“Stir It Up” Gaining Sponsors Before A Network Deal!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Shannon Donahue
Phone: (772) 321-4766
Email: Shannon@stiritup.tv

Waltham, MA – August 9, 2011 – With the launch of Strega Entertainment Group’s newest campaign and television show “Stir It Up” starring Host Olivia Iafrate and Producer Kasey Grenon, appetizing news and bursts of flavors are piling onto the table. The show focuses on educating viewers on nutrition, holistic wellness, citizenship and positive body image through fun recipes, cool music and humorous dialogue all while following the lives of lead characters Olivia and Kasey as they discover what it takes to create and produce a cooking show. The episodes will follow the girls as they uncover many of the hot-button issues facing America’s youth today including peer pressure, low self-esteem, weight issues, bullying and more. These “issues” unfold through hilarious dialogue, the characters, recipes, and sometimes even by a surprise celebrity guest.

Twenty-year-old Olivia Iafrate has pulled from her own life experiences to become her character, the show’s host, “Olivia Quinn”. Iafrate explains, “When I was a kid I was obese. I got made fun of by all the kids in school and they told me there was no way I could become a singer or an actress. I want to show girls that it’s never too late to get healthy and pursue your dreams no matter what they are! Never let someone tell you that you can’t do something.” See host Olivia share her story here.

“With the current bullying and negative body-image epidemics plaguing America’s youth, there is a clear need for positive, real role models that young women can look to,” says Strega President Peggy Iafrate. Leveraging industry relationships, collaborating efforts for “Stir It Up” have been made by The Jonas Group, Strega Entertainment Group, Producer Robbie Countryman (ABC Family, NBC, FOX Networks), See Note Music, BodiMojo, and The US Department of Health and Human Services O.W.H. Best Bones Forever! Campaign.

Since then, “Stir It Up” has launched their Facebook page and has since gained over 6,500 fans. “This confirms that there is a need for a show like this. Girls want a sense of community, somewhere they can go to feel like they fit in, get answers, and laugh,” says co-creator and producer Kasey Grenon.

And because the show has stirred quite the commotion on Facebook, Strega Entertainment Group has announced the newest sponsor to come aboard. Original Smart Cookie founder Tammy Cohen welcomed the opportunity to share her passion for delicious and nutritious foods with the team of “Stir It Up”. Just like the stars of the show, Olivia and Kasey, Cohen devotes her life to educating individuals on nutrition by making healthy choices fun, exciting, and never flavorless.

And the sweetest part about the deal? The Original Smart Cookie is always bursting with flavor. Every bite contains only the freshest produce, ingredients, and vitamins. Can you imagine getting a well balanced and nutrient-filled snack all from a single cookie? If not, just ask Tammy Cohen herself. Being a culinary graduate and also a mother, Cohen has been challenged to create healthy, yet tasty foods for her family. With the creation of the Original Smart Cookie and flavors like, Gimme A Beat (A vegetable, raspberry beet cookie and now the Official Cookie of SIU!), ChocoLoco (Vegetable double chocolate chip cookie) and many more, it was a match made in heaven for the girls of “Stir It Up”.

For more information on Original Smart Cookie visit: http://www.originalsmartcookie.com
To join the community visit: facebook.com/stirituptv
Website: www.stiritup.tv

About Strega Entertainment Group, LLC
Strega Entertainment Group, currently located in Waltham, MA, is a comprehensive entertainment marketing firm founded in 2008. Through their experiences with industry giants such as Kimberly-Clark, Disney, and Kaplan Education, Strega has developed specialized tactics for targeting and activating consumers. Led by a small, but dedicated team, Strega Entertainment Group has found success in the entertainment industry with clients such as Honor Society, Ashlyne Huff and Savvy. Strega Entertainment Group can be found at www.stregamarketing.com.

Think Positive – It Works!

By Mia Simonsen

Our friends at BodiMojo.com are experts on body image concerns and have something to share with us. What is body image? It’s your own perception of your physical body.  Of course, your lens is influenced by reactions from friends and peers or from idealized images of beauty promoted by media and culture. And, sometimes we develop misperceptions about our bodies.

Do you think that you’re fat or have thunder thighs? Or is it your nose or ears that bother you? You’re not alone. We all have something that we wish we could change about our body. For some people this becomes an obsession and can lead to depression, anxiety, eating disorders and other serious health problems, requiring medical help. But if you’re the average teen who just wishes they looked better, consider these 10 ways you can feel better about yourself and your body image:

1. Respect Yourself

Accept who you are and the body that you were born with. Body shape is 85 percent inherited; that leaves 15 percent to work with. Treat yourself with respect and kindness. Take care of your body – it’s the only one that you’ll ever have, so treat it well.

2. Spend Less Time in Front of the Mirror and on the Scale

Do you spend a lot of time in front of the mirror obsessing about what’s wrong with your face or body? Try spending more time doing something constructive like exercising or going for a walk outdoors. You’ll feel better about yourself and have more energy.

3 . Stop Comparing Yourself to Others

Try not to compare yourself to other people – especially models and celebrities. Anyone can look good if their pictures are airbrushed and they have stylists and professional hair and makeup artists at their disposal. There’s no need to have to live up to the media’s standards. All that matters is how you feel about yourself.

