Okay, Sorry, But I'm Not Digging TBL Resort

See it here, if you haven't already.

When I first heard about it while reading a blog post today, I thought, Ooh, lemme see, lemme see. Sounds great. After all, I'm the gal who has wanted to go to one of those weight loss program places since ages ago--like Green Mountain or Structure House or the Pritikin in Aventura (near to me, but just not affordable) or "insert name of cool resort for weight loss here". Since I was old enough to read VOGUE and other women's magazines and see gorgeous pics and recipes and articles touting the beauty/wellness benefits of these places, well, it's seemed right up there with my dream of going to Tuscany.

Sadly, when I was healthy enough to travel, I was poor. And when I had enough money to travel, I was too sickly and would get terribly ill at hotels, any hotel. (I went deaf after a three day stay in one, my chemical sensitivities went haywire. And it was not a cheapo hotel, either.)

So, of course, I hadda see TBL resort.

Er...not impressed.

I'm sure the results are great and, were I to win a trip there, I might even risk it, on the hope that it's fresh and new and maybe not too toxic on me.

But, er...I find it ugly. I find the scenery ugly and the buildings ugly and the rooms uninspiring. It strikes me as...well...institutional, not resorty. (Note: Zion Nat'l Park has lovely vistas, as I've seen in photos, but around the resort itself, it looks bare and stark and kinda lonely.)

If I'm gonna be away from my beloved hubbypoo and my family and my comforting belongings, I at least want beautiful scenery. I guess I'm too firmly in the "I like trees and flowers" catgory, being the daughter of a gardening-mad mom born in the mountain boonies of Cuba, having spent most of my life in the subtropics (though born in the Caribbean), and the owner of a yard chock full of hibiscus, bougainvillea, a really nifty pink flowering bush whose name I don't know but that makes me so happy, palm trees, a resilient gardenia that bursts into white fragrant blooms twice a year, assorted little "don't know what they are" bushes, and one humongous Royal Poinciana that burns with orange-red blossoms in June (and shadows my front yard, kinda killing my grass, but, oh, well). My mom used to plant anything she could in our yard when I was a teen/twenties--flowers, herbs, veggies, fruits.

I'm used to being surrounded by lots of green with punctuations of bright colors and white.

I'm just not a desert girl. Although Sedona always looks cool to me on television (maybe the color or something).

Now, put a resort near the Yosemite Nat'l Park--or just put it right in the Ahwahnee--or in the highlands of North Carolina or in the Pacific Northwest and I'd be okay. :D I's gotta see some green.

So, there it is. I really am not feeling the beauty of TBL's resort's aesthetic.

Anyone out there find it beautiful?

TBL's ALI VINCENT--How She's Keeping the Weight Off, Advice To Those Starting Weight Loss Journey

There's an interesting interview with THE BIGGEST LOSER'S female winner Ali Vincent over at That's Fit dot com that's worth visiting to read in its entirety.

Here are two Q/A snippets that I found of special interest.

The first tells us how Ali is keeping off her huge weight loss--and it's not easy, not for lazybones, shows focus and strength of will:

TF: What was your daily calories in/calories out goal on the road to winning Season 5 compared to today? (Ali was initially voted off, but did win a spot to return to the ranch.) In your book you share you still keep a food journal, but do you still strap on a bodybugg?

AV: I've got it on my arm right now. Yeah I do, I love it, love it, love it. People are like, "Do you still have to wear that?" I don't have to wear the bodybugg, but for me, it's the best tool I've found to track the calories I've burned every day. For me it's liberating. As long as I burned it, I can eat it. Now I'll stay on about 2,000 calories and I'll just make sure I burn 2,000 calories. It was hard for me to do before, but now I have an active lifestyle. I never go more than three days. On that third day, if I haven't done a workout, then I go.

When we first went to the ranch, my calories [in] were 1,200, but they didn't use the bodybugg [for the burn] like they do it now. On Biggest Loser we had one day of rest with higher calories, so I added 800 calories on my rest day for a 2,000 calorie day. [After being voted off the show] I stayed on a 1,200 calorie budget and I had to burn 3,750 a day to get me in a 50 percent [weight] loss range at the finale. When I returned to the ranch, Jillian asks me, "What in the hell are you doing?" I told her, "I go to bed when my bodybugg tells me to go." I relied on a mathematical equation. When you win the Biggest Loser, you live and die by the bodybugg. There's other tools out there, the bodybugg was the tool that I was given and that I use.

The second is advice for those starting a journey to lose fat and gain fitness:

TF: What do you tell people who are obese/overweight and don't know where to start?

