big loser

hi everyone,

i am in australia, and we are having the second series of the big loser
here, guys against girls, anyway, what i dont understand, is how come they
are losing some HUGE amounts of weight? are they starving and exercising all
day? some guy lost 19 odd pounds in ONE week. i converted, its 8kgs, thats
just ridiculous.. but he wasnt alone.. lots were losing a consistent 10-12
pounds. 4 kgs!!!!!!!
\

i dont get it. is it just starvation diets? and if it is starvation diets,
whats with all that rhetoric that starvation diets slow down ur metabolism
so much you dont lose weight. it obviously works for them.

t

"tracey" wrote in message
...
hi everyone,

i am in australia, and we are having the second series of the big loser
here, guys against girls, anyway, what i dont understand, is how come they
are losing some HUGE amounts of weight? are they starving and exercising
all day? some guy lost 19 odd pounds in ONE week. i converted, its 8kgs,
thats just ridiculous.. but he wasnt alone.. lots were losing a consistent
10-12 pounds. 4 kgs!!!!!!!
\

i dont get it. is it just starvation diets? and if it is starvation diets,
whats with all that rhetoric that starvation diets slow down ur metabolism
so much you dont lose weight. it obviously works for them.

t


Hi T,

The program behind "The Biggest Loser" is very intense from what I can
gather with several workout sessions a day lasting at least an hour
(probably more like 90min) along with either a strict low-carb or low
calorie diet (depending on which trainer the team has).

Truly it isn't a very ideal way to lose weight, but it does jumpstart their
individual programs. There was one guy so far (I can't remember what his
name is) that apparently hasn't continued his program at home - he says he
hasn't weighed himself since being on the show. Gee, I wonder why??

I know myself that I can't devote 90min 4 or 5 times a day to exercise. My
program works for me because it entails lifestyle changes that will last
forever.

Matty
481/298/241
(starting weight/current weight/goal weight)

First mini goal achieved - 104lbs lost 10/26/04
Second mini goal achieved - 137lbs lost 01/28/05
Third mini goal achieved - 183lbs lost 09/30/05
Fourth mini goal - 200lbs total lost by 02/24/06 (new goal set!)

tracey wrote in message
...
hi everyone,

i am in australia, and we are having the second series of the big
loser
here, guys against girls, anyway, what i dont understand, is how
come they
are losing some HUGE amounts of weight? are they starving and
exercising all
day? some guy lost 19 odd pounds in ONE week. i converted, its 8kgs,
thats
just ridiculous.. but he wasnt alone.. lots were losing a consistent
10-12
pounds. 4 kgs!!!!!!!
\
i dont get it. is it just starvation diets? and if it is starvation
diets,
whats with all that rhetoric that starvation diets slow down ur
metabolism
so much you dont lose weight. it obviously works for them.

Remember the program is dealing with severly obese people so it helps
to think in terms of percentage of bodyweight lost. I've missed a
couple of the shows, but when I have seen it they are losing around
2-3% of their bodyweight per week. This is a little faster than
typical, but they are dedicating their entire lives at the moment to
weight loss so its not outrageous. There have been a few posts
recently about starvation diets and metabolic slow down; views are
mixed, but I think there is some metabolic slow down aside from just
the amount that would be expected from being at a lower weight, but
not so much that the body would stop losing weight entirely.

Also there is the matter of normal bodyweight fluctuation. I weigh
daily and last night I was down 5 pounds from the previous evening.
That is the biggest jump I have seen, but there has been quite a bit
of variability that cannot be explained by diet or exercise.

Another thing to consider in the real world is the accuracy and
consistency of scales. Hopefully, since there is a good bit of money
on the line the official "Biggest Loser" scale is being calibrated
weekly and this is not a factor for the show.

Matthew Venhaus wrote:

but they are dedicating their entire lives at the moment to
weight loss so its not outrageous. There have been a few posts
recently about starvation diets and metabolic slow down; views are
mixed, but I think there is some metabolic slow down aside from just
the amount that would be expected from being at a lower weight, but
not so much that the body would stop losing weight entirely.


As in last nights show, the guy who was increasing his cardio to an
extra 3-5hrs (they HAVE to do at least 2 hours of exercise a day)lost
only like 3 or 4 pounds this week. He was soooo surprised because he
thought all the extra workouts would put him out ahead of everyone
else. But what he didnt get was what the trainer (Jillian) asked him if
he was *eating enough* to be doing all this extra exercise and that it
might backfire on him as his body might go into starvation mode and
hang onto some weight. So strange as it may seem in some instances you
do have to eatmore to lose weight. Then again, another red team member
was making eggs & sausages in the middle of the night and of course
lost nothing because he didnt have a big enough caloric deficit for the
week. Kind of makes you think your're damned if you do and damned if
you dont eh? ;-)


joanne

It would appear, from season one, that extreme exercise can cause remarkable
weightloss. I feel this level of exercise is dangerous.

