The Biggest Loser is Back and So is Jillian!!

[AragornElessar]

Surprised we're at Week Three and no thread yet, so...Here we are.

I am so glad Jillian's back and it really does feel the show is back on track after the last two seasons, but *especially* last season's complete disaster. I get a Conda vibe from Pam on Jillian's team, but unlike Conda, Pam's not getting away w/any of her drama crap because Jillian won't let her get away w/it.

This is what was wrong last year. I was listening to Jillian's podcast last week (available free at iTunes) and it was interesting to listen to her talk about Dolvett early on. How she really didn't know him that well and they got into a bit of a difference of opinion on how to handle things like the first day when she booted half of her team out of the gym because they really weren't trying and then the one that upped and left after that "lil chat" her and Jill had. He was more along the line of, "Well...You know they're not used to this kind of work and we should ease them into it and..." You could tell Jill was trying *very* hard not to say something that would come across as some kind of a conflict between them when it wasn't, but....

I can't prove it, but...Call it instinct, but I've wondered if the mess of last year was them trying to be a bit different and ease off on things w/the Contestants and be more pally friend like and in turn....

While I think Dolvett's a good guy and I like him, it did seem like last Season was far more influenced by his way of doing things than the Biggest Loser/Bob way of doing things. As I said, I can't prove any of that and it's just a hunch, but combine that w/some of the things Jill was saying and I can't help but wonder about it.

One thing I do know...I know more of the names of people on teams on Week Three and care for how they're doing, when it took me till the first month and a half was done before I started doing the last season. By that time though, the ones I really liked and cared about were gone and Conda was in control, so...

One thing I love this season, other than the return of Jillian, is bringing in the kids. What a great idea and really does touch on what the show really does best. Inspiring and educating people about the obesity problem in this World of ours. I wonder what will happen next week w/Sunny, as it looks like there's going to be a bit of a bomb shell dropped there.

Anyway...I'm glad it's back and really back and I'm beyond happy Jillian's back too. It's good to see the old Biggest Loser back on my TV. Anyone else?

[professordeb]

Thrilled that Jillian is back and that she's taking no prisoners! You go girl -- tell them like it is. Either put up & shut out or get out.

Count me in as another who thought Conda got away with faaaaaaaar too much and the show seemed to be driven by her. Probably the reason why I didn't spend much time watching compared to other season.

Bringing the kids on board -- what a great idea since so many kids seem to be heading for obesity. Many blame it on too much junk food in the schools but I think one thing that would really be helpful is to bring back phys ed in elementary school each.and.every.day! As much as I didn't enjoy it, it was definitely healthier for me. It also fostered an interest in learning new ways of playing old games. Like using a trampoline to play "baseball". Anyway, here's to cheering on the kids and Jillian.

[orbitz]

Many blame it on too much junk food in the schools but I think one thing that would really be helpful is to bring back phys ed in elementary school each.and.every.day!

NOOOOoooooooo. I hated P.E. classes so much in school, and the children would be all sweaty when they get back to classes. I think school should just stick with keeping out vending machines, serve healthy lunches and provide education on what it means to live a healthy lifestyle. But I would never, ever want to see mandatory P.E. classes back in school again.

[manhn]

The day I stopped taking PE was a good day (11th grade). One of the many reasons I loved grades 11 and 12.

Also not sure how PE fostered interest in anything if one doesn't enjoy it. It certainly never fostered in me the love of the vault or the love of the javelyn. Or square dancing.

[PrincessLeppard]

But it got you moving. I was not a fan of PE, either, especially as a student in the 80s (didn't want to ruin my hair ), but I also watch how many of my students do nothing athletic.

We have one day a week where it is mandatory for the students to exercise for 45 minutes. This can include merely walking. It's amazing how many kids totally balk at this and whine to be able to sit down.

