I want to start off my women-oriented food and fitness blog by talking about something most American women are familiar with: The Biggest Loser, a reality competition where overweight and obese contestants compete to lose the highest percentage of weight. Complete with a ranch where they live together, trainers, gyms, and team challenges, it’s become a household name over their 14 season run. They’ve even expanded to Australia and the UK. I think it provides a great common ground to start the discussion about fitness, diet, and overall health, but it’s not all going to be praise. *NOTE: There will be finale spoilers in this post!*
I followed this season’s Biggest Loser since it started in January. They had the usual set-up: x number of contestants living at the ranch, working out with their teams’ respective trainers, trying to lose the highest percentage of weight in order to win the quarter of a million dollar prize. This year they added in an another component – there were three kids, each representing one of the teams, who were there to help raise awareness of childhood obesity. They did not stay on the ranch with the competitors, as they were still in school, and they could not be eliminated.
Now as I said, the Biggest Loser provides a great opportunity to motivate people to increase their physical activity, improve their diets, and ultimately their lives. But what many people fail to acknowledge is the extremity of the show, and the shortcomings it has.
Let’s start out with the good. On the show, people who have let themselves go are given a chance to change their lives. They are given a tailored eating plan, access to an extensive gym, and trainers to provide them with the many pushes they need. Each season, we see contestants learn what correct portion sizes look like, the calorie content for different foods, how to prepare healthy meals, and how to work harder than they thought they ever could. It helps motivate viewers to eat better and exercise more. This year, the children on the show also helped raise awareness of childhood obesity. The kids all lost weight through a healthier lifestyle, and they all had improved their self-worth and confidence when the show concluded. Every finale brings jaws to the floor as we see months of hard work pay off for each contestant. But sometimes these habits don’t stick with the contestants, and months or years later, they’re back where they started.
To name just a few, Season 3’s winner, Erik Chopin, has gained all his weight back. A woman shown in this season’s live finale as the previous winner voted to be in a Subway commercial with Jared, was overweight and clearly looked nothing like she had when she won. (For the life of me I can’t remember her name, and sorry for the wordiness in that last sentence.) The show’s formula of restricted eating on an extreme exercise regime is, well, extreme. And it’s not sustainable, because unfortunately, most people just don’t have the time to work out for four hours each day – these conditions can’t be replicated at home. They also judge the contestants solely on weight lost – body fat is not a factor, so muscle gain is detrimental to their literal losing weight. (I will get into this in the future, but it’s never too early to start: your weight is just a number. It should not matter to you unless you are a ballerina or in a weight class: what matters is that you are healthy and happy with how you look.) Add on the fact that it is ultimately a reality television show that needs viewers and good ratings, and you have a model that does not translate to the average American.
Now let’s switch to my favorite part of the entire season: Danni Allen. In the beginning, she was unsure of herself, and did not believe she could complete the workouts, or lose the weight she needed to. But soon after the show began, something clicked. I know this, because it has happened to me. There is a moment where you realize you cannot resist anymore, and that the commitment you need to make is entirely non-negotiable. You know that it will be worth counting your calories and exercising most days. And it makes you happy. I resisted counting calories for months and months, and when I finally threw in the towel, it turned out to be more rewarding than I could have ever anticipated. I saw that change in Danni, and from that moment on, she was amazing. She won almost every challenge, most of them on her own, and each week she continued to lose large amounts of weight. When I saw her last night on the finale, I couldn’t believe it. I was floored by how incredible she looked.
But to me, the best part was she looked strong. She didn’t look like she had spent the previous months simply jogging for hours and hours on a treadmill. She had not only burned off fat, but she had built a body to be proud of. Over the next few weeks and months, you’ll see that this type of body is the kind I aspire to achieve, and even though it is not everyone’s ideal body, their ideal body can be achieved through the same means – eating less, and doing both strength training and cardio exercise.
Even though many contestants have reverted back to their old ways, whether partially or entirely, I highly doubt that Danni Allen, the season 14 winner will do so, because she developed an understanding that her health and a body that she is proud of are far too important to compromise. That is what I loved about her – she was able to change herself both outside and inside, and her transformation transcends the shortcomings of the show.
There are so many misconceptions in the fitness world, and while the Biggest Loser can provide motivation and inspiration for people to lose weight and become healthier, it unfortunately can create unrealistic standards and make the numbers seem too important. (It’s possible to lose huge amounts of weight in a short amount of time, especially for those who are morbidly obese, but for many it just isn’t realistic or more importantly, safe.) Part of what I hope to achieve with this blog is to inform women of what will actually going to help them achieve their goals. It won’t involve any miracle pills or crash diets, because it will be sustainable – a combination of proper eating and fitness – and it will help improve your life in the long-term, as opposed to giving you a temporary fix for your troubles.
Some of what’s to come:
- my account of the lovely Poulsbo Beer Run this past weekend
- general guidelines for eating well and exercise
- how to eat well and healthy on a budget
- recipes and product reviews
- Fitocracy, my favorite workout tracking website!
Lifts Like a Lady 