Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Biggest Loser - Season ???

The Biggest Loser started up again last night. I don't have a clue what season it is up to, 4 or 5. I was just wondering if anyone here enjoys watching it. I find that it gives me some motivation to stay active and keep trying to lose weight. Seeing Eric lose over 200 pounds last year was just incredible and should remove every excuse that some one has. What do you guys think about it?

I enjoy it. I always have.

I too have watched every season since it started. This is the first season where I have gotten off my azzz and joined in on the work!!!! This season is really driving home the point that I and I alone let myself go. I must also do what it takes to get back in shape. No more of this what I don't know can't be hurting me mentality. That ends now!! If a 62y-o can lose 31 pounds in the first week then at 38, I should be able to do something.

We watched a couple of seasons, but really don't any more. It's a TV show and far from "real". I'm sure the weight loss is real, but not everything on that show is real. Ever notice how they lose hundreds of pounds in a short period of time and have little or no excess skin? Not to mention lossing 15 plus pounds a week is SO unhealthy for a person. It's just like every other "reality" show, it's more "show" than "reality".

I agree with Cain - the huge, rapid weight loss really puts me off. Besides, seeing someone supposedly losing 10-15 lbs/week makes my 1-2 lbs/week seem like failure in comparison.

I agree with Cain - the huge, rapid weight loss really puts me off. Besides, seeing someone supposedly losing 10-15 lbs/week makes my 1-2 lbs/week seem like failure in comparison.

But, if you look at some of their losses down the road it will make a difference and they don't always lose that much weight. When I was losing at first, I lost 15 pounds in a two week period, but then it was down to 5 in two weeks. Now I am glad to see 2 pounds in a 2 week period. But, I am a lot stronger than I was and my heart and blood work shows that it has paid off for me. Let them lose a lot of weight and then gain it back when they change their lifestyle again. I made a lifestyle change about 2 years ago and it has been making the difference for me. Some people in my family call me a pyscho for working out all the time, but they have seen the improvement and understand why I am doing it.


Keep losing at the rate that works for you and don't worry about what others do or say. Do it for you and do it at your pace.

I've never watched the show, but I can brag that my primary care physisican -- Jeffrey Levine -- was on the show a few years back. Coool.

I agree with Cain - the huge, rapid weight loss really puts me off. Besides, seeing someone supposedly losing 10-15 lbs/week makes my 1-2 lbs/week seem like failure in comparison.

but then again, how much are they doing per week? I doubt its just one or two training sessions a week. Those trainers are probably DRILLING those men and women all day, every day.

but then again, how much are they doing per week? I doubt its just one or two training sessions a week. Those trainers are probably DRILLING those men and women all day, every day.

Yeah, they seem to spend most of each day training, and their diet is closely controlled. Not to mention they are surrounded by like-minded souls day in and day out.

My wife and I love the show. Amazing to see some of the transformations, and they do stress that you need to change your lifestyle for life, not just for a couple of months.

Jim

when you are so freaking fat (300 to 400 pounds) it is in no way unhealthy to drop 15 pounds in one week. just as there weight is extreme so is the weight loss.

they work out all day every day. they are limited to less then 2000 calories a day in the begining. i even read somewhere that is was 1200 for the ladies and 1500 for the men.

drastic obesity needs drastic weight loss. that is all. later.

I'm not saying that loosing 15lbs a week isn't possible, I'm saying it's just not healthy. It comes with medical issues. A co-worker did this on his own and he was constantly at the doctors for issues from rapid weight loss. He ended up with a severe case of kidne(maybe bladder) stone. Even after bypass surgeory the doctors only want a person to lose 2-3 a week.

I wrestled for 12 years of my life. I know all about rapid weight loss in short amounts of time. It wasn't uncommon for us big guys to have 5lb practices. Meaning we lost 5 pounds a day.

The thing that turned me off about the show was the lack of lose skin. There is just no way to hide it after losing that much weight. There is something going on that isn't show on TV.

http://www.ienhance.com/article/Detail.asp?ArtID=430 (possible NSFW photos of eric's rear in a thong)

CONSUMER BRIEF: Ever wonder what happened to NBC's "Biggest Loser" Eric Chopin after he bagged a one quarter million dollar prize for losing 214 pounds? Chopin went on to bigger and better things, but first stopped at the office of a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon for a body shaping procedure to get rid of 12 pounds of loose, flapping skin.

