November Class Schedule
October 30, 2010 by Jenny Neighbour · Leave a Comment
Happy Fall!
There is a class for everyone this November! Check out our new Pilates class added to our early morning schedule as well as our new DANCE class on Friday mornings! Deb will be teaching the Friday morning class that will not only be FUN…but will get you movin’ and groovin’ while you sweat off those unwanted calories!
For you DRUM CLASS lovers, please consider coming to our Saturday morning DRUM class at 8am on Saturdays! This class is a favorite to many and we have moved this class to Saturdays to include more people…AND JENNY GETS TO TEACH IT!!!
Click on links below for a complete calendar and for class descriptions!
See you in CLASS!
November Class Descriptions – 2010
Within You
July 26, 2010 by Deb · 1 Comment
Within You
by Author Unknown
A man planted a rose and watered it faithfully and before it blossomed, he examined it.
He saw the bud that would soon blossom, but noticed thorns upon the stem and he thought, How can any beautiful flower come from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns? Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose, and just before it was ready to bloom, it died.
So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The qualities planted in us at birth, grow amid the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, the defects.
We despair, thinking that nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it dies. We never realize our potential.
Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can possess is to be able to reach past the thorns of another, and find the rose within them.
When we make mistakes or feel we have failed, always remember that within you there is a rose. Learn from your mistakes and from your failures, and move forward. Mary Kay Ash once said, “Most people live and die with their music still unplayed. They never dare to try.” Always remember that within you there is a rose, live to your potential – dream, set goals, take action, and achieve all that is possible.
Deb:)
The One Flaw in Women
July 17, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
Today I’d like to pass on a very special gift that I
passed on to my mother to show my appreciation to her.
This gift is for you and all of the woman in your life that
YOU care about the most.
It’s a short movie called “The One Flaw in Women” and
has been produced as a tribute to women all around
the world.
It’s extremely inspiring and uplifting. It only goes for
a few minutes but boy those few minutes are powerful. It’s
got an incredible message.
So go ahead and enjoy this gift and feel free to pass it on
to all the important women in your life. I’m sure they’ll
love it as much as I did.
http://www.TheOneFlawInWomen.com/mindmovies
Have a wonderful day,
Deb 
Do you ever feel like QUITTING?
April 18, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
Maybe you have started a workout regimen 500 times before, or started a diet 1,000 times before but always ending up quitting…..THIS time you DON’T have to QUIT!
Watch this motivating clip from the movie RUDY….it might just make you think twice about quitting!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Cg6t3w9EzQ&feature=related
You see what I think I got from this clip and from the movie in general is, it’s not about how many times you TRY to succeed but it’s about how many times that you don’t give up and keep on trying no matter what that matter!
If you quit you will never know what you will have missed and the process of trying is what gives us the strength to persevere through in life and never give up.
Success seems to be connected with ACTION, Successful people keep moving, they make mistakes, but they don’t QUIT! Learn what NOT to do again, learn what TO do, but no matter what, never QUIT!
Deb
Easter Prayer
March 31, 2010 by Jenny Neighbour · Leave a Comment
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced by our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 52: 3-5This is holy week. The week where we are to remember how God gave his one and only son to die for our sins. I don’t know about you, but this concept really blows my mind. I just completed a wonderful study at my church that looks at the last 24 hours of Jesus life on earth. It details his suffering, mockery, and ultimate crucifixion.
I am now looking at Easter a little differently this year. I am reminded that Jesus knows all about suffering. He endured unimaginable pain, disgrace, and humiliation…for me. It somehow gives me comfort to know that when the storms of life come my way…Jesus is always going to be able to understand my pain…my suffering. I know that I truly can do ALL things with Him by my side.
