely reverse through social networks.”

Throughout “The Wisconsin Matchup” teams of five will compete for the greatest percentage of weight lost from March 19 through June 18, 2011. Each participant pays a $60 registration fee and weighs in at the beginning and end of the contest at a local health club. The winning teams will receive a total of $18,000 in cash prizes ($10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second, and $3,000 for third). In addition, participants qualify for $100 cash if they start with a Body Mass Index (BMI) above 30 and achieve a BMI below 25 after 1-year.

In addition to those participating at an individual level, large employers will also join in “The Wisconsin Matchup” in a “Company vs. Company” division where they compete against other companies throughout the state in an attempt to have their employees lose the most weight. Participating companies include Extendicare, Foremost Farms, Midwest Dental, Ruud Lighting and Thilmany.

“Participants in previous financial compensation-based HealthyWage team contests have lost on average 5% of their body weight,” Roddenberry notes. “While our company pays all Wisconsin residents $100 to lose weight as a standard part of our program, we’ve found that the free $100 cash incentive is more effective at motivating weight loss when coupled with a contest to build excitement and peer support in working toward weight-loss goals.”

Those interested in learning more and registering for The Wisconsin Matchup may do so online at http://www.HealthyWage.com/wisconsin-matchup.

About HealthyWage™

Health and wellness purveyor HealthyWage provides cash incentives, social and expert-based support, tools and resources, and goal-setting and tracking technologies to address our nation’s obesity epidemic and improve America’s collective health. The company was founded in response to academic research that proves even small cash rewards triple the effectiveness of weight-loss programs; that people are more effective at losing weight when their own money is at risk; and that social networks play a large role in the spread of obesity, and will likely play a large role in reversing obesity. Learn more online at http://www.HealthyWage.com.

Contact: Michelle Barbara or Merilee Kern, 858-577-0206, Michelle@kerncommunications.com