The Biggest Loser

Infobox Television
show_name = The Biggest Loser US


caption =
format = Reality TV
runtime = 60 minutes (approx 44 min)
creator = Dave Broome
starring = Jillian Michaels
(2004–2005, 2007–present)
Alison Sweeney
(2007–present)
Bob Harper
(2004–present)
Caroline Rhea
(2004–2006)
Kim Lyons
(2006–hiatus)
narrated = J. D. Roth
country = USA
network = NBC
picture_format = 480i (SDTV)
first_aired = October 19, 2004
last_aired = present
num_seasons = 5
num_episodes = 65
Specials = 8
website = http://www.nbc.com/thebiggestloser
imdb_id = 0429318
tv_com_id = 30690

"The Biggest Loser" is an American reality television show that began broadcasting on the NBC network on October 19, 2004. The sixth season began on September 16, 2008. As of September 2008, NBC is casting for a seventh season. [ [http://www.nbc.com/The_Biggest_Loser_5/about/casting.shtml NBC.com: "The Biggest Loser Season 7 now casting"] ]

Premise

The basic premise of the show is that overweight contestants are competing to win $250,000 by losing the highest percentage of their starting body weight. The first season began with 12 contestants, while the second season began with 14. The third season began with 50 contestants, one from each state. The fourth season began with 18 contestants, the fifth began with ten teams of two people each, and the sixth began with 8 teams of two each.

In the first three seasons, contestants were housed on a large ranch that offered plenty of indoor and outdoor space, a pool and a fully equipped gym. In the fourth season, the ranch was changed and renamed college campus, known on the show as the Biggest Loser Campus. In the sixth season, the contestants' setting was reverted back to a ranch.

At the start of each season, contestants are grouped into teams and each team is assigned a personal trainer. For the first 3 seasons and seasons 5 and 6, there were two teams and two trainers, while the fourth season featured three teams and three trainers. The trainers are responsible for designing and teaching to the contestants comprehensive workout plans and nutrition plans. It is up to the contestants, however, how much or how little of the nutrition plan to implement, and how much of the workout plan they follow when the trainer is not present.

The season starts with a weigh-in to determine the contestants' starting weights. Each week culminates in another weigh-in to determine which team has lost the most weight for that week, in percentage of total weight lost. The team that has lost the lower percentage during that week must vote off one member of the team.

When the number of contestants has shrunk to a predetermined smaller number (unknown to the contestants), the teams are dissolved. The contestants are now competing one-on-one against each other, although they continue to work with their original trainers. Each week still culminates with a weigh-in, now with the two people who have lost the least percentage of weight being the ones who can be voted on for elimination.

The trainers are motivated to 'push' their individual contestants by a predetermined bonus structure, with the winning contestant's trainer taking home $100,000+.

Motivations for the contestants are similar. People who have been eliminated still try to lose weight as they are competing for the "At Home" prize of $100,000. The finalists however continue to lose weight with the show's trainers and will eventually compete for the larger prize of $250,000. Both are awarded at the "Finale". The number of episodes directly correlates to the number of weeks the "finalists" spend working with their trainers. Once the last episode of a season is shot and the finalists are selected, these remaining contestants are sent home to continue their weight loss training on their own. Once all of the "episodes" have aired, all of the contestants are brought back to measure their progress before the awards are given. The amount of time the finalists receive before a finale occurs varies from season to season.

The general episode structure is as follows:

# Temptation. Contestants prepare for the first day of the week only to find a situation that involves temptation. The temptation usually requires contestants to gamble by eating or drinking delicious but high-calorie foods in exchange for what may seem to be a beneficial trade-off. The benefits may or may not be known to the contestants in advance. Examples include eating sweet foods for a chance to call their loved ones, eating a big slice of cake to win an unknown prize (which, in one episode, turned out to be an exercise bike) or giving up time with trainer for a chance to win thousands of dollars. Contestants are given a set amount of time before the offer passes.
# Reward challenge. Contestants compete to win a prize, first as teams and then as individuals after the teams are dissolved. After the challenge, viewers are shown the winning team savoring their reward while the losing team bitterly accepts their loss. Prizes range from immunity to exercise equipment to phone calls home to "Pound Passes", that allow the holder to have a greater weight loss at the Weigh-In (eg. a 6lb weight loss would result in a 7lb weight loss if a contestant were to win a "1 Pound Pass").
# Weigh-in. All contestants are weighed to determine the amount they have lost relative to their total body weight. During team-based competition, the team that loses the highest percentage wins and the losing team must send one person home. When the teams are dissolved and the show becomes an individual competition, the two contestants who lose the lowest percentage of weight are eligible for elimination. A similar setup to individual-based weigh-ins happens when the two initial teams are broken up into four teams of two or three, as happened in the second and fourth seasons.
# The vote. The losing team meets in a dining room that has refrigerators labeled with each contestant's name, and filled with that contestant's favorite tempting foods. The name of each contestant is illuminated, and as people are voted out, the light for their name is extinguished. During the team-based competition, losing members each carry a covered plate containing the name of the person they wish to vote out. The team members who lost the highest percentage of weight that week are considered immune and may not be sent home. In the event of a tie, the winning team decides which member of the losing team shall be voted out. During the individual-based competition, the fate of the two contestants on the chopping block will be determined by the other players. In the event of a tie, the contestant who lost the least percentage of weight is eliminated.

Cast

For the first 3 seasons, the show was hosted by Canadian comedian Caroline Rhea. Beginning with the series' fourth season, Rhea was replaced with actress Alison Sweeney from the soap opera, "Days of our Lives". Creator/executive producer J. D. Roth is the narrator of the series.

Bob Harper, Jillian Michaels and Kim Lyons are personal trainers assigned to help the competitors. Michaels was a personal trainer for the first two seasons and the special editions, but was replaced with Lyons in season 3. The reason for her departure, according to an interview in "WHO" magazine, [ [http://www.who.com/who/magazine/article/0,19636,7401070212-1584091,00.html Jillian Michaels sounds off!] - WHO.com] was she was unhappy with the way she was portrayed. Both Michaels and Lyons returned to the show in the fourth season, with Michaels training a third Black team.

For the Fifth season, Michaels became the lone female trainer. According to Rene Lynch of the "Los Angeles Times", Lyons stepped back from the program to finish personal projects that she had already started before signing on, including a video series. She is currently not sure whether she will be a part of the show in the future. [http://www.calendarlive.com/tv/cl-et-loser1jan01,0,782528.story?coll=cl-tv-features]

US Seasons

Season 1"Original Air Date: 2004-10-19 – 2004-12-14"

"9 Episodes, 1 Finale"

The first season of "The Biggest Loser" featured 12 contestants divided into two teams, the Red team and the Blue team. Team Red was coached by trainer Jillian Michaels, while Team Blue was coached by trainer Bob Harper. The eventual winner of the $250,000 grand prize was Ryan, with a total weight loss of 122 pounds (37%).

Season 2"Original Air Date: 2005-09-13 – 2005-11-29"

"11 Episodes, 1 Finale"

The second season featured fourteen contestants divided into two teams based on gender. The women were coached by Bob Harper, while the men were coached by trainer Jillian Michaels. Season two introduced the change that weigh-ins would be won or lost based on the percentage of total weight lost, rather than on the number of pounds lost. This change was made to create a more even playing field among contestants of varying weights. Matt was the eventual winner. In this season, contestants Suzy Preston and Matt Hoover (third place finisher and winner, respectively) began dating after the show and since married (revealed in an interview on "Larry King Live"). In 2007, they had their first child together, and just over one year later, they had another child. [http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/biggest-loser-couple-matt-hoover-suzy-preston-welcome-new-baby-7755.php]

Season 3"Original Air Date: 2006-09-20 – 2006-11-29"

"11 Episodes, 1 Finale"

The third season began September 20, 2006, and involved the largest cast ever, with 50 contestants initially beginning the show, one for each US state. Kim Lyons joined the show, replacing Jillian Michaels as the Red Team trainer for only one season. After the initial group weigh-in and exercise, 14 contestants were selected to stay on the ranch and the other 36 contestants participated by losing weight at home. Later in the season, at-home players who lost the most weight were brought back to rejoin the cast on the ranch. [http://www.tvrules.net/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=9989]