I pray that you know how much you are loved by our Heavenly Father! He understands your pains and hurts better than anyone. He is waiting to hold you in His mighty arms and give you comfort, understanding, guidance, and ultimate healing. If you are hurting right now, or if you are seeking a renewed spirit this Easter, perhaps the scripture above and the prayer below will offer you a little peace this Easter season.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you Lord, for your Son Jesus, the Savior of my life. You loved this world so dearly, Father, that You sent Your Son to die so that we, Your children, might have eternal life. I am so grateful for that priceless gift, and want to let the love of Jesus be reflected in my words, my thoughts, and my deeds. Let me always count Jesus as my dearest friend, and let me share His transforming message with a world in desperate need of His peace.
Amen
SPRING FORWARD!
March 22, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
Spring forward! I love the sound of that, don’t you? The idea of springing forward means more to me than just more light and longer days. It really captures how I feel during this season.
I love springing forward with a fun-loving attitude as I take my fitness regimen outdoors. There is nothing better than doing my classes or personal training outside while breathing in the fresh air. The increased energy during this time of year gets me excited about roller-blading, biking and soon to come swimming and kayaking!
May you all blossom in areas this season that will have you springing forward in your daily life.
Blessings,
Deb
Smile
March 12, 2010 by Deb · 2 Comments
Spending the next 16 minutes watching the amazing short film below may be the best spent moments of your day. The film is called Validation and it’s guaranteed to make you smile. And with that smile of yours you can have a significant impact on your mood and totally make the day of the people you come in contact with.
Please take the time to watch this great film:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbk980jV7Ao
Have you noticed that many people you come in contact with throughout the day are walking around with their head down and look miserable?
Why is that?
When you greet someone and ask them how they are doing what is the typical response that you receive? “Not too bad“. “Pretty good“.
It’s become an automatic statement. There isn’t even a pause to think about how you are actually feeling.
When asked how I’m doing I make it a point to always say, “Great!” “Fantastic!” “Excellent!” or “Absolutely Awesome!”
And guess what… I’m never lying when I say those things. I have so much to be grateful for and there are so many things that go on in my day that really make me smile.
After I respond by saying, “Excellent!” I usually receive a weird look followed by, “Really?” “Why are you feeling excellent?”
I spare the person the hour long conversation and usually cut to the chase by saying, “Life ROCKS and I am truly blessed with great friends, family and health.”
I’m not sure why it’s such a surprise when someone tells you they are excellent. Maybe it’s because we expect the response, “Pretty good.”
A smile and uplifting comment such as “Absolutely Awesome” can really have a positive impact on that person’s day and current state of mood.
Your smile can influence how someone else carries on with their day. Something so small can have a tremendous impact. And to think of how easy it is to smile.
As you smile I want you to feel how it impacts your own state of mind. Does your posture change? Does it make you feel like doing something good for yourself such as consume a healthy meal or go do your workout?
I encourage you to smile as often as you can today. That’s just about the easiest thing that I could ask of you. Follow through with it and let me know how it impacts your day.
In my opinion fat loss comes easier when you are happy. It’s also my opinion that people who are physically active are happier people. I don’t see any miserable people when I’m out roller-blading or bike ride. We’re all excited to greet each other and carry on with our activity.
Those are some of my favorite moments of the day. That brief exchange of a smile and wave while I’m riding my bike and passing another biker, walker, or jogger.
Smile… it’s great for your health.
Deb
The Things You Didn’t Do
March 5, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
Have you fallen off the wagon and need help to get back up??
February 16, 2010 by Deb · 2 Comments
Every once in a while you need a swift kick in the butt to get you back on track and living to your full potential. I recently received a kick in the butt from a mentor. She actually called me ‘WEAK’, can you believe that? Not weak physically, but mentally. I was coasting through life and she let me know it. Are you ready for your butt kicking? Watch this quickie video clip from the movie “Rocky Balboa“. In this clip Rocky gives his son the kick in the butt that he needs to get back on track and living to his potential.
