Excerpt from Body For Life by Bill Phillips, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

There were 10 categories, so young and old, men and women alike could till compete and have a chance to win. They were required to take 'before and after' photos and write an essay describing their experience and the impact it had on their lives overall. A team of judges, including myself, worked day and night scoring each competitor based on how much they improved their physiques, combined with how well they expressed the experience through their essays.

There - in those essays - was where my expectations and imagination essays were blown away. I hoped that giving people an incentive and challenging them to apply the knowledge I offered them would help them improve their bodies. And it did.

But that's not all. These people were getting physically fit, and they were getting their lives back in shape. It was, and still is, one of the most enlightening experiences of my life. Accepting this challenge rekindled the flame of desire for tens of thousands, and it broke down walls that were keeping people from moving forward in all areas of their lives.

Many of the men and women who accepted my challenge reported that this Program literally saved their lives. Their risk of heart disease (the number-one killer in America today) was drastically lowered, as well as the risk of being afflicted with other illnesses. such as diabetes, cancer, and osteoporosis.

Beyond even that, the psychological and emotional changes reported by these men and women were (and are) stunning. They described off-the-chart leaps in self-confidence, self-respect, and empowerment. They discovered that taking control of their bodies broke down barriers all around them. People were more attracted to them. They got better jobs.

Body For Life. Copyright (c) 1999 by Bill Phillips. Reprinted with permission from HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.