[professordeb]

Well I didn't say I liked PE (actually I didn't like it most of the time) but it sure got us moving. You can remove all the junk you want out of the schools but kids are still likely to either 1) bring it from home or 2)eat it at home. Why not foster a good habit -- exercise. Most of the time when we "adults" wish to lose weight, we are told not only to watch what we eat but to exercise as well. If it's good enough for us to do as adults to become/stay healthy, then why would we not want to encourage the same in our children?
BTW, I absolutely HATED dodgeball and hated that it seemed to be what we often played on days that it was too rainy to have recess. Which reminds me of a question. How many children do any of you see actually running & playing in the school yard are the same ones having weight problems? Most of the ones I've seen who are running around and playing tend to be of normal weight. The ones who are overweight (and not necessarily obese) tend to be the ones who just stand around and do nothing but gab or stay in a corner by themselves.

As much as I despised having PE, it was actually good for me in a number of ways. Now if I could only motivate myself to go for walks more often but in the winter I just find it too darned cold and hard on my knees.

PL -- not surprised by the whining of students when they have to exercise for any length of time. Some of them just don't get it.

[MacMadame]

I don't think there is any data to show that phys ed makes a big difference in obesity rates. It might seem to be "common sense" that it would, but IME mostly what I think PE does is make kids hate certain sports which is certainly not going to benefit them in the long run. I think promoting sports outside of school works better.

Also, I think Jillian is a HORRIBLE trainer and that easing people into heavy exercising when they come from a background of absolutely no exercise is absolute the right way to do it. But then I hate The Biggest Loser and think it sets really bad examples on pretty much everything about losing weight and it's no surprise that most of the contestants just gain all that weight back.

[AragornElessar]

For me, the problem w/PE was due to the medical conditions I've got, at that time it was reccomended for me to not do very much in case there was too much stress on my bones. Of course, we now know that's not right and I should have been doing far more, but that's the difference between now and then. Anyway...

I hated PE because both the Teacher *and* the Kids turned it into Hell on Earth for me. The Teacher was so digusted he had to modify anything in his class for one kid, he went out of his way to embrass me in front of the kids. Such as doing stuff he knew I couldn't do, on my own in front of the entire class, so figure out what ended up happening. Then the kids took that and just ran w/it.

Fast forward to HS and I loved my one and only semester of PE, as I only needed the one credit I only took it the one time. Reason being is there was only four of us due to all of us having various health issues/conditions and one heck of a great teacher. She realized for us, PE needed to be fun, so we did fun stuff. Like taking the one hall bordering the Gym where all the equipment rooms were, so we wouldn't distrurb anyone/a class, and turning it into our Floor Hockey "rink". That was one of my favourite times in HS. As I played Defence, it was one of the few times I was able to literally flatten someone and not get yelled at for it. (The joys of being legally blind... )

It was also thanks to her I finally learned how to skate backwards. Not well, but I could do it. Nearly also gave her a Heart Attack when I was trying to learn the skid stop by using the boards as a "base" and suddenly all anyone heard was this loud BOOM as I literally hip checked them. I was okay, but my left side of my leg was some funny looking colours for a few days.

Anyway...I think that could be the big thing about PE and kids these days. If it's not fun, they won't do it. If more fun activities could be brought into it, that could help change things. It will also trickle down to improving the results of those you know what fitness tests.

There's no easy answer, but to bring in healthier food options only goes so far. If kids aren't being active, then.... That's one thing I really hope this Season's Biggest Loser shows by working w/these kids. I thought it was a wonderful sign of how committed Biingo is to all of this was when he showed up last Monday for those Fitness Tests on crutches because he'd been playing Basketball, went for a throw and came down wrong on his foot and breaking a bone or two. As Bob said, not great it happened, but great in a way of how it happened because at least he was *doing* something active.

BTW, Jillian tweeted on either Friday or Saturday they had just finished filming this Season and we're going to be really surprised by who makes the Final Four. Evil, evil tease that woman is. But it's so good to have her back.

[AragornElessar]

I don't think there is any data to show that phys ed makes a big difference in obesity rates. It might seem to be "common sense" that it would, but IME mostly what I think PE does is make kids hate certain sports which is certainly not going to benefit them in the long run. I think promoting sports outside of school works better.

Also, I think Jillian is a HORRIBLE trainer and that easing people into heavy exercising when they come from a background of absolutely no exercise is absolute the right way to do it. But then I hate The Biggest Loser and think it sets really bad examples on pretty much everything about losing weight and it's no surprise that most of the contestants just gain all that weight back.