When Eric Chopin, now 37, reduced his weight from 407 pounds to a sleek 192 on his six-foot frame in eight months, he set the record weight loss on the hit NBC reality show, The Biggest Loser." Chopin originally lost 124 pounds at NBC's Biggest Loser camp and then continued working at home to drop another 90. But there's an untold side to Chopin's story -- he needed plastic surgery after the weight loss to make his body appear normal again.

http://www.ienhance.com/article/Detail.asp?ArtID=430 (possible NSFW photos of eric's rear in a thong)

CONSUMER BRIEF: Ever wonder what happened to NBC's "Biggest Loser" Eric Chopin after he bagged a one quarter million dollar prize for losing 214 pounds? Chopin went on to bigger and better things, but first stopped at the office of a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon for a body shaping procedure to get rid of 12 pounds of loose, flapping skin.

When Eric Chopin, now 37, reduced his weight from 407 pounds to a sleek 192 on his six-foot frame in eight months, he set the record weight loss on the hit NBC reality show, The Biggest Loser." Chopin originally lost 124 pounds at NBC's Biggest Loser camp and then continued working at home to drop another 90. But there's an untold side to Chopin's story -- he needed plastic surgery after the weight loss to make his body appear normal again.


EXACTLY! My money says Wiley had it done also.

I watched the show last night. I have watched from season to season. It is fun to see the weight losses - last night someone lost 31 lbs in one week (one of the team captains - the other captain lost 26 lbs and one woman - Kae - lost 20!). How is that even possible? But reality is these people are not working, they are exercising all day and have someone to watch them every single minute. Plus they have a highly skilled trainer. Wow, how lucky! If I had that going on in my life, I too would be sleek and slim. Reality for me is that I get up, go to work, sit at a desk all day, most of the time come home with a throbbing headache and don't want to go out and exercise. Dinner is often fast food because why? I guess why not? I try to make good dnners at home but with only the cat as my roommate, no one's stink eye keeps me from the frig.

I do like to hear the eating tips and exercise points. There is always something to learn. BTW I fell asleep before the end - who got voted off? Please tell me it was Amber or Amy or whatever her whining name was.

amber...

I watched the show last night. I have watched from season to season. It is fun to see the weight losses - last night someone lost 31 lbs in one week (one of the team captains - the other captain lost 26 lbs and one woman - Kae - lost 20!). How is that even possible?

31 pounds = 108,500 Calories burned.
If, for one entire week, you were to do nothing but work out at the rate of 646 Cal/hr, that's how it's done. 24 hours a day, 7 days straight, 646 Cal/hr burn rate.
Oh yeah, you can't eat anything, either.

Assuming a more reasonable method of attack, I've come up with this:

1500 Cal restricted diet = 10,500 Cal intake/week
31 pounds = 108,500 Cal
108,500 + 10,500 = 119,000 Cal total to burn
Assume a lowball BMR of 3000, times 7 days = 21,000 Cal burned just by existing
98,000 Cal remaining
That's 1750 Cal/hr at 8 hours/day for 7 days.

I can't fathom what it would take to do that. Using the Kreuzotter power/speed calculator, I only burned 2500 Calories during my metric century, and that was over the course of 3.75 hours.

Question for the nutritionists, or those better in the know than I am: Will your caloric expenditure increase drastically for lower intensity of exercise if you are out of shape?
(eg. I'm in pretty good shape and burned 2500 kcal on a metric. Would a TdF racer burn less to do the same distance and pace?)

From that article: At the training camp, he worked out four hours daily, running, swimming and working on a treadmill. In the evenings, he exercised for another hour and worked in weight lifting. He consumed a low-fat 2000 calories diet and saw his waist size slim from 54 to 34 inches.


http://www.ienhance.com/article/Detail.asp?ArtID=430 (possible NSFW photos of eric's rear in a thong)

CONSUMER BRIEF: Ever wonder what happened to NBC's "Biggest Loser" Eric Chopin after he bagged a one quarter million dollar prize for losing 214 pounds? Chopin went on to bigger and better things, but first stopped at the office of a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon for a body shaping procedure to get rid of 12 pounds of loose, flapping skin.

When Eric Chopin, now 37, reduced his weight from 407 pounds to a sleek 192 on his six-foot frame in eight months, he set the record weight loss on the hit NBC reality show, The Biggest Loser." Chopin originally lost 124 pounds at NBC's Biggest Loser camp and then continued working at home to drop another 90. But there's an untold side to Chopin's story -- he needed plastic surgery after the weight loss to make his body appear normal again.

