Credible personal trainers, nutritionists, and health professionals recommend a maximum weight loss goal of 2-pounds per week. Most healthy human bodies can safely lose up to 2-pounds of body fat per week through strictly watching caloric intake and with exercising daily. Clients hear 2-pounds and think that we’re underestimating them. “But so-and-so on The Biggest Loser lost 12-pounds last week,” we hear like a broken record. Do you want to lose weight quick, or do you want to develop a lifestyle that you can sustain? You should yearn for the later. You’re probably already all to familiar with yo-yo dieting. It’s exhausting, and it’s hard on your heart. 2-pounds of body fat per week is nothing to scoff at. It truly will take strict attention to everything that goes in to your mouth in order to realize this goal. “But 12,” you tell me. “12 is better than 2,” you respond with hands on hips and frown on face. I disagree. Long-term, the only weight loss that really counts is body fat loss. Muscle mass loss is not desirable. Creating such a caloric deficit that your body is having to eat away at its muscle mass means that you are eating away at what makes your body & bones strong and helps keep your metabolism churning. Neither is water weight loss anything to applaud. Sure contestants on The Biggest Loser can dehydrate themselves to the point that they shave a few pounds off for their mandatory weigh-in, but it’ll come back on as soon as you eat or drink something. The Biggest Loser tracks obese people in a journey to lose a lot of weight quickly, but make no mistake, it’s television. They have to shock you, entertain you, surprise you, keep you in suspense before every commercial break and make you fiend for the next episode. That’s not unique to The Biggest Loser; it’s television prescription for every successful TV show… not just sitcoms- reality TX, too. For instance, do think the mistakes on Hell’s Kitchen where a contestant overcooks a fish then gets scolded for his incompetence is happenstance? Nope, it’s rehearsed, scripted, and filmed over several takes. Shock value- cha ching! Television is about captivating audience attention; they’re in the business of selling television. Safe and sustainable weight loss is about making gradual changes over time. Can you use The Biggest Loser as motivation to get started? YES! It hits an emotional chord that gets your subconscious motivation meter gyrating. Watch The Biggest Loser, get fired up, and then use the legit tips that you’ve learned in this countdown to start your journey and lose weight for life!

This is a direct quote.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Biggest_Loser_(U.S._TV_series)

[Biggest Loser] Weight loss regimen: risks and criticism

“I’m waiting for the first person to have a heart attack. I have had some patients who want to [follow the show's regimen], and I counsel them against it. I think the show is so exploitative. They are taking poor people who have severe weight problems whose real focus is trying to win the quarter-million dollars.”
Dr. Charles Burant, director of the Michigan Metabolomics and Obesity Center[3]
“Risks aside, weight-loss experts say that the biggest problem with the Biggest Loser is that extreme methods of dropping pounds are less likely to work in the long run. Several former Biggest Loser contestants have regained some or all of the weight.”
Stephanie Pappas, LiveScience.com[4]
According to LiveScience.com, “physicians and nutritionists worry the show’s focus on competitive weight loss is, at best, counterproductive and, at worst, dangerous.[4] ” Contestants on the show lose upwards of 10 pounds per week (in the very first week, some contestants have lost 20-30+ pounds in that one week alone), whereas the established medical guidelines for safe weight loss are between 1 and 2 pounds per week.[5]
At the end of every telecast, the following disclaimer is shown:
“ “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.” ”
Despite this claim of supervision, however, all contestants are required to sign a waiver that states: “no warranty, representation or guarantee has been made as to the qualifications or credentials of the medical professionals who examine me or perform any procedures on me in connection with my participation in the series, or their ability to diagnose medical conditions that may affect my fitness to participate in the series.”[6]
The weight-loss regimen used in the show—severe caloric restriction combined with up to six hours a day of strenuous exercise—involves risks including a weakening of the heart muscle, irregular heartbeat and dangerous reductions in potassium and electrolytes.[3] Contestants, regardless of their weight, are required to certify that they believe they are “in excellent physical, emotional, psychological and mental health.”[3]
The Biggest Loser: Second Chances included a one-mile foot race in its first week, an event that led to the hospitalization of two of its contestants; Rob Huizenga, the show’s medical consultant, when asked about the foot race said that “If we had it to do over, we wouldn’t [have done] it” and noted that in response, the show’s producers have “changed a lot of the way [they] do things” (including the close monitoring of contestants’ body temperatures during exercise).[3]
Because the show is a contest that involves eliminations from it, some contestants are encouraged to take risks that endanger their health. Ryan C. Benson, the winner of the program’s first season, publicly admitted that “he dropped some of the weight by fasting and dehydrating himself to the point that he was urinating blood.” Also since the show Benson has regained all of his weight, but 10-12 lbs.[3] In 2009, Kai Hibbard (runner-up from the third season) told the New York Times that “she and other contestants would drink as little water as possible in the 24 hours before a weigh-in” and would “work out in as much clothing as possible” when the cameras were off. She further stated that two weeks after the show ended, she had regained about 31 pounds, mostly from staying hydrated.[3] In a June 2010 interview, Hibbard said, “I do still struggle [with an eating disorder]. I do. My husband says I’m still afraid of food… I’m still pretty messed up from the show.”[7]
In a July 2011 press conference with the Television Critics Association, comedian and actor Jerry Lewis was critical of the competitive nature of The Biggest Loser, claiming that the show is about contestants “knocking their brains out trying to see how we beat the fat lady at 375 pounds, and in four months she’s going to be 240. Who cares? It’s ridiculous.”[8].

