Reaction to the biggest loser??

Suezyq47

I agree, she looked so much better before the finale. I hope she goes back to that level of fitness????

What bothered me is that she seemed to lose all the muscle tone she had. She looked extremely fit prior to the finale....... and at the finale she looked frail...... was sad to me.

mg17601

If the camera makes you look heavier than you do in person - YIKES! It will be hard to sustain that result for the long haul. :ohwell:

dwalt15110

With all of the threads on this subject, I had to find the episode online and watch it. It was evident that the judges had not seen any of the contestants since they left. You could tell how pleased they were with how the contestants were able to continue following the advice they were given. When it came to Rachel, the reaction of the trainers, the Oh My God, mouthed by Jillian and the look of complete and utter shock, sent the message that this was not expected and not condoned.

I do feel that during the last months of the competition, the contestants should be on their own, however, there should be some sort of check in with the medical staff so that doctor supervision is maintained. With any other weight loss program that promises you money back if you maintain a certain weight, they give you a range, upper and lower. If your weight falls in the unhealthy range, you do not receive you money back. They same should be true for the biggest loser. There should be a low point at which going under would result in the person notbeing able to win. It's only logical. I don't think anyone connected with the show ever expected a contestant to land below a healthy BMI. Perhaps now that it has happened, they will take steps to ensure that it doesn't happen again.

What if....the person who came on the finale as Rachel, really isn't Rachel. Stranger things have happened.

lynn1982

I just watched the episode online - I take back what I said earlier. It could just be the show, but they really paint her as an athlete - she was an athlete before and is an athlete now. I think it's unfair to call her anorexic. Anorexia is a psychological illness (yes, I realize the definition of anorexia is a certain BMI and other physical symptoms, but at its core it is psychological). Yes, she looks VERY thin, but she's also a runner and there isn't much necessarily different (as others have pointed out) between her and other professional athletes. That's just my two cents...

ETA: My point before, and I think what this has exposed/made people think about, is the potentially unhealthy weight tactics used by the show for shock value and ratings.

MrGonzo05

TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS.

SallieBeige

Anorexia nervousa is a worrying disease where you have a psychological condition that contributes to weight loss.

Anorexia simply means loss of appetite. Most of us have experienced it. Once you start exercising, your body becomes better at adjusting itself. If you were overweight, your body is better able to tell you that you have enough stored energy and are not hungry for now. This is perfectly normal.

It is important not to confuse the two. One is useful and helpful. The other is not.

Let the flaming begin :bigsmile:

SingingSingleTracker

I just watched the episode online - I take back what I said earlier. It could just be the show, but they really paint her as an athlete - she was an athlete before and is an athlete now. I think it's unfair to call her anorexic. Anorexia is a psychological illness (yes, I realize the definition of anorexia is a certain BMI and other physical symptoms, but at its core it is psychological). Yes, she looks VERY thin, but she's also a runner and there isn't much necessarily different (as others have pointed out) between her and other professional athletes. That's just my two cents...

ETA: My point before, and I think what this has exposed/made people think about, is the potentially unhealthy weight tactics used by the show for shock value and ratings.

Yes - you are right. Some unhealthy and rapid weight loss tactics.

Yes, Lynn. She is an athlete.

The fastest woman marathon runner in the world is 5'8" and weighs on average 119 pounds (but she trimmed and tweaked that weight down for one or two key peak season events to win the top $$$ prize). Paula Radcliffe...


Paula


paula2

Inch for inch/pound for pound - that's very close to Rachel's weigh in weight at TBL final give or take.

Put Rachel on the line for a marathon and nobdy would even bat an eye...




Of course, everyone can search images of anorexia vicitims - as well as Holocaust victims (where a weekly 9 pound weight loss was averaged and left everyone's days numbered due to starvation). Both are much different issues of course as has been mentioned.

lynn1982

I just watched the episode online - I take back what I said earlier. It could just be the show, but they really paint her as an athlete - she was an athlete before and is an athlete now. I think it's unfair to call her anorexic. Anorexia is a psychological illness (yes, I realize the definition of anorexia is a certain BMI and other physical symptoms, but at its core it is psychological). Yes, she looks VERY thin, but she's also a runner and there isn't much necessarily different (as others have pointed out) between her and other professional athletes. That's just my two cents...

ETA: My point before, and I think what this has exposed/made people think about, is the potentially unhealthy weight tactics used by the show for shock value and ratings.

Yes - you are right. Some unhealthy and rapid weight loss tactics.

Yes, Lynn. She is an athlete.