I would imagine in the beginning their weight loss would be very dramatic, and probably high, then it would teeter off.

It would probably also be safe to assume a good percentage of the weight each person lost was water weight as well.

Well one way it is possible...is water weight...add that to the for sure pigging out that they did right before they left home and I bet there insides were FULL of crap....add that to one week of rotor rooter high fiber diet (probably more fiber then they had all year) and I can see that type of a loss.....

If you watch them watch next week....these people don't loose that much every week and you can see them changing for sure.

I like it it is motivating...I wish they did more biking stuff though....biking is a great way to loose weight....

And you can't tell me that being 400 pounds is safer than loosing 20 pounds fast. There is nothing safe about either option...

when you are so freaking fat (300 to 400 pounds)

Wow I feel the love.

LessEverything:

How did you get your post to look like that? Your signature and response is on the right side of the page!!!!

Sometimes I think people get here from doing a search, or they're using Spy, or just seeing what's going on, and they forget where they are when they post. Although you're right about the "lack of love", it probably wasn't meant to be a direct hit.

Question for the nutritionists, or those better in the know than I am: Will your caloric expenditure increase drastically for lower intensity of exercise if you are out of shape?
(eg. I'm in pretty good shape and burned 2500 kcal on a metric. Would a TdF racer burn less to do the same distance and pace?)


Not an nutrition or expert of any sort but I do know that the more out ot shape and overweight you are the more calories you burn for the same activity. In other words if I were to ride 20 miles at 20 mph up a steep hill (yeah like that's gonna happen!) I would burn many more calories than say if Lance Armstrong were to also do the same (think of it I am trying to haul 200+ lbs up a hill Lance only 150). As the body builds muscle and loses weight it begins to operate with more efficiency which is why it becomes harder to lose as much weight as fast. People hit plateaus and the only way to get off them is to step up the intensity of the workout and eat less calories.

Wow I feel the love.

Yeah.. I felt the love as well. :rolleyes:

I hate the show, but watch it with the wife sometimes. They build tension way more than necessary by spreading out the weigh ins. I know it's a competition, but I feel like the entire show is just about attempting to elicit a much more pronounced emotional response than necessary.

I also want to slap the woman trainer due to some sort of visceral reaction. :D

All in all, it's probably good for the general public to see obese folks as "real people" too. The show just pushes too many of my buttons.

For those of you that are new to the forum, I have a little picture for you
March, 2005 581 pounds and September 2006, at 230 on a 167 mile ride
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o260/TomStormcrowe/Project1.jpg

Here's a pic from May, 2005. Note, I'm wearing Oxygen when I ride. Here, I weigh in at over 450 pounds.
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o260/TomStormcrowe/FairfieldLakesride023.jpg

This spring, in Holland, Mi. 218 pounds, off O2, no meds, diabetes completely in control.
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o260/TomStormcrowe/MichiganTrip081.jpg

I tend to get a little upset when people start belittling the method used by any person. If it works, it works.....period.

That is amazing Tom!! Was it done all by diet/ excersize?

That is amazing Tom!! Was it done all by diet/ excersize?

Also bariatric surgery. I was so close to dead that I really didn't have a choice. ;)

Yea, my g/f just had the LapBand surgery about 2 weeks ago. She is doing good so far. I just wish I could get her into riding :)

Of course she will go to the gym and ride the "bike" inside but she hates regular bikes and being around cars. haha

I'm going to get her to check out your blog when she gets home. maybe it will make her want to get on the bike!

Well one way it is possible...is water weight...add that to the for sure pigging out that they did right before they left home and I bet there insides were FULL of crap....add that to one week of rotor rooter high fiber diet (probably more fiber then they had all year) and I can see that type of a loss....


Exactly what I was thinking. Water weighs ~8lbs/gallon.

If you go from a dietary free-for-all with loads of sodium ingested (pretty much any processed food), you're retaining a lot of water. If you then go on a low sodium diet the excess water will flush out, for relatively rapid weight loss. Also, if your intestines are full of waste, a change to high fiber (as mentioned above), will move a lot of that out. Couple one with the other and restrict calorie intake, and the 1st week or two will show some pretty rapid progress.

Heck, when I played ball we'd lose 5lbs in just one practice session. It was all water lost through sweat though, and subsequent re-hydrating brought most of it back.

