This is a record number of posts for me in one week. I'm not sure why I'm posting again because lately I hate my blog and have been thinking of killing it off. I feel like I have nothing interesting going on, when really, that couldn't be further from the truth. But anyway, I just had to check in and vent about The Biggest Loser.
After a few years of not watching, I decided to give it another shot. Why is the show so intense now? I understand the workouts are going to be rough considering these contestants haven't worked out in years or in some cases, have never worked out. But I swear it's just a matter of time before someone drops dead! People are puking all over the place, falling off treadmills, fainting, hyperventilating...way to make exercise look fun! Maybe I'm ultra sensitive since I take my personal training exam in a week (eeek!!) but I can't imagine putting someone through something so torturous. I know, I know, it's television. But to me it's conveying the wrong message and it's anything but "reality" TV.
Another thing that really gets my panties in a bunch is Jillian Michaels. I've mentioned my despise for her when commenting on other blogs but never talked about her here because I didn't wanted to get all fired up. Does she have to be such a beotch? And the yelling...will you just shut up?!? She should take some lessons from Bob. Me likey Bob. But I'll be honest; my extreme dislike of Jillian isn't solely due to her rants and scary mean face on the show. The day I flipped the page in a magazine and saw the ad for her weight loss supplement line put the nail in the coffin. I find it very hypocritical that she's out there teaching people about a healthy lifestyle and whole foods and yet she's pushing a flippin' diet pill which claims "Two Capsules Before Main Meals and You Lose Weight...That's It!" Makes...me...sick.
And lastly, does anyone else think it would be that big of a deal if they let the contestants keep their shirt on when they get weighed? I understand that fraction of a pound the shirt adds will affect their weight loss percentage and may put them under the dreaded yellow line, but I feel like it's exploiting the contestants a little bit. Especially when the camera man zooms in so you can see every stretch mark. Give them some respect. What we fail to think about is that after these contestants drop a ton of weight, they still have to deal with what the weight did to their physical appearance. They will have to carry around pounds and pounds of excess skin and some will resort to surgery to remove it. Some people will struggle more with what they look like after losing weight than what they looked like when they were heavy.
Any thoughts? Right now I'm thinking I'm done with the show. I tried...
25 comments:
This is like a combination of all my past BL posts. I really hate that show now- why do they vote people off if it is about being healthy? Why do they care more about product placement than health??? UGH! I could go on and on!
I just posted about this yesterday - just that the trainers, esp. Jillian, are getting to be so much meaner...almost b/c it makes for good tv.
hmmm...I couldn't agree more..I stopped watching the show 2 seasons ago...
Words can not express how much I detest this show. Honestly and truly - I LOATHE it and I believe it sends the exact opposite message that it claims to promote. Busing people off to a "fat camp", severely modifying their diet and working them to death with 4+ hours of exercise a day is NOT showing them how to live a healthy life. In fact, it's counter productive because from what I have read, a good number of the contestants go on to put weight right back on. And, and I say this as someone who lost 130lbs on her own and has managed to keep it off.
BTW: This is the BEST article I have read about the show. It embraces everything I feel about this show:
http://www.theironsamurai.com/2009/12/09/the-biggest-loser-good-bad-or-ugly/
Kristen
http://www.dailymile.com/people/kristenrf
So not related to BL (sorry!)...but I hope you might reconsider discontinuing your blog - it is a source of inspiration for me, especially dealing with an injury myself this season! I just wanted to let you know you are remarkable!
Me likey Bob too!!!!
I've complained for years about the sports bra weigh in. Did you notice as the season progresses and they are thinner, that they weigh in wearing a full shirt!?! Bugs the heck out of me!!!! I do like the show though. Motivates me as I watch it. But usually I'm eating as I watch it :)
Jillian IS mean. Now I have to go back to watching Jude Law on Sesame Street. See ya.....
