Biggest Loser

I'm not one for the foul mouth, childish, narcissistic, vacuous television known as reality TV. It just doesn't interest me in watching ugly people for hours on end. It says a lot about our society by the success these shows garner.

With that being said, I have fallen prey to a reality television show; however, in my own opinion, The Biggest Loser does not fall into any of the mentioned categories. The producers seem to do an excellent job in vetting the type of people that would turn the show into a circus act. They create a microcosm of the world around us by bringing people from all over the country, with differing backgrounds. A true melting pot.

For those who don't know about the show here is the premise; Simply stated, they take morbidly obese people and turn them into lean mean fighting machines. They accomplish this by teaching the contestants proper nutrition and exercise with the help of personal trainers Jillian Michaels and Bob Harper and a cadre of expert physicians.  Now, this wouldn't be reality TV without a twist. These people are also competing for a grand prize of $250,000; In addition, anyone who is voted off before the finale are eligible to compete for what they call the at home prize of $100,000. Usually, each week 2 contestants fall below the yellow line, lowest percentage of weight loss for the week, and the rest of the contestants decide who gets to go home and who stays for another week.

The physicians behind this show should receive the Nobel Peace Prize in Medicine. They have proven that obesity can easily be cured with proper nutrition and exercise, that you don't need unnecessary surgery, fad diets, or stupid pills. No lame excuses like, "I'm big boned", "It's genetic."  Most of these contestants come in with diabetes, and numerous other ailments that requires them to take a bag of pills to just stay alive. By the end, they are completely off the medication and have their diabetes under control without needing insulin. Not to mention they look and feel so much better.

The new season, season 11, kicked off last night with 22 contestants. One of them being the largest person on the show to date, Arthur 5'8" 34-year old father of two who weighed in at 507 lbs. In 2009 he weighed 646 lbs and lost the 139 lbs on his own before coming on the show. Rulon, a gold medal winner from the 2000 Olympics and bronze in 2004 in Greco-Roman wrestling, who weighed in at 474 lbs.

All of the contestants have amazing stories, some of which come out in the tortuous training sessions they have with the trainers. These moments of lucidity lead the person to a new understanding of themselves and those around them and give them a stronger resolve.

As the show progresses through the season I may blog about my observations of the show. If you don't watch the show, you need to at least watch the finale where they show the transformation from the beginning of the season.