The Biggest Loser Finale

Holy Cow. That's all I have to say. Holy Cow.

Ok, maybe I do have FEW more things to say about the season finale of The Biggest Loser. First, I may be wrong on this point, but I think that the contestants this season lost considerably more weight than in either of the previous two seasons. (Matt, who won last season, lost 157 lbs - about 46% of his weight) That being said, I also believe that this season had more time at home before the finale. I thought that they had 3-4 months at home before; this season they had at least 5 months (since Heather was 5 months pregnant!). And while the weight loss is unbelievably impressive, I worry about the message it's sending as well. There's no doubt that Americans are overweight, and most of us need to lose a few pounds. But losing 50% of your body weight is an unrealistic goal for most (even for those who really do need to lose that much weight), and certainly unhealthy to lose it in that amount of time. I would like to see a special a year from now to see how much weight they have actually kept off. I'm also sure that I'm not the only person who looked into their "Biggest Loser Club" since it clearly works...seems like the show may just be a giant advertisement for their website (you do have to pay to be a club member).

Anyways, I was impressed with their weight loss, especially Poppi, who lost all that weight by herself. I was also wholly unimpressed with the attitudes of several of the contestants. Yes, you lost a lot of weight. And yes, you look great. But you're still the same person - you're NOT better than us. And Marty - is that really the attitude you want to teach your students? As a teacher, I was embarrassed for you.

Side note: if you were surprised that Heather was pregnant, please raise your hand. Oh, I hope your hand isn't up right now. As soon as they showed her being tired and gaining weight, it was pretty clear (that, and they stopped showing her progress at home!). She did look really good though, even though I wasn't a fan throughout the show.

So a blue team member finally won (actually, both big prizes were won by blue teamers...Bob must be elated), with Erik losing a ridiculous 214 pounds - that's 52.08% of his body weight. Holy Cow. He looks like a completely different person. I hope he can keep the weight off...he does seem like he's a nice guy.

And with that, we're done for another season. It doesn't look like they'll be doing a "special edition" season this spring (remember how they did those 2-episode things last spring? They weren't that bad, really). So no more fat people on scales until the fall. Sigh...how will we ever last that long? :)

Biggest Loser Final Four

I know, I said last week that I was done with The Biggest Loser. But I've logged so many hours with this ridiculous season, I just have to see it to the end. Even if it meant sitting through last night's "supersized" episode (seriously, someone at NBC is having a good laugh about calling an episode of a weight loss show "supersized"...hee hee!).

The first hour of the show featured the trainers going to two high schools to mentor kids for a whopping three weeks. Ooooh. I know it made a difference in the kids' lives to train with Bob for a few hours, then have him come in and look at what they eat for lunch. But seriously, how little effort did he put into this? At least Kim came back for the follow-up visit; Matt from last season did the follow-up with Bob's kids. And the indignation about the cafeteria food? Seriously Bob, it's like that at every cafeteria in America. And while it is nice to pack your lunch, a huge percentage of kids can't afford to do that. At some schools, more than 50% of the students are on free or reduced lunch programs. Which means that school lunch is the only option. It would have been even better if Bob & Kim had given the kids some strategies to eat what the cafeteria was serving.

The actual episode wasn't much better. The final challenge wasn't actually a challenge - somehow running a triathlon was a "reward." And yes, I did think it was touching that they all waited for Wylie to swim together. But don't you think they would have left him in the dust if there was a prize at the finish line? Seriously.

And then there was the triumphant return of Matt & Suzy to the ranch to give the contestants a pep talk. Suzy looks great - she's put back on a few pounds, but still is super skinny (I also hear that she's pregnant, so any extra weight may just be from that!). But no shocker, Matt's put back a LOT of the weight. Then he tells the contestants that he put a lot of the weight back on, but it's coming back off now that he's realized he needs to keep this up for the rest of his life. Let me get this straight - you're working out twice a day and eating a low-cal diet for the rest of your life? Seriously, I'd rather be a few pounds overweight than live like that for the rest of my life.

It also was no surprise that when Jaron fell below the yellow line, he was sent home. The other contestants were trying to get him off since he set foot on the ranch. I did like how he left though - he's a classy guy. And while I hated that he was voted out, I think it probably was the right choice - Jaron would have won the whole thing in the end.

So next week is the live finale. It's really anyone's game - did you notice how close the final four are in total percentages lost? Of course, they're previewing that a finalist has something shocking happen, so maybe one of them goes home and stops losing (my money's on Heather). There's no one left really to root for...I guess I'm hoping for Wylie, since we can't have them all lose.

