Nearly six months after the Season 14 finale of NBC's 'The Biggest Loser,' winner Danni Allen and other contestants are maintaining their weight loss by bringing the ranch home with them – figuratively speaking. Rigorous exercise, careful eating, and calories-in-calories-out measurement with the same BodyMedia armband-based body monitors they used on the show have become as standard a part of their everyday routines as taking a shower or brushing their teeth. And some family members are following their example.
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"My sister has lost 50 pounds since I came onto the show, my mom is taking an interest in making healthier meals, and of course (fellow contestant) Francelina (Morillo) and I live together and continue to help one another and keep each other on track," says Jeff Nichols, Season 14's second-place winner.
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Season 14 contestants have transitioned from the ranch to real life with a firm commitment to continuing their get-fit journeys. For example:
• Danni Allen, 26, who arrived at the ranch carrying 258 pounds and left at 137, takes daily yoga classes, spins three or four times a week, throws in calorie burners like salsa funk and dance aerobics for variety, and is now training for her first Chicago Marathon. Tracking her daily calorie burn and food intake with her BodyMedia armband system "lets me know how much I can consume or if I need to lighten the load" to keep from gaining weight – and also gives her a way to determine if she can beat the increasingly challenging exercise intensity goals she sets for herself.
• Jeff Nichols, 25, who slimmed down from 388 pounds to 207 on the show, now exercises for 90 minutes five days a week with either back-to-back spin classes or an hour of circuit training plus 30 minutes of jogging. He is currently training for a half triathlon and a half marathon, continues to use his BodyMedia armband, and has added an app that scans food barcodes for calorie information and then imports the data to BodyMedia. "I went from just eating what I know to knowing what I eat," he says.
• Jackson Carter, 22, who started Season 14 at 328 pounds and finished at 190, now works as the health and wellness coordinator for a nonprofit youth group and teaches a spin class once a week. He exercises 45 to 60 minutes daily and changes his routine to keep it fresh ("My current obsession is the trampoline park down the street from my house"). He has also honed his cooking skills, sworn off fast food and frozen dinners, and dropped an additional 10 pounds since leaving the ranch. His father joins him at spin classes and gym workouts on a regular basis.
• Gina McDonald, 48, who weighed in at 245 pounds and left the ranch at 132, does a two-hour mix of cardio, body weight and weight lifting every morning plus a 30-minute dog walk at night with her two Labs and "my handsome husband, Chad." She tracks her calorie burn with the BodyMedia armband and a running app, and has inspired her family to downsize, too. "My husband is down 45 pounds, my daughter has lost 20 pounds, and my son recently started joining me at the gym every morning. He is down 10 pounds, with 30 to go."
Many contestants are also using their newfound confidence to become involved in community work as well as spread the word about getting healthy. Since the show, Allen has become more involved with the mission of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital to "keep my promise to pay it forward." Nichols gives motivational talks on health, wellness, and how to get started on accomplishing life goals. McDonald, a bankruptcy and domestic law attorney, has been elected to the boards of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention-Alabama Chapter and The Mike Jezdmir Transverse Myelitis Foundation. She was also the emcee of the 2013 Birmingham Heart Walk in June.
"It's so great to see the positive, lasting impact 'The Biggest Loser' is having on contestants' lives. They're not only continuing to exercise, watch their food intake, and use their body monitors to stay on track, but they're also more engaged in life socially, with charities, living fuller more balanced lives in general," says health and wellness expert Jillian Michaels. "Their accomplishments at the ranch have taught them to believe in themselves and given them a poise and self-confidence they never had before. Seeing that transformation is as great a reward as watching the scale drop every week."
'The Biggest Loser' returns to NBC for Season 15 on Tuesday, October 8 at 8/7c, and Season 14 contestants have some advice for the new group of contestants.
Says Allen: "Find your inner fire. You may be on a team, but at the end of the day, you are there for you! Make every second count. This is a once-in-a- lifetime opportunity and know YOU CAN!"
Carter adds: "Keep visual reminders around – a picture of your family or a pair of 'fat pants' - to remind yourself of where you're at and where you want to go. It's so easy to lose sight of your goals when the going gets tough, but if you keep it in perspective, there's nothing you can't accomplish."
The BodyMedia armbands are furnished by BodyMedia, Inc. to NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products and Shine America for use on "The Biggest Loser."
About BodyMedia, Inc.: BodyMedia® pioneered the development of wearable body monitors that collect physiological data for use in improving health, wellness and fitness. The company's around-the-clock on-body monitors utilize proprietary technology to capture data used by consumers as well as health and wellness professionals to guide behavioral changes to help control weight and promote an active lifestyle – two factors that are routinely cited as keys to combat and manage serious medical conditions. BodyMedia technology has been used in over 100 clinical research studies covering health issues such as obesity, COPD, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, cancer, bariatrics, sleep and intensive care. The company was founded in 1999 and is now a wholly owned subsidiary of AliphCom dba Jawbone®, creators of human-centered wearable technology like the UP® band. For more information, visit www.bodymedia.com.
BodyMedia® is a registered trademark of BodyMedia, Inc. Jawbone® and UP® are registered trademarks owned by AliphCom dba Jawbone.
About NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products Group: NBCUniversal is a leader in providing entertainment programming to the domestic and international marketplaces. NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products Group manages all global ancillary television business endeavors for the NBCUniversal Television Group, including third-party home entertainment distribution, consumer products, musical soundtracks, special markets projects and www.nbcuniversalstore.com. For the latest product updates and an overview of the properties managed by the group, visit the NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products portal at http://nbcuconsumerproducts.com. Viewers can join The Biggest Loser At Home Program by visiting "The Biggest Loser" health and fitness website at www.biggestloser.com. The Biggest Loser At Home Program offers comprehensive and interactive weight-loss tools, bringing "The Biggest Loser" lifestyle from the hit NBC show right to your home.
About Shine America: Shine America is a world leader in producing and distributing compelling scripted and unscripted television and digital content. Shine America is known for popular and award-winning original series including The Biggest Loser, The Face, and Tabatha Takes Over as well as adaptations of Shine Group formats such as MasterChef, Minute to Win It, and scripted series including the FX drama The Bridge.
Shine America has development deals with some of the top producers in television including Nigel
Lythgoe (Nigel Lythgoe Productions) and its own unscripted format label in Ardaban, led by the creators of the hit Food Network series Chopped. Shine Latino, a new division of Shine America, is producing and distributing original Spanish-language content to the U.S. and Latin American marketplaces.
The global Shine 360° division builds brands through the leveraging of its intellectual property and creating integrated marketing opportunities for advertisers. The company has also developed over 20 ground-breaking original online series on MSN, Yahoo!, YouTube premium channels and other platforms, many produced in partnership with global brands such as Walmart, Toyota, Kraft Foods, Subway and Microsoft. Through Shine Group's distribution arm, Shine International, Shine America distributes its extensive library of programming and formats to more than 150 countries.
BodyMedia® is a registered trademark of BodyMedia, Inc. Jawbone® and UP® are registered trademarks owned by AliphCom dba Jawbone. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE BodyMedia, Inc.
