Reshuffling the Biggest Loser

My post last week revolved around the horrors of the Biggest Loser, and how the show shamelessly promotes anti-fat messaging. This show, which some claim is entertainment, is far from that. It is a platform for mockery and humiliation, doing very little to improve the overall emotional well-being of the contestants.

This week, I wanted to dedicate my post to how I would change the show if I were to have any say in it. I am by no means any kind of expert nor the best person to be running a program of this nature. I am, however, a person with empathy. A person who understands that obesity is a complicated issue. A person who recognizes that health goes beyond the physical and comprises of psychological and emotional pieces, too.

With that in mind, here are some of the things I’d change once in charge:

• Put on some clothes! The fact that female contestants are weighed in sports bras while men are topless is silly and unnecessary.  Everyone should keep their clothes on. This isn’t a nudist colony.
• Destroy all scales. Food scale, weight scale, any scale – destroy it.  If individuals in this show wish to have healthier lifestyles, part of their “treatment” includes shifting their mindset away from numbers. Weight is not a good indicator of health, therefore weighing 145 lbs tells me absolutely nothing about your body composition, activity levels, or eating patterns.
• Keep the medical testing. If there is one thing the Biggest Loser almost got right, it was to include medical testing.  Medical testing by a physician before any exercise program helps to identify conditions that may need to be monitored (e.g. low blood pressure, irregular heartbeats).
• Burn embarrassing family photos. You know those tacky infomercials where people are shown in black and white, struggling to function? Well the Biggest Loser does exactly this to glorify their program. They show photos of contestants in the past, gorging on food. Some photos are in black and white, because apparently, life as an obese person is just lack-luster.  Burn them all, I say.
• Be active in ways that are fun and enjoyable. Why anyone would want to be in the gym for 4 hours straight beats me. My suggestion is to integrate daily activity, starting at 15 minutes at a time. Do things you enjoy. For some people that’s yoga, and for others it’s volleyball. You can even integrate activity into daily life by taking the stairs or walking on your lunch breaks.
• Every contestant gets to pick their own dessert a couple times a week. Contestants need to eat realistically, and this includes sweets and treats.
• Issue some pink slips. Jillian and her trainer friends are obnoxious and ignorant.  Instead of these foolish fitness buffs, what contestants need is a team of health professionals including dietitians, psychologists, physicians, and kinesiologists to provide ongoing support.

Looking at my amendments, I sense the Biggest Loser may not be as entertaining as it once was.  It seems that I’ve killed the essence of the show.  Quite frankly, I am okay with that.

These contestants were never meant to be spectacles for the rest of the nation.  They did not sign up to be part of a freak show or a circus.  They are individuals who are trying to improve their lifestyles and are openly asking for support.  Admire their courage, as it takes a lot to do what they do.

As for viewers of this program, choose a more enriching way to spend your time.  This is not entertainment, it’s garbage.  And that’s the honest truth.