Leaf in the Wind wrote:
What impresses me is the physical regime these folks go though, very intense and I wish i could afford the time/money to put a work out like that together.

That, to me, is the sticking point of the show... Anyone with the time and money to pay a trainer, nutritionist, (and, if need be, therapist), etc. to force them can keep trim easily.  For the family that has to choose between the $5 worth of heavily-preservatived calories or the $15 of organic vegetables... not so much.  Then you get to try and fit exercise into an already-crowded schedule.

Maybe there's a happy place where personal discipline, economics, and a desire for healthy living meet for everybody.  I certainly haven't found it.  I managed to lose all my fat and gain 40 pounds of muscle in boot camp.  Since then, the muscle's going soft, and I don't forsee that reversing without another forced-on-me-like-boot situation... which I can't afford the multiple hundreds of extra dollars a month to impose on myself.

All that to say that as far as The Biggest Loser goes, it may be motivating, but once again questions the 'reality' of reality TV...

IDtenTANGO wrote:
That, to me, is the sticking point of the show... Anyone with the time and money to pay a trainer, nutritionist, (and, if need be, therapist), etc. to force them can keep trim easily.  For the family that has to choose between the $5 worth of heavily-preservatived calories or the $15 of organic vegetables... not so much.  Then you get to try and fit exercise into an already-crowded schedule.

All that to say that as far as The Biggest Loser goes, it may be motivating, but once again questions the 'reality' of reality TV...

Right on!  What the hell happened to the 80's???  No one cared about what they ate.  Sure you had a few random health nuts out there, but basically everyone was happy.  I suppose someone will say "they're all dying of heart disease, high blood pressure and clogged arteries" but let's be serious.

Like Tango says, our reality is that it does cost a lot more to eat "healthy" than it does to eat what we want.  Hell, EVERYTHING costs more nowadays.  Right now, a gallon of gas costs more than a gallon of milk.  We are a society of people that are always on the go (probably to work one of several jobs) so what the show does NOT show are regular people (like us) that actually have lives (and things to do besides just focus on diet and exercise).  Of course if all you do all day for 3 months is diet, exercise and sleep. . .you could drop TONS of weight too.  This shouldn't be a great surprise.  Give me a reality show where people that work two jobs AND manage a family full time. . .eat healthy on a budget AND fit in regular exercise.  I want to see tHAT!

Jay Dezelic wrote:
I think that's the purpose of the show.  I had seen only a few minutes of it once and it did not compel me to go out and buy a box of donuts.  It is probably the only true reality show on television considering that most Americans are overweight.  I think the show gives hope to people who think that they are hopelessly overweight.

I think that you're spot on Jay in that it gives *hope*.

What i like about the show is that it demonstrates that one can lose a signficant amount of weight without bariatric surgery (i.e. gastric bypass/stomach stapling etc.), if one is significantly overweight/obese.

Leaf in the Wind wrote:
Watched it a couple of times, have to be impressed with some of it. I stepped on the scale back a couple of years and decided enough... and dropped 85LBS that year, have kept most of it off (put about 10 back on this fall/winter after an injury in late summer). Now, I lost the bulk of that in about 7 months of exercise and diet, so I know what it is like.

Congratulations on the enormous dedication and effort in losing the weight.  :-)  I hope you're recuperating well from your injury.

Leaf in the Wind wrote:
What impresses me is the physical regime these folks go though, very intense and I wish i could afford the time/money to put a work out like that together.

Actually, the intensity of the physical regime during the 10-12 weeks, while highly effective, scares the hell out of me.  Not because of the actual exercise etc., but because if you listen closely to some of the participants on the show, you'll hear about their injuries, or the injuries they discovered they had when they came back home - specifically stress fractures in their feet as well as tendonitis.

I think it is wonderful to emphasize exercise in conjunction with sound nutrition as the way to lose weight, and for TV purposes, I "get" why the rapid weight loss is so effective.  But honestly, the risk of physical injury is damn scary.

Additionally, weight loss *that* rapid can be really detrimental in terms of skin elasticity as well as developing gall stones.

I guess I'm more the tortoise than the hare type of gal ;-) (having lost 30+ pounds since last May through diet and exercise)

Shyly wrote:
What makes me sad is that many (not all) of them clearly have eating disorders, which are not helped by the whole "tempting food just waiting for you to binge and FAIL!" thing that goes along with this particular "reality" series.  Hardcore dieting will not solve the underlying emotional and psychological problems of someone with an eating disorder, the weight will come back, and then their self-esteem will be even worse.  Blargh.

And thanks to the ever-amazing goddess Shyly, here is my last point---

sound nutrition and exercise are the keys to losing weight IF you don't have an underlying reason why you gained the weight in the first place. (eating disorder, emotional eating, fat as protective armor etc.).