Season 4"Original Air Date: 2007-09-11 – 2007-12-18"

"14 Episodes, 1 Finale"

On November 28, 2006, NBC announced that "The Biggest Loser" had been renewed for a fourth season. [ [http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20061128nbc01 Breaking News - NBC'S POPULAR ALTERNATIVE SERIES 'THE BIGGEST LOSER' WEIGHS IN ON A FOURTH SEASON | TheFutonCritic.com ] ] The show has been seeing year-to-year regains. In February 2007, it was announced that Caroline Rhea has left the show, to be replaced by "Days of our Lives" actress Alison Sweeney. [ [http://www.etonline.com/tv/news/2007/02/44135/ Alison Sweeney Joins 'Biggest Loser' ] ] The series premiere was on September 11, 2007. [ [http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20070412nbc01 Breaking News - NBC IS PACKING PLENTY OF HEAT AS IT ANNOUNCES NEW SUMMER 2007 ALTERNATIVE PROGRAM PREMIERES THAT MIX RETURNING FAVORITES WITH PROMISING NEW SERIES STARTING MAY 29 | TheFutonCritic.com ] ] It was also announced that there will be three teams (named for the color each team member wears: blue, red, or black), with Bob Harper, Jillian Michaels and Kim Lyons returning as personal trainers. One of the contestants for this season was Amber Walker, a paramedic from Pasadena, Texas, who won a viewer vote among potential candidates on the April 23, 2007, edition of NBC's "Today". [ [http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/18233299/ Did you choose the ‘The Biggest Loser’? - Today Show - MSNBC.com ] ] The contestants were announced by NBC on August 2, 2007. [ [http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/nbc-reveals-identities-of-the-biggest-loser-fourth-season-cast-5600.php NBC reveals the identities of 'The Biggest Loser' fourth-season cast - Reality TV World - News, information, episode summaries, message boards, chat and games for unscripted television programs ] ]

The winners were two twins: Jim, a contestant that had been voted off won the prize for the eliminated contestants. Bill won the grand prize of $250,000 and was pronounced the Biggest Loser by Sweeney.

Jillian Michaels' "black team" wiped out both Kim Lyons' "red team" and Bob Harper's "blue team", thus eliminating those two trainers from the competition as well. The final four competitors were composed solely of members of the black team, of which Jim was also a member before he was voted off.

Season 5"Original Air Date: 2008-01-01 – 2008-04-15"

"15 Episodes, 1 Finale"

On September 24, 2007, NBC announced that "The Biggest Loser" had been renewed for a fifth season. Season 5 premiered on January 1, 2008. In this season, 20 contestants compete in pairs with a loved one, co-worker or friend with the exception of one team of strangers. Alison Sweeney returns as host for her second season. Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels return to train the contestants.

In the season finale which aired on April 15, 2008, Bernie won the eliminated edition, losing 130 pounds and winning $100,000.

Ali Vincent lost the biggest percentage of weight and became the first female biggest loser of the US series, beating Roger and Kelly. However, internationally, she is "not" the first female biggest loser; the first female biggest loser is actually Jodie Prenger from the UK's second season (see "international versions" below).

In addition, Ali is also the first winner to train under both Bob "and" Jillian, and furthermore the first winner to come back after being originally eliminated in an earlier week. She first trained with Bob before she was eliminated in week 4, and when she returned, she switched over to Jillian, and under her training, went on to win the title. However, factoring in the time that Ali also spent with Bob, in the ongoing Bob vs. Jillian battle, for the first time ever, the end result was a "tie".

Season 6It premiered September 16, 2008. In this season, 16 contestants compete in pairs, which marked the first season ever to have fewer contestants step onto the ranch than the previous season ("The Biggest Loser: Couples" had 20 contestants, 10 teams of two, and despite Season 3 having 50 contestants participate, only 14 were allowed onto the ranch.). Four teams consist of married couples, training with Bob, while the other four are parent/child teams training with Jillian. Alison Sweeney returns as host for her third season.

Season 7
NBC has announced that there will be a second couples edition. It is now casting.

