MovieChat Forums > The Biggest Loser (2004) Discussion > Season 8 update, 6 yrs later. Weight ba...

Season 8 update, 6 yrs later. Weight back on...

posted 8 years ago by OddsAreIAmRight
4 replies | jump to latest

Good New York Times article on what happens after the ranch...

http://a.msn.com/05/en-us/BBsvGHe?ocid=se

A study of Season 8’s contestants has yielded surprising new discoveries about the physiology of obesity that help explain why so many people struggle unsuccessfully to keep off the weight they lose.

Kevin Hall, a scientist at a federal research center who admits to a weakness for reality TV, had the idea to follow the “Biggest Loser” contestants for six years after that victorious night. The project was the first to measure what happened to people over as long as six years after they had lost large amounts of weight with intensive dieting and exercise.

The results, the researchers said, were stunning. They showed just how hard the body fights back against weight loss.

It has to do with resting metabolism, which determines how many calories a person burns when at rest. When the show began, the contestants, though hugely overweight, had normal metabolisms for their size, meaning they were burning a normal number of calories for people of their weight. When it ended, their metabolisms had slowed radically and their bodies were not burning enough calories to maintain their thinner sizes.

[–] BigRich 8 years ago

Yeah, I just read another article on that.

The Biggest Loser has been inspiring TV viewers for 17 seasons with tales of weight loss and triumph. But now the show is inspiring science to take a closer look at the longterm effects of speedy weight loss — and there are some potentially disheartening results for contestants of the NBC reality show.

A new study published Monday and highlighted by the New York Times claims that contestants' rapid weight loss during the show's production causes a slowing of the metabolism that makes it harder for them to keep the weight off in the long term.

The study specifically used a group of Season 8 alums as the focus, finding that most of the 16 who competed regained much of the weight they'd shed during the show. Some are now even heavier than they were when they filmed their first episode.

The study linked their troubles to low resting metabolic rates. While it is not uncommon for the metabolism to slow after weight loss, researchers were surprised to find that the contestants' metabolisms failed to bounce back even after the period of intense diet and exercise ended.

One contestant, Sean Algaier, is now 6 pounds heavier (450) than when he started the show. He burns almost 500 calories less than the average person of his size.

A representative for the show said in a statement to Mashable:

"We have comprehensive procedures and support systems in place which we routinely re-evaluate to ensure all contestants receive the best care possible. The lead medical doctor on the show, who has worked with the National Institutes of Health on initiatives in the past relating to The Biggest Loser, has been made aware of this most recent study and is in the process of evaluating its findings."

The show's doctor, Robert Huizenga, told the Times that drops in the contestants' metabolic rates were expected — but he'd hoped they would be smaller, and questioned the measurements taken six years later by researchers.

He also told the Times that contestants are advised to work out nine hours a week and monitor their diets in order to maintain their progress, but admits this is often easier said than done.

"Unfortunately, many contestants are unable to find or afford adequate ongoing support with exercise doctors, psychologists, sleep specialists, and trainers — and that’s something we all need to work hard to change,” he said in an email to the Times.

This is not the first time The Biggest Loser has come under scrutiny for its weight loss practices.

Back in 2014, contestant Rachel Frederickson's significant — and some claimed dangerous — weight loss raised eyebrows at the finale when she debuted her nearly size 0 frame. She later admitted she'd been "too enthusiastic" about her weight loss training.

[link]http://mashable.com/2016/05/03/biggest-loser-study-metabolism/#G5P59Wfrgmqo[/link]
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[–] gymdandy 8 years ago

Didnt the first season winner say he was peeing blood? The extreme exercise (8 hours a day) and calorie restrictions are just not doable in the long term without dying. Too bad their metabolisms are now a mess. This show uses these people and spits them out. I'm surprised no one has had a heart attack.

[–] wjb7221975 8 years ago

Our bodies are programmed to adapt. I would think with proper (healthy, realistic) methods, everyone can reset their metabolisms to be higher.

[–] snk2005 8 years ago

I was speaking to my trainer about this and apparently, it's not that easy. O_O Our bodies are programmed to survive above all else, which means holding on to fat if it senses a starvation threat. The problem with TBL is you have people eating less than 1,500 calories a day and burning possibly 3-5 times that amount. In short, many are probably functioning at a caloric deficit. That's 12 weeks of pseudo-starvation. You will lose weight, but our physiological programming is getting into protection mode.

Once these contestants stop and return to the real world and start taking in a normal range of calories, their bodies cling to those precious extra calories and store it as fat. As far as its concerned, "My GAWD there's finally food! Store it!" and that's where you hit a wall. :( Now you have a body that thinks 1,500 calories a day is enough to provide excess fat for storage when it's really not for an average person.

I did something similar to myself unknowingly about eight years ago. Lost 30lbs by eating about 1,500 calories a day, but I burned a minimum of 1,000 EVERY DAY from exercise...most of it cardio. Kept it off until 2010 when I couldn't keep up with the workouts as much. Then my calories went up to around 1,800+, but I boxed (bag, sparring etc.) 3-4 times a week and figured, what's the worse that could happen? Slowly but surely, I re-gained the 30lbs PLUS 10. LOL!

Where I lucked out (according to my trainer) is that I'm not tackling the severity of what someone who loses 200+ pounds, in such a drastic way, did to their metabolism. Just finished my first month and didn't lose an ounce. BUT, I lost a decent % of body fat and over 7 inches overall from bust, arms, tummy etc.

I feel for these contestants and really hope they can get the help they need to regulate themselves again. But sometimes you have to wonder if the damage is simply too far gone. :(

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