The Biggest Loser

by Michael on 14/05/09 at 3:34 pm

I finished watching The Biggest Loser finale last night. I always find it inspiring to see how much weight these contestants lose. However, I was disappointed that Helen won. I didn’t find her the least bit inspiring, and in fact, I was really angry at how I think that she shafted her daughter in the elimination round. Every other parent on the show was committed to keeping their kid at the camp for as long as possible, but Helen seemed to manipulate her daughter into agreeing to go home â€” you can do it on your own, I can’t. I suppose it’s not fair of me to judge like that, but that’s how I saw it.

I really though that Tara or Mike should have won, and I would have prefer Tara. She had the most integrity out of all the players; she worked hard; and she didn’t seem into the game play too much. Every week she just worked as hard as she could to stay above the yellow line. I liked Mike, too, and I don’t want to diminish his awesome achievement; but his father was another master manipulator, so I wasn’t rooting for their team.

I felt badly for David. After all that time at home and he only lost 55 pounds. I don’t know that I would have had the courage to go back on the show for the final weigh-in. I suppose in terms of the real world he did well: 55 pounds in 18 weeks is three pounds a week, but in Biggest Loser terms it’s not great. I would have said, “Sue me. I ain’t going back!” But God love him, he got himself a suit and showed up. I can so relate to how he must have felt. I can’t tell you how many New Year’s resolutions I’ve broken, how many summers have gone by where I didn’t get into those hot shorts, or how many Mondays passed where I didn’t stick to my new diet or fitness regime; but to have to do that publicly â€“ I would have died.

And this is one of my beefs with The Biggest Loser. I really hate the whole sending people home thing. I think it’s just so unfair to bring people on the show, get their hopes up, and then, send them away, “You’re not the biggest loser, sorry.” I don’t know what happens after the show. Do they get a trainer paid for by The Biggest Loser? Do they get meal delivery? Do they get a gym membership or a bunch of DVDs? Or do they just get a limo home? I sure hope the show doesn’t leave them hanging out there by themselves.

I’d be happier with the show if they kept everyone at The Biggest Loser ranch. But then that wouldn’t create the kind of tension that reality shows like to have. And television producers tell us that we’ve got to have drama. But I think if they put their heads together they could find other ways of keeping us interested in the show. I sure wouldn’t be opposed to watching a Biggest Loser show where everyone got to stay. I watched a Canadian show called Taking It Off, which was a little different in that everyone chose a different weight loss program, but it did follow the contestants through to the end. And I enjoyed that.

And this brings me to my last beef. What the hell is The Biggest Loser thinking bring those two poor fat girls on the show to compete for the last spot. Good lord! I felt so bad for the girl who didn’t get voted onto the show. Not only does she not get to lose 100 pounds, but now she’s faced with the notion that “America doesn’t like me.” I was so angry. What a horrible thing to do to her. I was seriously thinking that Allison Sweeney was going to open up the card and scream, “You both get to go! Ha ha!” And that would have been the honourable thing to do.Â I really hate it when television shows give us people’s suffering as entertainment.

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