-->Why the Fitness Industry Isn’t in Love with the Biggest Loser
It's inspiring to watch Biggest Loser Contestants Get Healthy, like Season 6 Winner Michelle Aguilar
I was at my Pilates studio today, which is located inside a great health club, and six of the staff members were standing around the front desk discussing “The Biggest Loser.” When I said I have a love/hate relationship with the show, everyone else started nodding. We started coming up with a list of differences between the “reality” of the TV show and the reality of what actually happens in a personal training session.
- Real trainers don’t get in a client’s face and scream obscenities at them. The fastest way I know to lose a client is to tell them to “shut the f— up and get back on the treadmill.”
- Real trainers maintain high level certifications. The IDEA Health & Fitness Association recently checked the certifications of the show’s trainers and found them to be on the very low end. Bob Harper has taken a weekend-long course and a home study course that looked somewhat questionable. Jillian Michaels has the same weekend course certification and has also taken a home study course but with a more substantial curriculum than Bob’s. Most health clubs require more. Both Jillian and Bob wouldn’t be hired at the health club where my studio is located; their certifications aren’t up to the club’s standards. For comparison’s sake, the top certification courses require at least a week of in-depth study with professionals in a health club setting. My certification took over 500 hours to obtain.
- Real trainers don’t have 24/7 access to their clients. Generally speaking, trainers work with a client one to two hours per week; the other 166 hours we don’t know what you’re doing and we can’t remind you to do more cardio.
- Real trainers spot their clients properly. I’ve frequently seen Jillian and Bob have the contestants perform exercises that require an element of balance and not spot them properly. Or they’ll have six people doing the same questionable exercise simultaneously so that if something bad did happen the trainer wouldn’t be able to get to the person in time to prevent them from hurting themselves.
- Real trainers build their clients slowly and methodically. Personal trainers don’t give you more than your current fitness level can handle. We make sure you’re working hard, and we keep nudging you along, but we won’t take a couch potato and drop them into the equivalent of a Division 1 college football training camp.
- Real trainers respect personal space. There has been footage of the show’s trainers standing between a contestant’s legs or standing on or straddling someone’s back. This is really inappropriate and potentially dangerous. Good trainers are taught to stand at appropriate places near or next to a client, to touch only in appropriate areas, and never to put the client at risk which standing on someone’s back or going for a piggyback ride would certainly do.
It’s not just the trainers on the show that aren’t living in a “real” training environment; it’s also the “clients,” i.e., the show’s contestants. Real clients don’t live in a bubble. Our clients don’t live in a cutely decorated dorm room with an upbeat roommate who can’t wait to hit the gym. They have busy careers, demanding family responsibilities, and have to juggle multiple schedules just to get to the gym.
- Real clients don’t have fantastic support groups. If I was on a ranch cut off from the outside world with 15 other people who wanted to lose weight, I’d be shedding pounds too. While almost everyone trying to losing weight can find supportive people to turn to, it’s rare that there will always – and I mean always – be someone to talk to about that donut craving you’re having. Access like that is a luxury.
- Real clients don’t work out four to six hours a day. Yup, that’s what they do on the ranch. Do you have time for that? Trust me, outside of the show’s bubble, no one does. Why do you think contestants are so fearful of being voted off and returning to their routines back home?
All this being said, there are many things that I love about the show and it’s why I keep watching.
- The contestants are so hopeful. They’ve had an awful struggle with their weight and are finally in a place where they can focus solely on getting healthy. It’s a wonderful life-changing opportunity and it’s great to watch contestants embrace this chance.
- The contestants are inspiring. Each is an average Joe or Jane just like us and the pounds fly off. It really does give viewers the sense that if they can do it, anyone can. It’s a thrill to root for their success and celebrate their triumphs. Every season, towards the end, I’m always in tears as each contestant realizes what they’ve overcome. It’s amazing to me.
So what are your thoughts? Please share here.
Lisa
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Lisa,
I don’t watch the show regularly for most of the reasons you listed, particularly the “bubble” thing. It would be more fun and/or inspiring me to watch a show about a person in a real setting who manages to lose weight and make lasting life changes. Of course, it wouldn’t be exciting or dramatic because it take so long to make real life changes! Thanks for your input, I’ve always wondered what professionals thought about that show.
