Where are they now? The life after Biggest Loser Champs lose and then gain most of their weight back, at least 90% of them did.
Here’s a look at some of them:
Eric Chopin
The 36 year old deli owner weighed in at 407 when he joined the reality television show in 2006 and dropped 214 pounds to become the Biggest Loser for season 3. Unfortunately he has gained back 122 pounds and is deeply distressed to now weigh 315 pounds. Chopin weighed 197 at the finale and admits that he remained in denial until he saw the scale hit 300.
His wife Michele has been silently watching while her husband has gone back to all of his old habits. She told Oprah, “I’d worry about him. I’d look at him and think it was like he was drowning and I couldn’t do anything to help him. I could see it in his eyes, and I could see so many things happening again that we’ve been through.”
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Starting weight: 334
Finale weight: 170
Current weight: 198 Season four champ Bill took on a new role at his company, Quest Diagnostics, since being on the show. He’s now their Wellness Ambassador and Director of Employee Wellness Initiatives, giving him a chance to share what he’s learned with others. One lesson: Temptations are at home right where you left them.
“Every day is a struggle,” he said. “I need to continue to make good choices at every turn.” Bill said he’s become more active with his family, and still has the long-term goal of walking his daughters down the aisle.
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Jim Germanakos
Starting weight: 361
Finale weight: 175
Current weight: 198
During season four, Jim won the $100,000 consolation prize for being the sent-home player who lost the most weight — 186 pounds, equaling an astounding 51 percent of his body weight. He started a company with his brother Bill (who brought home the grand prize) called Weight Loss Twins. They make appearances at health and fitness expos and are motivational speakers. Their motto is “NO MORE EXCUSES!”
Jim has continued to work as a full-time police officer, and plans to earn his certification as a personal trainer. He’s inspired his brother Spiro, who has never been into exercising, to get in shape. Jim and Bill helped Spiro get some exercise equipment, “Biggest Loser” books and videos and join a gym. Spiro has lost more than 65 pounds.
After leaving the show, Jim has accomplished some major goals, such as running in the New York City Marathon and learning how to snowboard. Next up? Surfing.
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Nicole Michalik
Starting weight: 279
Finale weight: 174
Current weight: 182
Hollie SelfStarting weight: 255
Finale: 150
Current: 166
Before the show, Hollie said that even though she didn’t realize it, she was very unhappy. “I never really believed that I could lose the weight, and in a larger sense, I never really believed that I could live the life I really wanted,” she said. “After those eight months, I felt on top of the world.”
Weight-loss tip: Keep healthy snacks close. Hollie says that she keeps proportioned snacks in her car, so if she gets caught in L.A. traffic she won’t overeat later
Julie Hadden
Julie Hadden lost 97 pounds on “The Biggest Loser” 4 . Hadden, who confessed tearfully on the show that she hadn’t been to her husband’s work Christmas party in years because of her size, went from obese to lithe in eight short months. The 5-foot-2-inch blonde managed to lose 97 pounds, going from 218 to 121 pounds.
But, more than a year later, Hadden has learned a hard truth: Americans also like to watch you fall. When she’s at a public restaurant, when she’s got a bag of popcorn at Target, they’re watching.
My weight now fluctuates up to 5 or 10 pounds, although I try to keep that under wraps. But the motivation is so different now.
Ryan Benson
Starting weight: 330
Finale weight: 208
Current weight: 300
Since winning season one, Ryan has had twin daughters, and also gotten more roles as an actor. He recently appeared in a film about weight and body issues called “Disfigured.”
While at the ranch, Ryan said that he’d learned that with hard work he can do anything he puts his mind to, but said that the outward effects of the show only lasted for the next month.
“Unfortunately, keeping the weight off has been tough for me,” Ryan said. “So the biggest way it’s changed my life is I feel really guilty for gaining the weight back. I know the show inspires a lot of people, so I don’t like being the guy to disappoint.”
Here’s how Ryan explains his astonishing weight loss in an entry posted last February on his blog:
“I wanted to win so bad that the last ten days before the final weigh-in I didn’t eat one piece of solid food! If you’ve heard of “The Master Cleanse” that’s what I did. It is basically drinking lemonade made with water, fresh squeezed lemon juice, pure maple syrup, and cayenne pepper. The rules of the show said we couldn’t use any weight-loss drugs, well I didn’t take any drugs, I just starved myself!
Twenty-four hours before the final weigh-in I stopped putting ANYTHING in my body, liquid or solid, then I started using some old high school wrestling tricks. I wore a rubber suit while jogging on the treadmill, and then spent a lot of time in the steam room. In the final 24 hours I probably dropped 10-13 lbs in just pure water weight. By the time of the final weigh-in I was peeing blood.”
Conclusion
The participants of the show were exercising with trainers between 4 to 5 hours a day. Before they joined the show, they hardly did any exercise. By exercising so many hours right after participating the show is actually not safe at all. I just worry about the high risk for injuries that could make these participants stopping exercise altogether after the show.
In short, losing 10 to 25 pounds a week is unrealistic and impossible to maintain in normal life. A gradual approach with sustainable lifestyle changes will definitely be a better choice.
Hollie Nicole and Julie so gorgeous.