The fastest woman marathon runner in the world is 5'8" and weighs on average 119 pounds (but she trimmed and tweaked that weight down for one or two key peak season events to win the top $$$ prize). Paula Radcliffe...


Paula


paula2

Inch for inch/pound for pound - that's very close to Rachel's weigh in weight at TBL final give or take.

Put Rachel on the line for a marathon and nobdy would even bat an eye...




Of course, everyone can search images of anorexia vicitims - as well as Holocaust victims (where a weekly 9 pound weight loss was averaged and left everyone's days numbered due to starvation). Both are much different issues of course as has been mentioned.

I'm not really sure the point of this response...

karenwatson779

Wow!! that is alot of weight to loose in just 5 mths. I've only lost 75 lbs since Aug... I suspect she'll be gaining some back if she's not careful. Congrats while in order now... u never kno about later... As for the rest of the media gossip... it's jus that i think... non of my concern really... Only she and God knows the truth....

SingingSingleTracker

I'm not really sure the point of this response...

Not totally addressed to you.

I was just confirming that America needs to look at Rachel as an athlete and her final weight is not that much of an anomaly when it comes to athletes or her final training of mega hours per day is routine for endurance athletes. Which is why they appear so "skinny" to many.

I enjoyed this article...

http://naturalthrifty.com/why-youre-wrong-about-the-biggest-loser.html

lynn1982

I'm not really sure the point of this response...

Not totally addressed to you.

I was just confirming that America needs to look at Rachel as an athlete and her final weight is not that much of an anomaly when it comes to athletes or her final training of mega hours per day is routine for endurance athletes. Which is why they appear so "skinny" to many.

I enjoyed this article...

http://naturalthrifty.com/why-youre-wrong-about-the-biggest-loser.html

Ah. I agree completely. And that's a great article.

chaparra71

There are MANY different types of athletes. Having raised and trained racing sled dogs for over 20 years, I can attest to that. Sprint dogs are NOT the same type of dog as distance dogs. Distance dogs have more bulk than sprint dogs, they are in it for the long haul, they have to have it. Sprint dogs look like death warmed over, for the most part.

I said that to make the point that portraying ALL athletes as looking like the photos posted is not accurate.

In photos they showed over the course of season 15 of Rachel during her years as an athlete (swimmer), she looked nothing like she looks now, nothing. She had great muscle, you could tell she was strong. Why hasn't anyone addressed that fact?

Also, this is TV, they made the choice to be on the show, and if it wasn't for the viewing public, there would be no show. So, I think it is ridiculous for anyone to think it's "not our place to say anything about anything", of course it is!

Skarlet13

I'm not really sure the point of this response...

Not totally addressed to you.

I was just confirming that America needs to look at Rachel as an athlete and her final weight is not that much of an anomaly when it comes to athletes or her final training of mega hours per day is routine for endurance athletes. Which is why they appear so "skinny" to many.

I enjoyed this article...

http://naturalthrifty.com/why-youre-wrong-about-the-biggest-loser.html

.
Yes, but what is wrong with Rachel's face? It looks like she has aged 20 years. Do athletes look this old too? I actually don't think her body looks all that bad, but her face....

jenilla1

You guys are gonna give some of us skinny folks a complex.

lynn1982

I'm not really sure the point of this response...

Not totally addressed to you.

I was just confirming that America needs to look at Rachel as an athlete and her final weight is not that much of an anomaly when it comes to athletes or her final training of mega hours per day is routine for endurance athletes. Which is why they appear so "skinny" to many.

I enjoyed this article...

http://naturalthrifty.com/why-youre-wrong-about-the-biggest-loser.html

.
Yes, but what is wrong with Rachel's face? It looks like she has aged 20 years. Do athletes look this old too? I actually don't think her body looks all that bad, but her face....

Read the article...

GrindingSalt

An interview with a previous contestant. Just one account, but I believe it speaks to the nature of the show and why Rachel's huge loss may be problematic -- not just because of her physical health from being underweight, but also the psychological impact of the process that brought her to her 105#

http://www.bodylovewellness.com/2010/06/16/kai-hibbard-biggest-loser-finalist-part-2-of-3/

SingingSingleTracker

I'm not really sure the point of this response...

Not totally addressed to you.

I was just confirming that America needs to look at Rachel as an athlete and her final weight is not that much of an anomaly when it comes to athletes or her final training of mega hours per day is routine for endurance athletes. Which is why they appear so "skinny" to many.

