This year instead of eating snacks while we watched the Biggest Loser, my husband and I cut our calorie intake and lost 26 and 40 lbs!

I'm not much of a fan. I've lost over 200 lbs myself but it took me 3 years of hard work, learning to eat right for the rest of my life, in my real-every-day-life environment. And I get so super-ticked when I see the trainers and other contestants doing a "slow clap" because someone (ahem) "only" lost 3 pounds in a week.... really? Really?

While I like the idea that they do make us look more closely at our lives and our habits, I don't like the idea that losing those amounts in that short time frame is anything close to healthy or normal. But then again, following people around in the healthy time that it takes them to lose their weight wouldn't make good ratings, right? That is one thing I can appreciate about the Extreme Makeover show....

Of course this is the case ... Plenty of people know the importance of exercise and take it seriously. Other people don't ... So some waist lines will be smaller, and others will continue to get larger.

I, however, know the importance of exercise and eating right ... I weighed almost 300lbs, had a size 48 waist. Over the course of three years, I hame managed to drop my weight to 190lbs, and a 34 waist. How? I stayed away from bad foods (aka fast foods), and I exercise every day. I don't care if it's a 30 minute walk, I will get it in.

But I do this every single day. I don't take a day off and eat junk. I watch what I eat all of the time ... and I count my calories every day. I have to ... If not, I will become obese again, and I refuse to let myself get into that state.

And yes ... I love the Biggest Looser. I watch that show and I cry ... I cry because I have experienced all of the things that the people on that show experienced. I know what it feels like, and I know how they feel. And it reminds me of where I came from, and where I am now. And I support those people in the show, and I am happy with what they accomplished. They are all amazing people.

We can do it ... We all can do it. I did it ... other people have done it. They just need to want to do it and stop making excuses!

I watched the Biggest Loser for the first few seasons, but I stopped because I could no longer tolerate Jillian Michaels screaming at and berating the contestants.  I understand the concept of "tough love', but she was downright disrespectful and out of control ! Bob was quite nice at first, but then he started to get mean, too. UGH !

Maybe now that Jillian is leaving, I will watch it again. . . .

The people that benefit most are those with something to sell, DVD's, fitness "plans", expensive meal plans and food, pills, herbs, fitness equipment no matter how stupid, expensive, and unnecessary. After I retired from the police dept. I ballooned up to 230 pounds from 160. I decided to take some good advice that cost NOTHING. Eat when you're hungry, eat what you want, stop when you'e full. I made it a habit to start eating one big meal a day and over the course of a year and a half I lost 80 pounds and now stand at 154. It probably wouldn't work for everyone, but it worked for me and the best part is that it cost me NOTHING. For most people, packing their face is a habit like anything else. Just develop a new habit, it's really not that hard. If I can do it most anyone can.

These shows provide some moderate motivation. I don't think Biggest Loser is pulling the weight it use to with motivating people because there are so many posts that show how the contestants who lost so much weight are now struggling to keep from gaining it all back. If you look through the pictures, you'll see so and so has put on some weight and is struggling to loose again. These shows show extreme measures people take to drop weight quickly, but they really do not get into the heart of what it takes to loose the weight, and keep it off for good. It's better to do it slowly, and change your diet one step at a time. You're more likely to stay focused.

Though I must say personally, Biggest Loser didn't appeal to me at all. I think it's a little extreme compared to HEAVY, which has provided some motivation because I can relate to the people since each episode only focuses on two people.

These shows are a sham. Totally! Studies have proven it but you won't hear one of those nincompoops tell you about the truth.When did people start to get so much heavier? About 40 years ago our weight started to climb. Why? Women went into the work force in droves. It now takes two people 's income to support a family. When Mom get home from work at 5:30 she has to have a meal on the table in 30-50 minutes in order for her kids to eat,have time to do homework and any evening events. She puts a frozen reheated meal in the micro-wave or oven. A meal laden with chemicals that we have no idea how they are changing our metabolism. Add to this the fact that our kids love to play on the computer instead of out doors and other factors. But ask your self this, kids ate meals with butter on them most moms baked cookies and I'm 61 and I didn't know anyone who went to the gym when I was a kid. So, again ask yourself( If not Google weight of population and women entering work force) what has changed?