Okay…you need to view this video clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uASVzkrEKgs This is what we discussed after viewing clip….maybe some of you can relate? Let’s discus some of the key points from the Rocky Balboa Speech…
The first important point thing that Rocky tells his son is, “When things got hard you started looking for something to blame.” Now let’s turn this back to you and your fat loss journey. Have you found yourself in a situation where things are going really great… you’re working out regularly, eating well, and feel awesome, then after four to six weeks something happens… you’re faced with a challenge or obstacle and you fall off the wagon? What is some of the self talk that goes on in your head when this happens and what do you tell others? Do you say, “Here I go again, I always end up sabotaging myself.” Do you say, “I’m just too busy to workout regularly, I’ve got kids and my work schedule is demanding.” Do you say, “That diet didn’t work, it’s too strict.” Or do you blame it on the genetics that your parents passed down to you? Where do you look to place the blame when the going gets tough?
Let’s take a look at the next point that Rocky makes to his son. “It’s not about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward… how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!” Again, we’ll use this statement and compare it to your fat loss journey… It’s absolutely important that you give each workout your very best effort. Hit each workout hard! It’s absolutely important that you give your best effort to following a healthy nutrition plan. Hit it with your best shot! But that’s not what will ultimately make you successful at burning all that unwanted body fat from your physique. The defining moments of winning the fat loss game are the ones where you get hit hard by an obstacle or challenge and you get back up stronger than ever before and continue moving forward toward your goals. Those moments where you feel at your lowest, whether you missed a few workouts because you were sick or you go way overboard on junk food while you are out with your friends at a party, these are these are the moments that you actually want to experience because they help you grow as an individual and become the best that you can be. Obstacles and challenges happen for a reason. They are not designed to make you fail… they are designed to help you succeed. How’s that for a mindset shift?
Let’s take a look at another important comment that Rocky tells his son, “If you know what your worth than go out and get what you’re worth, but you’ve got to be willing to take the hits and not pointing fingers and saying you ain’t where you want to be because of him or her or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain’t you. You’re better than that!” Do you know what you are worth? Are you willing to go out and get it even though it means that you are going to have to take some hits and get knocked down several times along the way to receive what you are worth? I know that you are worth more than you may be thinking at this moment. Take some time and really think about what you are honestly worth. I also know that you are better than the effort that you have been putting forth. How do I know that? Because we can all do better. We can all dig deeper. We can all push our limits. We can all experience a new level of greatness.
Here’s one last important statement that Rocky makes in this clip, “Until you start believing in yourself you’re not going to have a life.” Wow! How’s that for a kick in the butt? That’s some serious tough love, but if you have seen the movie you know that it was exactly what Rocky’s son needed to hear. Rather than get defensive he took that hit from his dad, let it soak in, and used it to explore who he really is and what he is really worth.
We all have goals and dreams, but do you believe that you will achieve them? I mean deep down with every ounce of your being believe that you will achieve them? Losing weight is not easy. Maintaining that weight loss is not easy either. Believing in yourself is not always the easiest thing to do as you may have experienced. Striving to continuously discover new ways to improve yourself, your body, and your health, takes a heck of a lot of work. But the rewards are always well worth the price that you had to pay in order to achieve them. No one and nothing is holding you back from achieving the body and life that you deserve except for yourself. Take responsibility. Take massive action. Take the hits and keep moving forward. Focus on your goal and don’t stop until you’ve achieved it. Turn your WISH into a MUST! Don’t just HOPE for it to happen… EXPECT it to happen.
Embrace the challenges that you are faced with and use them to sculpt the body and life that you deserve. Carve out a new path and lay down the pavement for others to follow so they too will experience the incredible successes that you are about to achieve. It’s never to late to get back into the game! Make your new start TODAY!
Deb:)
Just because it’s a reality show doesn’t make it “REALISTIC”!
November 16, 2009 by Deb · 1 Comment
The Biggest Loser – a reality show which is essentially a race to see who can lose weight the fastest – is one of the most popular in Television history. I’ve known about The Biggest Loser since it debuted in 2005 because people ask me all the time what I think of the program and of course, the burning question: “How do they lose so much weight?”
Until now, I’ve only seen video clips, browsed forum threads and read news about the show. To give informed answers to questions in the future, I finally wanted to see first-hand what this was really all about. So I sat through the entire two-hour 8th season premiere on September 15th.