I don’t particularly love the show (mostly b/c so many of the contestants’ personalities are annoying), but my wife does, so I’ve seen a lot of it. I’m 100% with you on the fact the show doesn’t / shouldn’t apply to real people trying to get results in the real world (b/c of the ranch setting, 24 hour support, etc.). But then again, these contestants are not average people. They are the extreme even for our (generally) overfat society. So, for the sake of “good” TV, I’m fine putting them in extreme conditions.
Where you and I really diverge on this is the over-generalization of “real” trainers. I’m not necessarily defending Bob and/or Jillian (although she cracks me up!), but from my dozen years’ experience as a fitness enthusiast and gym goer, I can tell you that a LOT of the certified, “real” trainers I’ve seen are crap. I suppose a more fair way to put it is that being certified and a “real” trainer doesn’t even come close to guaranteeing you are a good trainer. I’ve seen WAYYY too many clipboard holders and rep counters who do nothing to motivate, teach, correct technique or coach. And, not surprisingly, I’ve seen the same clients session after session making no progress.
I guess what I’m really taking exception to is the implied notion that merely getting a certification makes you a real / good trainer. Or that being a real trainer makes you a good trainer. I’m not anti-certification at all, but it’s no guarantee.
I heart Biggest Loser, but you’re exactly right — it’s not real life, and I’d drop my trainer so fast if she tried any of that mess on me :)
But to your point on how hard it is to get a support group in place, I think it is a lot easier than you think. And I only learned that in the last four months or so! I would definitely encourage your clients — and others wanting to lose weight — that finding friends who also want to lose weight and partnering with them is a HUGE motivator (check out our site to help motivate us, http://www.outofcontrolfatroll.com). BUT even doing a weekly bootcamp surrounds you with people who share the same struggles as you.
I feel like – more than the seclusion, the crazy diets and exercise routines, and the competition itself – surrounding yourself with a support group of similarly minded people is definitely key to any weight-loss program.
Great post!!
Hi Jessie, I agree with you that there are a lot of trainers out there who have no business being in a gym. There is a wide array of certifications. You can actually just go on line and take a quiz now and be “certified” to work with people.
Gold standards for the personal training industry are …
The American College of Sports Medicine, The National Strength and Conditioning Association and a handful of others.
These courses are taught by instructors with written materials and practical experience to train trainers properly.
There are also changes in the University system and a couple of college are offering Personal Training degrees now along with Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology, two other degree programs that often lead to a Personal Training career.
The important thing to remember is to ask a lot of questions about your trainer before you begin working with him/her. If you’re not comfortable, move on.
BTW my certification is over 500 hours and is through Stott Pilates.
Lisa
Definitely agree that if you are going to be certified, you need a legit cert and that the online / quickies are bogus. And there’s a lot of value to a cert from a knowledge and safety standpoint, especially if you don’t have a degree like you mentioned. But even being ACSM or NSCA certified doesn’t mean you’ll necessarily be a good trainer. Kinda like not all MBAs are good business people and there are a lot of great business people who are not MBAs.
If I were to have a trainer, I would WANT somebody in my face, yelling…at times. I want intensity. And I wouldn’t object to the occasional obscenity. I want a trainer to be like a great football coach – your biggest tormentor and your biggest fan.
Certainly, that approach wouldn’t work for everybody, but it doesn’t mean that person isn’t a real trainer.
OK, enough from me. We can agree to disagree on some points, but still liked your post!
you so SO nailed it for me Lisa.
I forced myself to sit through an entire episode this time (typically Id have turned it off after the two people were airlifted off the beach) and still feel the same and for PRECISELY the reasons you stated above.
Im asked my thoughts on this frequently (friends and family not by Jillian or Bob :)) and Ive finally decided that, for me, much of it is that I do not feel they are setting the CONTESTANTS up for success.
It’s a gift (for them to have this amazing opportunity. availability of the trainers the equipment and the support.) and it’s, IMO, a disservice.
I was agreeing with your sentiments until you undid it all with “It really does give viewers the sense that if they can do it, anyone can.”
