"Envy Girls" may have created a new media phenomenon"”the first straight-to-DVD television production. Five episodes of "Envy Girls" aired in 2007; a handful of devoted fans tuned-in for the broadcasts before the producers began exploring alternative media. "Envy Girls" now airs on-demand at Hulu.com, and devotees can invest in the four-DVD boxed set, which promises exceptional fitness and a swimsuit model's enviable body. The "Envy Girls" promos describe the cast as "the world's first super team of fitness," and Playmate of the Year Kara Monaco captains the team as they guide viewers through series of workouts targeted at girls' "problem areas""”abs, buns, legs, and arms. Elana, Natasha, Vala, and Yvette help Kara proclaim the gospel and work the moves to lose weight, tone muscles, and feel great. Celebrity trainer Michael Carson lends his wisdom and guidance to the series, which promises to "make you the envy of others." According to exercise physiologists, "Envy Girls" serves-up more eye candy than serious exercise, but the DVDs keep flying off the shelves anyway.

Guaranteed to make you weep, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" sends a team of exceptionally skilled designers and builders along with a whole bunch of community volunteers to tear-down and rebuild a home for a family in dire straits. The crew completes the radical renovation in just seven days, usually working day and night while the troubled family vacations at DisneyWorld, Orlando. Not a coincidence as the show airs on ABC, a Disney company. The weeping doesn't start until the building is done, but each episode of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" shows a family that has struggled so valiantly against so much hardship viewers cannot help sobbing through a whole box of Kleenex as the family discovers the wonders the builders have worked. In some cases, workers from the "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" crew rescue homes from the brink of condemnation; in others, they add second stories or triple the square footage. They always add hundreds of thoughtful personal touches. Of course, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" changes lives by transforming houses. Especially the children's expressions of gratitude for the changes melt even the coldest hearts. Tissues sold separately.

Basic cable and "reality" programming thrive on American's well-established predilection for all things paranormally creepy; phantom-hunting shows proliferate like bugs in damp places. The dazzling success of "Intervention" TV series and its spin-offs demonstrates they also have an insatiable appetite for other people's behavioral disorders. A&E network innocently claims, "'Intervention' raises awareness about the alternatives and treatment options available to those who suffer from an alcohol or drug addiction, and gives hope to families who have nowhere left to turn." Viewers more honestly explain "Intervention" vividly, realistically shows the horrors of drug addiction and codependency. The show makes perfectly and painfully clear how addicts and their families suffer with the symptoms and consequences of chemical and alcohol dependency. At the end of each hour-long horror show, "Intervention" shows a family and either Jeff VanVonderen or Candy Finnigan, highly trained and experienced psychotherapists, staging an intervention with their chemically dependent loved-one. Most episodes show addicts agreeing to enter treatment, but the producers of "Intervention" TV show make it abundantly clear that no one is guaranteed a happy ending.

Ruby TV show is a documentary style reality television series on the Style Network that debuted in 2008 in the United States. This inspirational TV show gives viewers an intimate look inside the life of Ruby Gettinger, a woman struggling against life-threatening obesity. Ruby starts the show weighing more than 477 lbs (she originally weighed over 700 lbs.) Ruby works with nutritionists, doctors, and trainers to lose weight, all the while commenting honestly and often humorously about the experience. The show also deals with the every-day life issues a morbidly obese person can face, such as the difficulty in using airplane bathrooms.

Tyra Banks sure knows how to get them talking! Her style and warmth blend in with the "talk show theme" quite well and she brings out the opinions of her audience even as she expresses her own. A recent show was themed around fierce women, particularly the single ones. Seems like women today feel pressured to get that ring on their finger in order to feel "complete" yet many of the singles love their lives as they are. And women who simply do not wish to have children? Well there are plenty of them out there also. No subject is taboo on the Tyra's show and she proves it by discussing discrimination, sexuality, as well as racial issues and even obesity. These are issues that should not be a problem in this modern society yet they're still around and remain problematic for many. Being overweight is extremely common today and discrimination is an issue that will endlessly haunt them. Society and how to live in it always makes for good TV and the questions never stop being interesting and thought provoking on The Tyra Banks Show.

Of all the exercise programs and regimes prescribed today those incorporating Yoga and Pilates seem to be the most effective when it comes to improving ones posture, flexibility, and core strength. As seen on TV the program really works for those who can stick with it. Eventually feeling healthy and looking physically fit will become a lifestyle and those who remain faithful to their new way of life will definitely live longer and feel much better while doing it. Yoga helps with stress management and taking control of your life while a Pilates program gets to the core and strengthens from the inside out. Together they help improve the entire body and mind while enhancing the quality of life. Yoga and Pilates TV demonstrates how each exercise will work the hamstrings, hips, and gluteus while making the mind strong and the core strength solid and positive. Taking the boring repetitiveness out of an exercise "program" will make it more fun and effective because it won't be avoided but instead looked forward to. Make Pilates and Yoga part of the daily routine and live longer while feeling great about yourself.