4. Spend Less Time Reading Fashion Magazines and Watching TV

Studies show that teens can get a distorted view of their body image by seeing skinny models in fashion magazines, bulked up guys in fitness or sports pulp, and celebrities on TV. So spend less time in front of the TV and reading trendy magazines and pick up a good book!

~didyouknow~

5. Wear Clothes that Show Off Your “Assets”

Instead of trying to fit into a pair of jeans that you used to fit in, wear clothes that are comfortable, fit you and accentuate your figure. Make the best of your “assets,” no matter what they are. It could be a green T-shirt to set off your eyes.

6. Follow Up Negative Thoughts With Positive Ones

It’s human nature to have negative, nagging thoughts. And culturally, it’s a given to think critically about your weight or body relative to all the idealized media images out there. So take a stand to counteract this phenomenon! Think about five or more qualities that you like about yourself such as interests, talents, or personality traits. Things like: “I am a kind person.” “My friends can always count on me.” “ I have strong opinions – I know what I like and don’t like.” “ I am good at building things.” “I see humor in the world.” Write these down on a piece of paper and put them where you can see them every morning. Or use the Daily Mojo to send affirmations to yourself. Repeat these positive affirmations whenever you catch yourself having negative thoughts. Life is too short to dwell on the negatives, so accentuate the positives!

7. Surround Yourself with Supportive People

Surround yourself with people who love you for who you are and not how you look. True friends are the ones who like you no matter what.

8. Exercise

Don’t let the idea of “exercise” get to you. There are so many different ways to be physically active: walking, running, dancing, yoga, swimming, skating, skiing, tennis, boxing, mountain climbing, hiking, etc. Find what you like to do and mix it up. If you get bored walking on a treadmill, try something different and find a workout buddy to keep you motivated. If you find an activity that you enjoy doing, it can become part of your daily routine – and boost your mood!

9. Breathe and Meditate

Meditation and yoga are a great way to relax your mind and release any tension you may have in your body. Whenever you feel stressed or need to take a break, try some simple deep breathing exercises, stretching, meditation or yoga. You’ll be amazed by how much better you’ll feel.

10. Journal

Have you ever tried journaling? It’s really therapeutic. At the end of each day, write down all of your thoughts. Record all of your accomplishments and things that you are grateful for and happy about. At the end of each month, read your journal and you’ll be surprised by how many good things you have in your life. The more you realize how much you have going for yourself, the less you’ll focus on what you don’t like about yourself.

Do looks matter to you? Take this BodiMojo quiz and find out!

This article has been reposted with permission from BodiMojo.com. (c) 2011 BodiMojo, Inc. All rights reserved.

Do you think YOUR looks matter? Take the Quiz!

http://www.bodimojo.com/quiz/looks-dont-matter-or-do-they.htm

Breakfast is a good place to start, since it lays the foundation for your day ahead. For many, a bowl of cereal with milk is the easiest option – after all, it’s quick and tasty – right? Sadly, it’s often true that cereal tastes so good because the first ingredient is refined sugar or worse, high fructose corn syrup. If the cereal itself has been over-processed it may be lacking in real nutrients, and additional vitamins or minerals may have been added separately, in order to ‘fortify’ it. While you might have an immediate ‘feel good’ experience when your taste buds get excited (and sugar does have that effect), try to be aware of how your energy feels approximately an hour after your meal. Do you suddenly feel that you need a snack, preferably a cookie, some kind of sweet granola bar or even a piece of chocolate or two? Unfortunately refined carbohydrates and sugar tend to enter the blood stream very quickly. Sluggishness, lack of focus and even a bad mood may not be too far behind. At this point you might unconsciously reach for another sugary treat or caffeinated beverage to pick you up again. This is the beginning of the peaks and troughs of the sugar roller coaster!

Once you start paying attention to the cause and effect of dietary choices, you can begin to make simple shifts in your food choices that will benefit your overall well-being. There are a variety of super easy and very nutritious breakfast choices to choose from such as oatmeal, or a home made fresh fruit smoothie with low fat yogurt. While fruits do contain natural fruit sugar, they are also a good source of fiber and age-defying antioxidants. Fiber helps your body to control the assimilation of sugars into your blood stream. This means that they help your body to release energy in a more gentle and sustained way.

The benefits of choosing healthy foods are multifold. Fruits and vegetables not only support balanced blood sugar, but also deliver lots of nutritional compounds known as phyto-nutrients – these are natural beauty secret!! Phytonutrients not only help to keep our bodies healthy on the inside, they help your keep your complexion clear and radiant and promote the health of your eyes, hair and lovely heart.

Reading about the effects food can have on your body, mind and spirit can give you a good understanding of what to expect. However, everyone is just a little bit different and there is no more perfect teacher than your own body. Make a commitment to become more mindful of what you are eating. Keep a food diary which lists the foods you have consumed each day. Make notes throughout the day of how you feel – physically, mentally and emotionally. At the end of the month you should be able to notice patterns such as moods that may have been triggered by certain foods.

To a large extent, what we eat is determined by our habits. The good thing about habits is that, with a little effort, bad ones can be changed to good ones. Why not challenge yourself to pay attention to your current eating habits even it is for just four days. By reviewing your daily food choices and the impact it has on our energy and energy you may not only be surprised of what you learn and be truly inspired to try something new to help you feel your best and perform like a star !

Check out www.megafood.com for more info!