AV: A, you gotta tell the truth of what you are. I didn't even know I weighed 234 lbs. You have to know where point A is before you can get to point B. Then think about what point B looks like. How much weight do you want to lose? Get clear on what your goal is going to be, then break it down in between. Start journaling everything that you do throughout the day. Go online, get support groups, get a trainer or a friend. If you want to be healthy, find the healthiest person you know and start hanging around them. Start watching them. You have to take action.

It never gets easy. Not the start, not the middle, and obviously not the finish--which is no such thing. It's just the ongoing....

Ali's Book, BELIEVE IT, BE IT releases tomorrow. Previous TBL winner Matt Hoover also published a book. I'd like to see Kai Hibbard write a tell-all, frankly, of the manipulations behind the scenes and how the pressure of TBL seems to lead some pretty close to eating disorders, exercise addiction, and dangerous diet behaviors for the moolah.Wonder if they invited her for the "Where Are They Now" type of show coming up soon?

Prolly not?

Ali, Matt and Suzy, and Eric Chopin (who has regained, btw) will be in it.

Anyway, the special airs November 25.

What Have You Done Today To Make You Feel Proud?-- That "Biggest Loser" Song

I made a healthful breakfast this morning, including 3/4 fresh juice and an egg-white scramble with 5 servings of veggies (zucchini, spinach, onions, green pepper, mushrooms). I made hubby a fresh and healthful lunch to keep him shiny and handsome.

And I'm gonna start writing again after ages of not doing so. It's National Novel Writing Month, so why not? A good time to jump back in.

I'm feeling good, and I want to feel proud at the END of this day, having done my best to eat for health and move for health and think affirmatively.

We need a change
Do it today
I can feel my spirit rising
We need a change
So do it today
'Cause I can see a clear horizon

What have you done today to make you feel proud?
So what have you done today to make you feel proud?

--song "Proud" sung by Heather Small

THE BIGGEST LOSER'S Aubrey Made Me Mad and Carla Made Me Sad

I toggled between THE BIGGEST LOSER last night and AMERICAN IDOL. (Hubby is an AI fan, I didn't want to miss all of TBL, and I refuse to record shows. It's like robbing the future to me in an odd way. It has to be some real treasure for me to bring out the record function. And I haven't recorded anything in, oh, a couple years or more.)

I'd like to say that Aubrey has some fricken nerve. There, said it.

Joelle has been annoying for a while, so it's not surprising she was in some sort of vacant-stare denial, yet again. I really think she has some sort of weird issue--don't know if it's depression or what, but there is somethign really off about Joelle and her reaction and her masklike face. If I were her, I'd head to a doc and get checked out. I mean that seriously, too. Apathy and that sort of frozen look can be symptoms. I get that way when my thyroid is out of range and when I'm really depressed.

So, Joelle's leaving is not unjust. And Carla had a right to be ticked off. You could see how very much Carla wanted to get healthy at the ranch (and on her own). You could taste her desire to stay. Sad. So sad she had to go.

However, I do think that she had the wrong attitude at follow-up reunion. Deciding you have the right to start tongue-lashing someone yet again--no matter how much they hurt you--is no way to make progress. Venting may have felt good, but it wasn't going to get any epiphanies out of Joelle or anyone. Sorry, I wouldn't sit there and let you rip on me, either, not in public. Take it private, sort it out, or agree to go your separate ways. Hash it out in private, then go on camera if you want to explain what happened. But the camera makes a public event of what I consider totally a private one, and that felt a bit too weirdly voyeuristic a moment for me.

Now, Aubrey: Who the hell is she, Miss I lost Two Pounds In A month When I Was Supposedly Working Out Four Hours A Day, to rip on Joelle the way she did about slacking off? Is this hypocritical or what?

I agree that she, like the other contestants, had the right to ASK questions about commitment and rationales in order to make the BEST choice of who to boot, but she had no moral right to act like she's the queen of 100% effort. She totally turned into a very unappealing person in that moment, and part of me hope she ends up on the chopping block next time for that little ugly bit of her real self showing. Although, part of me wonders if her going off on Joelle was really a strange psych thing of her berating her own self for her poor efforts at home.

Could be, ya know?

I hope Carla reaches her goal of being the woman to lose the most weight on the show. She's got gumption. I'd like to see her succeed. And even if she and Joelle never patch things up, I hope they can forgive each other in their own hearts and move one healthfullly.

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TBL's Daniel Gives Thumbs Up to WINNING FRIED CHICKEN Recipe

So, here it is. I intend to try it out:

WINNING FRIED CHICKEN

A Lot of Regain Among TBL Vets

I've stated it before, and it's worth reminding ourselves, that this is a lifelong battle. It does not end. Oprah is understanding this. And a lot of the veterans of THE BIGGEST LOSER are facing that, too.

