Now before I rant everyone must understand that the "Biggest Loser" Tv show isn’t really reality.
1. They are exercising for numerous hours a day
2. They don’t have a normal life to contend with such as family, a job, etc.
3. Reality TV shows are not really reality and everything is edited for the benefit of entertainment.
With that being said here is my rant.
Jillian made a comment because someone only lost a few pounds when they were at home. Now if you weight 300 pounds and really work at it for 4 weeks you should be able to lose more than 2 pounds. You do have a family to take care of, maybe a job, but if you work at it your weight loss should be more than 2 pounds.
My rant is with her comment about trainers saying that you lost inches but the scale didn’t move much and one reason is you could have gained muscle.
Well, let me tell you Jillian those are the facts. If someone has never strength trained before their body can build lean muscle pretty quickly in the beginning because it is a shock to the system and the body has to adapt.
Guess what Jillian?
That is weight on the scale.
What that means is if you lost 2 pounds of fat and you gained 2 pounds of muscle the scale doesn’t move.
It is called simple math.
Now getting back to my statement that reality TV is edited for the benefit of entertainment she probably had an entire explanation that was a part of that one sentence and the "Biggest Loser" TV producers edited it out because they knew it would cause controversy.
This show is ok to watch if you want to try and be inspired, but as far as reality and truthful education it is far from it. Especially with the paid advertisements that constantly take place throughout the show.
Feel free to watch the show for entertainment purposes, but please don’t rely on the show as solid factual information because it is far from it. It definitely isn’t reality!
Yours in health,
Jayson Hunter RD, CSCS
America’s Trusted Weight Loss Expert
PS: For those that watch this show please leave your comments and let me know your thoughts.
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Jayson, thanks for posting this rant. I hope you feel better. I agree 100% with you, and it’s for these reasons I can’t get myself to watch the show. I tend to tune in on the final episode each season to see the transformations, but I can’t stomach the BS that makes the editing cut and winds up on TV. And it’s really frustrating when people come see me for help with weight management, and have all these misconceptions of what they have to do, and what is a true measure of their success because of something they saw on this show.
Just this past season, it was amazing to watch the transformations of the people who got sent home early on in the show. These folks went back to real life, and continued to train and eat better, and still had to juggle the responsibilities and commitments of the world around them, unlike the folks at the ranch. I’m sure that even they get some kind of a bone thrown at them (a trainer, or a nutritionist or at least on-going check-in calls or visits, i would guess). But the bottom line is that their progress on their own, with the cameras off, is just as impressive (more, even, because they did it alone) and they didn’t have to put up with the belittling and the public “shaming” for only losing a few pounds or for not losing a whopping amount from week to week.
Anyway, not even sure where i’m going with this, You fired me up, because this show is just s sore topic for me. It would be nice if they did a better job of editing for facts rather than for ratings.
Totally agree as a trainer…. I actually had a fleeting thought that I hoped my client wasn’t watching because we just weighed in and she had lost about 3 pounds…. in the two months we’ve been seeing each other, but lost 15 inches. The tape measure doesn’t lie either jillian. I agree some trainers sugar coat it, but at some point there are more benefits than the weight loss. Like how my clients back pain and knee pain has decreased, how she got her partner to join her in her journey, she improved on a timed workout by 6 MINUTES!!! And Her form, and stamina have greatly improved.
The focus on weight is one of the reasons I never really liked biggest loser, although I am still guilty of the entertainment value. Only I know that it’s not realistic to lose 30 pounds in one week with a normal life.
I see my clients for one hour a day. And I only get that one hour to control what they do, so as trainers we tend to find other goals and acheivements to focus on, which I don’t think there is anything wrong with. The weight will come off while people focus on things like completing and training for a 5K, Being able to do 30 pushups, etc….
Biggest Loser as you said is for entertainment value, and what do people really care about… looking like super models.
My disapproval of this show has been growing for a while, but this episode put me over the edge.
I agree. I was surprised at her response.
I agree the show is getting out of hand, but it is still amazing to see the transformations. I wonder if there are any stats on what percentage of those people put the weight back on after a few years. Just my 2 cents.
I have seen a few of the contestants that didn’t win and they have gained weight back. I also heard a rumor (didn’t verify it) that the first winner of the show has also gained a lot of his weight back as well.
Jayson
The first winner gained all but about 15 pounds back. It was in a TV guide for a couple weeks ago.
Jayson,
As a trainer, I was turned off by the concept when the first season came out. But then on Labor Day during the second season, I was over at a friends and turned on the tv. Guess what was on? One of the first episodes of Season 2. So I decided I would watch to see what the hype was all about. What I saw was the emotion that was used to keep these people motivated. When that show ended, another one came on. I watched that… and then another and then… and after 12 hours of straight BL they showed the season finally. I was hooked. (And this is a big reason why I gave my TV away a few months ago.) I became a fan so I was on board.
