About Jef & Mindy
From Transformation Movements to
The Ridiculous.
Jef Kippel and Mindy Blackstien have spent more than 25 years building platforms, producing events, and bringing people together around growth, creativity, and possibility.
Their work helps people love better how they think, function, look, feel, dream, and participate in life.
The Authors
The Humans Behind the Escape.
Jef & Mindy are partners in life and co-authors of The Ridiculous. Their work across publishing, fitness, live events, and community building informs a sci-fi comedy universe with curiosity, self-discovery, and laughter at its heart.
The books began the story. The Ridiculous Report, now in development, and real-world Missions are its next chapter, creating opportunities for Earthlings to bring their own discoveries and creativity into the experience.
What They Built
Real-World Movements.
Real Participation.
Jef & Mindy became known for creating experiences that brought people together around aspiration, growth, self-expression, and possibility.
Between 1998 and 2013, their work combined live events, expos, publishing, talent development, community building, gamification, and audience participation into a global platform.
They have spoken on stages around the world, appeared across radio, print, and television, created magazines and media platforms, and produced expos and global gatherings.
Their work helped pioneer natural bodybuilding in Canada and introduced fitness model search and muscle model events worldwide.
Years before that global platform, Jef published Canada’s first environmental magazine, earning recognition from the Mayor of Toronto, the Premier of Ontario, and the Minister of the Environment.
WNSO
A global governing body and membership-based organization supporting natural bodybuilding and physique events, with standards, judging systems, and international competition structures.
FAME World Tour
Competitions, expos, workshops, seminars, media moments, and community experiences spanning five continents, more than twelve countries, and over fifty cities.
FAME Expo
One of Canada’s largest consumer fitness expo experiences, growing from 30,000 to more than 150,000 square feet, bringing athletes, exhibitors, stages, sponsors, audiences, and media together.
BodyPROUD
A social initiative, motto, handshake, salute, and way of being that connected physical transformation to confidence, identity, emotional growth, and the desire to inspire others.
More about their standards, recognition, and reach
Standards & Integrity
Jef & Mindy wrote an industry-wide judging manual and introduced drug-testing policies and procedures supporting accountability, fairness, and credibility in natural bodybuilding and physique events.
Across their ecosystem, they trained, coached, and assessed more than 20,000 athletes. Jef served as Head Physique Judge at major events including The Natural Olympia, The Natural Universe, Ms. Fitness, Fitness Universe Pageant, Musclemania Worlds, and the FAME World Championships.
A Recognition Culture
BodyPROUD gave people permission to self-celebrate. Their stories were heard, and their breakthroughs, courage, and triumphs were recognized. Participants naturally inspired others to take part too.
At its height, bodyproud.org averaged 4,500 unique visitors per day. More than 30% of traffic returned and engaged more than 200 times per month.
Media & Brand Participation
Their ecosystem included events, workshops, seminars, expos, magazines, television programming, and a resource directory of trainers, therapists, coaches, and transformation leaders.
FAME Lifestyle Magazine was distributed internationally through subscriptions, retailers, and brand partners. The broader ecosystem generated opportunities across fitness, wellness, nutrition, activewear, and lifestyle.
Brand partners included Suzuki, Kellogg’s, Hershey’s, Sprite, Planters Peanuts, Yogen Früz, GNC, Gold’s Gym, and other leading brands.
Built Over Decades. Documented in One Place.
The Founder Proof page brings together the deeper story, links, videos, proof points, and milestones behind their work.
Why They Stepped Back
The Work Evolved.
The Mission Remains.
Jef & Mindy eventually saw the fitness industry drifting out of balance. Outward appearance, influence, and pressure were taking attention away from authenticity, accountability, mental wellbeing, emotional health, and functional living.
Some voices helped people grow. Others created confusion, comparison, body shame, and unhealthy standards.
They sunset those tours and turned inward. Through study, mentorship, coaching, and reflection, their focus expanded into emotional, mental, social, creative, and whole-life transformation.
What They Chose Instead
Wellbeing
People are more than appearance.
Integrity
Influence should help people grow.
Empowerment
Transformation should create self-love, joy, and fulfilment.
Wholeness
Growth includes mind, body, emotion, identity, creativity, and community.
How the Work Evolved
The Bridge Into
The Ridiculous.
The question became bigger than physical transformation: how could people feel more connected, recognized, creative, engaged, and alive?
Their exploration moved through technology, immersive environments, holistic wellness, emotional intelligence, community growth, gamification, and advisory work.
Immersive Technology
Through 3D World Group, they worked with experts, programmers, engineers, designers, and developers exploring AI, immersive 3D environments, virtual events, expo worlds, storytelling spaces, commerce, and digital communities. Their work explored new possibilities for events, podcasting, and engagement.
Whole-Life Wellness
Through RethinkFIT, they worked with leaders in natural medicine, nutrition, body mechanics, emotional intelligence, and mental health. The goal was a fuller approach to wellbeing: mind to heart, inside and out, head to toe.
Community Growth
They advised startups across technology, nutrition, direct sales, online training, and community building. For The Social Universe, TSU, they led community outreach, gamification models, programming, and engagement strategies that supported growth from a few hundred early members to more than one million within eighteen months.
Laughter Became the Doorway.
The Ridiculous brings comedy, story, recognition, and real-world action together. The books invite people into the universe. Missions invite them to do something with it.
We don’t want people to just watch The Ridiculous. We want them to Do Ridiculous.
Life Beyond the Page
Their
Personal Side.
Aura Spirit
Their Bengal cat is a chatty, energetic, back-flipping little character they absolutely adore. She was a surprise addition after years of being dog people, with five dogs between them over the years.
Live Music
They love Toronto’s live music and cultural scene. Concerts, festivals, and local events bring together many of their favourite things: creativity, energy, people, and shared experience.
Unexpected Adventures
Travel has taken them to many parts of the world, including Puerto Rico, where they developed a deep connection with the Taíno community and were welcomed and honored in ceremony.
Meaning & Ceremony
Their spiritual journey included study, mentorship, and ceremony with a respected oracle, leading to their ordination as Metaphysical Ministers. They have also officiated weddings, bringing meaning, humor, and heart to important moments.
Nature
One of their favourite vacations was simply camping. Trees, quiet, fresh air, and no algorithm asking if they were still watching.
The Story Continues
Meet the Universe.
Bring Your Ridiculous.
The books began the story. Earthlings bring their own discoveries, creativity, and experiences to what happens next.
Dream Big. Do Ridiculous. Achieve Remarkable.