The rates of weightloss on the show create a very unrealistic impression for
those doing conventional weightloss by eating less. A pound a week is good
progress.

I'm not watching season 2.


"tracey" wrote in message
...
hi everyone,

i am in australia, and we are having the second series of the big loser
here, guys against girls, anyway, what i dont understand, is how come they
are losing some HUGE amounts of weight? are they starving and exercising
all
day? some guy lost 19 odd pounds in ONE week. i converted, its 8kgs, thats
just ridiculous.. but he wasnt alone.. lots were losing a consistent 10-12
pounds. 4 kgs!!!!!!!
\

i dont get it. is it just starvation diets? and if it is starvation diets,
whats with all that rhetoric that starvation diets slow down ur metabolism
so much you dont lose weight. it obviously works for them.

t

joanne wrote:


As in last nights show, the guy who was increasing his cardio to an
extra 3-5hrs (they HAVE to do at least 2 hours of exercise a day)lost
only like 3 or 4 pounds this week. He was soooo surprised because he
thought all the extra workouts would put him out ahead of everyone
else. But what he didnt get was what the trainer (Jillian) asked him
if he was *eating enough* to be doing all this extra exercise and
that it might backfire on him as his body might go into starvation
mode and hang onto some weight. So strange as it may seem in some
instances you do have to eatmore to lose weight. Then again, another
red team member was making eggs & sausages in the middle of the night
and of course lost nothing because he didnt have a big enough caloric
deficit for the week. Kind of makes you think your're damned if you
do and damned if you dont eh? ;-)


joanne

Yes, this stuff totally confuses me. If your body starts hanging on to
weight if you starve yourself, then somebody explain to me why anorexics are
so flippin' bony!?"
--
DisneyDana

Right.

"DisneyDana" wrote in message
om...
joanne wrote:


As in last nights show, the guy who was increasing his cardio to an
extra 3-5hrs (they HAVE to do at least 2 hours of exercise a day)lost
only like 3 or 4 pounds this week. He was soooo surprised because he
thought all the extra workouts would put him out ahead of everyone
else. But what he didnt get was what the trainer (Jillian) asked him
if he was *eating enough* to be doing all this extra exercise and
that it might backfire on him as his body might go into starvation
mode and hang onto some weight. So strange as it may seem in some
instances you do have to eatmore to lose weight. Then again, another
red team member was making eggs & sausages in the middle of the night
and of course lost nothing because he didnt have a big enough caloric
deficit for the week. Kind of makes you think your're damned if you
do and damned if you dont eh? ;-)


joanne

Yes, this stuff totally confuses me. If your body starts hanging on to
weight if you starve yourself, then somebody explain to me why anorexics
are
so flippin' bony!?"
--
DisneyDana

DisneyDana wrote:
Yes, this stuff totally confuses me. If your body starts hanging on to
weight if you starve yourself, then somebody explain to me why anorexics are
so flippin' bony!?"

Because someone who is anorexic has gone beyond fatloss, and has eaten
into any lean muscle mass they might of had. Not the physique a healthy
person would want or desire.


joanne

joanne wrote:
DisneyDana wrote:
Yes, this stuff totally confuses me. If your body starts hanging on
to weight if you starve yourself, then somebody explain to me why
anorexics are so flippin' bony!?"

Because someone who is anorexic has gone beyond fatloss, and has eaten
into any lean muscle mass they might of had. Not the physique a
healthy person would want or desire.


joanne

No, not at all, but the fat is gone too, which contradicts the "if you
starve, your body will hang on to the fat" thing. Not that I want to be
anorexic by any means, but it goes against what is supposed to happen when
you don't eat enough. You would think that anorexic people would all be
stuck at one weight.
--
DisneyDana

How many obese people can be seen in the films of the survivors being freed
from the German concentration camps? Surely, a percentage of those interned
were obese. According to the theory of fat retention because of calories
that are too low, these victims should have been trapped in their obese body
shapes. I have read that the standard rations were 600 calories per day.


"DisneyDana" wrote in message
om...
joanne wrote:
DisneyDana wrote:
Yes, this stuff totally confuses me. If your body starts hanging on
to weight if you starve yourself, then somebody explain to me why
anorexics are so flippin' bony!?"

Because someone who is anorexic has gone beyond fatloss, and has eaten
into any lean muscle mass they might of had. Not the physique a
healthy person would want or desire.


joanne

No, not at all, but the fat is gone too, which contradicts the "if you
starve, your body will hang on to the fat" thing. Not that I want to be
anorexic by any means, but it goes against what is supposed to happen when
you don't eat enough. You would think that anorexic people would all be
stuck at one weight.
--
DisneyDana