I enjoyed this article...

http://naturalthrifty.com/why-youre-wrong-about-the-biggest-loser.html

.
Yes, but what is wrong with Rachel's face? It looks like she has aged 20 years. Do athletes look this old too? I actually don't think her body looks all that bad, but her face....

Would it be politically incorrect to say that when one carries a lot of weight, your face looks young thanks to the skin being stretched to pull any possible wrinkles? I have had relatives that looked great in the face in terms of wrinkles well into their 50's because they were so overweight the skin was stretched beyond belief. You stretch it one way, and then take away what was causing it to stretch and - well, you get what you get. Not only in the face, but other areas as well.

Are we all suddenly seasoned dermatoligists to be able to narrow the change in her face due to the weight loss down to such a specific number that you assign an exact number of "20 years" that she has suddenly aged? Why not 21? Why not 14? Why not 17? Why not 6? ;-)

SingingSingleTracker

There are MANY different types of athletes. Having raised and trained racing sled dogs for over 20 years, I can attest to that. Sprint dogs are NOT the same type of dog as distance dogs. Distance dogs have more bulk than sprint dogs, they are in it for the long haul, they have to have it. Sprint dogs look like death warmed over, for the most part.

I said that to make the point that portraying ALL athletes as looking like the photos posted is not accurate.

In photos they showed over the course of season 15 of Rachel during her years as an athlete (swimmer), she looked nothing like she looks now, nothing. She had great muscle, you could tell she was strong. Why hasn't anyone addressed that fact?

Also, this is TV, they made the choice to be on the show, and if it wasn't for the viewing public, there would be no show. So, I think it is ridiculous for anyone to think it's "not our place to say anything about anything", of course it is!

Yes, swimmers need to be heavier as athletes for bouyancy in the water. All athletes are not created equal. Yet the training she was doing to cut the weight was endurance based typical of a longer distance runner (not what a swimmer would be doing). So she did specific training targeted at cutting weight.

My daughter is a competitive sprinter by choice based on her abilities in that discipline. Totally different look than me, her father, who does longer duration events. She's phenomenal for 100m and 200m and trains for that discipline. Start getting beyond that and forget about it because she has chosen to train for the shorter duration events. She ran cross country all through high school just to stay in shape and train her base for sprinting, but couldn't hold a candle to the other endurance gals without changing her focus. In spite of that, she holds record after record at track meets for the 100m and 200m where the other girls were left in the dust. Different training to target that which led to a different muscular development. Some day, once competitive running is over, she has indicated interest in transforming into a longer distance athlete.

Rachel simply reshaped her body using the age old endurance formula of long distance runners and cyclists. It's not that difficult to understand. As you said, all athletes don't look like that. I even mentioned in an above post, that in the professional peloton of cycling you find all body types, weights and shapes based on the discipline that they specialize in. Sprint, classics, time trial, mountains, general classification, lead outs, breakaways - all types. But the "skinny minny" general classification riders train to allow their bodies to feed on their upper body weight to cut weight so they can climb faster than everyone else in the mountains. That's what wins grand tours (Spain, France, Italy, etc...) and millions of dollars. Rachel used a similar formula - or so it appears - based on what her upper body looks like to win the prize. Well done - IMO.

Cross Country track runners, long distance runners, marathoners, grand tour cyclists, cross country skiers, cross country mountain bike racers, cyclocross racers, female figure skaters, ballerinas, etc....share a very similar look and discipline that Rachel displays.

And the look is very different from other athletes. You are correct. Her former swimmer body was not going to win the $250K prize. Her trainer was wise to guide her in the direction of an endurance athlete's regimen and physique.

Look at the guant faces of such athletes. It's very typical.

collteach328

Even the men lost a huge amount of weight, but they seemed to be carrying some of the extra skin and so they didn't look as thin. She is young, just 24, and did look significantly older. I am pretty certain that her rapid weight loss took a toll on her health a bit, but many contestants end up at more "normal" weights after the last weigh-in. As several bloggers and reporters have said, the show is a competition. That aspect makes the contestants go to extremes to win. I think her dedication to reclaiming her life was admirable and I hope she is healthy, fit, and happy for the rest of her life.

dianeb613

I think she looked terribly thin but I suspect it was the fierce competition she was up against. Most of the former winners gained about 15 to 20 lbs after the finale and I suspect Rachel will too. Heck 105 for 5'5 at her age really isn't that much underweight. Most of my friend at that age weighed about 115.....or 110.

I can't believe people are calling her anorexic...It's NUTS.


PS this is the first F3 where all 3 lost more than 50% of their body weight.