Despite its worldwide popularity, The Biggest Loser is controversial and responses to the show are highly polarized. Most viewers seem to be either die-hard loyal fans who defend the show tooth and nail or critics who loathe the program to the point of disgust or outrage.
Most fitness professionals and personal trainers dislike the show, mainly due to what they say is inappropriate training program design and extreme (teetering on dangerous) overtraining.
The mixed reviews for the show aren’t surprising because The Biggest Loser clearly has pros and cons. Having finally watched a full episode, it reinforced my previous belief that the cons outweigh the pros. But in any complete and objective review, it’s only fair to show both sides, so here they are:
BIGGEST LOSER PROS
The Power of Accountability
Accountability is one of the most powerful motivational forces. The producers of The Biggest Loser have set up the conditions and environment with so much accountability, it’s impossible for contestants not to lose weight. This program uses all four levels of accountability; (1) accountability to self, (2) accountability to a partner, (3) accountability to a group, and (4) accountability to the public.
The Spirit of Competition
The most impressive and dramatic body, health and fitness transformations I’ve ever seen have come as a result of competition. You can count me as one of them. When ever we have a contest at CT it brings out my competitive side. Why? Because competition is motivating and competition brings out the best in most of us. Although there are downsides to the way the Biggest Loser competition is judged, a healthy competition is a good thing in my book.
The drive of emotions
The producers of The Biggest Loser have done a meticulous job with contestant selection by finding individuals with touching life stories (as contrived as they may be, to encourage made-for TV drama ranging from romance to backstabbing).
It’s Television, so they need storylines and human interest and there’s no shortage of that here. I’m sure many viewers have to break out the Kleenex – it’s a real tear jerker that pulls at the heart strings. (I’m sorry to my dear friend Shannon who LOVES the show). At least because she is friends with myself and Carol she does know the show isn’t realistic and she finds it “motivating” as she workouts on her home elliptical while she watches the show….you go girlfriend!
If this program stirs up some emotions in viewers that stimulate them to get up off the couch and start a health and fitness program, then that’s a good thing. People are not inspired to action with logic; they are driven to action with emotion and only later justify their decisions and actions with logic.
Hope and inspiration
Having inspirational role models moves people from “What’s the use; I’ve tried everything and nothing will ever work for me” to, “If they can do it, I can do it.”
I’m tempted to say that these are not the right role models for the public and I do NOT recommend anyone at home try to duplicate what these contestants are doing. However, I can see the value of extreme role models purely for inspiration.
When a 65 year old runs a 135 mile ultra marathon, it makes a 20 or 30-something runner ask, “What’s stopping me from running a paltry 26.2 miles?” If an amputee sprints around a track on prosthetic legs, it makes sedentary able-bodied people, say, “What’s my excuse?” When a 425 pound person loses half his bodyweight, someone with only 40 pounds of excess fat says, “What’s stopping me?”
Seeing those who have already done it forces you to answer, “Nothing was stopping me but my own excuses and limiting beliefs. Now I see it’s not hopeless… it’s possible!”
The reality of hard work
Unlike most weight loss programs which promise results without effort, The Biggest Loser shows the contestants busting their butts. Arguably the biggest loser goes too far, replete with brutal training montages and plenty of crying, screaming, puking and falling down. That’s television for you.
Fitness for life can be enjoyable and even become part of your fun and recreation time. But to think that spectacular and quick results can be achieved without incredibly hard work is naïve. For above average results, it takes an above average effort. For mind blowing results, it takes a mind blowing effort. With effort and hard work, amazing transformations can happen.
BIGGEST LOSER CONS
The Biggest Loser is judged on weight loss, not body composition.
There is no doubt that contestants are losing huge amounts of fat – far above the average, which is usually 1-2 pounds per week. Even obese individuals rarely lose more than 3 pounds of pure fat per week consistently in a real world situation.
The results on the show – often 10 pounds a week with 20-25 not uncommon for first and last week – should not be surprising when you calculate the massive caloric deficit achieved from 4-6 hours of daily training and physical activity, combined with low calorie dieting.
