Thread: Old news, but relevant to tax time!

Strange-But-True Tax Deduction

Body Oil

Exotic dancers aren't the only professionals who can claim odd items as work-related tax deductions. Consider the world of professional bodybuilding, for instance.

In 2004, Wisconsin bodybuilder Corey L. Wheir filed suit against the IRS after the agency denied his deductions for bison meat, supplements and oil and tanning products.

"Say WHAAAT???"

Wheir pointed to the high-protein meat and other items, including ProTan Muscle Juice Professional Posing Oil, which he applied to his body prior to going on stage, as business expenses.

While the court found the meat and supplements to be a personal expense because they could be consumed by anyone, they did grant the Dairyland bodybuilder his other write-offs. In its written decision, the court declared the oils and tanning products deductible because they were marketed only through bodybuilding magazines and were not generally for sale through "normal marketing outlets."

It makes perfect sense to me. Those are necessary items for a professional body builder, no different than a computer is for an accountant. You could say a computer could be bought and sold to anyone, and it completely negates the IRS's argument. What a bunch of douchebags.