It is Motivation or Mental Abuse?
Over the weekend a former Biggest Loser contestant is claiming that the show is both emotionally abusive and physically dangerous.
She claims that contestants are made to emotionally tortured and the show is a 'fat shaming disaster'.
You can read about it here: Kai Hibbard, The Biggest Loser Contestant, Lifts Lid on Shocking Show Secrets
What do you think?
Do you watch the show?
Do you think some of the things she claims is being said is emotional abuse or motivation?
Is there a fine line between motivation and mental abuse? Where do you draw the line?

I'm on the fence with this one. On one hand, the medical problems she has had since leaving the show are bad, but what problems would she have had in the past 9 years if she had remained morbidly obese? I think many in our society shuffle around the crap they said outright. I would never, ever say to my MIL that we have picked out her fat person coffin, BUT she has type 2 diabetes, doesn't follow the dietitian's plan, doesn't exercise, doesn't take care of herself, so she has chosen what is going to kill her whether she wants to admit it or believe it or not. Would it snap her out of it if someone came out and said it? I don't know. But one person's abuse is another's wake up call. So again, I'm not sure.
I do watch the show. I'm disappointed every year that they push the sad nutritional "facts" that are being disproven all the time. They push the low-fat mantra. They push unhealthy salty-soups as my boys call them, they push the non-nutrient dense foods that just take up space in a diet. I also question every year whether the show is rigged. My oldest son and I were sure that Scott was going to be the comeback guy. DS even said if he was the one to come back to the ranch that he was done watching the show because it was certainly rigged. LOL

As for her health problems i agree what would it have been if she didn't get healthy.

Quoting jendawn1: I highly doubt they said that. It's not like she was the first person on the show its well know the contestants aren't allowed to see or talk to their families during the process. As for her health problems i agree what would it have been if she didn't get healthy.
Yes!! Why would it be a reward to get mail or skype your family if you hadn't been sequestered from them?

Do you watch the show? I used to watch it religiously but I don't have time to watch it now.
Do you think some of the things she claims is being said is emotional abuse or motivation? Both. An excerpt from the article :
Not to mention the mental torture. “They would say things to contestants like, ‘You’re going die before your children grow up.’ ‘You’re going to die, just like your mother.’ ‘We’ve picked out your fat-person coffin’ — that was in a text message," she said.
All of the above is true for many of us. You can't live life being morbidly obese and then wonder why you had a heart attack or stroke or wonder why you can't walk to the kitchen without gasping for air.
The delivery could have been a lot better but sometimes the truth hurts.

I think most of Kai's complaints came after she left the ranch. If you watched her season, on the finale episode, she was a mess the entire time she was home. They showed her constantly breaking down into a puddle of tears because she was exhausted.
I don't doubt that some of what she says is true. Kim Lyons, her trainer, only spent a short time on the show, 1 or 2 seasons, because she reportedly backs up some of the things Kai says. I take everything with a grain of salt. There are two sides to every story, but I think some of the seemingly unhealthy physiques you see on the finale episode, (Rachel Frederickson from last year is a great example), are the result of personal choices rather than the producers forcing you to do things. It's a competition. There is a large, cash prize. People will do crazy things to win, and do.
Quoting bluerooffarm:Quoting jendawn1: I highly doubt they said that. It's not like she was the first person on the show its well know the contestants aren't allowed to see or talk to their families during the process. As for her health problems i agree what would it have been if she didn't get healthy.Yes!! Why would it be a reward to get mail or skype your family if you hadn't been sequestered from them?


Seriously, my biggest concern about the show is that I don't believe they "life coach" the contestants enough. When they are on the ranch they have a trainer telling them exactly what to do, but when they get home if they still feel like the only good exercise session is one where you puke, then of course they are going to push their bodies which have gained so much endurance and muscle mass to some kind of breaking point.
This particular season, they seem to be addressing what comes after more than they used to, and I'm sure Rachel's appearance has a lot to so with that.
Plus, I don't remember Kim Lyons very well, but we've all met that jerk trainer that tries to use too much shock value. It can be very off-putting, but some people really think it's "just a wake-up call."
Quoting ReadWriteLuv:I think most of Kai's complaints came after she left the ranch. If you watched her season, on the finale episode, she was a mess the entire time she was home. They showed her constantly breaking down into a puddle of tears because she was exhausted.
I don't doubt that some of what she says is true. Kim Lyons, her trainer, only spent a short time on the show, 1 or 2 seasons, because she reportedly backs up some of the things Kai says. I take everything with a grain of salt. There are two sides to every story, but I think some of the seemingly unhealthy physiques you see on the finale episode, (Rachel Frederickson from last year is a great example), are the result of personal choices rather than the producers forcing you to do things. It's a competition. There is a large, cash prize. People will do crazy things to win, and do.
Quoting bluerooffarm:Quoting jendawn1: I highly doubt they said that. It's not like she was the first person on the show its well know the contestants aren't allowed to see or talk to their families during the process. As for her health problems i agree what would it have been if she didn't get healthy.Yes!! Why would it be a reward to get mail or skype your family if you hadn't been sequestered from them?

I JUST QUOTED A COUPLE THINGS:
"contestants were sent evil texts, informing them of their imminent death and telling them they've picked out "fat-person" coffins to bury their bodies in."
"brainwashed to feel "so lucky to be there."
"guests are imprisoned in their hotel rooms, and later on the ranch, unable to talk to friends or family."
"You’re going die before your children grow up.’ ‘You’re going to die, just like your mother."
THESE THINGS ARE ALL "ABUSIVE" YES. IF A BOYFRIEND ACTED THIS WAY IT WOULD BE CALLED ABUSIVE ABSOLUTELY.
- Cafe MichelleP
on Jan. 20, 2015 at 9:09 AM