Anyone watch TLC's "My Big Fat Fabulous Life"?

Posts: 36 Member
edited November 10 in Chit-Chat
We don't have cable at home so I really enjoy watching while I am at the Y. Tonight I was watching TLC and "My Big Fat Fabulous Life" came on. I don't know if it was the first episode but it may have been since the intro was so long.

I don't know what to make of it....

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  • Posts: 36 Member
    Anyone?
  • Posts: 997 Member
    I've seen the previews but haven't seen an entire episode. Its great how confident she is and sad how some people treat her but I hope she has plans to try to lose some of that weight, itcant be healthy. Fat shaming is horrible but I'm not sure if fat acceptance is good either. *shrugs*
  • Posts: 36 Member
    I felt torn watching it, too. She attributed much of her weight gain to PCOS and I had no idea that it could cause such extreme gain(s).
  • Posts: 997 Member
    I have no experience with PCOS and the weight gain, acne and hair loss problems are real but I'm like you, I didn't know it caused that much weight gain. I've seen lots of people here on the forums who have PCOS and have lost and kept off weight so it is possible. I saw a clip from an episode and she had to have her mom shave her legs!! :'(
  • Posts: 105 Member
    Yep I love it! Shes a beautiful girl full of positive spirit. It hurts to be judged...she works hard to get past that and she can really dance! My favorite though is her mom...what a trip she is :)
  • Posts: 433 Member
    I've seen the 3 episodes so far and I am definitely torn. I say good for her for dancing and not letting her weight prevent her from doing what she loves, but on the other hand she can't really be upset for getting "hate mail" if you are going to allow camera crews to film your life. Like others I am not sure to what degree PCOS would affect your weight, but it seems very excessive to me. Fat shaming is wrong, but I don't think fat acceptance is the answer either.
  • Posts: 2,402 Member
    In the preview at least it seemed like she was both doing fat acceptance and looking to lose weight.

    I don't think the two things have to be at odd. We only have one life to live, don't waste it judging yourself, get busy living! Dieting can fit into that.
  • Posts: 252 Member
    Her Mom is hilarious. I feel she could appreciate her parents a little more. Like her energy and positive outlook but feel she could take a little more responsibility for her choices and actions.
  • Posts: 1,232 Member
    I've been watching it. I like her. I am also fairly unfamiliar with PCOS. I know someone who has it and they have always battled their weight and had difficulty getting pregnant. I like that she is honest that she is not happy with her weight but happy with her life and is trying to lose weight. It upset me to see her get called names in that parking lot scene. And I love her Mom! She needs her own show. I do wonder how you live at home with no current employment and you room and car are a mess. But, hey, no one is perfect but that *kitten* would not work in my house.
  • I watched it. I'm not sure what I think. While I love her personality and sense of humour, I almost feel like she places too much blame on her PCOS. And wow can she shake it! I mean I can't dance like that and I weight less than half of her weight! I will continue to watch because she is such a likable person and I want to see where she takes it.
  • Posts: 1,232 Member
    BinkyBonk wrote: »
    I watched it. I'm not sure what I think. While I love her personality and sense of humour, I almost feel like she places too much blame on her PCOS. And wow can she shake it! I mean I can't dance like that and I weight less than half of her weight! I will continue to watch because she is such a likable person and I want to see where she takes it.

    I agree with this. It doesn't look like she is doing anything in the way of food choices so far to help with the weight loss. But we're only a couple of episodes in.

  • Posts: 19 Member
    First, no one should be called names or degraded. And I respect her for loving herself no matter what (If you can't love yourself, how can you expect anyone else to?).

    However, she is making excuses for herself by blaming PCOS and that irritates me. A symptom of PCOS is being overweight, but that doesn't mean you are stuck being fat and overweight. As someone who has PCOS and was over 200lbs, she is full of *kitten*. I gradually changed my eating habits -I cut out junk food, soda, fast food and now eat healthy and relatively clean. And I got off my *kitten* and started exercising and I am now a healthy 145lbs with great blood pressure, 21% body fat, a low resting heart rate, and I have stamina to do the things I want to do. Will I ever be supermodel/actress skinny-no, will I ever have a six pack- probably not, but that's okay because I'm the healthiest I've ever been.

    She's got the exercising part down, but she needs to take an honest look at what she is putting in her body and deal with any food issues she may have that are the contributing factor for her weight gain.
  • Posts: 259 Member
    I don't have cable (getting rid of it was the best thing I've done in years) so I haven't watched it, but I saw her quoted in several articles about the show and she's really pushing the fat acceptance thing, which I detest.

    As for the PCOS, this board is full of ladies who've dealt with that condition and managed to either maintain or achieve a healthy weight. It's not like a PCOS diagnosis sentences you to obesity for life.
  • Posts: 66 Member
    I saw an advert for it earlier. PCOS has probably played such a minute role in such a weight gain that really she's just fooling herself.
  • Posts: 2,038 Member
    Never heard of it, is it about fat gay people?