I'm So Over The Biggest Loser

That's right, I said it. I'm over it. I can't totally pinpoint when the season went wrong for me, but it has gone very very wrong. Some thoughts...

Enough with the product placements. Did we really need a five minute ad for Jennie-O Turkey? I really don't mind showing the packages as they're making dinner or having snacks (nice shot of them all eating sugar-free Jell-o last night, by the way). But the commercials? Come on. Who talks like that in real life?

The contestants this season are far more interested in "playing the game" then in the life changes that have been so prevalent in the previous seasons. Have you noticed that we don't have the emotional diary room footage about how the show has given them hope and change their lives? That's because they're there to win the money, not to change their lives. And Bob can't be but so upset with Erik for his game play, since both him and Kim have encouraged it earlier in the game. I don't know if it has to do with poor casting or more "game-savvy" players, but it makes for a very different show.

I'm also not a fan of the trainers this season. Bob's tone has become totally different, and Kim is certainly no Jillian. I wonder if she left because of the direction the show was going in. I'm also not a fan of the fact that the "teams" are still in place - what happened to combining teams and training together? It's all so absurd.

So they voted off whiny Adrian, simply because she's the "new girl." Turns out to not be such a good idea, since she actually gained weight once she went home. I hope that this whole players-at-home-rejoining-the-game thing doesn't happen again next season (or if it does, add a few in and make two new teams - old vs. new). I'm glad we only have two weeks till a winner.

More Drama on The Biggest Loser

Another week with lots of drama on The Biggest Loser. Last week's drama was all about the new contestants; this week it seems that at least one of those contestants was determined to cause some drama.

Now, I need to say upfront that I am rooting for Adrian and Jaron to win. Yes, I know that Adrian is whiny beyond belief. But I also know that what they've done is far more impressive than the weight loss of those on the ranch. We all could lose 30% of our weight if all we had to do all day was exercise. But I can barely manage to maintain my weight, let alone drop 5 pounds a week, while I'm at home with all the responsibilities that entails. Good for them. Jaron especially. Not only did he drop a huge amount of weight at home, he's had a fantastic attitude since arriving on the ranch (where he continues to pull huge numbers...just what is this boy doing?!?).

Adrian? Well, she's a different story. She's still dropping huge amounts of weight. But she is whining the whole time. And I understand where she's coming from. I really do. But she has to remember that she's on national television, and very few people can get behind the whining. I wish that she had approached the challenge in a different way. I agree with her 100% - the last two challenges have been unfair to Adrian and Jaron. They are clearly designed that way. But to whine about it was the wrong way to handle it. If she had asked for a moment, stepped aside, and spoke her mind to a producer, she would have gotten a lot further. I don't think the challenge would have changed. But how she was perceived would be. What's that great Reagan saying? "Disagree without being disagreeable." There's no doubt the challenge was unfair. But her temper tantrum only made matters worse.

I'm still wondering why the trainers are continuing to train their "teams." Is it because Bob and Kim don't want to? (or don't get along?) I'm kind of disappointed that we haven't seen any big group workouts with both trainers. Strange.

So at the weigh-in it wasn't too shocking that Marty and Wylie were below the yellow line (still the lamest catch-phrase ever). The editing of the show sucks. What was a surprise was that Marty was voted off. It makes no sense. Look at Wylie - he looks like a different man. And the girls were right - with no loss this week, he is going to pull a huge number next time. Strategy-wise, voting off Wylie would have been a better choice. And it was really surprising that Erik cast the deciding vote against Marty (although, not THAT surprising considering the comment during the challenge about the whole blue team thing). Marty looked great today (albeit a little creepy with his students) - he's got to be a contender to win the consolation prize at the finale for sure.

The Biggest Loser takes a nasty turn...

It shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that I take my reality shows really seriously. So I was so disappointed in last night's episode of The Biggest Loser. So disappointed that I needed to take a day to calm down. Really.

The first order of business on last night's episode was that 6 of the "at-home" contestants came back to the ranch. And they looked good. For whatever reason, the "ranch" contestants were mad. And not mad at the twist in the game, but mad at the newbies themselves. I just don't get it. I understand being upset with the game. But you sure didn't see any of them upset when they were chosen to stay at the ranch over the 36 others. So many of them have said that they couldn't do it without being on the ranch - be happy that you're there. And the move by Kai & Heather to try to move the bed so they wouldn't have to share a room with them was just pathetic.