What many fans seem to ignore is that weight loss is not the same as fat loss. Body weight includes muscle, bones, internal organs, water, glycogen and don’t forget the contents of the digestive tract. The weight loss on The Biggest Loser is deceiving. Much of the loss is water. Many contestants may be losing muscle and other lean tissue.
The solution would be simple: judge the competition on body composition, not body weight. Body fat testing is admittedly prone to error, but with the big budget of this show, there’s no reason they couldn’t use gold standard testing methods such as hydrostatic weighing or Near Infrared scans like we use at CT. They used a Body Bug in the last episode, but the contest wasn’t judged on the results of those tests (it was more like, “look how fat you are!”)
What’s most alarming to me is that because the show is judged on weight loss, not body composition, contestants are penalized for gaining muscle and actually rewarded for losing muscle. Think about that one for a while……isn’t that setting them for FAILURE in the future??
Rapid weight loss competition encourages physically dangerous practices
The network, the trainers and other supporters of the show say they do not promote or endorse drugs or any unhealthy methods of weight loss. Official statements notwithstanding, the inherent nature of the show promotes dangerous behavior.
Listen to what Biggest Loser season one winner Ryan Benson had to say on his my space blog:
“I wanted to win so bad that the last ten days before the final weigh-in I didn’t eat one piece of solid food! If you’ve heard of “The Master Cleanse” that’s what I did. It’s basically drinking lemonade made with water, lemon juice, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper. The rules of the show said we couldn’t use any weight-loss drugs, well I didn’t take any drugs, I just starved myself! Twenty-four hours before the final weigh-in I stopped putting ANYTHING in my body, liquid or solid, then I started using some old high school wrestling tricks. I wore a rubber suit while jogging on the treadmill, and then spent a lot of time in the steam room. In the final 24 hours I probably dropped 10-13 lbs in just pure water weight. By the time of the final weigh-in I was peeing blood.
Was this healthy? Heck no! My wife wanted to kill me if I didn’t do it to myself first. But I was in a different place, I knew winning the show could put us in a better place financially and I was willing to do some crazy stuff. All this torture I put myself through has had no lasting effects on me (that I know of) and at the time it was sort of a fun adventure for me – but I am sure it reeked havoc on my system.
In the five days after the show was over I gained about 32 lbs. Not from eating, just from getting my system back to normal (mostly re-hydrating myself). So in five days I was back up to 240 – crazy!”
It’s unknown whether any Biggest Loser contestants have taken diuretics (they’re not allowed, but then again Major League baseball players aren’t allowed to take roids either). The greater the rewards and monetary incentives, the greater the willingness to cheat. One thing that’s clear is that even non-drug manipulation of water and electrolyte balance is incredibly dangerous. Would you trade $250,000 for a kidney?
The media often sensationalizes anabolic steroids as a big problem in sports and performance enhancement. What’s been underplayed is another drug used (un-medically supervised) by athletes to shed water and make weight classes – diuretics. It’s not the steroids, but the diuretics, combined with extreme dieting, which have resulted in more confirmed deaths, coronary events, kidney problems and emergency room visits.
Benson wasn’t alone. Kai Hibbard (season 3) answered a question about this on her my space blog:
Q: I’m curious on just how much did you all dehydrate yourselves before the BIG WEIGH IN?
A: I dehydrated off 19 pounds in the last two weeks before the BIG weigh in. I stopped eating solid food after eating only protein and asparagus (a diuretic) then I had two colonics and spent the night before the weigh in and out of a sauna, there really was no “diet” the day of the weigh in, we weigh in as dehydrated as possible on empty stomachs after 2 hour workouts in the morning.
As with Benson, Hibbard’s final week weight came flying back:
“I actually put on about 31 pounds in two weeks. After my body had a chance to stabilize I spent all last year hovering between 159 and 175, I fight everyday to find some stability.”
The Biggest Loser pushes overtraining to the point of high injury risk
On the first season 8 episode, just minutes after getting off the bus, contestants faced the first workout “challenge.” The group of morbidly obese contestants (weighing up to 460 pounds), were instructed to take a 1 mile run down the beach. It was NOT a go at your own pace type of thing, it was a RACE with a prize for the winner.
