Does anyone watch the Biggest Loser?

[andrealynn]

Feb 5, 2014 11:59:50 GMT -5 ebeth said:

I'm just going to C&P what I wrote on my local:

I havne't seen it yet. I saw some pictures online. she doesn't look emaciated to me. thin yes. and the arms often look all jacked up after that kind of weight loss because of the extra skin.

she's like 5'4" so while 105 is on the small side, it's not THAT small.

also, the money. if I was in the running for 250K I could get scary skinny too. people thought Helen was too skinny at the finale and she put on like 15 pounds pretty shortly after. Olivia and Danni were also not far off of where Rachel is BMI wise and both of them put on 15ish pounds post finale. so I guess I don't understand why this is a problem now? why THIS contestant?

Now that I have actually watched the show, I am more on this train. Most contestants gain a fair amount of weight back after the finale just due to water and resuming more normal eating.

[thebulldog]

I haven't read all the post but i saw a pic online....with that much weight loss wouldn't she have extra skin? I mean at least around her stomach and arms? I don't get how her arms could be so skinny.

i be typing from me phone. typos and grammer dont count.

[mrsjthompson]

DH and I were shocked when Rachel stepped out last night. I guess Bob and Jillian were too:



I will say I have read a couple of different times now that contestants get down to an unsustainable weight for the final weigh ins, then gain back to a happier weight. She might not be too thin for her height, but she really did look painfully small.

[cruiser]

Feb 5, 2014 12:33:27 GMT -5 mrsjthompson said:

DH and I were shocked when Rachel stepped out last night. I guess Bob and Jillian were too:



I will say I have read a couple of different times now that contestants get down to an unsustainable weight for the final weigh ins, then gain back to a happier weight. She might not be too thin for her height, but she really did look painfully small.

And it isn't just Jillian and Bob. Look at the girl in the back - is that Jennifer? She has a telling look on her face as well. Not a happy shocked look either.

[clseale]

Feb 5, 2014 12:33:27 GMT -5 mrsjthompson said:

I will say I have read a couple of different times now that contestants get down to an unsustainable weight for the final weigh ins, then gain back to a happier weight. She might not be too thin for her height, but she really did look painfully small.

It's totally understandable how/why that would happen. The winner is always crazy thin, her arms and face just look especially gaunt to me. I guess I always worry about whether or not they've become addicted to losing weight. Like, OK, you did it for the finale to win. Cool. Overall, be really proud of what you did, but  stop. Now it's time to maintain. Like I said earlier, I would hope to see her in a few months at 115, and not 95. Sometimes I feel like they could go either way. 

[schitzengiggles]

I think the BL winner often is below their true healthy, happy weight. Money is a huge motivator - it would be for me, too. Rachel looks especially thin though, and not in a good way. I think the look on Jillian's face said it all - this was different than other winners. Hopefully, she gains a few pounds back and does not get carried away into a full on ED :-(

[naldridge]

Feb 4, 2014 23:09:20 GMT -5 mcfelix said:

Twitter is going crazy right now about Rachel looking anorexic. So sad. She really did look skeletal.

mcfelix I'm not calling you out here, just using you as an example Don't be offended, please!

While this is straying away from the topic a bit, I have seen a lot of commentary re: Rachel and Biggest Loser on Facebook and all over the internet and a lot have said things about her "looking anorexic" or how she "looks like she has an eating disorder." 

This is a very personal topic for me, but it drives me CRAZY to see looks associated with an eating disorder. There are a lot of very skinny underweight people who do not have eating disorders and a lot "normal looking" or even overweight people with seriously disordered eating. Eating disorders are psychological and often are realized or manifested through physical appearance but that is certainly not always the case.

[CallingAllAngels]

Feb 5, 2014 14:07:39 GMT -5 naldridge said:

This is a very personal topic for me, but it drives me CRAZY to see looks associated with an eating disorder. There are a lot of very skinny underweight people who do not have eating disorders and a lot "normal looking" or even overweight people with seriously disordered eating. Eating disorders are psychological and often are realized or manifested through physical appearance but that is certainly not always the case.

This is a good reminder.  Thank you for sharing. 

[mcfelix]

naldridge - not offended. I understand what you are saying. While I have known a number of people suffering from anoxeria that looked similar to Rachel, I have also known people that looked like that without an eating disorder.
I've also been surprised to learn of a few friends that suffered from bulimia, as I had no idea (agreeing with your point that eating disorders often manifest in physical appearance but not always).
Any psychological disorder is something to be taken seriously.