MSNBC has a couple of interesting articles. If you're a fan of TBL, you may want to check these out, including the pics:


Did they keep it off? See TBL Contestants now...

Life After "Loser": "Every day is a struggle"

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Oprah's "Biggest Loser" Show: Kinda Dull, But a Definite Reality Check

I watched most of it, cause I wanted to see what they'd have to offer (and maybe get me kicked in the butt a bit).

It was nice to see some former contestants, and Oprah was very up and encouraging and all, but Jillian looked like she was gonna fall asleep and Bob looked disoriented. What up with that?

Anyway, I liked that they had a segment with contestants having a hard time keeping weight off (or just plain not succeeding). For instance, in a VERY VERY brief update, they showed Ryan Benson (not in person), the first ever winner of TBL, who has a 100 pound regain. I'm sure he feels really bad about it. I wish they had been able to interview him.

The segment with Matt and Suzy Hoover (who still make an adorable couple, don't they?) was a needed reality check. When you stop doing what you did to lose (ie, keep food intake in check, exercise a lot), you regain. Matt was up about 50 pounds from his winning weight. And though they tactfully didn't get a fixed number from Susy, she was wearing a black turtleneck and was only shown shoulders up. We know "fat camouflage," don't we, ladies? We understand it.

Granted, Suzy's had two babies in less than two years--which she kept repeating, I'll add--and that's a definite factor. But she admitted to not being with it in terms of exercising and with also using the pregnancies as an excuse to eat for two--and eat a lot.

We understand that, too. (Hey, I have a reason to eat? Let's at it!)

This weight loss thing is hard. Maintenance is hard. It's all hard.

You know, THE BIGGEST LOSER should keep tab on previous guests, and all the ones who regained a lot should have a shot again--a sort of TBL Regainers show--maybe a shorter show to see if second time's the charm? Whaddya think?

Reality check two: What the successful maintainers do.

They exercise--frequently. They control what foods they buy and eat--consistently. Exercise. Calorie control. No big news there.

There's Ali, the woman winner of TBL, small and sleek and toned. They showed her in the kitchen, showing us what kinds of stuff she eats. From my calculations, her breakfast and lunches run about 200 calories each. And she excercises 2 hours a day (at least five days a week). TWO HOURS. If breakfast and lunch run (with whatever beverages and fruit she may add) about 500, then she's eating very little. What? Fewer than 1200 calories a day? TO MAINTAIN.

But SEEING it. Ouch. Reality slap, that one.

I forgot which contestant was the guy who showed his daily meal intake--the food arrayed on a counter. About 2000-2100 calories (for a tall fella). Very lean 3 meals and two snacks. Oatmeal with yogurt for breakfast. A few ounces of grilled chicken and steamed broccoli for lunch. Ezekiel bread with peanut butter for a snack. You get the drift.

Shoot.

Real life can't sustain 6 hours of killer daily exercise like the ranch. The 1200 to 1400 calories the women ate daily was paired with about 4000 calories BURNED OFF. Yes, that's a caloric deficit that ensures big losses. A pound a day plus is not surprising with that equation.

Overall, the show was worth watching for those of us on this particular journey or in this particular fight (choose thy metaphor!) for a look at how it really works. The difficulty to reach goals and keep to them, and the glow that comes from succeeding. Notice how much "shinier" the maintainers looked, that sense of satisfaction from making such a change.

No magic pill. Just grueling attention and effort.

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Rocco's BIGGEST LOSER Recipes

If you want to try the recipes Rocco (Gosh, he's cute!) offered TBL contestants, here ya go:

Rocco's Recipes

The "Chicken Alfredo" is calling my name.
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A Challenge For Those Who'd Do THE BIGGEST LOSER If They Could

Not everyone is tough enough for THE BIGGEST LOSER. (I'm likely not!) Of course, you never know until you're there and have that constant, day in and day out, weight-loss imperative.

That said, if you ARE tough, and if you ARE ready for a huge challenge, and if you want badly to see the new year many, many pounds lighter, there's a non-wimp challenge out there for the boot-camper in you:

Angie All The Way's BIGGEST LOSER: BLOG EDITION.

It's a no excuses, no wimping out, no there-there-it's-okay pats on the back kind of challenge. If you're super-sensitive, this may not be for you. But if you admire Jillian's tough mentoring and you want people to keep you from coming up with reasons you couldn't do it or didn't lose weight in your weekly weigh-in, then this is the one for you.