The biggest problem I have with “The Biggest Loser” is its emphasis on pain and drill sergeant techniques—from what little I’ve seen of the show. I never made a long-term change in behavior by being hard on myself.

Carolyn Kay
www.ManyYearsYoung.com

Can I nominate the "Who benefits the most, etc." headline as the dumbest of the month?

The biggest problem I have with “The Biggest Loser” is its emphasis on pain and drill sergeant techniques—from what little I’ve seen of the show. I’ve never made a long-term change in behavior by being hard on myself.

Many Years Young

In order to lose weight you have to change your ways and that comes from SELF motivation for which these shows don't provide the environment.

When you are taught to be a teacher in college, you're taught that you can NEVER "motivate your students." But you can provide the environment where they motivate themselves: whether it's through fear (bad grades, calls home, detention, etc.), through praise, or through providing an atmosphere in which the students find work enjoyable.

These shows focus more on the weight loss and the PAIN in getting there, not in the better health, the better enjoyment of life, etc. related to losing weight.

I lost 35 lbs, gained 13 back, and then recently bought a bike to ride, for the first time in decades, one 4-mile loop every 3 days to take some of the strain off my delicate Achilles tendons. I've lost two pounds and am going to take a cool AM ride in about 1/2 hour. I've lost 2 pounds since I started and I am motivated!

It's easy to be motivated when you have your own trainer and nutritionist, not to mention cameras following you around and you knowing the ordeal will be on national TV.

Unfortunately, most people do not have the financial resources available to devote to hire and pay for this assistance.

This is why the producers, advertisers and "hosts" benefit the most. I would love to be able to hire my own personal trainer, but little things like a mortgage and monthly bills get dibs on my income.

It is a lot harder to do without the elaborate support system.

In the end you just have to do it yourself, and that is much more challenging.

Who benefits the most......ahhh...boy....that's a tough one.....let's see now......how about the people who put them on TV and make a s**tload of money from them?

Congratulation to ALL posters who have lost weight! My prayers that you can keep it off, I know THAT is the hard part.

I don't watch these shows because I don't think they actually help. They don't appear to teach any strategies for avoiding cravings etc.

I lost 50lbs and it took almost a year. Afterward I was asked if I had cancer.

That was 4 years ago and I haven't gained ANY wt back. It can be done.

its simple. U are what u eat.

For most of my working life, I sat at a desk. I was easily 40 pounds overweight. Exercise was time consuming and a pain. Between sleep, commuting, and working, I had less than six useful hours each day for myself. The concept that I would spend one of those precious hours sweating away on something I didn't like was abhorrent to me.

Now I am retired. Guess what? My ankles, knees, and hips are like almost brand new because sitting at a desk didn't wear them out. I've taken up running and lost those 40 pounds. My biggest problem now is chafing. The best thing is that by burning an extra 1,000 calories a day, I can eat just about any junk food I want and not gain weight.

The weight problem is a by product of our affluence and food availability and it is going to take long time to our new environments. We need better research to find good ways to control the sense of appetite and satiety.

The problem with most of these shows is that a) they show unrealistic weekly weight loss goals and b) they give no information on maintaining weight loss. A healthy weight loss is 1 to 2 pounds per week. On TBL if you lose 'only' 5 pounds you are in danger of being kicked off the show. They routinely show people losing 10 pounds in one week. So, if you are at home and think this is normal and you lose a whopping 1/2 pound you are going to get discouraged. The fact is the only way you can lose like that is to spend 6 or more hours in the gym every day, and who can do that? And, have you ever noticed that they don't much bring back past contestants, especially the past winners? Ever wonder about that? If you look around on the web, you will find out that many of the past contestants have gained back a significant amount of weight because they were never given stratagies on how to maintain their weight. If you want to lose weight, stay away from these shows!