to those who dislike Jillian Michaels

Im intimidated by her personally, I signed up for her web site a few years ago and it stalked the crap out of my inbox (felt like she was watching me!)..... That said... her work outs kick my hiney and thats exactly what I need!

I like the workouts. I do them at my own pace, of course still pushing myself the whole way. I want the strength I'm feeling to last longer than 30 days lol. As for the biggest loser show and stuff, I don't agree with it. Too much too fast, not healthy.

I love her workouts! They make me try harder. I have used many other workouts in the past and they dont push me enough. She yells and motivates me!

Me too, i find her "style" motivating. There are negatives to the workouts (my knees are not happy, etc,), but excellent whole-body workouts and it gets good results. I do a jillian video 2-3 times a week between my serious lifting days and kickboxing.

But i like bootcamp style workouts and i'm fairly aggro myself so yelling motivates me so maybe she is just a good fit for *me*. I don't buy supplements so i don't care what else she sells, i'm not sure why anybody falls for that junk anymore. I've tried some of her recipes (borrowed the metabolism book from the library) and there was some good stuff in there.

I'd like to see her do a SERIOUS weightlifting video someday, i think i would buy that. The stuff she does in her videos is high-rep w/ teenie weights, i think she could do better.

Well, for one thing, the Biggest Loser, which is the only reason anyone's ever heard of her, is a complete sham. It gives people a completely unrealistic set of expectations regarding weight loss and healthy living. Almost all of the contestants gain weight back after leaving the show- partly because they're not working out as much, but more importantly, they're manipulated into starving and/or dehydrating themselves to push their numbers down.

Second, she's attached her name and likeness to a line of supplements that are the basis for several ongoing lawsuits. One of these products is called "Calorie Control" which promises, directly on the front of the box to "Reduce Caloric Intake". If that claim alone isn't enough for a lawsuit, then I don't know what is.

Third, since leaving the show that's made her famous, she hasn't shied away from any opportunity to plaster her photoshopped likeness to any product. In addition to her line of supplements, she has books, DVDs, a treadmill, etc. All of these products offer claims that are unrealistic and give consumers a false sense of confidence. It's clear she's more interested in maintaining her fame than actually helping people to live healthier.

Fourth, there have been multiple complaints about her qualifications as a trainer. Sure, she pushes her "clients" to work harder and give maximal effort, but often times this results in injury. Any trainer worth a damn has to have the health of their client as their highest priority, even if this comes at the expense of maximal effort. A trainer does need to push their client to work hard, but more importantly, they need to ensure that the exercises are being performed correctly in order to not only maximize their effectiveness but also to avoid injury.

While I am sure you are right about the pills, I myself despise any type of diet pill also simply because it could be harmful to you and its not sustainable, I mean..do you really plan on taking those the rest of your life in order to lose pounds? You need to be able to do it with the food you eat and the exercise you do.

BUT..I will have to disagree with you on the Biggest Loser Show. I do not think its a sham and I think its a wonderful show that helps people become healthy again, how to be healthy, how to eat, how to work out, and also deals with the underlying issues of what caused them to gain weight and give up in the first place. That being said, they do push them hard, very hard and that type of workout, or I should say the length of time isnt sustainable in real life. Should you lose 10+ pounds a week in normal life? No! But these are highly obese people who's life is on the line. Many are facing death in the very near future if they dont change and do something drastic and sometimes drastic is what is needed. Have there been injuries that have occurred on the show? Yes, but not a whole lot. They are under strict supervision of a doctor the entire time and the trainers work with them, they know their entire background and all about them. And they are not starving them, I think if Im not mistaken the women eat at 1200 a day and the men like 1500? either way, they both eat at least at 1200 and yes they do burn like 3500 a day or whatever high number it is, but they do eat and they aren't starving.

And your quote about almost all gain the weight back is just simply false from everything I have read and seen. Yes some gain weight back. 40 to 45% will gain SOME of the weight back within a yr after the show. To me thats pretty good odds considering that these people where starring death in the face!! And is it the biggest losers fault that they have gained weight back? NO!! It is still all about their choices, their workout routines and what they feed themselves. And the biggest loser does a excellent job at trying to teach them how to live in real life with it, how to handle stress and temptation and they deal with issues that caused them to put on the weight in the first place!

