Discussion! THE BIGGEST LOSER? PossiBLE?????

amandavictoria80
amandavictoria80 Posts: 734 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Alright, so, I have been watching season eleven of the TV show The Biggest Loser. It is the first time I have ever watched this show before.
I am absolutely amazed at how fast all these contestants lose weight. I know it is a weight loss race and that they all work out for hours and hours everyday. But it makes me very curious and fascinated. Is this really possible????

Watching this before my eyes makes me feel like if I just decided to kill myself everyday in my gym and workout for at least three hours hard, I would be at my goal in one to two weeks. That sounds awesome doesn't it?

So, I have to wonder, has anyone else went at there weight loss journey is this same manner and got to their goal in a very short time?
Because I think I'd much rather kick my *kitten* for three hours everyday and get to my goal in one to two weeks as opposed to working out normally and taking half a year to get there.

I would love to hear everyone's opinion on this subject! Thanks!!!!

Replies

  • kirstyfromscotland
    kirstyfromscotland Posts: 555 Member
    interested to see the replies! bump! :bigsmile:
  • BreakinTheChains
    BreakinTheChains Posts: 381 Member
    bump
  • ladylu11
    ladylu11 Posts: 631 Member
    bump
  • BlessedandBeautifulBrown
    BlessedandBeautifulBrown Posts: 464 Member
    i want it every season.. and those people work out like it is there job.. like 8-9 hours a day... i am only able to catch the end of the show.. this season due to i need my own work out on.. watching them isn't going to help me.. lol
  • dobarber
    dobarber Posts: 611 Member
    The people on the biggest loser are strictly monitored and their diets are given to them by dieticians depending on their health. Also, they do extremely strenuous long work outs during the week and unless you plan on giving up your job and everything else thats important to you then that is out of the question. It seems like they have some(not much) independence to do things on their own. So with that said, Yes I think its possible if you are strictly supervised by a staff of professionals. Is it feasible to do on your own time? Don't think so.
    Doug
  • RiskyTrousers
    RiskyTrousers Posts: 2
    I believe for severely obese folks weight loss can be very fast, up to 30 lbs a month if not more. For folks closer to their normal weight weight loss is not nearly as rapid.
  • maremare312
    maremare312 Posts: 1,143 Member
    I think part of the reason they lose weight so quickly is that they are really heavy. When you have several hundred pounds to lose, the weight is going to come off much more quickly than if you only have 15 pounds to lose.
  • ajwisehart
    ajwisehart Posts: 2 Member
    I'd say that yes, it is possible but probably harder when you don't have a personal trainer and dietitian guiding you on a daily basis. That, and it doesn't teach you how to maintain your weight loss once you've achieved your goal. Many of the Biggest Loser contestants end up gaining the weight back after they are off the show simply because it's impossible to live daily life and work out full time like they did on the show.
  • smashleymcgee
    smashleymcgee Posts: 135 Member
    I read an article on Biggest Loser a few weeks ago that really tells the truth about the contestants and the show (and of course now I can't find it). Essentially it was saying that a "week" is actually closer to 10-14 days. They also only give the contestants roughly 1000-1200 calories a day and they start dehydrating themselves a day before weigh in (as in they don't drink anything for 24 hours and are severely dehydrated). They have doctors on site that are completely undermined by the shows producers- doctors were telling ALL they needed more elecytrolytes and water, and many had severe injuries and were forced to keep working out. Remeber, it is a TV show and they just want to make money, don't believe all the hype.
  • JennyJacobsen
    JennyJacobsen Posts: 72 Member
    I have heard that it is not safe to do it this way! Your better off losing weight slowly and keeping it off. U have a bigger chance of gaining it all back if U lose too fast. We have watched biggest loser a few years now. I am amazed how fast they lose the weight too but I heard rumors they dehydrate the contestants. I don't know how that can be when U see them all with their water bottles. I am sure they lose water weight the first few weeks due to eating changes. Salt makes U gain water weight. Keep your sodium under 2300 mg a day and your good :) I have heard carbs are not good to eat so maybe they cut that out. They don't really show us what they eat on the show except for the foods they are advertising like dessert delight gum, yoplait smoothies, multigrain cheerios and whatever else. It is interesting though.
  • aliciagetshealthy
    aliciagetshealthy Posts: 946 Member
    My opinion: I have watched almost every season, and all of these contestants begin this journey as severly obese. During their time, they are under strict doctor supervision and I have yet to see a season where there is not an injury involved with a least one contestant. Also, while they are doing extreme amounts of exercising, they are also learning how to eat ~ and this is the key to long term success. Because they start at such a high weight, all of their efforts put up great numbers - in the beginning. With women especially, once under 200 pounds, there is a significant drop in the amount of weight they are capable of losing in any given week ~ with the continued level of exercise ~ most registered between 2-5 lbs a week. If you really think that you want to go to this extreme, I highly recommend talking to your doctor first or you may end up causing more problems then your curing.
  • MzGrinch9250
    MzGrinch9250 Posts: 376 Member
    15 years ago I was a size 22. Myself and two other friends joined 24hr Fitness. Every night after work at 12a.m., we worked out for 4 hours. I remember the first week I had a hard time getting thru the machines, but by the second week it got easier. The one employee who worked the midnight shift at 24hr Fitness was also a body builder and he helped us every night with our workouts. The last hour of our workout we spent swimming and also in the sauna. I dropped 35 lbs. in that one month and went from a size 22 to a size 10. It was hard, but it can be done. I think you have to have a good support system and I was in my 20's then. It's much harder for me now.
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
    But how many past contestants have kept the weight off?
  • amandavictoria80
    amandavictoria80 Posts: 734 Member
    15 years ago I was a size 22. Myself and two other friends joined 24hr Fitness. Every night after work at 12a.m., we worked out for 4 hours. I remember the first week I had a hard time getting thru the machines, but by the second week it got easier. The one employee who worked the midnight shift at 24hr Fitness was also a body builder and he helped us every night with our workouts. The last hour of our workout we spent swimming and also in the sauna. I dropped 35 lbs. in that one month and went from a size 22 to a size 10. It was hard, but it can be done. I think you have to have a good support system and I was in my 20's then. It's much harder for me now.

    Thank you. :)
  • luvmycandies
    luvmycandies Posts: 489 Member
    There is actually spas and "fat camps" you can go that are monitored and structured for this. I wouldnt recommend it. But i hear they are also very expensive.
  • KokomoJoe
    KokomoJoe Posts: 435
    If this is true, then I would say the show is setting them up to fail.


    In an abstract presented at the most recent Obesity Society Annual Scientific Assembly, Darcy Johannsen and friends reported that by week 6 participants had lost 13% of their body weight and by week 30, 39%. More interestingly they reported that by week 6 participants metabolisms had slowed by 244 more calories per day than would have been expected by their weight loss and by week 30, by 504 more calories
  • paulahhhh
    paulahhhh Posts: 283
    If I had the time and money to hire a personal trainer & nutritionist, I believe I could do it.
  • amandavictoria80
    amandavictoria80 Posts: 734 Member
    But how many past contestants have kept the weight off?

    I would assume all of them.
  • KokomoJoe
    KokomoJoe Posts: 435
    Some have regained most of the weight they lost. Remember this is radical weight loss and probably not healthy for the contestants to go to these extremes.

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