Yea, my g/f just had the LapBand surgery about 2 weeks ago. She is doing good so far. I just wish I could get her into riding :)

Of course she will go to the gym and ride the "bike" inside but she hates regular bikes and being around cars. haha

I'm going to get her to check out your blog when she gets home. maybe it will make her want to get on the bike!

For starters: Here's a list of paved trails in Gainesville
* Gainesville-Depot Avenue Trail [6] - Gainesville - 2.1 miles, paved
* Gainesville-Downtown Connector [7] - Gainesville - 1.8 miles, paved (under construction)
* Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail State Park [8] - Gainesville - 16 miles, paved (asphalt 10’ wide)
* Kermit-Sigmon Trail [9] - Gainesville - Paved
* Gainesville-Waldo Road Greenway [10] - Gainesville - 2.6 miles, paved

From this Wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Florida_bike_trails

There's an answer to the being around cars issue.

Take her shopping and "happen" to stop by your LBS. Find her a bike she likes and get her out on the trails, with her setting the pace. Introduce her to the fun part and the rest may well fall into line ;)

Screw TV, check out McLarty's "The Memory of Running (http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Running-Novel-Ron-McLarty/dp/0670033634)" about a chubby, chain-smoking, drunk whose parents die and he embarks on a bicycle journey. I'm not even overweight and it was a pretty inspiring story. Entertaining too.
Peace!
-CCinC

EXACTLY! My money says Wiley had it done also.

i dont get your exactly. exactly what? they clearly dont have the surgery while at the ranch. in fact, i would go as far to say that they show has nothing to do with these surgeries. the contest do it after the fact on their own.

eric lost 200 pounds. of course he has "skin issues" and of course he has to have some work done. he had 12 pounds of skin jus hanging around doing nothing. look close at some of the past non winner contestants who lost over 100 pounds. some of them have that extra skin still. later.

I watch Jay Leno once in a while for the chuckles, but I rather ride my bike than be in front of the TV. TV program sucks 99% of the time anyway.

i dont get your exactly. exactly what? they clearly dont have the surgery while at the ranch. in fact, i would go as far to say that they show has nothing to do with these surgeries. the contest do it after the fact on their own.

eric lost 200 pounds. of course he has "skin issues" and of course he has to have some work done. he had 12 pounds of skin jus hanging around doing nothing. look close at some of the past non winner contestants who lost over 100 pounds. some of them have that extra skin still. later.


Because they bring them in after the show, for the final and brag about how good they look. Sure they look good, they've been nip/tucked. The producers want them to look as good as possible to keep the ratings up. They play on the “dramatic” transformation to keep the “drama” levels as high as they can. The producers are willing to take full credit for the “new” look without telling the truth. How would the rating be if they showed a bunch of saggy contestants at the end of the show? They wouldn’t be all that great; therefore the nip/tuck becomes almost a must so the producers get the end results that they are looking for. They are portraying an unrealistic process to weight loss and body image changes. Of course, like most every TV show it’s entertainment and not factual or educational. The show tries to promote health and fitness, which is great. They just aren't "realistic" about it, which is typical for most "reality" shows.

I really question how much involvment the show has in the surgeries. My hunch is, it's a lot more than they let on.

Having some idea of the recovery time after a pannulectomy and other excess skin removal surgeries are, as well as the cost.....I really don't think any is done. What happens on the show is a harsh diet and hard exercise. I have a lot of loose skin myself, which is hidden by my clothes. I wear a compression shirt under the jersey to reduce the "Loose Skin Flap", for example. It's funny how losing 369 pounds will do that to you ;) For me to get rid of my excess skin, I'll need to spend another $18,000-$25,000.00
Because they bring them in after the show, for the final and brag about how good they look. Sure they look good, they've been nip/tucked. The producers want them to look as good as possible to keep the ratings up. They play on the “dramatic” transformation to keep the “drama” levels as high as they can. The producers are willing to take full credit for the “new” look without telling the truth. How would the rating be if they showed a bunch of saggy contestants at the end of the show? They wouldn’t be all that great; therefore the nip/tuck becomes almost a must so the producers get the end results that they are looking for. They are portraying an unrealistic process to weight loss and body image changes. Of course, like most every TV show it’s entertainment and not factual or educational. The show tries to promote health and fitness, which is great. They just aren't "realistic" about it, which is typical for most "reality" shows.