Some will go back and gain weight, alot dont!! But they are taking severe cases and trying to change their lives before they die. It is a show also...they want good ratings etc and they do things and show things that intrigue the audience and catch their attention but I bet you, you go and ask alot of the contestants how they feel about it and alot will say they owe their life to them!!

Just my personal opinion though!:) :flowerforyou:

Why?

Just curious, I have seen a lot of comments about people not liking Jillian Michaels, or not liking her exercise DVDs.

I love her workouts, I think her tips on technique are great, and they WORK!

First of all it's not about "just liking her workouts." That is not my only criteria for a video workout, it's ONE criteria. There are literally HUNDREDS of trainers putting out exercise videos. Jillian is hardly the ONLY one out there producing a "good workout."

When I want a good workout AND someone who does not annoy me .... I turn to Cathe Friedrich, Kelly Coffey Meyer or Michelle Dozois .... others turn to Chalene, Tony Horton and the list goes on. There are so many quality workouts .... why settle for something you have to mute?

If you like her personality - great. If you don't keep looking. I realize big box stores don't carry Cathe videos ... it's not because she's not good at what she does ... she's excellent. Cathe Friedrich just does not have the PR background (or a reality show) that Jillian does.

I have tried Jillian Michaels workouts and have tried to like them, but they leave me cold. Her personality just does nothing for me, and her workout routines feel redundant and dull.

While I am sure you are right about the pills, I myself despise any type of diet pill also simply because it could be harmful to you and its not sustainable, I mean..do you really plan on taking those the rest of your life in order to lose pounds? You need to be able to do it with the food you eat and the exercise you do.

BUT..I will have to disagree with you on the Biggest Loser Show. I do not think its a sham and I think its a wonderful show that helps people become healthy again, how to be healthy, how to eat, how to work out, and also deals with the underlying issues of what caused them to gain weight and give up in the first place. That being said, they do push them hard, very hard and that type of workout, or I should say the length of time isnt sustainable in real life. Should you lose 10+ pounds a week in normal life? No! But these are highly obese people who's life is on the line. Many are facing death in the very near future if they dont change and do something drastic and sometimes drastic is what is needed. Have there been injuries that have occurred on the show? Yes, but not a whole lot. They are under strict supervision of a doctor the entire time and the trainers work with them, they know their entire background and all about them. And they are not starving them, I think if Im not mistaken the women eat at 1200 a day and the men like 1500? either way, they both eat at least at 1200 and yes they do burn like 3500 a day or whatever high number it is, but they do eat and they aren't starving.

And your quote about almost all gain the weight back is just simply false from everything I have read and seen. Yes some gain weight back. 40 to 45% will gain SOME of the weight back within a yr after the show. To me thats pretty good odds considering that these people where starring death in the face!! And is it the biggest losers fault that they have gained weight back? NO!! It is still all about their choices, their workout routines and what they feed themselves. And the biggest loser does a excellent job at trying to teach them how to live in real life with it, how to handle stress and temptation and they deal with issues that caused them to put on the weight in the first place!

Some will go back and gain weight, alot dont!! But they are taking severe cases and trying to change their lives before they die. It is a show also...they want good ratings etc and they do things and show things that intrigue the audience and catch their attention but I bet you, you go and ask alot of the contestants how they feel about it and alot will say they owe their life to them!!

Just my personal opinion though!:) :flowerforyou:

Regardless of how many people on the show lose weight or not, considering that show is seen by millions of people the world over, they have a responsibility to show people not only how to eat and exercise properly (which they do on a limited extent), they also need to show that doing so takes time. Instead, it demonstrates results that are both unrealistic and unsustainable, which is why they deserve so much scorn. It paints a completely unrealistic portrayal of health and fitness and unfortunately, a lot of people aren't smart enough to know the difference.

Also, the contestants on the show may have the nutritionists, trainers and doctors on site, but what about the people at home trying to better themselves? How are they supposed to possibly live up to these unrealistic results without all of those resources?

While I am sure you are right about the pills, I myself despise any type of diet pill also simply because it could be harmful to you and its not sustainable, I mean..do you really plan on taking those the rest of your life in order to lose pounds? You need to be able to do it with the food you eat and the exercise you do.