One of them collapsed just short of the finish line, at first looking dehydrated and fatigued and then progressing into looking seriously ill, incoherent and unconscious. She was flown by a life flight chopper to the hospital. The hospitalization was weaved into the drama of the episode, but alarmingly trivialized.
It was not the first time. Contestants from previous seasons have also been admitted to the hospital and one suffered a stress fracture.
Later during the workout, contestants were shown climbing a Jacob’s ladder, pushing sleds, doing intense cardio and calisthenics, lifting weights and performing plyometrics. These did not look like beginner-level workouts and the form on some of the exercises was sloppy enough to make a certified personal trainer cringe.
Before the show (off camera), the contestants took a stress test to screen out people who might be at risk for a heart attack, and no doubt, they all signed airtight liability releases. There was also a disclaimer on the screen for the viewing audience. But aside from that, there seemed to be a disturbing absence of proper risk warnings in light of the physical tasks they were asked to perform.
There was also no mention that 4-6 hours of training per day for weight loss is gross overtraining, almost certain to bring overuse injuries, and something that no one at home should EVER try to emulate, even if they could.
The Biggest Loser has no relevance to real world situations
The producers of The Biggest Loser have created the perfect environment for success. Contestants have personal trainers, nutritionists, group support, accountability, a national audience, and the biggest carrot imaginable – a prize of $250,000 and a potential platform to launch a motivational speaking or fitness career.
The participants move out of their homes and onto The Biggest Loser “Ranch” where they have no job other than losing weight. There are no kids to worry about, no work, no social obligations, and no chores, nothing – just working out and dieting.
This is a totally artificial and controlled environment with no relevance to the average person. In the real world, people who work out 4-6 hours a day for weight loss are not called inspirational and dedicated, they are called obsessive-compulsive or exercise anorexics.
Shouldn’t contestants (and viewers) be taught to exercise in a way that fits into a normal person’s daily life, between work, family and social obligations? Achieving health and fitness as part of total life balance is probably one of the biggest missing pieces in the obesity crisis, yet you won’t find solutions for that challenge on The Biggest Loser.
The Biggest Loser trainers are walking a fine line between tough love and abuse
I’ve listened to an interview or two with Biggest Loser trainer Jillian Michaels and she was motivating, informative and seemed like a good spokesperson for fitness. That’s why I was shocked by her yelling profanities in the face of the contestants. She was using profanities like crazy.
I believe strongly that a good coach sometimes has to get in a client’s face and be very tough. People are motivated by different styles of leadership and coaching, but in general, most people need to be pushed, not coddled, out of their comfort zones and they will always perform beyond what they believed they could accomplish when they are put under pressure.
On The Biggest Loser, normal rates of weight loss are penalized and frowned on as failure
One of my first exposures to this show was a video clip of the weigh ins, which I saw a couple years ago. A blue team member lost 20 pounds in one week. Mouths were open, gasps were heard, and jaws were hitting the floor, followed by congratulations and applause.
When the other blue teammate stepped on the scale and registered “only” an 8 pound loss, the congratulations quickly faded, heads were shaking, facial expressions turned to contempt and blue team member number two sulked off in shame because it appeared as if she did something horribly wrong and that only one member of the team pulled her weight.
When an 8 pound weight loss is seen as a failure, imagine what viewers at home will think about a perfectly normal 1-2 pound weekly weight loss.
The Biggest Loser encourages unrealistic weight loss expectations
Surely any clear-thinking person realizes The Biggest Loser is a contest and at home they are NOT going to drop 25 pounds their first week and 8-10 pounds every week after that. However, more and more people are posting on forums online and asking their trainers why they “only” lost 3-5 pounds their first week or why they can’t lose more than 2 pounds per week.
When people get discouraged with perfectly reasonable weight loss, it makes our job as fitness professionals and health educators much harder. This is a big reason why most trainers hate this show.
