Biggest Loser Biggest Problem

Thanks to Isabel and Sarah for sending me the link to the NY Times article "The Biggest Loser: Health Can Take a Back Seat".

I force myself to watch it very occasionally and within a few minutes am repulsed by the whole premise of the show. People are rewarded for doing drastic things all in the name of winning and losing as much weight as possible with little focus on making lasting realistic changes in lifestyle behaviours. In addition, like most reality shows, people often feel humiliated and have their intimate feelings and insecurities exposed on air in the name of profit. 15 minutes of fame isn't worth exposing our private struggles to the world. And learning to lose weight in a drastic self punishing way only contributes to the Western worlds fast food style weight loss approach.

The reality is that slow and steady weight loss just isn't that exciting. It's not sexy. It's not often measurable week to week. And change from the inside out requires mindfulness and the camera just can't capture our evolution from being unconscious to becoming more conscious about our struggles.

Also last night I watch 'How to look good naked". The show's focus is sweet. Learn to feel better about yourself the way you are. But instead of encouraging it's guests to take action instead of slipping into spanks, they focus on positive personal self talk.

That just doesn't work in the long run. Feeling good about ourselves means doing loving things for ourselves that improve our vitality and overall feeling of health. Buying a new wardrobe isn't going to have lasting effects on self esteem. Moving, sweating and connecting with our bodies will.

So I say yuck to "The Biggest Loser" and a little less yuck to "How to Look Good Naked". There are both missing the big picture. But my approach won't sell ad space on TV.

Jane