Terminology

The term "the biggest loser" is normally intended to be an insult; in this case, however, the term actually refers to the person that loses the most weight.

pinoffs

A spin-off of "The Biggest Loser", "The Biggest Loser: Special Edition" features a team of people competing against another team, with each competition airing in two one-hour episodes. They spend 11 days on the ranch working with Bob and Jillian and then return home to continue to lose weight. The announced groups included "family vs. family", where two families with restaurants of different cultures competed to lose weight, "engaged couple vs. engaged couple", and "Marines vs. Navy". Each episode featured one of the mini-competitions from start to finish.

International versions

The franchise has since been exported to various International versions such as Australia (3 seasons), UK (2 seasons), South Africa (1 season), Netherlands (4 seasons), Brazil (2 seasons), Hungary, India, the Middle East, Israel and most recently, Mexico. [ [http://www.milenio.com/index.php/2008/03/17/210205/ Galilea Montijo Conducirá Reality titulado "¿Cuánto quieres perder?"] ] Internationally, there have been a combined total of over 300 "Biggest Loser" contestants with starting weights ranging from 157 pounds (71.2kg) to 477 pounds (216.3kg).

United Kingdom

In addition to showing the US version, Living TV also produced their own version, which aired in 2005. Bob and Jillian were not involved but they had their own trainers with similar styles. Angie Dowds [ [http://www.angiedowds.com/ Angie Dowds - Professional Fitness] ] (counterpart to Jillian) uses a hard no-nonsense approach in training the red team, while Mark Bailey (counterpart to Bob) trains the blue team with a supportive caring approach. The show was hosted by Vicki Butler-Henderson, a motoring journalist turned television presenter who races cars and has hosted shows such as "Fifth Gear". The person who wins the competition receives £25,000 (US$49,000) in cash.

Season 1The first series aired on 6 October, 2005 on Living TV in the UK, and also in September 2007 in New Zealand on Prime Television New Zealand. The contestants in order of elimination were:

*Tracey Barcoe (Lost 4lb when eliminated, and 2st 2lb (30 LBS) at the reunion).
*Katie Wareing (Lost 1st 1lb (15 LBS) when eliminated, and 2st 12b (40 LBS) at the reunion).
*Paul Tabram (Lost 1st 1lb (15 LBS) when eliminated, and 3st 5lb (47LBS) at the reunion.
*Gil Dodick (Lost 1st 1lb (15 LBS) when eliminated, and 2st 9lb (37 LBS) at the reunion).
*Dr Shane Lee (Lost 2st 5lb when eliminated, and did not appear at the reunion)
*Martin Langmaid (Lost 3 st 2lb (44 LBS) when eventually eliminated (for the 2nd time at week 9), and 4st 8lb (64 LBS) at the reunion)
*Nat Curtis (Lost 1st 11lb when eliminated, and 4st 4lb at the reunion)
*Barney Gibson (Lost 2st 10lb when he left through illness, and 6st at the reunion)
*Nadine Lautman (Lost 1st 11lb when eliminated, and 3st 12lb at the reunion)
*Allyson Clayton (Lost 6st 3lb by the reunion)
*Mark Whittaker (Lost 5st 8lb Won in the House, and 8st 9lb at the reunion)
*WINNER: Aaron Howlett"' (Total 9st 12lb at the Final)

Total weight lost for Season 1 was 54st 6lb (762lb or 345.6kg)

One stone (st) - 14 lbs.

Season 2A second UK series also aired, the winner was Jodie Prenger who lost 8st 7lb. Internationally, she is the first female biggest loser.

Future seasonsSeason 3 of the US version on Living TV will air the UK in 2007, although it does not appear that a third UK series is planned at this time.

Australia

An Australian version of the program first aired at 7.00pm each weeknight on Network Ten from 13 February, 2006. 3 seasons have now aired in Australia with the third season currently still airing and in production.

Season 1Airing from 13 February 2006 to the final on 27 April was the first "Australia's Biggest Loser" where winner Adro Sanelli lost 51.3kg (37.58% of his starting weight) and was awarded AUD$200,000 (US$183,000). The program featured the same personal trainers as the US version, Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels with Australian host AJ Rochester. Over 6,000 Australians applied to take part, only 12 contestants being chosen to compete, their starting weight ranging from 101 kg to 197 kg.