I've watched BL since its first season, and have liked it a little less as each season passes. They definitely seem to be trying to up the gross/wow factor this season... the way they're filming the workouts is more of a documentary style, with closeups of the puking/snot, etc. The yelling thing has been escalating for the past few seasons. Having said all that, I'll probably continue to watch. At least for the rest of this season :)
I'm with you. I'm actually a long time fan of the Biggest Loser, I've watched all of the seasons except the very first one. It's gotten harder and harder for me to watch. For me, the more I realize how damaging this type of weight loss can be, the more sad I get about it. And, I HATE the sob stories and the insistence that because you're fat, you'll be unhappy and your life cannot start until you lose weight and find true happiness.
It's all BS.
And I like reading your blog! Keep it up! :)
There seem to be a wave of posts about BL and none very positive. I check that show out once in a while on Hulu and it seems that every season they try to be more extreme. I guess drama sells. I was hoping weight loss show would motivate people to at least try exercising and losing weight but how can pictures of puking and being yelled at motivate anyone?
I'm reading this post saying "YES!" "THIS!" "THANK YOU!" in my head. I had this very discussion with someone yesterday while I was watching Tuesday's episode. The show is infuriating me (and yet I continue to watch)... argh!!!
I'm not a Jillian fan either. Most people do not respond well to being hollered at. I'm always surprised no one has hit her. I know it'd be a stupid thing for contestant to do. But you don't get up in peoples faces and except not to get a rxn. Sometimes that reaction is violent.
The other thing that bothers me is that they give the ladies the least supportive sports bras they can find. That would make me so angry if I were a contestant.
Totally agree..how someone has not died is shocking to me.
...and to hear about the people after who have stress fractures etc is scary.
(don't kill your blog....that makes me sad)
I really hope that you keep your Blog going. I found it at a time when I really need to hear how other people were dealing with injuries, and now that mine are improving, your blog has helped me make connections with other people that have the same interests that I do.
As for TBL, I have really have mixed feelings about it. I hate it for all of the reasons that you mentioned. And, I think that it could be done in a much better way, but I know that the show would lose the mass appeal that it has now. The only thing good about it is that some people do watch the show and think "if that person can do it, so can I." My mother was one of those people. She was borderline morbidly obese but was inspired by the show to do something about her weight. Honest to God, she would get in her car and drive down the 75 ft. her driveway to check the mail! Now, she has lost over 75lbs. and swims an hour every day.
I too struggle with my weight. I am down to 272 lbs from 330lbs. last year I could run around the outside of my gym twice without having to stop and walk, and now I running 5k's in under 9min miles. I agree that is is sickening that JM is promoting diet pills!!! I can't stand the way our society tries to make weight loss sound like it is so easy! The message should be "look it is hard work, but it is rewarding hard work." or better yet "live health and don't let this happen to you." I know that most people don't want to hear that, but if you tell them that it is quick and easy what happens when they find out that it is not!?! Sorry for my rant, but this makes me crazy! People need to realize that diets and temporary quick fixes don't work and celebrity tummy tucks are not weight loss. We need to make difficult lifestyle changes if we want to make lasting and meaningful changes in our lives.
Well I'll put in my 2 cents even though I am going against the majority. I really like Jillian and I think the show is the best yet so far this year. I think Jillian REALLY does care about these people and she gives them tough love. That is what most of them need. She breaks them down and builds them back up. Because for most of those people it isn't about just learning what to eat and how to work out. Because it's tv we see what they want us to see.
We have a trainer at our gym that worked behind the scenes at Biggest Loser and he said they take rest days, they have refeed days and they get great medical attention including icing, massage, etc. Even on the show the other night they said they worked out one day, took the next off and then worked out again the 3rd day. It's definitely intense, but that's what they are there for. I used to think they were probably breaking down muscle because they lifted so much, but he said they balance muscle groups through the week. We just get to see the "intense" workouts. A lot of there 3-4 hours a day is walking.
