Watching The Biggest Loser weigh-in last night reminded me again how no one truly understands what we go through on the show – it’s a wild rollercoaster ride, let me tell you!
After the heartache of leaving home and the torture of, in my case, the first serious exercise I’d done in over 15 years, you’re actually very excited – in fact, you’re desperate – to face the scales and see what you’ve achieved.
And when you step on that platform and pull a big number like all of the contestants did last night, it’s very rewarding and self-affirming – you never think you can lose that amount. In fact, the results truly are amazing and I remember being astonished by my first score of 6.8kg.
I also realised how competitive Loser makes you because even last night, I was there comparing my week one result to that of the other girls thinking, ‘I beat her…’ or ‘She beat me… but only because she’s younger!’
This year’s contestants are very lucky to have a partner to share the journey with and be able to celebrate their results with someone from home. Last year, I was desperate to call home and say, “Honey! I lost 6.8kg!” but there's absolutely no contact with the outside world. You console yourself with the fact that your loved ones are huddled around the TV, cheering you on from home.
One of the first things people ask when you do get home is how do you achieve such amazing results. The thing you have to remember is that when you’re in the White House like I was or on the island like the Couples are, you’re eating, sleeping, breathing weight loss. It’s is like a full-time job. You’re not living real-life – you have no family, children or bills to contend with – you’re 100% focused on eating well and exercising around the clock. So, yes, the results on the show are amazing but so are the circumstances. As Julie who lost 6.4kg said, “These results just don’t happen on the outside!”
One of the benefits of being on the outside is that you’re not facing elimination like Holly and Mel and Tania and Ramses. They scored well, and I think they both need to be there, so I’m sorry that one couple will be going home.
While these couples are fighting for survival, all of the other contestant will be focusing on next week and how they can improve their food and exercise to get a better number than before. After each weigh-in, I used to ask myself, ‘What worked this week? Where could I improve? What could I do better?’ These are things you too can ask yourself after stepping off the scales.
Some of you have also been asking for my predictions for this year’s Loser title, and while it’s still too early to tell, here’s who I’ll be keeping my eye on:
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As a team, Nathan and Andrew – they work well together; they’re smart, fit and strong, although they’ll need to start topping the leaderboard.
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Out of the girls, Teresa – I think she has the mental edge with weight loss and 7.7kg was a fantastic score!
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As for a dark horse, Bob – to be the oldest contestant and also The Biggest Loser of the week is remarkable so don’t write this granddad off!
Elimination is on tonight at 7PM on TEN – it’s going to be interesting having all team members decide who goes home. I’ll be back in the morning to share my thoughts.
Episode 7 highlights
I thought the whole of last night's episode was a highlight, so I haven't included any favourite segments below. If you missed the first competitive weigh-in, you can watch the entire episode at The Biggest Loser TV show website – just look for the catch-up TV segments.