Season 2The second season of the Australian version first went to air on Sunday 4 February, 2007, on the Ten Network. It was introduced with personal trainers Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels, who were then taken over by two new Australian trainers, Michelle Bridges and Shannan Ponton, with one extra surprise trainer, Ex-SAS "Commando" Steve Willis. The contestants starting weights range from 108 kg to 216 kg, the heaviest competitor out of all versions of "The Biggest Loser" worldwide. The beginning of this series marked some controversy with a contestant quitting and a further two leaving on medical advice. New twists were introduced including "The Walk" which gave individual immunity winners power to change the outcome of the game and a second major twist of introducing 2 new competitors as "The Outsiders" who had trained outside of the game. Their entry caused some upset, especially with Chris entering the competition as the 3rd biggest loser. The final three were Chris, Marty and Pati, Chris won with a 70.1 kg weight loss (46.89% of his starting weight), and Michael won the runners-up prize of AUD$50,000, losing 70kg (42.37% of his starting weight).

Season 3A third season premiered on February 3, 2008 in a similar format as the previous two Australian seasons. Trainers Harper, Michaels, Ponton, and Bridges all returned. Application opened at the end of season 2 with over 6,000 applicants. [ [http://www.thebiggestloser.com.au/default.aspx?page=67 The Biggest Loser Series 3 - Have you got what it takes?] - Application for series 3. URL accessed April 27, 2007] The winner was Sam, who lost 71.7 kg or 46.38% of his starting weight. At the starting age of 19, later turning 20, he is the youngest winner in international "Biggest Loser" history, and also the youngest overall contestant. Sam won the overall prize of AUD$200,000 while the prize of AUD$30,000 for the losing the most weight after being eliminated went to Sean, who lost 79.8 kg, or 45.7% of his starting weight.

Season 4A fourth season is scheduled for a early 2009 premiere with previous host and trainers expected to reprise their roles. The main change in format for this season is the introduction of couples and partners competing together.

outh Africa

"The Biggest Loser South Africa" first premiered on January 7, 2008 and finishing on 14 April, 2008. Jasmyn Asvat is the host with trainers Bruce Claasen (blue team) and Lisa Raleigh (red team). The show is made for e.tv by Red Pepper Productions and produced by Gail MacLellan. The premise of the show is similar to other International versions following the format of Temptation, Reward challenge, Weigh-in and Elimination. There is also an additional show called "The Biggest Loser Extra" which focuses on eliminated contestants. Sharon Haarhoff lost 61.8 kg, making her the third female biggest loser in the world.

Arab World

The Arab MBC 1 Channel started a version of the Biggest Loser which is called "The Biggest Winner" (الرابح الأكبر).

The shooting took place in Lebanon.

The first season was aired in 2006 with 14 contestants. The contestants are from all the Arab countries and divided into 2 teams: Blue Team and Red Team.

The winner of season 1: Jordanian Abdlallah Hamad won 250,000 Sar, and a Ford Explorer. On the season 1 reunion show, Iraqi Walid Alsaray won 50,000 Sar.

Season 2 aired in 2007, Walid Humaid from U.A.E won 250,000 Sar.On the season 2 reunion show, Saudi Arabian Salimah won 50,000 Sar.

Season 3 will be airing in October 2008.

India

The channel, Sahara One, has also started airing a version of "The Biggest Loser". The show is called "Biggest Loser Jeetega" ("Biggest Loser Wins"). The first season piloted in the month of May 2007 with 16 contestants, finishing in September 2007. It is being hosted by a popular Bollywood actor Sunil Shetty and telecast on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 8 p.m. IST. It was won by Sandeep Sachdev who lost 50.7 kg in the 16 weeks of filming the show, winning him a cash prize of Rs.50.7 lacs and jewellery.

Germany

ProSieben will air a version, which is also called "The Biggest Loser", in July 2008. Hosted by Katarina Witt.

Israel

Channel 10, in Israel, has also aired a version of "The Biggest Loser", named there "Laredet Begadol" ("To Lose Hugely"). [ [http://www.10.tv/mivzak.asp?pgID=2409 נענע 10 - דף ראשי ] ] Three seasons were aired so far.

