Body Image Issues / The Biggest Loser = Rachel

I have a confession, I watch The Biggest Loser on a fairly regular basis.  For those of you who live under a rock, The Biggest Loser is a “game show,” that gives extremely overweight individuals a chance to shed the pounds with extreme measures of dieting and exercising, all with the hopes of not only losing lbs but also winning a hefty cash prize for the biggest loser.  By placing the contestants on a “ranch” with little to no communication with the outside world, the contestants are left in the hands of trainers and nutritionists who push their physical and mental capabilities to the brink.  While there are several positive outcomes from a show like this, it’s fair to say “The Biggest Loser” has also been scrutinized for its extreme measures and its nearly impossible to stick to regimen.  Case in point, last night’s finale episode.  During the finale, we learn the winner, Rachel, went from a size 20, 260 lbs to a size 0/2, a mere 105 lbs.  Rachel lost 60% of her body mass.  Let me repeat that, Rachel lost 60% of herself while on The Biggest Loser.  A transformation as extreme as Rachel’s case, is something that would be more appropriate for The Swan, a controversial tv show that used plastic surgery to transformed people from their ugly duckling selves into beautiful swans.  Rachel looked bone thin.  The before and after picture didn't give me a sense of ‘wow you did it, you look great,’ but rather I thought to myself ‘you not only look like a different person, you look like you suffer from an eating disorder.’  And don’t just take my word for it, trainers Bob and Jillian’s faces said 1,000 words when Rachel walked across the stage. They too had a look on their face that was of disbelief and shock.  Whether Rachel took her exercise regimen to an extreme, cut too many calories, or stopped eating in general, the possibilities are endless and regardless, Rachel may need to take step back from the spotlight, remove her contestant name badge and reevaluate her new found weight loss and how to move forward in life with a healthy balance.   As the extreme body image scrutinizing society we are, I hope this made other people stop and think that we’re taking things too far.  It’s one thing to be healthy and a completely different thing to be obsessively healthy by setting unrealistic diet and exercise regimens to measures to live by.  I commend The Biggest Loser for the countless positive, feel good stories, however Rachel and last night’s finale presented an enormous red flag that surely got my attention and the attention of countless others on social media. 

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Let’s also not forget, earlier this week Gwen Stefani, lead singer of No Doubt, was scrutinized for tweeting a throwback picture of her “chubby self.”  While her body image may have been “chubby” by her standards, the rest of the world saw someone that was maybe a size 6 who looked completely healthy and by all means “a normal and healthy weight.”  I couldn’t agree more.  What I saw, was a ridiculous 80s outfit that you were wearing that would make anyone look large.  You were probably a size 4-6 and for that, shame on you and your name calling.  You can have your own expectations for yourself, but when it comes to using shameful words like “chubby,” I’d advise to choose your words more carefully and perhaps don’t add fuel to a society where people are taking their own lives daily because they’re “chubby.” #Accountability