BIGGEST LOSER TRUTH - FROM CONTESTANT

never have watched that crud! or any reality shows... i came across jillian on qvc.com

Amazing story. I always tell my wife that the show is rigged. I have all confidence that this interview is true.

That's crazy!

I always knew that show was bogus in the fact that they are not using legit and safe methods for loosing weight, it's a TV show and ratings are all that matters.

Some of the experiences that Kai details in the first part of the article sound an awful lot like boot camp when I was in the Army. Isolation from mail, phone, no contact with the outside world and TONS of exercise.

We ran EVERYWHERE, exercise was how you started your day, and throughout the day you were constantly punished with exercise. I slipped in a puddle of my own sweat working so hard once, smashed my head on a tile floor and just kept going, because you had to. All the while the Drill Sergeant rolled around in a wheeled chair drinking a nice big orange soda, taunting us with it.

But our Drill Sergeants also made sure we were eating the right things and hydrating constantly, to the point where you hated water.

It makes sense in that environment, but for a TV show and the unsafe way they did everything just plain sucks.

I lost about 45lbs (or so, can't remember exactly) in about 2 months and left there at about 165lbs at 5'11", wearing a size 29-30 pants.

I read it all and was thinking the same thing. I went through Army basic as well. At least they broke you down to only build you up - on BL, I see no build up.... it's sad....

People might hate me for this, but I don't see anything "wrong" with what was done. People should not be subjected to what those contestants are being subjected to, BUT they are contestants on a game show. It goes with the territory. People should be clear that the show is about entertainment and profit and not about being nice to people. If people want extreme results, they need exposure to the extreme. Football players going to football camp go through ****. People who join the military are berated and made to feel inadequate to get them to perform. It happens in so many instances where someone has to hit rockbottom before they recognize that they need to do something for themselves. Just getting on a gameshow will not make someone lose weight.

As for the show not wanting anything to do with Eric once he won....why would they? I don't remember the last time I watched Price is Right where Bob Barker called old showcase winners up to see how they were enjoying their new washing machines.

Is it nice that TBL treats its contestants like garbage? Nope. But they aren't treating non-contestants like that. These people signed waivers and contracts and if they didn't want what was being dished out, any of them would be free to leave whenever they chose to.

i'm tending to agree with you. no one's putting a gun to anyone's head to be on this show. you sign up to be on the show to do just that - be on the show. you can lose weight by dieting and exercise with a personal trainer in the privacy of your own home. i don't agree with "torture" (neither physical nor mental), but having been on a reality show i do know that you have to sign waivers and there are no "suprises". and if you don't like it, you are free to leave. these people stay in the hopes of winning the grand prize. losing weight is a bonus and may be their motivation for initially wanting to be on the show, but if the conditions are so poor and they continue to stay and subject themselves to that treatment, you know their eyes are ultimately on the prize.

The problem I have with the show (and I haven't read the article yet) isn't that these people are being treated this way because in way yes they signed up for it. My problem is that the show implies that what they're doing is a normal, healthy way to lose weight. It makes people feel bad for losing weight at the recommended pace because hey these people on the show are losing 15 pounds a week! Add in all the product endorsements and commercials throughout it - hey eat these cereal bars, go to Subway for lunch, try this for a great low cal drink - and it makes it seem like all you have to do is exercise and eat these things and you can lose 15 pounds a week too! It's just not true. Nothing about it is true. Even if you sequestered yourself on a ranch and worked out all day every day with personal trainers and medics surrounding you and managed to lose 15 pounds a week, it still wouldn't be a healthy way to do it.

BUMP!

The problem I have with the show (and I haven't read the article yet) isn't that these people are being treated this way because in way yes they signed up for it. My problem is that the show implies that what they're doing is a normal, healthy way to lose weight. It makes people feel bad for losing weight at the recommended pace because hey these people on the show are losing 15 pounds a week! Add in all the product endorsements and commercials throughout it - hey eat these cereal bars, go to Subway for lunch, try this for a great low cal drink - and it makes it seem like all you have to do is exercise and eat these things and you can lose 15 pounds a week too! It's just not true. Nothing about it is true. Even if you sequestered yourself on a ranch and worked out all day every day with personal trainers and medics surrounding you and managed to lose 15 pounds a week, it still wouldn't be a healthy way to do it.

here here...but I never sat and thought about behind the scenes of BL..like most people. I know that what they're doing is extreme, and the chances of them keeping the weight off is very slim (no pun intended)...but the humiliation and portrail of the people on it are disconcerning. I cry every time I watch the show because I feel their objectification and torment. Yes it was their choice to be on the show, but did they really anticipate how horrible it could be, or did they get sucked into the "reality tv" of it all. They're promised professional help and counselling, doesn't sound like they're getting it, they're just being left to wallow in their own mind so that drama can be created for ratings...I hate Jillian Michaels, I think she should be banned from all that is good, she is nothing but a money grubber who uses scare tactics and embarassment to make her BRAND look good. I'm not in the military because I don't want to go to boot camp! Jillian Michaels is nothing but a product endorser. And now I'm all worked up lol...I feel sorry for the people that feel the only way they can succeed is by subjecting themselves to this show.

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I actually read this whole thing, wow wow wow.

For better or worse, I have always known that show by name, but never watched it. :P However, it is a source of inspiration for many, for better or worse as well

I am now slim, actually skinny (:P), from being really overweight, but I did it naturally over the span of two years, going on until now. I certainly don't believe in miracle weight-loss systems. Doing it the gradual way feels right, as your body adapts to the new and reduced calorie intakes, as well as new exercises routines, helping stabilize your metabolism. Again, I am not sure how it works in the show, please don't kill me for not knowing about it!

I wanted to share my views on the sub-human treatment of the overweight. It's WRONG. You are still a lovely and valuable human being on a specific life journey. Having said this, being "intentionally" overweight (by not doing anything about it) sometimes makes us feel not happy with ourselves as much as we could be, and it's certainly not giving ourselves the best treatment we could (I mean no offense... I was in the same boat!!!)

So, the article does point some negative aspects of the show, and I certainly hate putting others down, regardless reason. But I think that most of us agree that it's not a excuse for us not to work hard at our specific weight-loss goals: just do it naturally: work hard at it, keep at it, but don't kill yourself!

So yes, I ignore the quirks of the show, but just wanted to share that regardless, we should never stop getting healthier, which will eventually help anybody lose weight and stop being overweight in due time. It's not only about image, but about being proud of ourselves and our achievements, and being healthy. I must admit I didn't like myself much at some point during 2008, but it was not only due to being overweight (I should have loved myself regardless, but didn't; at least not enough.) But I decided to change all of that, and it HAS changed.

In conclusion: we are lovely creatures with extremely positive potential, regardless weight. But for the very same reasons, we must take care of ourselves, and never stop aiming for our goals. And if that means looking even "better", in addition to being healthy, why not? (Not implying skinnier is necessarily better, but rather, healthier is better for you. Looking our best help us a ton, though, IMHO.) If the show is wrong, then so be it, but you still can and should live a healthy lifestyle regardless. My apologies for not knowing exactly whatever the show really advocates (I surmise it's speed weight-loss; but yes, you can still lose weight-and keep it off- in a healthy, non-demeaning way.)

All I wanted to share is that we still can shed those extra pounds, whether we like the show or not. Don't do what I used to do a long time ago, though; love yourself with all your heart, since NOW.

WOW the information the contestant is sharing is pretty serious stuff, I was shocked when I read it.

wow

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