Netherlands

There have been 4 seasons of a Netherlands version, which airs on SBS6. [http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Afvallers_%28Algemeen%29] [http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Afvallers_met_Sterren]

Brazil

SBT has also aired a version in Brazil, called "O Grande Perdedor". Silvio Santos hosts. In 2007, the network revamped the "show", under new name "Quem Perde, Ganha" (He who loses, wins) and host (Lígia Mendes).

Mexico

Televisa is airing a version, which is called "¿Cuánto quieres perder?" (How much do you want to lose?), started on May 18, 2008. [http://www.elporvenir.com.mx/notas.asp?nota_id=202373 En escena: Conducirá Galilea Montijo "reality" titulado "Cuanto quieres perder"] It finished on August 10, 2008 with Ignacio (Nacho) Mestas as the winner of the competition with a 70.98% of weight loss, compared to the goal weight. Yannira Vega was the runner-up with a 68.16% of weight loss, compared to the goal weight.

Hungary

TV2 aired a Hungarian version of "The Biggest Loser" in autumn 2007, called "A Nagy Fogyás".

Contestants

There have been over 300 "Biggest Loser" contestants over 6 USA seasons, 5 USA special editions, 3 Australian seasons, 1 UK season, 1 Indian season, 1 Mexican season and 1 South African season. This figure does not include the addiitonal 2 UK seasons, Israeli, Hungarian and other variations of the game in other countries.

The heaviest contestant to start in the game was Damien Wicks from the second Australian season, starting at 477 pounds (216.3kg) and the lightest contestant was Lizzeth from the first USA season, starting at 167 pounds (75.8kg), although during the Special Edition Marine Wives vs Navy Wives, Amber started out at 157 pounds (71.2kg). The highest percentage loss achieved from the first time being weighed on the show to the final reunion weigh-in for a male was 52.58% by Erik (who also went on to set a record for most pounds lost, 214 lbs) and by a female was 50.43% by Poppi both from the third USA season. The highest weight lost in one week was 34 pounds (15.5kg) by "Big Wal" on the first Australian season although the highest percentage of weight loss is 10.84% by Edwin Chapman from the Special Edition Engaged Couples. The highest female weight loss in one week was 25 pounds (11.34kg) by Sarah Eberwein from the Special Edition Engaged Couples show and the highest percentage of weight loss was by Lael with a loss of 10.35%. The youngest contestant was Sam from the third Australian season, age 19 (he later went on to become the youngest biggest loser worldwide), and the oldest is Jerry, age 62 from the fourth American season.

Disclaimer at end of show

"Our contestants were supervised by doctors while participating in the show, and their diet and exercise regimen was tailored to their medical status and their specific needs. Consult with your own doctor before embarking on any diet or exercise program."

As the disclaimer above states, it is always advised that one should consult his or her doctor before going ahead with auditioning for this show. In order to qualify, one must check their medical status to see if they are in good enough condition to enter this show.

References

#Biggest Loser's Dr. Huizenga: [http://www.ksdk.com/video/default.aspx?aid=66830&bw=]

External links

* [http://www.nbc.com/The_Biggest_Loser/ Official American NBC "The Biggest Loser" website]
* [http://www.nbc.com/The_Biggest_Loser_5/ Official American NBC "The Biggest Loser: Couples" website]
* [http://www.thebiggestloser.com.au/ Official Australian "Biggest Loser" website]
* [http://www.livingtv.co.uk/biggestloser/ Official UK LivingTV "Biggest Loser" website]
* [http://www.tvsa.co.za/showinfo.asp?showid=1753 Official South African "Biggest Loser" website]
* [http://www.biggestloser.in/ Official Indian "Biggest Loser Jeetega" website]
* [http://www.mbc.net/portal/site/mbc/menuitem.38bffb8f34510d48d956d410480210a0/?vgnextoid=5eae8f69cc485110VgnVCM1000008420010aRCRD&appInstanceName=default/ Official Arabian version "الرابح الاكبر " website]
* [http://www.biggestloserclub.com/ Official Biggest Loser Club "Biggest Loser" website]
* [http://www.3ballproductions.com/ 3Ball Productions - Official Site]
* [http://biggestloser.ivillage.com/diet/ "The Biggest Loser"] at iVillage
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