If you hate the show so much, then why are you in here?

[myhoneyhoney]

Also, I think Jillian is a HORRIBLE trainer and that easing people into heavy exercising when they come from a background of absolutely no exercise is absolute the right way to do it. But then I hate The Biggest Loser and think it sets really bad examples on pretty much everything about losing weight and it's no surprise that most of the contestants just gain all that weight back.

THIS! As someone who struggled with being overweight for years, this show makes me cringe. Yeah, if you use their method you will lose weight but more than likely you will gain it all back PLUS MORE. I firmly believe that in order to lose weight it must be done the healthy way, 1-2 lbs per week. It needs to be a lifestyle change that takes months, of not more than a year to learn, not just a few weeks of extreme exercising and diet. B.L's method is too extreme to sustain for the rest of your life.

[Rob]

I gave up BL after last season. Haven't seen Jillian's return.

[jamesy]

I thought it was amusing that Jillian lost 3 of her 5 people within the first 2 episodes. With all the publicity about her returning it would be kind of embarrassing if she had no one to train by the time they got to singles.

[heckles]

If you hate the show so much, then why are you in here?

Every thread about a television show requires at least one person to join and post for the purpose of deriding others about enjoying that television show. It's a rule.

Jillian would scare the Cheetos out of anyone's clutches, but she has moments when she shows she cares. Anna Kournikova pretty much stood there with her smirk and obviously hated everyone there.

[MacMadame]

If you hate the show so much, then why are you in here?

Because I wanted to see what people were saying. Bite me.

Every thread about a television show requires at least one person to join and post for the purpose of deriding others about enjoying that television show. It's a rule.

Where did I say ANYTHING about anyone who watched the show? In fact, I didn't.

[heckles]

Where did I say ANYTHING about anyone who watched the show? In fact, I didn't.

Okay, so you were just being condescending about...something or another. Got it.

[AragornElessar]

Because I wanted to see what people were saying. Bite me.

You know something? I think the only way to actually reply to you is in the same manner of how you gave me negative rep earlier in the Fall.



Off to add to my Ignore list now.

[MacMadame]

Okay, so you were just being condescending about...something or another. Got it.

And you're being an ass.

I just said I don't like the show or Jillian. And why. This is a thread about the show and Jillian which makes my comments perfectly on-topic. And not remotely condescending or vague.

[MacMadame]

Off to add to my Ignore list now.

That's better than sending me a PM whining about it.

[madm]

PE classes in school are a good idea because they expose kids to many sports they would otherwise not have an opportunity to try. This is how I got involved in tennis and softball. Later in life I was able to play softball on a rec team at work, and it was great fun. Ditto with learning how to play volleyball which now comes in handy at backyard parties. I would never have done these sports on my own.

The other main benefit of PE is that it provides a break from studying and can be a big stress reliever. This is why colleges encourage students to take "physical activity" classes as electives. Too many students are wigging out over their grades and exams and they need a mental break as well as a healthy break to counteract all the junk food they might be ingesting during late night study sessions.

The problem with school PE is often the instructor. If you have a military style drill sargent that humiliates low achievers, then that is bad. However, if you have an instructor that wants you to have fun exercising, than that's good. My daughters experienced the former type, and because they skated after school, they did not need extra exercise on top of what they were doing for several hours after school. Unfortunately the PE instructor did not stretch the kids before telling them to run 2 miles, and this caused many muscle injuries. I was able to get my 2nd child out of PE in middle school after much petitioning because she was a national competitor and medalist, and she got press coverage, so they knew she was really exercising outside of school. It was a chore though getting out of PE in the public school system. There are state requirements for a certain number of hours earned doing PE and health classes. We finally were able to get independent study credits for PE and she took a summer independent study health class.

[heckles]

I just said I don't like the show or Jillian. And why.

We already got the memos from you that: 1) You got weight-loss surgery, 2) Lost weight, and 3) Think that this makes you the expert on everyone else's physiology.

Jillian Michaels also used to be overweight, and some of us would like to see what methods she endorses.