12 | LMT BUSINESS JOURNAL
MONDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2007
MONDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2007
LMT BUSINESS JOURNAL | 5
Beverly Hills Wellness hits Laredo
By CELINA ALVARADO
LAREDO MORNING TIMES
Verizon launches the Voyager
By MELANIE FERRARO
LAREDO MORNING TIMES
Ever wonder what a vat of fat would look like? What about the fat content in a tortilla? In bacon? Well, wonder no more. The new Beverly Hills Wellness Center which is located at 1205 E. Hillside Road in Laredo leaves nothing to the imagination as it materializes these concepts into a product you can actually see and touch. Jars and test tubes filled with “fat” line the counter of the wellness center to illustrate exactly how much fat a non-dieter is actually ingesting when eating their favorite foods. If customers are still not convinced to change their sinful eating habits, then maybe taking a look at an obese person’s intestines will do the trick – yes, they have a sample of that too and it’s not a pretty sight. But these are by no means scare tactics intended to promote the next diet craze, says Joe Medina, Texas Director for the local Beverly Hills franchise. “It’s about promoting health awareness, weight loss, and well being in our growing community,” he said. “We want to make people more conscious of what they are putting in their bodies by learning what fat is and how to read food labels.”
Staff of the new Beverly Hills Weight Loss and Wellness Center celebrated their opening with a ribbon cutting Wednesday afternoon. Owner and Director, Sonia Medina (third from left), Franchise Director, Hose Medina (fourth from left), Owner and Director, Cynthia Garza (center), Counselor, Jesus Garza (second from left) and Counselor, Lourdes Ortiz (fifth from left) were on hand to cut the ribbon.
Photo by Andy Ellis/Laredo Morning Times
Fitness plans
Not only does the Beverly Hills Wellness Center try and educate customers about proper diet and nutrition, but they also develop a strict exercise plan to help patrons lose weight and reset their internal “fat meters.” “You can lose all the weight you want, but if you don’t reset your fat meter, your body will go back to the weight it is accustomed to. This is not a diet craze, it is about commiting to a lifestyle change,” Medina said. Medina and a team of professionals who man the local branch do this by guiding patrons along the weight loss process with a meal by meal plan, a strict exercise regimen, counseling, and vitamin supplements. “We teach you how to lose weight properly — how to eat,” Medina said of the personalized weight loss programs. And for those who want to lose a few “vanity pounds,” there are even a few weight loss spa treatments available. Relaxing body wraps and detoxification spa services, which boast infrared technology that dissolves fat from the inside out – “much like a microwave”, promises “dramatic inch loss” of six to 20 inches following a one hour session that costs less than $100, according to Medina. “We are probably the only people in South Texas who have a machine like this,” Medina said of the state of the art infrared body wrap he swears burns body fat, cellulite, detoxifies bad skin complexions, and assists with skin elasticity, among other perks. The center, which is led by clinic owner Cynthia Garza, South Texas Manager Sonia Medina, and Company Director Jose Medina,
is currently waiting to qualify as a clinic so they can accept medicare and Medicaid and expand their clientele. Their meals are FDA approved and have the backing of the American Diabetes Association, Medina said. Medina added he hoped the franchise in Laredo, which is modeled after franchises popular in places like Florida and North Carolina, will serve as a model company that will spawn more such clinics throughout Texas. “80 percent of Americans are overweight,” said Medina, who recently purchased the rights to open Beverly Hills franchises throughout Texas. “You do the math.”
Photos by Andy Ellis | Laredo Morning Times
Verizon’s Voyager, an answer to the iPhone, features a touch-screen that flips up to reveal a QWERTY keyboard for convenient text-messaging.
Growing business
Confident the business, which is scheduled to celebrate it’s grand opening in December, will be a success, Medina adds — “The only disadvantage to joining the program is that you have to buy new clothes.” Medina is currently inviting restaurants in the area to send their “diet” meals for approval. “If approved, we will recommend their plates to all our clients as an approved meal by Beverly Hills Weight Loss Wellness Clinic,” Medina said of the win-win situation. For more information visit their Web site at www.beverlyhillslaredo.com. The Beverly Hills Weight Loss Wellness Clinic is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Though walk-ins are welcome, clients are encouraged to set up an appointment for a free consultation by calling 7124005 beforehand. (Celina Alvarado may be reached at 7282566 or celina@lmtonline.com)
Verizon Communications recently launched its greatly anticipated new cell-phone called the Voyager. Available in stores now, the Voyager is Verizon’s answer to the iPhone and customers love it, said Verizon General Store Manager Arturo Gomez. “Basically, it’s GOMEZ an awesome phone,” said Gomez. “It’s tailored for everyone,” and “it can do everything,” he said. The Voyager’s large external touch screen measures a full 2.81 inches in length. When opened, another screen is revealed on the inside along with a QWERTY keyboard that features large, widely spaced keys. One of Gomez’s favorite Voyager features is its fully secure HTML web browser that the iPhone doesn’t have. “It’s reliable and secure and cannot be hacked into,” said Gomez. The new Voyager is loaded with so many exciting multimedia capabilities that it’s hard to imagine such a little phone can do so much. With its full-length broadband television capabilities, Voyager users can go anywhere and still have access to their favorite television shows. Music lovers will love the Voyager for its instant access to VCast music downloads with MP3 player, dual stereo speakers, and large music library. Users can also create and manage Playlists with the touch of a finger. Voyager has Bluetooth capability with stereo support and is also Hearing Aid compatible. As if these features weren’t
“It’s reliable and secure and cannot be hacked into.”
VERIZON GENERAL STORE MANAGER ARTURO GOMEZ
enough, this unbelievable phone also features a 2.0 Megapixel camera and camcorder. Take the Voyager and take the office with you. It features a calculator, alarm clock, stopwatch, World Clock, Notepad, and phone book with up to 1,000 storable contacts. PDA users who passed up the iPhone for its lack of business applications can rely on the Voyager for its usability and high security. Other features include a GPS navigation system with “voice prompted turn-by-turn directions,” high speed secure web browsing, and expandable memory, holding from 64 megabytes up to 8 gigabytes of storage with a memory card. Voyager’s removable memory card and battery are something iPhone users only dream about. It also features a USB port that can be used to connect to any standard sized computer. Gomez wants his customers to know that unlike the iPhone, Voyager is fully insured through Verizon for only $5 a month. In addition to the Voyager, Verizon released three new cell phones this year including the Juke, the Venus, and the Blackberry Pearl. For more information on Verizon Wireless phones call (956) 795-8880 or visit them at 5724 San Bernardo.
Courtesy photo
The new Beverly Hills Wellness Center is located at 1205 E. Hillside Road.
Verizon’s Voyager features full-length broadcast capabilities, allowing users to access their favorite television shows wherever they may be. It also features a 2.0 Megapixel camera and camcorder.