I even wrote about why I liked the BL. It gave hope to millions of people, everyone on the show won, and it was promoting working out.
Well, in all reality shows, the producers have to go and ruin it. Like you said, they show only what will cause drama or create “interesting” TV. And I mean “interesting” as in the car wreck theory. Also, the players started “playing” the game. Instead of just focusing on getting healthier and losing weight, and supporting each other, you get the guy that drinks gallons of water just before the weigh in to gain weight to throw off the results to play the game. In my book, it was done then.
I still think that it gives hope to people, but the reality of previous winners gaining the weight back lessens that hope. And now we as trainers are left to pick up the pieces and keep our clients motivated to keep working hard to lose weight in real time and not TV time.
Make it a great day!
Rob
Jason – most of us who watch the show are aware of the fact that they exercise more than any of us have the time for and the house is only stocked with the food they can eat. It is entertainment, but it is real. They are not airbrushed to look thin at the end. They do lose the wait. It just goes to show that the weight can be lost with diet and exercise. If you’ve watched previous seasons, you know when the 3 finalists go home before the finale, they are working out 3 hours a day, dealing with a family, friends, work, diet etc, just like the rest of us. They simply had the advantage of going to a controlled atmosphere for the majority of their weight lose. It can be done and many do it after they are “kicked off”- they use the ranch as a motivation.
Jayson –
I was so happy to see your response to last night’s episode of The Biggest Loser. My jaw dropped when I heard Jillian’s comment. She lost a lot of credibility with me but you also bring up a good point about editing. My teenage daughter was also watching the show with me so I had to explain to her that the scale is not the best indicator of successful fat loss. You CAN lose inches without showing results on the scale. We also laugh at the obvious commercials that are stuck in the middle of the show. “HEY, JOE – IF YOU’RE HUNGRY, TRY CHEWING ON SOME EXTRA GUM TO HELP TAME THOSE CRAVINGS.” Sheesh.
I had the pleasure of meeting a couple of past Biggest Loser contestants, Marty and Amy Wolff. They gave an eye-opening insight into what “reality” really is on the show. They also said that they were actually encouraged by doctors to gain some weight back after the show. Considering how quickly they lost it and the extreme measures they went through, it wouldn’t be hard to put any amount of weight back on….and quickly!
What also pained me last night was to see a friendship destroyed between Joelle and Carla. I thought that was so sad. Joelle seems to have some major issues to work through. Without a different mindset, she’s going to have trouble making any kind of permanent change.
I can confirm that the first, second and third season winners have all put back on a significant amount of the weight they lost during the show. There was an Oprah special on the show in late 2008 (December, I think), in which some of the past contestants and the trainers made an appearance. Oprah highlighted both the contestants that have been able to keep the weight off, as well as some of the ones who have gained it back – including Matt (Season 2 winner) and his wife Suzy (Season 2 3rd place winner), Ryan (Season 1 winner) and Erik (Season 3 winner). There’s also another show in 2009 in which she actually has Erik (Season 3) winner on the show revealing the truth to his fans how much he has actually gained back since his win in 2006. If you go to http://www.oprah.com and look into the archived episodes of the show for 2008 and 2009, using the key word “Biggest Loser”, you can see for yourself.
No offense to fat people…being one myself…but if I want to watch fat people strain and sweat, I will set a mirror up in front of my own treadmill! I have watched parts of 2 episodes this year…first time ever. Not nearly enough input on what to eat and how to handle cravings and way too much emphasis placed on how much verbal abuse you can take from your trainer and not commit murder. After all of the hype I have heard about this program I can say I am totally not impressed with the show. Will save my time and devote it to more worthwhile things like planning my meals and my exercise. Thanks for confirming my impression, Jayson.
As with any method that does not teach you how to include weight loss or healthy eating into your daily routine, it is no surprise that some of the contestants regain the weight when not under this kind of supervision. It is almost to be expected is it not since this is nowhere near real life?
Jayson
That was hardly a rant. That show makes me insane and I can’t stand the way they overtrain people to death. It’s almost like they reinforce the belief that you can just workout like a dog and the weight will just come off.
What happens to these people when the weight doesn’t budge is so common and instead of explaining why this happens they turn it into high drama and make people feel like crap.
I can’t stand that show and when my clients ask me questions about it I just tell them that what gets results is the little changes that you make each and every day and weeks and weeks of effort that adds up over time.
The transformations are amazing but people need to realize that it takes tons of work and dedication and most importantly planning which is what you talk about all the time but that wouldn’t make for very interesting t.v. I guess.
