Optimyz

OptiMYz wants you to make 2010 your best year ever/HED 

Nova Scotians looking for ways to make the most of their lives need look no further than OptiMYz, aprogressive lifestyle magazine launched in Halifax in 2008. The publication is the flagship of a media company that includes OptiMYz Live, the largest health, fitness and lifestyle show east of Montreal.
 
The magazine, the show, and the website www.optimyz.ca offer a wealth of ideas, inspiration and information for real people looking to improve not just their health but the meaning and quality of their lives.
 
“We stand on five brand pillars: health, fitness, nutrition, mind, and adventure,” says Max Brennan, publisher of the magazine and producer of the show. “We take a broad view of health and the many ways people can look after and improve themselves, to live their lives to the fullest and contribute more to society.”
 
“Wellness is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the economy, and one of the most important in terms of social impact,” says OptiMYz editor David Holt. “People want to be healthy, enjoy their lives and careers, and leave a positive legacy. Even the environmental movement is part of this.”
 
The doors to OptiMYz Live 2010 will open on Saturday, January 23 at the World Trade and Convention Centre in downtown Halifax. The two-day show will feature more than 60 booths, 50 speakers and a host of interactive demonstrations, all designed to help you ‘Live Your Best Year Ever.’
 
“OptiMYz Live is entertaining and fun,” says Brennan. “We want people to walk away from the show with a new spring in their step, full of enthusiasm and equipped with practical solutions to help them reach their health and lifestyle goals.”
 
More than 4,000 people of all ages and walks of life attended the first OptiMYz Live show in January 2009. More than 95 per cent said they enjoyed the show and 90 percent said they planned to attend the next year’s show.
 
“Lining up the content for the show is a learning experience in itself,” says Holt. “The variety is amazing, and it all fits the brand.”
 
Keynote speakers at OptiMYz Live 2010 will include provincial and national figures such as Olympic paddling sensation Andrew Russell; local and exotic produce connoisseur Pete Luckett; Natasha Turner, author of the bestselling The Hormone Diet; and motivational speaker and publisher Cory Poirier.
 
New events in 2010 include military fitness demonstrations by real soldiers and an exercise-wear fashion show. These will complement proven crowd favourites, such as new approaches to yoga, leading-edge fitness techniques, martial arts, dance, adventure travel, cancer research, and live nutrition and food-preparation demonstrations.
 
“The presentations really grab people’s attention,” says Brennan. “People literally stop in their tracks to watch and listen. Whether the topic is top cancer-fighting foods, fitness for golf, back health, helping kids get active, the power of gratitude, or how to recognize a heart attack, people are thirsty for the knowledge.”
 
OptiMYz magazine quenches that thirst for knowledge throughout the year, with six packed issues featuring real Atlantic Canadians and their struggles, triumphs and advice.
 
“Unlike many fitness-oriented magazines, we don’t use photographs of hired fitness models or tamper with images to present unrealistic concepts of perfection or beauty,” says Brennan. “We only show real photos of real people. Our magazine is not about how you look, it’s about how you feel.”
 
Another unique aspect of OptiMYz magazine is that it is not targeted to a particular gender. The magazine is designed to appeal equally to men and women.
 
Each issue includes plenty of how-to material, pertaining not only to specific fitness regimens, but to much broader topics, such as assessing life satisfaction and setting goals in all areas of your life. The pages are filled with well-researched health and nutrition information, advice for preventing and treating sports injuries, profiles of outstanding athletes as well as ordinary folk who have overcome adversity, mind-expanding food for thought, and travel-adventure features that make you want to get up and go.
 
“Our adventure theme ties in so well with Nova Scotia,” Brennan says. “It’s such a majestic, exciting place to live. No matter where you are in the province, you’re a short drive from wilderness adventure, whether you like to hike, bike, kayak, sail, or surf. It’s all there and surrounded by some of the freshest air and most scenic vistas on the planet.”
 
Brennan moved to Nova Scotia from Chicago in 1989 and has never looked back. “My parents are originally from here. I came for a visit and decided to stay,” he says. “I found myself attracted to the natural beauty, the lifestyle, the friendliness of the people, and the safety of the neighbourhoods. And, I’ve found that there’s lots of opportunity here for people with entrepreneurial spirit and drive.”
 
Brennan and his OptiMYz partners, editor David Holt and marketer Michael Stack, put their entrepreneurial instincts to good use early on by joining forces with Nubody’s Fitness Centres Inc.
 
“For a few years we had been looking for a quality newsletter or publication we could provide to our members to enhance their membership experience,” says Nubody’s founder Dean Hartman. “When Max approached us with his vision, we knew it would be a perfect fit.”
 
According to Melissa Edwards, Nubody’s manager of marketing and communications, OptiMYz magazine is an added benefit, valued by members. “This uniquely Atlantic Canadian fitness and lifestyle magazine provides education, self-discovery, and inspirational accounts about how becoming and staying active improves quality of life,” she notes. “OptiMYz offers creative and simple changes we can make in our daily lives to come closer to realizing our potential.”
 
OptiMYz became part of an even larger fitness family late this summer, when GoodLife Fitness Clubs acquired Nubody’s. “Now that we are tied into GoodLife, a Canadian company with fitness centres from coast to coast, we envision creating customized regional magazine issues to meet the needs of all Canadians seeking to optimize their lives,” says Brennan. “We believe our holistic yet down-to-earth approach would appeal to people all across the country.”
 
Sponsors of OptiMYz Live 2010 include Nubody’s/GoodLife Fitness, New Balance, Infiniti, Scotiabank, Spartan Fitness, Pete’s Frootique, U Weight Loss Clinic, C-100 FM and Metro News.
 
For a taste of OptiMYz and to learn more about OptiMYz Live 2010, visit: www.optimyz.ca