A Winning Reality Show: The Biggest Loser

I am typically not a reality-show junkie. Of course, I have experienced watching some of the more popular shows, you know which ones I'm talking about, but my attention-span rarely lasts for more than a week or two, and I'm over it. "The Biggest Loser" has been on the air since 2004 yet I only started watching the show this past season. I was sucked in almost from the start, and now 14 weeks into the season, I am completely obsessed with these people, and emotionally connected to their weight-loss journeys. Frankly, I find myself counting down the days until Tuesday night when I can watch the show again. Sounds a little obsessive, I know, but hey, it's entertaining as well as motivating, so whatever works, right?

The show itself provides amazing incentive for anyone who has become stranded on their couch with a bag of potato chips in their lap, staring endlessly at the television in front of them. If nothing else, the show makes you not want to eat junk food as you're watching all the huffing and puffing and physical challenges that are taking place right before your very eyes. Observing the physical changes in the contestants from one week to the next is magnificent. That's why we're invested; we root for our favorites, we want to see their incredible shrinking bodies each week, because that's the basis of reality television: living vicariously through the people inside the box.

Considering myself something of a dieting expert, only in the sense that I've been on a diet off and on since I was 13 years old, "The Biggest Loser" is a visceral experience for me, particularly during the weigh-in portion of the show. Personally, I dread the scale. Haven't stepped on one in years. Seriously. I have no idea how much I weigh, and I don't want to know. I gauge my weight by the size of my clothes. It's probably not the best way to do things, but I do seem to possess this unequivocal fear of seeing, in no uncertain terms, what my actual weight is. The courage it takes for these folks to not only get on the scale, but to do it on national television in Lycra bike shorts, tank tops and sports bras, blows my mind!

This has got to be one of the biggest reasons (pardon the pun) that the show is such a hit. We, the audience, are watching the contestants do what we cannot do for ourselves. Naturally, they have advantages that the home viewer doesn't have. Shall I state the obvious? Okay, here goes: they have trainers, (Bob and Jillian) that make boot camp sergeants look like wimpy little girls. They are sequestered on this fitness ranch as if they were in some foreign language immersion program. Their day consists of working out, eating healthy food, working out, more working out, physical challenges, eating more healthy food, and sleeping. No distractions. No outside influences. Just fitness, fitness, fitness all day, every day. Admittedly, not all of us could handle such a regimen, but that is the precise reason why we watch the show.

Let's never forget, however, that ultimately, these folks are playing a game. There's a lot of money at stake for the Biggest Loser. As wonderful as winning all that money would be, I think I would simply be happy slimming down and staying fit. For these contestants, playing the game means that losing four pounds in one week isn't enough! In my current situation, I would be ecstatic to lose four pounds in a week. But for the contestants, they live in constant fear of falling below that dreaded yellow line. And sometimes four pounds isn't enough to save them from going home. I often hope that doesn't send the wrong message to all the dieters out there. Most dieters know that healthy weight loss usually translates into approximately 2 pounds a week. And most dieters know that after the initial "honeymoon period" of losing weight, there is bound to be a plateau, when weight loss slows or stops. Sometimes there can even be an inexplicable gain which causes the strongest dieter in the world to go screaming for the hills.

Bottom line, the show is a hit and it's easy to see why. There are so many overweight and unhealthy people in this country and this program tugs at our heart strings as we get to watch these average Joes and Janes makeover their bodies and their lives. It's no easy feat what they are doing and I am in awe of each and every one of them. I applaud them each week, as I watch their progress with tears streaming down my face. Their transformations are remarkable. They are the underdogs; the fat kids who were never chosen are finally getting their due. This show could run forever and probably has a very long shelf life. Since our country seems to be getting fatter by the minute, there will be no lack of eligible contestants. And I will remain a loyal follower of the show, cheering the contestants on, seeing myself in them, and pursuing the never-ending quest to become, in my own life, "The Biggest Loser."