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A Second Babe for Matt and Suzy

This may be old news to y'all, but I'm just catching up with all the stuff I missed while AWOL.

Nice to see Matt and Suzy of BIGGEST LOSER are doing well with a new bundle of joy! I thought they were just so cute when they won and then even cuter when they got married. I wish them, their first boy, and the new little one, much joy and continued health.

Matt's coming out with a book, too. BIGGEST LOSER sure changed their lives, huh? :)

I wanna lose big, too, and change my life. Just not on tv. ::shudder::

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The Biggest Losers...and Regainers?

The statistics on weight loss are not heartening. Most who lose--yes, the vast majority--regain lost pounds, and even add some. Oh-oh, I feel dragonfire on my neck!

No, no, let's hurry into the castle and drop the portcullis.

Oooh, better.

There was some comment chatter not too long ago on some FatFighter Blogs about how watching the rebroadcasts of old THE BIGGEST LOSER shows had a beneficial (ie. motivating) effect.

And I agreed. Watching those folks just change and change, lose and lose, and struggle, well, it was like a coach saying, "Get off your couch and move and then plan a healthy meal."

It can also be discouraging, if you don't have a personal trainer there with you for hours a day, and you're not living in an environment structured to focus solely, consistently, obessively on diet and exercise. In other worlds, a world created for weight loss (which is what THE BIGGEST LOSER ranch is).

Anyway, I had mixed reactions--sad, cheered, discouraged, encouraged--while reading an issue of TIME magazine recently that had various diet/appetite/obesity related articles. One included an update on some of THE BIGGEST LOSER contestants, including Ryan Benson, the guy who had such a drastic change in weight, so drastic that he won the first season's big prize of 250 thousand smackeroos. (I remember him, because he started out as a real unlikable dude I wanted kicked off the show, then morphed into a more softie, weepy dude I was able to cheer for, though I wanted Doc or Kelly to win, honestly.)

Bad News Brute Alert:
Ryan has regained all but thirty of his lost pounds.

Let me break that down:

Original Weight: 330
Winning Weight: 208
Current Weight: 300

He's managed to keep 30 off (which is better for his health than NONE), and just goes to show that even with total pro assistance, it's not easy maintaining. Here's hoping Ryan can get the numbers down again. Hey, his winnings can help hire a trainer and get some good diet food delivery if necessary. Good luck to you, RB.

The TIME article goes on to mention some disturbing behind-the-scenes activity:

The Biggest Loser achieves rapid transformations—contestants often drop more than 9 kg in a week—through calorie restriction, endless exercise and no small amount of dehydration that occurs behind the scenes. Ryan Benson, 38, an actor who works for a DVD distributor in Los Angeles, lost 55 kg to win the first season in January 2005 but says he regained 14.5 kg within five days simply by drinking water. Matt Hoover, 31, a motivational speaker based in Seattle, had a 7-kg rebound within a day of winning Season 2. Last season's runner-up, Kai Hibbard, 28, an aerobics instructor in Alaska who says she spent the night before her final weigh-in hopping in and out of a sauna for six hours, consumed only sugar-free Jell-O for several days and wolfed down asparagus, which is a natural diuretic.

Okay, I understand. Big money is at stake. They're taking crazy measures to win.

I remember a high school boyfriend who used to take water pills and used to spit--actually spit and spit and spit into a cup--as well as make himself sweat (wrapping himself in plastic wrap and exercising in the sun), in order to make weight for the wrestling team competitions. I knew that had to be unhealthy. (It certainly was creepy.) It was all about DEHYDRATION for weight loss, for a weigh-in, which is not about losing fat or gaining health, that's for sure.

There's some good news in the article and some difficult but sobering news.

The good news: One of my fave contestants, the pretty dark-haired Kelly Minner, has not only kept her finale fat loss, she's lost even more and is down to 140 lbs. Go, Kelly!

But she does it in part by heeding the sobering part, she exercises up to four hours a day for six days a week.

No, that's not a typo. And here's some factoid on that, emphasis mine. And know what, let's make it a SPARKLY FACTOID, because at least it offers some hope (though, hey, I'm not feeling all that cheered or sparklesome):

The U.S. National Weight Control Registry, which tracks the habits of some 5,000 successful maintainers, cites a study showing only a fifth of dieters with a history of obesity sustain a loss of 10% of their body weight for a year or more. "The best predictor of the ones who are not going to regain are the ones who are doing the most physical activity," says Dr. Holly Wyatt, an obesity expert at the University of Colorado. She says most registrants exercise, on average, at least an hour a day.

To read all of the weight/fitness related articles in that TIME issue, go to "The Way We Eat--The Science of Appetite" and More Stories.

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