Why I Can’t Support NBC’s The Biggest Loser

I help people become more lean, more fit, and more healthy. I emphasize with my clients to lose 1-2 pounds of fat a week in order to keep their metabolism high while still getting fat loss results. However, the contestants of the biggest loser seem to defy my advice by losing a whole lot of weight in a short amount of time while looking great. Here are some of my top key things I see as flaws of the show:

• The severe exercise program and calorie restriction weight loss is not from fat, it is actually mostly water, not fat loss. This has little value towards improving health and fitness.
• Losing more than this a week will slow down metabolism due to muscle loss. Muscle is the metabolic tissue that burns calories. It is true that the body will use some of the body’s fat for energy during this time, but it relies much more on amino acids. Where does the body get amino acids? That would be stored in muscles, which have to be broken down to be used. Your body actually catabolizes itself if you were to go on an extreme program like the ones you see on the show! Gross!

• The contestants have excessive skin due to the extreme weight loss in a short amount of time. Skin does not reshape as fast as the rest of the body when extreme measures are taken and the end result is having extras flaps when waving goodbye to people.

• The show tells viewers that in order to get extraordinary results, they must enroll into a fat camp that has a controlled environment that has a sole purpose that revolves around exercise and dieting. The average person may be able to train 1 hour a day, most days of the week. On the show, the contestants train 6 to 8 hours most days of the week. This is an insane and impossible task for most people that would result in injuries and people not being able to pay their bills!
• Finally, if you follow the contestants after the show you will notice that most of them will gain the weight back (sometimes more) after the show. If the point was to keep the weight off instead of gain it all back, was this successful? Here are just a few examples:

http://www.oprah.com/slideshow/oprahshow/20090112_tows_followup

http://www.celebritydietdoctor.com/ryan-benson-biggest-loser-follow-up/

I’m not a fan of the show because they do not do things the best possible way for a successful fat loss program. This show has the prime opportunity to send people the right and accurate message on how to lose weight and keep it off forever. This show and others like it are simply other “diet” programs that fitness professionals have to fight against because most people keep searching for the “miracle pill” for fat loss that does not exist. They must begin to implement the concept of continual progress, consistency, nutritious eating, and the other components of the Power of 5 Fitness Program. If watching the show gives you inspiration to exercise and eat better, who am I to say it is bad? Remember, the key is to learn how to effectively take what is learned about behavior modification and apply that to the daily rigors of real life, then participation in the show is worthwhile.

Be Better,

Dexter