Did you ignore the first three-quarters of your own article?
I don’t watch the show anymore because I have a very difficult time with my weight & I work very very hard not only to make time for fitness but to also give it my all when I’m at the gym. I’m tired of seeing people who haven’t made their health a priority whine about how tough it is to do so. Then THOSE people are rewarded with the ‘bubble’ I would respect the show a lot more if the contestants had to lose X amount of weight/% of body fat, anything that shows a personal commitment really, prior to arriving at camp.
Lisa, Great post! I really enjoyed it. I was wondering if you knew the answer to something. I’ve heard that on the show they encourage people to have a moderate ‘cheat’ day once a week. However, they never actually show this. I’ve heard that it gets brought up once or twice in conversation but they don’t want to show that they do eat normal food once a week. Do you know if this is true or not?
Ben, it’s their heart that I’m responding too. The contestants are in an entirely different world and they’re struggling through and they’re succeeding (at least short term). I always rally behind the little guy trying really hard to get somewhere and my heart goes out to them.
Evolution of Wealth. I’ve heard that they have a cheat meal right after weigh in when they can eat anything they want. I’ve also heard that it’s an 8 day week. I don’t know if either are true, if anyone can confirm that would be great!
BTW if I have a client who is restricting calories I tell them to have a cheat meal once a week so the cravings don’t build up. For some people this is a great trick to staying on a diet. For others it’s the first step to several in the wrong direction. You have to decide for yourself if your psyche needs to let off steam or needs to remain on course!
Lisa
Great post. I’ve often wondered what Jillian and Bob’s qualifications are (aside from being gorgeous on TV) and now that Jillian’s put her name on a diet pill, I am even more uncertain about my loyalty to the show.
And like you said, I was really put off by all the swearing and demeaning of the contestants this week. I had a trainer who DID actually give me that kind of attitude and I did not lose a pound when I was working with her—she’d yell at me and I’d work my ass off and then go home and eat b/c I was so upset about being yelled at (okay, that’s mostly my issue, but really–bad trainer).
I watch more for the contestants and to see their progress. It’s so inspiring–not entirely realistic, but inspiring!
As much as I can tell you I dont miss an episode, I am a trainer, and agree with all of the things you wrote about “real life” trainers, in a gym that you pay a membership for and still juggle your family, work, and home temptations. I don’t even really watch it because I gain anything for ANYTHING I would teach or use.
I can say it is a reality check to see some of the “REASONS” people get themselves that out of shape, that heavy, let go of their lives that much. The only reason, is the show motivates and inspires “ME” personally and reminds my why i never let myself or my health be taken for granted. I love the show, I love the stories and on some goofy level feel that I get to know them a little, but I am not a TV junkie, so I guess this is my one show that relaxers me, and entertains me in an arena that I know………
Thank you for making me realistically think about my own reasons! This was good for me too!! :0)
good article….I really agree with you for most part…and I never actually knew what their qualifications were..sometimes the show actually scares me. I am referring to the training methods for these particular clients..I’m waiting for someone to drop dead on the show, seriously, I can’t even watch at times:)
Bob and Jillian are TV personalities. As another post stated, it’s not necessarily the fault of the certification company that a trainer is great or terrible; to the contrary, Bob and Jillian demonstrate every week that you can make a great living on personality alone.
I have been a trainer for nearly 20 years, and have had the opportunity to be the fitness director at two health clubs, and I can count on one hand the number of trainers who had a combination of talent and personality. That said, it’s the ones with the great personality who had the most clients.
The heart of the matter is this; Biggest Loser puts the personal training industry in a very questionable light. Ask yourself this: if you were considering hiring a personal trainer, then watched an episode of BL, would you still want to hire a trainer?
(and don’t get me started on all the staged events on the show in order to feature this week’s sponsor’s products)
I have perused the show when it first came out and frankly I never will watch it again. The show is based on Drama, pure and simple. It is artifically created and the majority of the show is staged for entertainment. The “trainers” are a joke. Their selection of exercises, intensity and motivational strategies are quite frankly stupid. IF any trainer with an ounce of understanding placed one of our clients in the type of danger that these trainers do we would be sued. It is obvious that the trainers are hired for their photogenic capabilities and not their grey matter between their ears.
