Great article as usual, Anoop.
Yea, I remember, we have our own version of this show.
So, there was a guy that loose around 40kg(120->80) and won the contest. A year after show he was a 140kg weight and almost died.
The Biggest Loser Show Review
May 14 2011
Since I work in a fitness center, I hear a lot of people talking about how the Biggest Loser contestants can lose so much weight and how they wish they could lose the same or if they had a celebrity trainer. Let us take a closer look at the Biggest Loser show.
What is the biggest loser show?
TV Show: Biggest Loser is a weight-loss contest aired on NBC which has become extremely popular. It is broadcast in different countries with each having their own versions. But the central theme in every show is all about who can lose the most weight in 12 weeks for a cash prize. Contestants lose 100-220 lbs in 12 weeks.
What are the pros of the Biggest Loser show?
Entertaining: The show is entertaining to say the least. The ratings of the show are proof that they got something right about the show.
Inspirational: It is inspirational to see people making an effort and achieving their goals. The message of “If they can do it, I should be able to do it too” is clearly infectious.
What are the cons of the Biggest Loser show?
Unrealistic: The show is completely unrealistic. Most people cannot achieve that sort of weight loss in such a short span of a time (and shouldn’t). You can though if you have the following going for you:
- Be in that obese category where you are 100-200 lbs heavier. The heavier you are, the greater the weight loss
- You are ready to quit your job, leave your family and move to a ranch with only one goal in mind.
- You have enough money to hire a trainer to train you everyday and keep you accountable.
- You know millions of people all over the world are watching you on television and judging you on how well you do. How is that for accountability?
- You have thousands of dollars to look forward for achieving your goal.
Weight Maintenance: I have written in the past that losing weight is easy, maintaining it is the hardest. You have to do everything (and more) that you did to lose weight for the rest of your life to maintain the new weight.
The faster you lose and the more you lose, the harder it will be to maintain that weight loss. The Biggest Loser contestants lose around 50-60% of their weight in 12 weeks which is 10-15 lbs per week. The recommended guidelines suggest 5-10% of your body weight at 1-2 lb weight loss per week! How is that for ‘following’ guidelines?
And this is one major reason why most of the contestants gain most of their weight right back after the show. They are now their back to real life where they have jobs, a family to take care, responsibilities, and so forth. And worse yet, for some -along with the weight gain- comes the psychological problems of defeat and failure which triggers a vicious cycle of overeating, depression and guilt.
On the other hand, most contestants who are maintaining most of their weight have turned their life completely upside down. These people have become fitness experts for a career and they advise and coach people in losing weight and staying healthy. This sort of drastic life change is unrealistic for most of us.
Extreme Workouts: People who weigh 300-400lbs who even have trouble walking and are at high risk for cardiovascular problems are made to run for miles which is outright dangerous and ridiculous.
Some of the technique they use in the weight room are just good examples of how NOT to do those exercises. Contestants are made to do cardio for hours a day which is above and beyond over-training and is a great way to have long lasting knee and ankle problems. The concept of intelligent workout programming is missing; it is all about throwing as much stress as you can to the body.
Extreme Water Loss: Some of the contestants in the show have dropped 20-35 lbs in days by dehydrating themselves using extreme measures like working out in rubber suit and not drinking water for 24 hours and such. This isn’t actual weight loss and can mislead people who are unaware of these extremes measures
Practical Considerations
- Lose 5-10% of your weight and try to maintain for 6 months. If you can maintain it, go for more.
- Even losing 10 percent of your total body weight can have significant improvements in blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and blood sugars.
- When you think of making dramatic changes to exercise and diet, ask yourself if it is healthy and if you can maintain it for the rest of your life.
- The Biggest Loser show is inspiring, but clearly has nothing to teach you about healthy weight loss and weight maintenance.
Related Articles
Steve Ocvirek | Sun May 15, 2011
There is a reason this is my favorite fitness/health site:
Anoop, you do a truly great job at analyzing the situation and looking at it in a scientific, logical way. Then you write it in a clear way the rest of us can understand.
I love this article because you show how surreal the show is (quit job and move to a ranch for 5 months of torture). I like how you point out that the workouts are unrealistic for the 300-400 pound people starting out. I used to weight 320 and could not walk further than a block due to muscular atrophy (I am 191 and fit now). When I see what they put those people through at the start of the show, it makes me wonder about what this does to their body at that point. Good thing they have an entire team of doctors monitoring their every step with paramedics standing by (as seen on the show a few times).
I think the best point you made was that those who don’t make a radical lifestyle change often ended up gaining it back.
Excellent article - thanks again Anoop
Anoop | Sun May 15, 2011
Hi Anatoly,
Thanks for the comment as always. There are a lot of contestants who expressed their concerns after the show. Maybe they can come up with a reality show about the struggles after the show to maintain weight (:- It will be good TV.
Hi Steve,
Thanks for the kind words and your valuable feedback.
You don’t need a doc/psych monitoring them if they do it right, do they? I think it is the psychological problems they have to deal with when they gain most of it back which is of a big concern. Even if they pay me thousands to be a trainer on the show, I will never do it!
Thanks Steve and congrats on losing so much weight and keeping it off!
Thanks Anoop,
Was a big fan of this show in the beginning days. Loved how they showed the transformations of the contestants, and enjoyed the sentimental moments of seeing them tear up when speaking about their lives and loved ones. But as a Certified Athletic Trainer, I would always discuss with my then-girlfriend that what they were doing was great, yet unreal. 1-yr interval follow ups would be interesting to see
Great article! I’ve been following the approach that 1.5 pounds per week is optimal to maintain muscle mass when cutting, does this sound about right?
I also agree with the fact that losing and maintaining this new weight goal of theirs has to be a lifestyle change to one’s diet, which isn’t always easy!
I practice a strict 4 day routine a week to prevent over-training. I bet if they did their routine in the show for more then 12 weeks they would be hurting themselves in the long run as you pointed out. Working out is great, but not worth sacrificing all your joints and safety down the road for quick results!
Thank you for another great read 😊
Anoop | Fri May 20, 2011
Hi EJ,
Thanks for the comment. That would be interesting.
Hi Jason,
Thanks for the comment.
Yes it sounds about right. The slower the cut, the less muscle you will lose.
TV is all about making money. I don’t think they care who gets healthy and such.
Fantastic post, especially the part about the ridiculous and dangerous forms of activity they foist on morbidly obese people. I have a trainee who wants to lose approx 100 lbs. In addition to sane adjustments to diet, I just have her performing very basic movements like squats to a chair and getting in as many steps as she can. The lunges and other relatively complex movements can come later.
Anoop | Wed June 08, 2011
Thanks Dale for the comment.
I agree. At that weight, what is more important is for the person to show up to workout and enjoy the process.
Caroline | Thu September 29, 2011
This critique is not factually accurate about the televisions show, although the sentiment is correct. The show is filmed over 6 months, not 12 weeks.
The weight loss ranch is not a normal setting, and this is stressed in the show. In most seasons the producers phase the contestants into the home environment in stages so that people can learn how to incorporate the new lifestyle techniques into a real life setting.
Anatoly | Tue February 19, 2013
Workouts in Extreme Weight-Loss TV Fuel Negative Attitudes About Exercise, Study Finds
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121025122429.htm
😊