I really question how much involvment the show has in the surgeries. My hunch is, it's a lot more than they let on.

OMG. 18 - 25 thousand dollars for surgery. I have lost over 100 from my highest weight, and I still have 40 to go. I was hoping that losing it slowly would help the skin somewhat come back down in size to fit my body. I am also building muscle, so hopefully that will help me some. I don't want any surgery, but if I have to at some point, I will do it, but only if it is for a medical reason.

Because they bring them in after the show, for the final and brag about how good they look. Sure they look good, they've been nip/tucked. The producers want them to look as good as possible to keep the ratings up. They play on the “dramatic” transformation to keep the “drama” levels as high as they can. The producers are willing to take full credit for the “new” look without telling the truth. How would the rating be if they showed a bunch of saggy contestants at the end of the show? They wouldn’t be all that great; therefore the nip/tuck becomes almost a must so the producers get the end results that they are looking for. They are portraying an unrealistic process to weight loss and body image changes. Of course, like most every TV show it’s entertainment and not factual or educational. The show tries to promote health and fitness, which is great. They just aren't "realistic" about it, which is typical for most "reality" shows.

I really question how much involvment the show has in the surgeries. My hunch is, it's a lot more than they let on.

Reality television is television that appears to be reality, using unknown often non-professional actors, but may not be any closer to actual reality then Harry Potter! The people on the program are often paid union scale, and have done one or more auditions for the program. This includes the public votes programs, and you can bet that on at least one of them, the producers will alter the public vote results to make better TV.

Think about it, Idol for example sees 25,000 people in a city, over a 2 day period, given that each contestant takes 3 minutes that is 75,000 minutes, 2 days only contain 2,880 minutes. In reality you do an audition in front of one of 20 auditioners who knows what the producers are looking for, then if they want you for the program (whether good, bad or ugly -- bad and really bad make good ratings) they put you in front of the panel, which gets filmed. The panel sees maybe 35-40 people and probably on a third day.

Think about it, Idol for example sees 25,000 people in a city, over a 2 day period, given that each contestant takes 3 minutes that is 75,000 minutes, 2 days only contain 2,880 minutes. In reality you do an audition in front of one of 20 auditioners who knows what the producers are looking for, then if they want you for the program (whether good, bad or ugly -- bad and really bad make good ratings) they put you in front of the panel, which gets filmed. The panel sees maybe 35-40 people and probably on a third day.

True. For those there is another round of auditions before the 'judges' see the contestants. I don't know how they do it, there are plenty of better singers out then the ones who are meant to be good that you don't see on the show. This is not including those meant to be laughed at.

The Biggest Loser probably does the same thing. Add in a few people who you know will clash personalities and there you go...entertainment. You also have to have people with at least a little charisma otherwise they would freak out too much being in front of the camera. Keep in mind as well that these people have already said to themselves that enough is enough and put there names in to the show. So they may have taken the first and most important steps themselves rather than it all being up to the show.

Sure they look good, they've been nip/tucked. The producers want them to look as good as possible to keep the ratings up. They play on the “dramatic” transformation to keep the “drama” levels as high as they can. The producers are willing to take full credit for the “new” look without telling the truth. How would the rating be if they showed a bunch of saggy contestants at the end of the show? They wouldn’t be all that great; therefore the nip/tuck becomes almost a must so the producers get the end results that they are looking for. They are portraying an unrealistic process to weight loss and body image changes. Of course, like most every TV show it’s entertainment and not factual or educational. The show tries to promote health and fitness, which is great. They just aren't "realistic" about it, which is typical for most "reality" shows.

I really question how much involvment the show has in the surgeries. My hunch is, it's a lot more than they let on.


I highly doubt the contestants on the biggest loser have had any surgery prior to the finale. The tummy tuck/body lift procedure you're talking about is fairly invasive and dramatically impacts the sorts of activities the recipient is able to do for a protracted period of time.

Yes I am sure that the folks on the finale are wearing compression clothing to hide some loose skin. You can look pretty good after dramatic weight loss even without having had a tummy tuck.

I will include two pictures below in the first you can see me with my shirt off in the picture I was 38 years old and have lost 230 pounds you can see a little bit of loose skin above the line of my bathing suit when you look at the second picture you'll see the compression clothing or normal clothing for that matter covers up loose skin quite handily.

http://www.morrow-online.com:8080/loose_skin.jpg