Now that the show is over, I'll finally admit it: I've been a closet fan of this season of The Biggest Loser, at least since the early stages. I seem to take pleasure in the irony of watching it with my fiancee while we eat ice cream (low fat ice cream, but ice cream nevertheless). Anyway, the show is at once exploitative and inspiring, showing people losing cartloads of weight in order to give them back the fulfilling lives they lost as they packed on the fat. It also gives viewers a chance to decide which of the trainers -- Jillian or Bob -- is most manly.
(By the way, my money's on Jillian there. She's attractive, but she scares the living crap outta me.)
But what seems to happen between the last challenge and the live finale is that the finalists tend to go from healthily thin to scarily emaciated, all in the name of winning the grand prize. And, after taking a look at this year's winner, I have to ask: Is this healthy? And will it cause problems down the road?
As anyone who endured last night's three-hour finale (which made the three-hour Apprentice finale look fast-paced by comparison) can tell you, 48-year-old Michigander Helen Phillips took the prize; her 140-pound weight loss was a higher percentage of her starting weight than that of finalists Tara Costa and Mike Morelli.
But both Helen and Mike -- who lost more than 200 pounds, for heaven's sake -- looked like they crossed over that line from skinny to too-skinny. Helen looked especially tiny; when she left the ranch after the last weigh-in, she looked like she was at a healthy weight, and her face and body looked like it was in proportion. When she came out on stage during the finale -- 30 pounds lighter than when she left the ranch -- she looked like a skeleton; arms spindly, face drawn. She went from a pretty middle-aged mom to someone that, to put it bluntly, looked anorexic.
Last season's winner, Michelle Aguilar, also looked too skinny during the finale but in recent appearances on the show looked like she gained a little bit of it back and reached a healthy weight. So, if Helen decided to go skeletal because she knew it was the only way to beat the super-tough pair of Mike and Tara, then we should expect her to gain ten or fifteen pounds and look healthy when she inevitably appears next season.
But it's very easy to slip from being in competition with others to being in competition with yourself, which is what causes eating disorders like anorexia. Heck, you'd think the most competitive of the three finalists, Tara, would have come out looking like a skeleton herself; ironically, she was the healthiest looking of the three. Maybe she knew what her limits were.
(Oh, by the way, at-home winner Jerry also looked far too thin. But it was remarkable that he was able to do what he did after being one of the first contestants to be eliminated. He even beat fourth finalist and the show's capo, Ron Morelli.)
Let's hope that both Helen and Mike ease off now that the competition is over and that they each go up to a somewhat more realistic weight. I'd hate to hear about either of them having health problems down the road because of The Biggest Loser.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-13-2009 @ 1:33PM
Preston said...
But remember that these people were once 280, 300 or even 400 pounds before. They were obese. They must be relieved to get all that weight off their bodies. I wished that they'd go to a more healthy weight and not a movie star kind of weight to appeal to the TV execs and have the audiences Ooohh and ahhh about all the weight they lost. But what happens when the cameras go off and the staff and cameras pack up to head back to LA or Hollywood to get away for the summer? Then what? Can they keep it off? They need to stick with it and stay in shape.
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5-13-2009 @ 2:03PM
Sarah said...
I agree that Helen looked way too skinny...I too hope that she did ot for competition sake and then puts back on a few pounds. I however disagree that Mike looked too skinny. I thought he looked perfect. You could see he was muscular and lets not forget the kid is 19!! He weighed 182 or something close, you'll be hard pressed to find many people say that thats too light at 19! And really thats not too light for most men at ANY age, its definetly a far cry form Helens 117!!
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5-13-2009 @ 2:21PM
jordan said...
I think they did a big diservice last night to women. They tried to make us believe that Tara weighted 140 pounds last night for the finale. Now Tara was my favorite person on the show, but at 5'9" there is no way she weighted in at 140 last night. More like 180 which is nothing to be ashamed of, more like the producers trying to put on a good show.
But there will be thousands of women that look at her that weigh 140 and say do I really look that big. The showing is getting to be too much about the game and less focused on them getting help.
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5-13-2009 @ 2:29PM
Sarah said...
i am 5'8" and i weigh close to 180lbs... Tara is definitely closer to 140lbs. you'd be amazed at what the camera does to your body.
i always wonder what they do in between the last weigh in and the finale as well. i always look at the hair, cause thats the best way to detect calorie deficiency. it would not surprise me if Helen skipped a few meals, but they did have her running stadiums and pushing tires. even if the show promotes healthier living, at the end of the day its called the Biggest Loser.