BUT..I will have to disagree with you on the Biggest Loser Show. I do not think its a sham and I think its a wonderful show that helps people become healthy again, how to be healthy, how to eat, how to work out, and also deals with the underlying issues of what caused them to gain weight and give up in the first place. That being said, they do push them hard, very hard and that type of workout, or I should say the length of time isnt sustainable in real life. Should you lose 10+ pounds a week in normal life? No! But these are highly obese people who's life is on the line. Many are facing death in the very near future if they dont change and do something drastic and sometimes drastic is what is needed. Have there been injuries that have occurred on the show? Yes, but not a whole lot. They are under strict supervision of a doctor the entire time and the trainers work with them, they know their entire background and all about them. And they are not starving them, I think if Im not mistaken the women eat at 1200 a day and the men like 1500? either way, they both eat at least at 1200 and yes they do burn like 3500 a day or whatever high number it is, but they do eat and they aren't starving.

And your quote about almost all gain the weight back is just simply false from everything I have read and seen. Yes some gain weight back. 40 to 45% will gain SOME of the weight back within a yr after the show. To me thats pretty good odds considering that these people where starring death in the face!! And is it the biggest losers fault that they have gained weight back? NO!! It is still all about their choices, their workout routines and what they feed themselves. And the biggest loser does a excellent job at trying to teach them how to live in real life with it, how to handle stress and temptation and they deal with issues that caused them to put on the weight in the first place!

Some will go back and gain weight, alot dont!! But they are taking severe cases and trying to change their lives before they die. It is a show also...they want good ratings etc and they do things and show things that intrigue the audience and catch their attention but I bet you, you go and ask alot of the contestants how they feel about it and alot will say they owe their life to them!!

Just my personal opinion though!:) :flowerforyou:

Regardless of how many people on the show lose weight or not, considering that show is seen by millions of people the world over, they have a responsibility to show people not only how to eat and exercise properly (which they do on a limited extent), they also need to show that doing so takes time. Instead, it demonstrates results that are both unrealistic and unsustainable, which is why they deserve so much scorn. It paints a completely unrealistic portrayal of health and fitness and unfortunately, a lot of people aren't smart enough to know the difference.

Also, the contestants on the show may have the nutritionists, trainers and doctors on site, but what about the people at home trying to better themselves? How are they supposed to possibly live up to these unrealistic results without all of those resources?

I agree with you here. I guess I just figured that most would know that it was a show, they are doing drastic things and although it does work ..in a certain environment, docs, trainers, monitors, etc etc...that it isnt real life. Theres no way although I see it done on the show, that I would go out and try to burn 3000+ cals a day, or push myself harder and harder even if I felt I was going to die...why? Because I DONT have monitors on me, I DONT go see my doc and get all sorts of xrays and blood work done each and every week and I dont have trainers! But your right...there are some who would try I guess! But I still hold to my belief that all in all its a great show and they are changing lives hehe...people just need to realize that its totally different than real life and they need to do it gradually, it will take time, but you will get there:) And I do think theres a disclaimer on the show at the beginning that says do not try this on your own.

Well, for one thing, the Biggest Loser, which is the only reason anyone's ever heard of her, is a complete sham. It gives people a completely unrealistic set of expectations regarding weight loss and healthy living. Almost all of the contestants gain weight back after leaving the show- partly because they're not working out as much, but more importantly, they're manipulated into starving and/or dehydrating themselves to push their numbers down.

Second, she's attached her name and likeness to a line of supplements that are the basis for several ongoing lawsuits. One of these products is called "Calorie Control" which promises, directly on the front of the box to "Reduce Caloric Intake". If that claim alone isn't enough for a lawsuit, then I don't know what is.

Third, since leaving the show that's made her famous, she hasn't shied away from any opportunity to plaster her photoshopped likeness to any product. In addition to her line of supplements, she has books, DVDs, a treadmill, etc. All of these products offer claims that are unrealistic and give consumers a false sense of confidence. It's clear she's more interested in maintaining her fame than actually helping people to live healthier.

Fourth, there have been multiple complaints about her qualifications as a trainer. Sure, she pushes her "clients" to work harder and give maximal effort, but often times this results in injury. Any trainer worth a damn has to have the health of their client as their highest priority, even if this comes at the expense of maximal effort. A trainer does need to push their client to work hard, but more importantly, they need to ensure that the exercises are being performed correctly in order to not only maximize their effectiveness but also to avoid injury.