I prefer Jayson t.v. and so do my reader so thanks for all your hard work!
I agree completely. In addition to your comments, I can’t believe the fact that they bring these untrained people on the show and take them from 0 to 100 in their training. There is no assessment or individual considerations. I have an obese women on the show do plyo jumps on the hack squat machine!
Jayson… right on! here here!! cheers!!
My wife and I are trainers and nutritionists in Southern California. We sufferingly watch this show because our clients do. But our clients are educated about the scale… they know it is BF% and BMI combined that count. So, this is the exact conversation my wife and I had at that very moment. Now, we have ZERO respect for Jillian -we know she is unprofessional (in actions and attire) as well as a dangerous trainer (who else can get away with causing injury in at least 1 or 2 clients per small group??)-however, we did (until that moment) think that she had a bit of smarts in the arena of fitness and nutrition. However, she debunked that assumption in a few seconds. We work with a lot of special population (obese, senior) and this show really sets a poor representation for real training and nutrition protocol.
I appreciate your permission (release) to post this blog comment (with appropriate credit & reference) in our blog please!
http://www.truenorthfitness.blogspot.com
Rob
Never have watched it, but it doesn’t surprise me to hear of the misinformation being spread on TV
Jaon, I totally agree with you. I am a trainer like many of the posts on here and I was shocked that Jillian could say that with a straight face. I disagree with a lot of what I see on that show, but I am a fan of the show (at least I was a fan of the show). I love the idea of people losing weight and getting healthy. However, I’ve totally lost respect for Jillian. I train people with issues (obese, back problems, hip replacement, knee problems, arthritis etc.) When my obese client (with other health issues) only lost 5 lbs in 6 weeks, she was upset that it wasn’t more. She lost more than 15 inches in total. Her bodyfat went down 8%. Everyone looking at her could see the difference in her body. Fortunately, if she saw the show last night, she already knows not to get caught up in the numbers on the scale. I tell clients to look at how their clothes fit to chart their success and the numbers on the scale will follow as long as they stick with the program. I never make a client feel bad because they didn’t lose a lot of weight. After all, they didin’t put that weight on in 6 weeks, so it won’t come off in six weeks.
Jason, thank you for speaking out about this.
Hi Jayson, great bog site.
I always found the show a little annoying because they always went on gross weight lost as opposed to worrying about any sort of body composition.
As for the training methods, making a morbidly obese person do hill sprints worries me. There must be one big EMT crew just off camera.
I work as a personal trainer and if I shouted and scolded my clients the way they are treated in the show wouldn’t work. I would proberly get a smack in the mouth from most of my clients and deserve it.
So, all in all, turn off the boob tube and go for a walk.
I like to watch the show because I care about the people on there. Their lives really touch me. I do feel Jillian has been out of hand for awhile and Bob was very disappointing a couple weeks back. Although Joelle (who was sent home) was shown standing around a lot, I noticed on the one shot of her sitting down on a step she was soaked in sweat. This last week, tearing into the sister who lost 2 lbs and worked out 4-5 hours a day..I didn’t like that. Although Joelle may have deserved everyone’s reaction…I just thought enough is enough. Send her home but leave it be. I don’t watch it for the drama…I watch it to come along side the folks that are working hard to change their lives. Many are in such bad health it is a good thing they have doctors there to monitor them.
I have lost all respect for the guidance of Jayson Hunter! Do you really think we are stupid enough to believe what we see on this show? I listen to Jillian’s Podcasts and have read her books and she will tell you that the weight the people on The Biggest Loser is unattainable at home in the amount of time they lose it on the ranch. They work out for at least 6 hours a day and they have an assessment at the beginning of the show to see what kind of health these people are in. the last poster does not have a clue…
I am sorry you feel that way, but based on the emails I receive and the comments on forums all across the internet there are thousands of people that believe they should be losing weight as fast as the contestants on the Biggest Loser.
So there is definitely some re-education that needs to be done because there are plenty of people that DO believe what they see on the show.
Jayson Hunter RD, CSCS
2 pounds in 30 days?? She did not do the work at home, and I don’t believe for a second that she worked out 4 or 5 hours a day. She obviously did not have her diet in check, and I felt the same disgust that Jillian was obviously feeling at hearing all the excuses. Look how much better she did after a week at the ranch! Now I know that obviously life on the ranch is NOT realistic for the rest of us with work, family, and various other responsibilities… but if she was really putting forth the effort that she claimed she was doing, she would have lost more than 2 pounds. Did you see how happy she was at the last weigh-in? If I remember right, I believe she admitted that she didn’t work hard enough or eat right while at home. One of the reasons I like Jillian is because she can see through the b.s. Sorry, but I think she was right this time.