What has reality TV come to these days with shows from Real World to Apprentice picking stereotyped characters to appear on them week after week and season after season. The Biggest Loser, however, is a different make-up entirely, featuring normal yet overweight contestants to compete to see who can lose the most weight and be...THE BIGGEST LOSER.
Two teams train and face-off each week in different challenges. Some of the challenges focus around their improvement, such as seeing how far one can ride an exercise bike for a set number of hours. Other challenges focus on the contestants' weaknesses, such as having them build a tall tower out of sugary food. It sounds cheesy, but it's fun to watch as the two teams try their best each week in the competitions. Host Caroline Rhea and trainers Bill and Jillian also provide a nice distraction from the contest and contestants. Caroline even has exciting lines such as "It's time to...CUT THE FAT!" Where do these writers come from...?
After the competition (and watching the winning team with their prize), we then have the weigh-off where each team member sees how much weight they have lost that week. Sometimes inspirational, other times boring, the weigh-in is one of the best moments of reality TV for me. Each week I get to watch as each team member works to try and lose weight and the real payoff comes in these moments. Afterwards, the team that loses the least weight has to vote a team member off, Survivor style. It can be somewhat cheezily intense.
Sometimes the game seems a little unfair...it appears that every week, whoever wins the challenge for that week gets some cushy prize. The team that loses the challenge stays home and gets extra workout time. Does this seem like cheating to anyone else? It always seems to be that the team that wins the challenge loses the weigh-in. Hopefully if this show sees a second season (which I hope), this problem will be addressed.
While some have complained that the show should focus more on maintaining a low weight instead of just shedding the pounds, the fine print at the end of each episode says that they trainers and show mentors DO address this! As well, each contestant, as least as far as I can tell, is dangerously overweight and needed to shed that many pounds, so I don't know where some reviewers on here get off saying that the contestants should be focusing less on rapid weight loss. Rapid weight loss is dangerous for people of AVERAGE body weight. As well, each contestant has been medically consulted.
Lastly, it is important to note that the show is also inspirational in many aspects. It shows that people who are overweight can still achieve things they would not have normally thought were possible. Each and every contestant has stated this, and I feel it is important to reinforce on here. The Biggest Loser shows how much can be achieved in diet, exercise, and self-image, which is important to an overweight America. I highly suggest tuning in!