While I am sure you are right about the pills, I myself despise any type of diet pill also simply because it could be harmful to you and its not sustainable, I mean..do you really plan on taking those the rest of your life in order to lose pounds? You need to be able to do it with the food you eat and the exercise you do.

BUT..I will have to disagree with you on the Biggest Loser Show. I do not think its a sham and I think its a wonderful show that helps people become healthy again, how to be healthy, how to eat, how to work out, and also deals with the underlying issues of what caused them to gain weight and give up in the first place. That being said, they do push them hard, very hard and that type of workout, or I should say the length of time isnt sustainable in real life. Should you lose 10+ pounds a week in normal life? No! But these are highly obese people who's life is on the line. Many are facing death in the very near future if they dont change and do something drastic and sometimes drastic is what is needed. Have there been injuries that have occurred on the show? Yes, but not a whole lot. They are under strict supervision of a doctor the entire time and the trainers work with them, they know their entire background and all about them. And they are not starving them, I think if Im not mistaken the women eat at 1200 a day and the men like 1500? either way, they both eat at least at 1200 and yes they do burn like 3500 a day or whatever high number it is, but they do eat and they aren't starving.

And your quote about almost all gain the weight back is just simply false from everything I have read and seen. Yes some gain weight back. 40 to 45% will gain SOME of the weight back within a yr after the show. To me thats pretty good odds considering that these people where starring death in the face!! And is it the biggest losers fault that they have gained weight back? NO!! It is still all about their choices, their workout routines and what they feed themselves. And the biggest loser does a excellent job at trying to teach them how to live in real life with it, how to handle stress and temptation and they deal with issues that caused them to put on the weight in the first place!

Some will go back and gain weight, alot dont!! But they are taking severe cases and trying to change their lives before they die. It is a show also...they want good ratings etc and they do things and show things that intrigue the audience and catch their attention but I bet you, you go and ask alot of the contestants how they feel about it and alot will say they owe their life to them!!

Just my personal opinion though!:) :flowerforyou:

If you look at the actual numbers--who lost how much and what they weigh now, it's more than 40%--it's most of them--and it's a significant portion of the weight. I don't care what the contestants say about it; if you lose a huge amount of weight very quickly, then gain it back, you are worse off, health wise, than if you had stayed fat continuously. There is nothing "real" about reality shows. NOTHING. Biggest Loser is entertainment, NOT a weight loss method. The show is calculated to hold your attention and sell stuff--not make you healthier. Ms. Michaels' association with it makes her less credible as a healthy lifestyle advisor, not more.

"...starring [sic] death in the face..." ??? Exaggerate much?

Because she puts her name on products that I think are detrimental to health, sustainable weight loss and creates a culture of misinformation. She's also part of the mainstream diet machine and that whole institution makes me twitchy.

Another very valid reason. Around the time she rolled out her "7 day Detox" or whatever the hell it is called, she lost me.

I dislike THIS, but I love her workouts, I think she knows her stuff there as I had great results, but I do dislike all of the stuff she's trying to sell these days.

I'm a big JM fan and have seen great differences in my body with her DVDs. That said, to each their own and I wouldn't challenge why anyone doesn't like her or her videos.

The quick point I wanted to make was in regards to a comment about strength training. No, she does not lift heavy in any of her videos however when you are using dumbbells and doing body resistance exercises regularly, is that not strength training? There is no one to say that you can't use heavier weights or do any advance modification of the base move. I just recently purchased the book The Women's Health Big Book of Exercises and I must say that many of JM's exercises are in that book......and it's book on strength training.

Again, not trying to sway anyone and to each their own, but I think that DVD's are legitimate. I think the rest of the marketing is not.

Have a great day!

Because she puts her name on products that I think are detrimental to health, sustainable weight loss and creates a culture of misinformation. She's also part of the mainstream diet machine and that whole institution makes me twitchy.

Simply put- I disagree with her. I don't know her personally so can't speak to her as a person.

*sigh* and I'm sure someone will quote me in a reply and try to argue about my opinion because after all, this is MFP, and opinions must be fought over.

I'm quoting u, but only cuz I agree.

She's not my favorite person ever- but I give her total credit for my profile picture! :happy: I do love her workouts.