Biggest Loser Couples

When Jillian saw the contestants, she said that she was a little overwhelmed. You think? These people are huge! You know what? It wasn't that long ago that I was that huge myself. You might be sitting there thinking that you are just that large yourself. The scary thing is that there are so many people in the U.S. who are in the same boat. Obesity is an epidemic in our country!

"I put everyone ahead of my own needs."
So here's this room full of really large people working hard, puking, snotting, and generally feeling uncomfortable from all the workouts they are doing. In the midst of the mess is this little lady by the name of Cheryl. "Cheryl gained her largest amount of weight after having three children in three years. Her family and husband's family believe that get-togethers should center on eating. Cheryl thinks it is her turn, her chance to be thin and think of herself, and not feel guilty anymore about herself or her son's weight. She would like to be able to go to the ranch and return home stronger, more confident and set an example for her grandchildren." (from NBC.com)

Are you overweight? Consider why. Don't just look at circumstances, but really consider why you might be overweight. I enjoy and am inspired by the Biggest Loser tv show, because it shows that weight loss is really possible in the gym and at home. All you need to do is learn how and make yourself accountable to accomplish it.

But how do you live normal everyday life after you have lost the weight?

You have to know why you put it on in the first place. That's where the Biggest Loser only hints at the long-term cure instead of the behavior maintenance of healthy living. If you know why you gained the weight, then you can deal with those issues and live a normal, healthy life. So let's consider the types of reasons that a person gains weight. I went to the Biggest Loser site and read the bios of this year's contestants.

Physiological Reasons
This first reason is not from the show, but I couldn't leave it out. I met a man yesterday who is obviously 200 lbs. overweight. After speaking with him, I found out that he had cancer and the drug that he is taking causes weight gain. Two years ago, he was at a healthy weight and active. Today, the drug that has kept him alive has also caused him to gain a large amount of weight. While physiology is a definite reason for being overweight, for most of us it is not the case.

Having Children
Cheryl had three children in three years. I don't need to say more about this.

Culture
Cheryl's family and husband's family believe that get-togethers should center on eating. Sam, from Samoa, lives in a culture where being big is normal. Koli's Tongan culture is the same way.

Traumatic Emotional Events
Sherry, another contestant, lost her husband and that was when she put on her weight. Grief is a powerful emotion as John knows because he has lost several family members.

Self-Esteem Issues
During the show, Cheryl made the statement, "I put everyone else's needs ahead of my own." Many people spend their time serving others and do not make time to care for themselves. In her bio, Stephanie "uses work as a reason for not having time to be in a serious relationship, when in reality she is afraid to put herself out there to be judged and possibly rejected." Daris has always been big and is self-conscious and has low confidence when it comes to women.

Busy-ness
Sam lives like most of us do -- very busily, engaged in all sorts of activities (many of them good). Between his job with abnormal hours and coaching youth football, he has an irregular eating schedule. Koli works two jobs. Just like the self-esteem issue, a busy lifestyle leaves little time to care for oneself.

Stress
Stephanie's ambition and drive keeps her working hard and for long hours in her job. Stress needs an outlet, and although exercise is physiologically the best stress outlet, many of us fail to use it. Migdalia is a military wife who's husband may be re-deployed to Iraq. Combine that with her quick temper and willingness to speak her mind and stress is the result.


Several of the contestants fit into multiple categories above. Melissa packed on pounds after getting married (culture?) and then 1/3 as many again when she had children (having children). She went to law school and let's nothing get in the way when it comes to her law practice (stress). Lance was taught to eat everything on his plate (culture) and then his job became intense (stress) before their cracking down on standards put him out of a job (more stress). Miggy was married and divorced before the age of 17 which is emotionally traumatic and stressful.

I could go through the rest of the contestants, but you get the idea. There are lots of external reasons that we become overweight and stay there. If you think about it, all of the reasons above are not completely external. There is an internal component there as well.

Culture - Culture is a strong, but culture is not the reason for being overweight. For those who live in "big" cultures, it is the pressure to conform. It is learned behavior. It is internal desire to be accepted.

Traumatic Emotional Events - The events themselves are not the reason for being overweight. The reason is our response to the extreme emotions that the events trigger. That doesn't minimize the emotions. We simply need to change our response.

Self-Esteem Issues - In my experience, a low self-esteem is a lack of accepting oneself. Every person I know who loves themself in a healthy way has very little self-esteem issues. Therefore, the issue truly is internal -- accepting and loving oneself.

Busy-ness
Staying busy is sometimes necessary (as in having to work 2 jobs to meet the bills) but is often a result of our choices even when those choices are good ones such as taking care of others or coaching a youth football team. When being overweight is the results of choices of busy-ness, it makes me wonder if there is something that the busy-ness hides. Why do we need to stay so busy? There is a possibility of internal issues that we are hiding in all of our busy-ness.

Stress
Stress in life is inevitable. Stress is not the reason for being overweight though. Our response to the stress is what has gotten us to where we are. The real question is why we choose a response that will hurt our health rather than help it.


Are you starting to see what I'm talking about? What is your reason for being overweight? Look beyond the external circumstances and influences and consider the internal factors as well. Once you realize the internal factors, you can deal with each one. This doesn't exempt you from doing what is right while you are changing how you think. Rather, by dealing with emotions and thinking patterns you will empower the good behaviors and habits (exercise and eating correctly) that you are developing.

So what should you take away from this post? Look at the external influences on your weight. They are part of the reason for it. Also consider the internal reasons as well. They are just as much a part of your current health. You cannot always change your circumstances, but you can always change your response. Therefore, recognize and work on your internal issues just as much as your external behaviors. In so doing, you will become healthier on the outside AND the inside.

You can do it!