True reality is working with a client and educating them in the lifestyle of Fitness, and demonstrating the Fun of Fitness.
I guess american televisions viewers want foul mouth uneducated people screaming at fat people on a tv screen and they are entertained, probably while drinking a soda and eating chips.
GO Figure!!
I have to agree with everything you said. Although, it should be looked at for pure entertainment value. I am an ex Div1 wrestler, wrestled on the international level and now coach a freestyle and greco roman wrestling team and can tell you that I have had parents of kids I coach ask if I can give them pointers on losing weight. i tell them to come to my practices sans the actual wrestling. It got to a point where i had to stop letting non wrestlers in because it started getting way too popular and it was affecting my wrestlers.
Anyway, my point is, I watch that show and see that it is for entertainment purposes only and I would not do as these people do on televvision (trainers).
Lisa,
I love this! I’m also a trainer and have maybe caught 1/2 of two episodes but what I hear frequently is that they are always having people doing really unsafe exercises. The two times I have caught a few minutes I noticed really heavy people doing things I would NEVER have a client do for fear of compromising their joints, blood pressure, heart rate and etc.
I also agree that the show does tug at your heart strings. I actually stopped on it within the last few weeks (and maybe cried for a second) when they were featuring the woman who lost her whole family in a car accident. I’m glad I stopped on that part because it reminded me to dig in with clients and not to forget that people’s battles with their weight are often rooted way deeper emotionally than just channeling some will power, getting motivated and getting in the gym (which is easy for fitness professionals because we’re freaks and love exercise :P)
All in all, great assessment. I was perusing through your other posts as a blogger myself and I enjoy your honest and straightforward approach. My mom was recently asking me about the Susan Lucci Malibu Chair, I’m just going to forward your post on that to give her her answer :)
Thank you for your insights,
Liz
wow, I had no idea Bob and Jillian did not have better certs!
I used to love (and blog about) this show all the time but I cannot stomach it anymore, precisely for the reasons you state above. It’s just not realistic or healthy for the contestants to live like this! And these days the show seems more about product placement than changing lives.
Wow, what a way to be negative…you just shot down their credibility and along the way any hope I’ve ever had of losing weight. I thought the Biggest Loser was the best ever for overweight people, if they are a sham, then what hope do the rest of us have?…not cool, not cool at all!
I watched one season of BL and while I loved how inspiring it was, I started to get turned off by the unrealistic aspects. You put it really well with everything you said. For me, it was completely unrealistic to lose massive amounts of weight each week. A normal person with a full time job, kids, marriage, friends, relationships, school, etc etc could NOT workout for 6 hours a day and lose 100 pounds in a month. So unrealistic!
yup, thanks for stopping buy Lisa … I agree, BL isn’t realistic for the vast majority of people watching it …
My co-worker turned me onto the show about three seasons ago. I found it to be really inspirational at the time, as I had just begun to lose weight. I thought it was pretty fantastical, but it was awesome to see people bigger than me lose the weight. When I started doing boot camp and saw some of the same exercises, I thought that was pretty neat, too.
Once to boot camp was over, and I did NOT see BL-like weight loss results; I was crushed. I really had to take myself out of the BL mindset and realize I’m a busy mom, that works full time in addition to trying to work out. It wasn’t going to happen like that for me. I was shun a three pound a week weight loss because it wasn’t 10 pounds, or 9. It started a really dangerous mindset for me and I had to distance myself. My cable is gone, and I can’t say I’m missing this season at all.
Now, when I hear people talk about it, I remember those aren’t feasible results in the real world. I admire that they are trying to push a show centered on weight loss out in prime time. I’m sure numerous people look to it as a inspiration or reason to get started, but it’s a game show, first and foremost and always will be.
Leaving …
What you described is exactly what worries me. People start a weight loss program and think they should lose 10 pounds every week because that’s what happens on the Biggest Loser. It simply isn’t true and is dangerous if you do somehow manage to do that. One to two pounds per week is all anyone should ever be shooting for …
Thanks for your comments, it’s really helpful to hear. :-)
L–