Erik won the third season of The Biggest Loser.
Erik lost 214
pounds. And, life happened. He's regained.
"Beyond the finish line, I'd heard from so many people maintenance is
the hardest thing. [I used to think], 'Try losing 200 pounds.' But
maintenance really is a lifetime."
But, Oprah got him to chat about it. I did not see the show, I'm looking for a web cast of it now.
Oprah:
"Now, this fan
favorite is ready to admit that he's been lying to his friends, family
and his fans. In the three years since his victory, Erik has gained
back half the weight he lost and says he now weighs 315 pounds. As he
gained, he continued to use older photos on his MySpace and Facebook
pages and even turned down an offer to appear on The Oprah Show with past Biggest Loser
contestants. "People, they don't see me. I can hide," he says. "I
inspired so many people; so many people reach out to me. I feel like I
let them down."
Ramble ahead.They too are subject to life. Regain happens.
They may advertise themselves as ___ weight with a pretty head shot or full-length body shot, and the person who shows up to speak at your event or to coach you is a 200+ lb (or much more, it really doesn't matter) version of the person-at-goal that is supposed to teach you how to get there you thought you "ordered."
Would you accept my advice on weight loss (HAHAHAHA, stop laughing, you came here for WHAT?!) if my only available photo was of a 320 lb woman (ME.) Probably not. That is just your honest answer. (You shouldn't take my advice anyway, however.) Although (and this should probably piss me off at some level?) lots of people 'listen' to me NOW because my photo reveals a 150 lb person. Erm. Maybe I should stop there.
This is part of the reason why I started a blog. I wanted to be accountable to someone, anyone, who would see my regains. When I start to spiral into a bad pattern, I have STOP, THINK, QUIT IT, SLAP MYSELF UPSIDE THE HEAD and MOVE ON.
When I started blogging there were one or two people reading, and I was 300+ lbs. But, now, I am 149-152 lbs and I have to think about that each day, would I like to maintain and continue losing (YES!) or shall I allow the donuts to rule me again (tempting!)
Seeing a story like this right now is motivating, because I am in a rut, and I really would like to make friends with a donut or three over the course of the day. However. Do I think that getting obese again will help my situation? PROBABLY NOT.