    I would watch that!
  • Posts: 1,608 Member
    I've seen the previews but haven't seen an entire episode. Its great how confident she is and sad how some people treat her but I hope she has plans to try to lose some of that weight, itcant be healthy. Fat shaming is horrible but I'm not sure if fat acceptance is good either. *shrugs*


    Fat Acceptance is basically recognising that fat people deserve respect and have every right to be proud of themselves and happy with the way they look whether they want to lose weight or not.
  • I love this show! Whitney is fabulous! She's like the rest of us, a work in progress....but she loves herself and has fun along the way!
  • Posts: 770 Member
    I can't watch the show. I've tried, but I ended up rolling my eyes so much I was afraid they'd just plop out of my head and roll on across the floor.

    I think what really bothered me was how she blamed her weight on PCOS.

    I have PCOS. But the link between being overweight AND PCOS is really tricky. Women with PCOS produce too much insulin, or the insulin they produce does not work as it should. Since the insulin can't function normally, women with PCOS CAN experience weight gain or difficulty losing weight. HOWEVER, sometimes PCOS can develop after substantial weight gain. There isn't a ton known about it and at least for me, when I was diagnosed, it had me wondering, "Well...did I develop PCOS because I really like donuts and beer and pizza or was there something else?"

    I try to reserve judgement whenever possible, especially since I've only seen a small glimpse into this woman's life; however, there can be a plethora of other factors at play. For her to just blame it on one thing seems like finding a scapegoat for what COULD be poor diet or other factors.

    Just my two cents. :smile:
  • Posts: 157 Member
    I haven't watched it but from what I saw of the commercials, the first thing that came to mind is "Wow, as much as she's moving, she must be TEARING UP some food". There's no reason she should be as big as she is unless she is eating up everything. Cause she seems like she dances a lot. But whatevs. I don't understand why anyone would send her hate mail for being fat, seems ridiculous. But I guess you have to be ready for that kind of crap.
  • I love her, and I love her Mom too! She rocks those dance moves! No one should be critical of her... after all, aren't we all here on My Fitness Pal for the same reason~ to be FITNESS PALS? Is she obese? Yes. That being said, no matter what her reason(s) for obesity are, you must give her credit for not using her obesity as a crutch! Whether she blames her obesity on PCOS, or any other syndrome or condition is besides the point... this girl is outside, dancing, enjoying life, going to the beach, and enjoying every minute of it. I can't say that for most healthy people that I know, let alone my obese friends and family. More power to her! We need more positive people on television like her. More positivity and less negativity.... we could all use that!
  • Posts: 633 Member
    BinkyBonk wrote: »
    I watched it. I'm not sure what I think. While I love her personality and sense of humour, I almost feel like she places too much blame on her PCOS. And wow can she shake it! I mean I can't dance like that and I weight less than half of her weight! I will continue to watch because she is such a likable person and I want to see where she takes it.

    I thought the same thing when I watched this show. I have PCOS and while it makes weight gain easier and weight loss harder, she should not be using this as an excuse for gaining or not losing. At my heaviest I weighed 175 and now weigh just under 145. I run 20-25 miles a week and am in great shape and very healthy. While there are challenges, it's not impossible to lose weight and keep it off with PCOS. Just takes some work and tweaking with food. I eat mostly healthy food now, and am gluten free (I also have celiac disease). I am one example and there are many other examples on MFP that show that PCOS women can be successful with weight loss.

    On a side note, I think it's good to love yourself and accept who you are. I have watched the show and she is a great dancer. I wish I was that good at dancing.
  • Posts: 769 Member
    She was on Dr. Oz the other day but I didn't watch it because, well, Dr. Oz.
  • Posts: 252 Member
    I agree with the above posters that blaming PCOS for a 200-lb weight gain within the timeframe of one year is a little ridiculous. I have PCOS and, while I have gained about 60lbs total since I was first diagnosed, that has also been over the course of 10 years and my weight gain was largely due to a horrible, unhealthy lifestyle of a typical college student (junk food, lots of alcohol, etc) and then I continued to live that lifestyle after I graduated college and started working full time. While I know PCOS did not help things in that department, I also know it was not the sole cause of my weight gain. Judging by how I was living, I'm confident I would've gained the weight regardless of PCOS. I'm a member of the PCOS group on here and also know several other ladies in my life who have PCOS and have never heard or seen any of them state they gained THAT much weight in that short of a time frame solely due to PCOS. I call BS on that part.

    That being said - I think body acceptance and learning to love yourself IS important, but part of loving yourself is taking care of your body. Weighing nearly 400lbs is not taking care of your body. How can you say you love yourself, if you don't even care enough to be healthy?