5-13-2009 @ 2:31PM
Judy said...
I don't believe in the weight conspiracy thing. I'm a 5'9" female, and I've weighed anywhere from 150-235 in my adult life. I was slightly overweight at 150, and pretty chubby at 180. I think she has a slighter build than me, which would mean 140 is realistic. Plus it wouldn't surprise me if they're dehydrated for the final weigh in, so she probably put on 5lbs by the end of the night.
As far as the main subject, they maybe should disqualify people who go under a certain weight for their height and build, or make the season shorter to make getting super skinny impossible.
5-13-2009 @ 3:11PM
Tammy said...
Wasn't Allison pregnant at the last weigh in?
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5-13-2009 @ 2:59PM
ColleenS said...
It looked to me like Mike was wearing something to hold himself in or flatten himself around the torso. I agree that Helen definitely got too thin (he seemed really stiff on camera too) and I thought that Tara looked wonderful (and Mike did too - I didn't think he was too thin for his height I think 180 is about right).
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5-13-2009 @ 3:22PM
Matty said...
I was most shocked by Helen's arms. I thought she looked strong as hell, rather than anorexic. There was some big time tone there that wasn't there before. I thought she looked a bit too skinny, but I think she added a lot of muscle as well.
Tara looked like Kate Winslet.
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5-13-2009 @ 4:19PM
Brent Todd said...
The problem is that most of these contestants have a lot of excess skin which does them dis-service. Obviously they can't go in and get plastic surgery to remove this for the finale because someone could accuse them of getting lipo. It's the entire reason why they go from weighing in shirtless/sports bra to wearing a tshirt. After the finale you can bet they go get that excess skin removed which probably will be in the range of another 5-10lbs. So couple that with what they will gain back and all is well.
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5-13-2009 @ 5:01PM
Maria T C G said...
Give me a break! First people will say people on TV are too fat, and now they are too skinny. They look great! This is for one million dollars and going to be on TV. If they look too skinny for you-I am SURE it will not be for long. This is a tremendous feat that took place in a VERY short time. There is no way they will keep it up at that weight. NOT that they will not stay slim. I hope they do. Just lay off them-sheesh!
The problem that I never hear talked about it how they work them to the point of being dizzy or throwing up. That is VERY VERY unhealthy and risky behavior. That should not be emulated. Yet no one ever comments on that.
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5-13-2009 @ 7:05PM
heidi said...
I think that Helen is way to skinny she ways less then me and i am way younger than her. She looked good when she left the ranch and now it disgusts me. I think Tara looked great. She does not need to lose any more weight.
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5-14-2009 @ 4:01PM
Andrea Owen said...
I think you have a great point. I can't say that I watched this round, I quit watching after the first season years ago. I caught an episode in another season where Jillian was disappointed in a contestant who only lost 5 pounds in a week. I was floored.
As a fitness professional myself, I think this show is dangerous and careless. We, as a country are already obsessed with weight. Yes, obesity is an epidemic but eating disorders and disordered eating and views on fitness are as well.
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5-14-2009 @ 8:48PM
TMBG said...
I can't agree that they were too skinny. They looked like athlete's which is exactly what they are. The natural state for humans is pretty skinny, it's only over the last thousand years or so where food has been easier to come by that people have been able to put on weight.
Helen is quite muscular too, where as someone who's starving themselves often have very thin arms
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5-14-2009 @ 11:51PM
Shannon said...
I agree that Helen looked too skinny, but I guess that those are the lengths you have to go to if you want to win that prize. I was touched to see everyone express genuine joy at Jerry's win, there were no hard feelings there. The only negative thing I saw was Kristin. I thought she looked cheap and trashy...what was she thinking? She looks like Brigitte Nielson, Stallone's ex that was shacking up with Flav-A-Flav. That's just my opinion, though, and I've read a lot of comments from viewers that thought she looked great.
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5-17-2009 @ 12:27PM
chacha said...
I agree that Helen absolutely looked unhealthy..while she may be toned, her elbows were wider than her arm above it! What's more, her head now looks too big for her body, like the skin is hanging there off the bones (and not just because it was stretched out when she was heavy). Mike looked great, though I am glad he won the $10,000 in one of the challenges so he will hopefully have a chance to remove the obvious extra skin around his torso. His weight looked great for 19, but Helen's was ghastly for both her height and weight. Tara, bravo, you clearly listened to Jillian's advise in needing to find a balance, something Helen obviously missed!
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