I've also had a chance to talk with Pete Thomas from season 2 and he's shared some behind the scene details. So I love the fact that this show BLUNTLY gives the ugly details of obesity. I think it's a real eye opener for many people and it is inspiration that you can make a permanent lifestyle change.
People are still watching that exploitation?!? No wonder over 65% of American are overweight or obese, they're getting the wrong message. Exercise can be fun. Losing only 1-2 pounds a week is the best method of losing weight avoiding the dreaded yo-yo effect. These so called fitness experts need to return to Health and Science Schools.
These are the exact reasons I stopped watching several seasons ago. It is just too much and I'm over reality tv. I've seen personal training sessions - they are nothing like they are portrayed on tv. And now everyone who doesn't work out thinks if they don't lose 10+ lbs in a week they are a failure. ugh!
Sooo they have them take off the shirts now and wear them toward the end so they look thinner in the weigh in, I have ALWAYS hated that..
you knwo I bet many of those people are not used to the kind of ABUSE that Jillian dishes out...peak performing athletes who need an edge, maybe, but not people who NEED someone to inspire them to give a bit more..
I watch because I HOPE that it will inspire other to get moving, but I agree with you 333%%
The one thing that drives me nuts about BL is the unrealistic expectations for weight loss it gives people. I was trying to explain to a friend of mine that it really isn't healthy to loose more than 2-3 pounds a week, not to mention it sets you up for gaining the weight back later on, and their argument was "But they do it on the Biggest Looser!"
I wanted to scream.
P.S Don't stop blogging please!!
i'm cracking up!!
Ever read Oxygen Magazine? I used to like it but i feel its the same thing as jillian M. The mag is all about being "clean and natural." Sorry ladies, but every other page in that magazine is for an artificial fat burner! There is nothing natural about that or the fake breasts that every model has.
You saw my post, jillian was beyond a douche bag. It's nothing more than a character she created. Her live workout was horrible, unsafe and unoriginal.
I did like Dr. H's piece thispast week tho. Thats a good way to scare people staright i think. Those r the kinds of things a doctor should tell his patients(obv he cannot get sued orelse he cldnt tell ppl that stuff even thos ITS TRUE).
People do know what they r getting into when they apply for show tho. For many, it's a last resort that does make them finally healthy in the long run. But yes, its very unrealistic!!!
I have a personal relationship with 2 past biggest loser contestants who are both doing great and are amazing athletes. I go by their stories and their perspective. It's all planned out and heavily edited. They told me what their first workout was on the ranch, and trust me, it couldnt be further from what nbc shows. Talking to them ruins the show bcu realice how much is fake. But yes, jillian is annoying, she endoreses a weight loss rpoduct which is hypocritical and BS and she is a celebrity, not a personal trainer. But come on, dont u sometimes wish you could say the things she says to people?? He he! I do!!! :-p sometimes!
Good post.
And btw, dont kill ur blog!
Haven't watched Biggest Loser in a few years so I have no comment on this one, but just wanted to tell you not to abandon the blog!
See you Saturday :)
I don't watch the show, or TV in general, but everything you described honestly sounds like GREAT TELEVISION.
Which is sad, but their biggest audience is gonna be people that like TV, not people that give a damn about exercising.
And you can think about killing your blog, fine by me, but wait until after your first Tri, please :-)
hehe I like it when you get fired up!! i shouldn't laugh, but it seems so out of character.
i think that when you get to the point where you are 200lbs overweight you need someone to bust your chops and break through all the crap you are putting out there. Though yes she is bit extreme and I sure as shit don't want to work with her
I go back and forth between liking the show and hating the show. While it does motivate people and show them that losing weight is possible - the methods that they use on the show are totally unrealistic.
The obesity around me - is really starting to bother me, deep down. I just wonder why people don't take care of their body. Everyone doesn't have to be an endurance athlete - but get moving and start eating right.
Heck I love a chocolate chip cookie as much as the next person - but don't eat 20 at a sitting.
its a "reality show" in the end it scripted and manipulated. It is not about helping people its about making money and yes it is explotation.
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