You know the show Biggest Loser. People leave their homes, go to a ranch and lose an exorbitant amount of weight. You see them with personal trainers and professional chefs teaching them about exercise and nutrition. You see physical challenges that looks like the participants are pushing to the limits. Then weekly, you see them stand on a scale in anticipation of what the numbers will ring up. It is not uncommon to see 5 or 8 or 10 pounds dropped in a week. Um, what?
Let's pull this back a little. These are crazy amounts of weight to lose in a week. However, not every pound is the same for every person. If a four hundred pound person lost 10 pounds, they've lost 2.5% of their body weight. A three hundred pound person losing 10 pounds has a loss of 3.3% of their body weight. Keep going... a two hundred pound person = 5% of their body weight and a one hundred and fifty pound person = 6.7% of body weight. See how different that 10 pounds is for everyone?
What is cool about the show is that they do weigh everyone in, but to keep a more level playing field, they use percent weight lost. What is less cool is that they are doing strictly weight loss. This is the hook. This is why people watch. They mention that everyone goes through medical screening, etc, but how much is that involved in the weight loss results?
The show really focuses on working out and good nutrition. They touch on outside stressors and the effects of emotional and mental health on physical weight. It IS motivating to see someone work so hard to take back their life. But who's struggling with thyroid disease? Or hormonal imbalance? Insulin resistance? ADHD and low dopamine?
Yes, it's television. It needs to be dramatic to be attention grabbing. How about the common folks struggling with work, finances, time, relationships, children... This is why the contestants abandon their lives and go to an isolated ranch. Drastic situations sometimes require drastic actions. The daily life at the ranch is not realistic for typical real life. However! It can translate to every day life off the ranch, just like it can for the viewers at home.
It's about changing bad habits and making better choices. That's it. But it is SO hard to implement long lasting changes and to break habits. It is making health a priority. It is saying no to the comfort food when you're feeling down and finding a healthier alternative. It is making time to work out. It is moving your body with a purpose. It is to break up with unhealthy vices. It is surrounding yourself with supportive, encouraging friends. It is to seek therapy when you never thought you were that person.
To be clear, weight loss doesn't guarantee health. Skinny people are not necessarily healthy (or happy). How one looks is not a great measure of health. This is why it is so important to have a medical professional monitoring you, taking vital signs, ordering/interpreting labs, prescribing necessary medicine(s), etc etc etc. Bob Harper, one of the trainers of the show, looks like the epitome of health. He works out, eats well.... poor guy still had a heart attack. He was predisposed to heart disease due to a congenital condition and never knew it. The point here is, health is more than just losing weight and looking good. It truly is an inside and out kind of thing.
Doing a quick search, it appears that most of the winners kept the majority of the weight off after the show. Some gained back a few pounds but more importantly work to maintain the healthy habits they learned when on the show. Good for them!
If you're someone looking to lose weight and think that semaglutide or another glp-1 is the miracle answer, think again. This is coming from someone who does prescribe semaglutide and other medications to help with weight loss. Medication is a tool. It's the every day healthy habits that really get people into a healthier body and to maintain that healthier body.
What's your opinion? Trash or Treasure? Meh, maybe it's neither. Maybe it is just another form of entertainment with the ability to motivate and launch some into a healthier life. And for that, we need to applaud it.
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