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FTC Begins Project Workout Campaign
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in June launched the Project Workout campaign to "slim down" exaggerated claims for fitness equipment and educate consumers about how to
evaluate product advertising.
Project Workout is the second phase of Operation Waistline. Operation Waistline is the FTC's long-term law-enforcement and consumer-education campaign designed to ensure that consumers get accurate and reliable information about weight-loss products and programs.
The consumer education component of Project Workout includes two publications: Pump Fiction: Tips for Buying Exercise Equipment, and a questionnaire, What's Your Exercise I.Q? These materials offer consumers tips to consider and questions to ask themselves before purchasing exercise equipment. The FTC wants consumers to:
- Look for equipment that offers a total workout.
- Remember that no exercise device can burn fat off of a particular body part.
- Be skeptical of outrageous claims.
- Think twice about dramatic testimonials or before-and-after pictures from satisfied customers.
- Get the total cost of the product before buying.
The FTC's message for consumers is: While exercise is a key to achieving and maintaining weight loss, substantial weight loss also requires a reduction in calories. According to industry estimates, manufacturers sold $2.4 billion worth of exercise equipment to retailers or directly to consumers in 1996.
The FTC, in cooperation with the American College of Sports Medicine, the American Council on Exercise, the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, and Shape Up America, encourages consumers to exercise good judgment when evaluating advertising claims for fitness products.
For more information about advertising claims for health, weight loss, and fitness products, contact the Consumer Response Center, FTC, Washington, DC 20580, or visit the FTC's ConsumerLine on the World Wide Web at http://www.ftc.gov.