    I've said all of this without having even heard of the show, but just discovered TLC puts full episodes on their website, so I'm gonna check it out for myself.
  • Posts: 11 Member
    I watch the show. I never really thought of her fat acceptance philosophy as anything other than her desire for overweight people to be treated with respect and equality. I agree that being healthy is extremely important...that is why I'm here trying to lose weight. That said, I am glad someone is finally bringing awareness to PCOS.

    I also have PCOS. I was diagnosed in 2009 after gaining 60 pounds in three months. During that time, not one single thing about my diet or exercise habits changed. The only thing that did change was that I was under an extreme amount of stress. In my opinion, PCOS is not a one size fits all condition. Each individual experiences it differently. Not everyone with PCOS is overweight, not everyone with PCOS has problems with acne, etc. I do not think anyone can judge another person's struggle (even when it comes to having the exact same condition) until they have walked in their shoes. Yes, it does it seem like she makes poor food choices for someone with PCOS, but maybe that will change as the show goes on. I don't think it is fair to judge her for saying that she gained such a large amount of weight in such a short amount of time though. Maybe it's not true and she's only fooling herself, but maybe she really did have that experience. Maybe her story isn't the same as mine or yours, but that doesn't mean it isn't real. From speaking to many others with PCOS, I've come to understand that we don't all fit in one box.

    I, for one, am interested in learning more about her story.
  • Posts: 485 Member
    It's good, but I don't think she is being honest about her weight. I think her dad can be harsh at times. I prefer Big Women Big Love over this show!
  • Posts: 4,246 Member
    I watched one episode and have recorded the others. I'm kind of on the fence along with several other posters about it. In episode 1 she said that she wanted to start dancing again (which means she hasn't been and probably no other exercise). She also said she wanted to lose 100 pounds, which confirms that she believes she CAN lose weight with PCOS. I am not familiar with PCOS, but it sounds like it is possible to maintain and even lose with this condition.
  • Posts: 713 Member
    edited January 2015
    She blamed her obesity on PCOS, claimed >2/3 of PCOS sufferers are obese or overweight.
    Guess what ... 2/3 of Americans are overweight or obese I think it's more likely the pizza and everything else she is shown eating that are contributing to her calorie surplus and resultant weight gain.
  • Posts: 1,275 Member
    Yes, she has a "fabulous" life..she is 30 years old, lives with her parents, is unemployed, and hangs out with male friends...I see this show a bit differently...I see her eating pizza, last episode she made herself a banana and mayo sandwich...her Dad tried to get her to eat healthy. ..she goes food shopping with her Mother and splits her pants...okay, reality check. ..she says her Mother eats unhealthy, only canned soup, well...why not just eat the same as her Mom for a week?

    I see a lot of "victim mentality" here, and blaming her PCOS for her obesity. Go get surgery, or whatever it takes to get back to normal. Obesity kills, there is "fat acceptance", but reality is she is at risk for diabetes, and a lot of other health problems. She should be on a medically supervised diet. She does not want that...anyone notice the amount of dirty dishes laying around in her bedroom when she was getting ready for a date? I see signs of serious food addiction, and "hidden" eating. ..I know, I have been there and done it myself.

    I can say this, because I have been 320, and know the denial...
  • Posts: 14,464 Member
    I haven't watched the show but I wanted to chime in that my granddaughter, my biggest cheerleader, says that I was happy and beautiful before and I am happy and beautiful now. I will be happy and beautiful wherever I end up. You see, I have expressed concern that this loss just seems to be it's own runaway train and it is hard keeping my body image current. If that makes any sense.
  • Posts: 8,375 Member
    SconnieCat wrote: »
    I can't watch the show. I've tried, but I ended up rolling my eyes so much I was afraid they'd just plop out of my head and roll on across the floor.

    I think what really bothered me was how she blamed her weight on PCOS.

    I have PCOS. But the link between being overweight AND PCOS is really tricky. Women with PCOS produce too much insulin, or the insulin they produce does not work as it should. Since the insulin can't function normally, women with PCOS CAN experience weight gain or difficulty losing weight. HOWEVER, sometimes PCOS can develop after substantial weight gain. There isn't a ton known about it and at least for me, when I was diagnosed, it had me wondering, "Well...did I develop PCOS because I really like donuts and beer and pizza or was there something else?"

    I try to reserve judgement whenever possible, especially since I've only seen a small glimpse into this woman's life; however, there can be a plethora of other factors at play. For her to just blame it on one thing seems like finding a scapegoat for what COULD be poor diet or other factors.

    Just my two cents. :smile:

    LOL! That's what I thought. My eyes were gonna go AWOL. I had hoped the show was going to be more about her sucess/struggle overcoming her battles. I was disappointed that it was more like jersey shore.
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