[katinthehat]

Feb 5, 2014 9:10:09 GMT -5 clseale said:

In the spirit of not shaming someone who just did something really amazing, it probably should be pointed out that regardless of how she lost the weight on the show (assuming no EDs), she is considerably healthier after the show than before the show. I'm sure a physical would show amazing improvements in her blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, etc., so really, good for her! I just hope that the next time we see her, she's not 95 pounds. Hopefully she can find a balance that works for her, and if she does happen to gain 10 lbs, she's OK with that and it doesn't mess with her psychologically.

The chance though, of her gaining back, just 10 lbs is not good at all.  She's set up to fail from the start.  It would make for terribly undramatic television, but they should have them weigh in their last day on the ranch then come back for another weigh in after a year at home.  If you've kept off the weight in a year, you win.

[Deleted]

On the flipside you know who looked great and had a great attitude last night? Tumi.

[shorewife]

Feb 5, 2014 10:52:08 GMT -5 sadlebred said:

I'll play devil's advocate here. 3 spin classes/day...sure, why not? I often ride my bike for 3-4 hours at a high intensity. I don't see the difference. Anyone that has done a sub 5 hour century bike ride has ridden hard for a long period of time.

It's a game. She may have gotten down to that weight to win the prize money. She may have no intention of staying so light. At 5'4", 105 pounds isn't out of the realm of healthy. I know several very healthy cyclists that are about that size. Some of the skeletal looks is all of the loose skin. (Her face looks terribly thin, though!)

Also, don't forget that she was an Elite athlete swimmer in high school. She HAS been this size before. It may not be healthy for her now, but hopefully she can find the balance between healthy, active, and fit--not just skinny. I will agree that she looks too thin for her frame. Gaining 10-15 pounds would probably be good for her.

I agree with this.  Many of us run/bike/swim, etc for hours at a time in the name of training for something.  If you look at it like that, she was training for something too. And as a former elite athlete, she's a competitor!  However that said, I am 5'4" with a relatively small frame and if I ever go below 115lbs I start to look kind of icky so I can't imagine 105lbs.  But now the competition is over and she won, so hopefully she can find some sort of happy medium.

[katietornado]

Feb 5, 2014 11:59:50 GMT -5 ebeth said:

I'm just going to C&P what I wrote on my local:

I havne't seen it yet. I saw some pictures online. she doesn't look emaciated to me. thin yes. and the arms often look all jacked up after that kind of weight loss because of the extra skin.

she's like 5'4" so while 105 is on the small side, it's not THAT small.

also, the money. if I was in the running for 250K I could get scary skinny too. people thought Helen was too skinny at the finale and she put on like 15 pounds pretty shortly after. Olivia and Danni were also not far off of where Rachel is BMI wise and both of them put on 15ish pounds post finale. so I guess I don't understand why this is a problem now? why THIS contestant?

Danni was 5'6" and 137 pounds, so BMI of 22.1.
Olivia was 5'9" and 132 pounds, so BMI of 19.5.

Rachel is 5'4" and 105 pounds, so BMI of 18.  <18.5 is underweight.

It's a problem now because 105 is so low, and because of how painfully thin she looked.  She didn't look healthy.  She looked ill.

[ebeth]

Feb 5, 2014 19:31:25 GMT -5 katietornado said:

Feb 5, 2014 11:59:50 GMT -5 ebeth said:

I'm just going to C&P what I wrote on my local:

I havne't seen it yet. I saw some pictures online. she doesn't look emaciated to me. thin yes. and the arms often look all jacked up after that kind of weight loss because of the extra skin.

she's like 5'4" so while 105 is on the small side, it's not THAT small.

also, the money. if I was in the running for 250K I could get scary skinny too. people thought Helen was too skinny at the finale and she put on like 15 pounds pretty shortly after. Olivia and Danni were also not far off of where Rachel is BMI wise and both of them put on 15ish pounds post finale. so I guess I don't understand why this is a problem now? why THIS contestant?

Danni was 5'6" and 137 pounds, so BMI of 22.1.
Olivia was 5'9" and 132 pounds, so BMI of 19.5.

Rachel is 5'4" and 105 pounds, so BMI of 18.  <18.5 is underweight.

It's a problem now because 105 is so low, and because of how painfully thin she looked.  She didn't look healthy.  She looked ill.

my research on this consisted of going to wikipedia which says Danni, Olivia, Hannah, and Helen were all right around 19 at the finale. not technically underweight, but when you're morbidly obese to start you pretty much have to go to extreme measures to get that small in that short of time.   

my point is no one who wins that show is losing weight at a 'healthy' rate. but because this woman 'looks' sickly (also not the first time that has happened, plenty of contestants have emerged from a triple digit weight loss looking a little. . .haggard) it's suddenly a problem?

also, the money.  250K is a lot of money and many of these people quit their jobs to go to the ranch. I can't say I blame them for maybe going a little too far. I'd do it and I'm niether strapped for cash nor obese.