Do you know how difficult it is to persuade a Biggest Loser fan that 3 pounds per week is exceptionally good fat loss? A 3 pound weekly weight loss of pure fat is outstanding and above average, but it’s more difficult than ever today to get people to accept slow and steady weight loss as a best practice for healthy, maintainable results. I suggest my clients try to lose 1% of their body weight per week, that’s safe and it’s realistic!
Is it fair to pin the blame on one reality TV show? Well, not entirely. We can pin blame on a combination of human nature and the approach of the weight loss industry at large, including diet programs, pill and supplement advertising, especially those which show “results not typical” (or even phony) before and after pictures. But reality TV courtesy of The Biggest Loser is certainly one of the culprits.
The Biggest Loser teaches you absolutely nothing about setting realistic goals. It actually encourages the opposite.
The Biggest Loser does not teach real-world lifestyle strategies
I haven’t watched enough of the show to assess whether the participants are given any kind of nutrition, exercise and health education that they can take home with them and make a part of their lifestyles for the long term.
Even if the contestants get psychological counseling, fitness education, motivational tools and time with dieticians – off camera or on – the structure of the competition leads me to think it is all for naught.
Participants and viewers are not learning about nutrition and training as a lifestyle, because the inherent nature of the show only teaches them how to crash diet, crash exercise and achieve short-term weight loss.
In particular, where is the emphasis on nutrition? I guess there’s not much time to film nutrition education when 45 minutes of the show is spent on the high drama of the weigh-in and elimination round.
The Biggest Loser doesn’t focus on lifelong maintenance
Weight loss is easy. Whether you lose 1-2 pounds a week or 10 pounds a week, either way, maintenance is going to be the true challenge.
A study from Oxford showed that 80% of weight losers will gain all the weight back within 3-5 years. A report from the National Weight Control Registry suggested that this relapse rate could be as high as 95%.
It’s not a foregone conclusion that you’ll regain weight after a large and or rapid weight loss. Some can keep it off. Most won’t, and if you lose weight rapidly, the odds are against you. Without a plan for maintenance, the odds are close to nil.
Where is the focus in The Biggest Loser on teaching contestants maintenance strategies for keeping the weight off after they get back into the real world?
“The Biggest Loser”: Much worse than a clever name
I have one final con; more of a personal pet peeve, really. I despise the name of the show. No one wants to be a loser. Anyone who sets a goal and achieves it is a winner, but in this show, if you win, you’re a loser.
The words “lose” and “loser” should be stricken from your vocabulary. Release, shed, discard, incinerate, and burn are much better words and for your own sake, please don’t call yourself a loser.
“But it’s just semantics, Deb.” Precisely, and the hidden meanings of words, names and labels carry great power. They can shape a person’s identity, affect self-esteem and influence behavior.
Conclusion
As a show so widely broadcast and publicized, which spotlights the worldwide obesity problem and encourages people to do something about it, The Biggest Loser could have been something great. But it falls short in many areas. There are unredeemable flaws weaved into the very fabric of the show.
The trainers and physicians get on their soapboxes and tell the contestants how sick they are. But is this show really about health? Depending on how you approach it, getting skinny doesn’t always mean getting healthy – physically or psychologically.
Not only do the cons outweigh the pros, if you go back and look at my list of positive qualities in the show, you can find every one of them somewhere else in a healthier context. It’s important to have role models, but this show is no model for physically and emotionally healthy weight loss.
The Biggest Loser is just Television, where the bottom line is ratings and sponsors. If you can, draw some inspiration from the show, but not your education. If you watch, then please recognize this show for what it is – entertainment; show business. Nothing more, nothing less. I challenge the show to do a “realistic” season next year….follow YOU in your real life, working full-time, running kids here and there, preparing your own meals etc. They could help people learn how to fit realistic workouts into their already crazy schedules, and help them learn to prepare healthy meals for their families. The WINNER would be the person who lost the most over-all body fat percentage, which would NOT help if you lost muscle mass or water…..that would truly be a show worth watching and it would be called “THE BIGGEST WINNER”!
Deb