I know that for me, despite everything I know about exercise and nutrition (which is significant), my ability to lose weight is firmly controlled by my emotions and psychology.  I have to be in the right "head space" in order to lose weight.  If I'm not, despite my best efforts, I will sabotage myself....

I will never be "thin" (and I am oh-so-fine with that), but where I am on the "fat" spectrum is firmly dictated by my emotional/mental well being.

I wish that the show provided counseling as well...hand in hand with the trainers.  If one has been fat all of one's  life (or for a significant part of it), losing an enormous amount of weight is going to have one hell of an impact on one's emotions.  The very definition of who you are will have changed...

KatieK wrote:
I'd like to comment on the cost differences mentioned above....

When you figure in the cost of medical expenses that often coincide with being overweight, the "cheap" food ends up costing so much more!  Check out the newest issue of Shape magazine, they have an article that touches on this subject.  I know from personal experience that you can eat healthfully on a tight budget - I've been on one since I can remember.  A person can purchase a great deal of fresh/frozen produce for a small amount of money and it will last for two weeks (until the next paycheck rolls in).  It does require a little more effort to prepare meals made with these ingredients, I'll admit.  But I'd rather work a little harder in the kitchen than do an extra 30 minutes of that damn cardio machine.  I do want to say that I'm not preaching being "skinny".  I'm a huge fan of taking care of your body - heart, lungs, muscle, skin - all of it.  And eating healthy, wholesome foods and exercising regularly is the best way to do this.

*applauds*

Shyly wrote:
What makes me sad is that many (not all) of them clearly have eating disorders, which are not helped by the whole "tempting food just waiting for you to binge and FAIL!" thing that goes along with this particular "reality" series.  Hardcore dieting will not solve the underlying emotional and psychological problems of someone with an eating disorder, the weight will come back, and then their self-esteem will be even worse.  Blargh.

You're absolutely right, but what we the viewers don't see is the key to their successful weight loss.  Anyone can "hardcore diet", but what these contestants get is a continual education on healthy choices in an unhealthy world.  If you've ever watched the footage of them back home in restaurants with their friends/family, you'll see them saying "I'll have the baked chicken, but no skin, salad with low fat dressing, and vegetables with no butter".

Not only do they diet, but they're taught how to avoid temptation and how to make wise choices when out in public.  Also, they're taught how to exercise properly and incorporate it into their routines.

The show expends quite a bit of effort in educating the contestants and following up with them months later.  No, not all of the contestants stay healthy, but most seem to be keeping up with their programs.  I think that's a good thing.

KatieK wrote:
I'd like to comment on the cost differences mentioned above....

When you figure in the cost of medical expenses that often coincide with being overweight, the "cheap" food ends up costing so much more!  Check out the newest issue of Shape magazine, they have an article that touches on this subject.  I know from personal experience that you can eat healthfully on a tight budget - I've been on one since I can remember.  A person can purchase a great deal of fresh/frozen produce for a small amount of money and it will last for two weeks (until the next paycheck rolls in).  It does require a little more effort to prepare meals made with these ingredients, I'll admit.  But I'd rather work a little harder in the kitchen than do an extra 30 minutes of that damn cardio machine.  I do want to say that I'm not preaching being "skinny".  I'm a huge fan of taking care of your body - heart, lungs, muscle, skin - all of it.  And eating healthy, wholesome foods and exercising regularly is the best way to do this.

I couldn't agree more.....

I'm sure we can all agree that today, time is of the essence for anyone who isn't wealthy enough to have hired help.  With things piling up in our day to day schedules who has time to do anything but what is put in front of us?  But maybe just maybe that is the issue at hand.  We're so forced into these regular-throw-everything-at-us-at-once schedules that we forget to take time out for ourselves.  It could be as simple as spending time in the car on the way home from work with the cell phone off, the classical music on and a back road to the house or as complicated as a regimented three days a week yoga class.  But one way or another, one needs to take some regular time off during the day and recharge.

As for eating healthy - the idea that healthy food costs more is only true to a degree.  I agree that the immediate costs may be prohibitive but the long term costs, I would hope, outweigh them.  That and there are things people can do to eat healthier without having their paychecks deposited into the Bank-O-Health.  Growing some of your own veggies (apartment dwellers can do it too.... Wal-mart has pots :-) ), avoiding fast food places on your way home from work, or just plain stealing from the neighbor's fruit trees (ok, scratch that one....)... It just takes a little mind power to accomplish it. 

And hey, I don't mind those few extra pounds, it is what you do to keep them in check and ensure that they don't outweigh YOU that is the issue.  Whether mental or physical, the key to wanting to lose weight should be a matter of health, not a matter of vanity.