In case you missed it, “The Biggest Loser” kicked off their eighth season September 15 with their two hour season premier. This season’s contestants are among the biggest ever with weights ranging from 250 to 480 pounds. Returning for season eight are trainers Jillian Michaels and Bob Harper.

Now, I must admit, in the past I rarely missed an episode. In fact, for the Beard family, watching “The Biggest Loser” had become a bit of a family ritual. Unfortunately it seems that with each new season the producers of the show have made a conscious decision to push the envelope of good taste and common sense further and further. With the premier of season eight, it would appear to me that they have pushed that envelope too far.

Season eight’s premier saw one contestant air lifted to the hospital unresponsive after the first challenge of running the final mile from season seven’s marathon proved to be too much for her. And then there was the gym workouts where Jillian demonstrated her apparently limited vocabulary by screaming and cursing repeatedly in the face of one of the contestants. Maybe Jillian, or perhaps more correctly the producers, feel that this type of trainer-contestant interaction is edgy and what America wants to see. Personally, I think her behavior was appalling and not representative of how real fitness professionals interact with their clients.

Just for the record, I understand that “The Biggest Loser” is reality television - and, as such, sensationalism will win over substance ever time. I do think it’s interesting however that realty TV has very little to do with reality. Yes, it may be provocative TV when trainer Bob leans over a contestant who looks as if they are seconds from passing out and screams at them “I’m saving your life. Now keep going,” but it’s lousy personal training.

Contestants vomiting from a workout really ought to be a clue to Bob and Jillian that their program design is poor and inappropriate. Instead, they seem proud of the fact that they made an out of shape, overweight contestant vomit. If Bob and Jillian worked in the real world, I have to believe they would do things differently. At least, I hope they would. The role of a personal trainer is not only to design an appropriate and safe program for their client; but, to empower that client to take responsibility for their health and fitness so that they can achieve their goals. I don’t know of anyone who is empowered by being put down and belittled by the very person who should be encouraging them most.

At Fitness Together of East Orlando I have trainers who understand this. Trainers who continually demonstrate they are some of the finest fitness professionals you will find anywhere, who consistently get more out of our clients than our clients think they have to give. And never have they done that by yelling, cursing or belittling a client. Part of encouraging and empowering our clients is ensuring that they have realistic expectations of what can be achieved and the time frames required. At Fitness Together we do not have clients losing 15 pounds of weight per week like you see on “The Biggest Loser” (that in and of itself is a topic for another article). What we do have are individuals who are learning week by week how to incorporate healthy lifestyle habits into their lives so that the results they achieve are maintained long-term - in the real world.

I won’t be watching anymore episodes of “The Biggest Loser.” I guess it’s time for the Beard family to create a new family ritual. Maybe instead of us watching others workout, it’s time for a little family workout. What about you?
Article by Glenn C. Beard, PT

Interested in learning how you can achieve real world results in an environment where you’ll be positively encouraged and empowered to achieve more than you thought possible? If so, call Glenn at 407-208-0620 to schedule a no obligation, free fitness consultation.Glenn is the owner/operator of Fitness Together of East Orlando. To learn more about his private 1-on-1 personal training studio or to take advantage of a FREE training session and fitness consultation visit www.FTorlando.com or call 407-208-0620. The studio is located at 11317 Lake Underhill Rd., Suite 500 (across from Legacy Middle School). You can also email Glenn at glennbeard@fitnesstogether.com.