Next was the weigh-in, where it turns out that the at-home contestants have lost more weight than the contestants at the ranch. I am positive that I'm not the only one who at this point wondered whether or not I should sign up for the Biggest Loser diet club! Isn't that what they're all on? Remember how many people complained that all these poor at-home folks were given was access to the online club and a gym? Could you imagine losing that kind of weight with just an online club and gym access? Holy cow. And then the questions start...why did they lose so much more then the contestants who have been at the ranch? What are they doing that was so different? And how did they do it while working full time?

So Adrian and Jaron earned their way back, much to the chagrin of both the contestants AND the trainers. This was the moment I lost faith in the show. Bob and Kim each chose a newbie (and why is it that they are still working out their red/blue teams rather than pairs? are the pairs working out together at all?), and proceeded to be really horrible to them. Yes, I know that Bob and Kim were probably miffed that Adrian and Jaron lost so much weight without their help. But come on. Kim grilled Adrian about how she lost the weight, then explained away her giant weight loss (she quit drinking, she's young, blah, blah, blah). And when Adrian mentioned that the workout didn't seem tough enough, Kim took it personally instead of upping Adrian's workout. Bob was almost worse. He just kept berating Jaron's fitness level, to the point that he ended up switching trainers. And did Bob actually shout out about his three guys being the only ones who DESERVED to be there? I've always loved Bob in the past, but not so much anymore.

So then there was the challenge, which was purposefully designed to be unfair. Sure, there was a chance that Adrian and Jaron would have won the calorie part of the challenge. But everyone knew that unless they did they would be moving a ton of bricks. And there's just no comparison between moving a ton of bricks and a ton of water jugs. And I think I would have been ok with the challenge if it weren't for how it ended. Bob's attitude about them not finishing was despicable. Are we really to believe that if any of the other teams had received the brick pile that they would have finished it? And where was the support from the other teams? Maybe they would have been motivated to finish it if the other teams were cheering them on.

I guess I thought that the trainers were supposed to be setting an example for the contestants. Instead, we saw scene after scene of Adrian's workouts being picked apart, Jaron's diet being criticized, and Adrian hitting a breaking point. It was disgusting. (side note - speaking of disgusting, what is the deal with the product placement "ads" this season? who would actually eat that Jello concoction? I hope they're getting paid to say "well, Bob, there's always room for Jello...) I was so pleased to see Adrian and Jaron do well at the weigh-in. I am really rooting for the two of them to win.

One more bit of frustration with last night's episode. This isn't the first season where we have seen contestants "playing the game" when it comes to the weigh-in. Last season Matt indulged in bacon the week he had won immunity to insure a big loss the next week when he wasn't safe. But this season it seems like so many more of them are there to "play the game" rather than change their lives. First Eric gained weight to force Kai to use the free pass. Then this week Heather purposefully gained to knock-out Bobby. I guess I'm more annoyed with the fact that the trainers seem to support this, rather than the game-play itself. This is also why I think that the weight-loss percentages each week need to be cumulative rather than week-to-week. (wasn't that how it was during the individual part of the competition in season 1?)

Anyways, I was sad to see Bobby go since he seems like a really nice guy. And hopefully next week Adrian and Jaron can continue to kick some butt.

The Biggest Loser Returns

Last night’s premiere of The Biggest Loser was excellent. Because I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. In the words of my friend Jim, there is nothing so captivating as watching fat people on a scale. Only in America.

This season started with a twist – 50 contestants, one from each state, who would be narrowed down to 14 after the first workout. It was kind of sad, watching all these morbidly obese people crying. They thought that they were coming to the ranch for actual help losing weight – instead they were sent home with a book, a dvd, and access to the same website that anyone in America can get to (for a small fee, of course). While it may have been good tv, it was just mean. Yes, I know that they are technically still in the competition, and someone will be headed back to the ranch, but it’s still mean. If they could lose weight on their own, wouldn’t they already be skinny?

Anyways, Bob is back, and hotter than ever. Whoo – I could watch him all day. And a new trainer. I wonder what happened to Jillian. Did she decide to not come back? Was she not asked back? Either way, the new trainer seems tough.

So far, I’m rooting for the blue team. And not just because of Bob – they seem to be far more together than the red team. I especially like Bobby & Amy – they seem like the two who could go to the end. On the red team, I like Kai and Pam. This could definitely be the year when a woman wins The Biggest Loser. And regardless of what happens, this continues to be one of the most inspiring shows on television.