{3} ^ ^{a b c d e f} Edward Wyatt (November 25, 2009). “On ‘The Biggest Loser,’ Health Can Take Back Seat”. The New York Times. via The Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2009-11-26.

{4}^ ^a b “‘The Biggest Loser’ Has Big Problems, Health Experts Say”. LiveScience. 2010-02-21. Retrieved 2011-04-09.

{5} ^ “Tips for losing weight: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia”. Nlm.nih.gov. 2011-03-28. Retrieved 2011-04-09.

{6} ^ Pitney, Nico (November 25, 2009). “Biggest Loser: Contestants Admit Dangerous Practices, Can’t Speak Out”. Huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2011-04-09.

{7} ^ Poretsky, H.H.C., Golda (June 16, 2010). “Bigger Loser Finalist Says Show Gave Her An Eating Disorder”. Jezebel.com.

{8} ^ St. Petersburg Times: “Jerry Lewis out as telethon host“, page 1A, August 5, 2011.

These 10 simple “rules” are brought to our countdown by GoMacro.com.  We believe each could be it’s own point on our “101 Legit Ways to Lose Weight” countdown, but collectively, they give a clear picture of how lean and healthy people eat to maintain their physique.  To elaborate on the points on this list, we have included further information in parenthesis.

1.  You are what you eat.  (what you eat directly affects how you feel, your health and wellness)

2.  Eat real food.  (the gooey, ammonia-based pink slime, formally used in McDonalds and Taco Bell meat, is NOT real food).

3.  Cook.  (you have much more control over the carbs, fat, protein, sodium content, etc in your food when you cook at home vs eating out).

4.  Treat food with respect.  (don’t eat to soothe uncomfortable emotions; don’t making eating a contest; etc.)

5.  Eat mainly plants and whole grains.  (read labels.  If there is any refined/enriched flour in a product, it is not 100% whole grain… see #55 on our countdown for more information on whole grains & #13 on our countdown for non-starchy veggies).

6.  Be adventurous and eat a wide variety of food.  (See #100 on our countdown).

7.  Chew your food 50 times.  (Once you swallow, party’s over.  Prolong the goodness!  Enjoy your food more by allowing it to spend longer on your taste buds, chewing it repeatedly.  This will also make you eat slower, which means you will most likely eat less).

8.  Stop eating before you feel full.  (You will have the opportunity to eat a meal or snack again in approximately 4-hours.  Don’t gorge as if it’s your last meal before a famine strikes).

9.  Eat in moderation.  (Eat small servings- like the French!  The most satisfying bites are always the first three that you take.  Savor them).

10.  Break the rules once in a while.  (Not every day.  Not even every Saturday.  But once in a while, even supermodels, fitness personalities, and nutritionists break the rules.  Don’t consider this an evil temptation, but a gift.  For us to be fortunate enough to have truly delicious food, with sweet, salty, and savory tastes, is a luxury that we should enjoy, unashamedly, once in a while.  If we were to only eat “healthy” food, all the time, we would miss out on some of the joy of eating.  Even the founder of Cinnabon, Jerilyn Brusseau, is a recovered anorexic- who battled the disease in her 20s, 30s, and 40s.  She created these cinnamon rolls as a luxury for her family and friends to enjoy once in a while.  She used a dough that had a quality like a pillow, fine-quality cinnamon carmel center syrup that would be a contrast of textures, and a savory creamy topping to add to the indulgent quality. Do people appreciate or respect the intention- that these delicacies were meant to be loved, enjoyed, and savored once in a while?  No!  They go to airports and buy Cinnabon on a whim before a flight.  They eat these tantalizing treats just as something to reach for; they don’t appreciate the fine ingredients- they just eat, nonchalantly.  It is not Brusseau’s fault that they gain weight, and it’s not her fault that they buy Cinnabon more often than they should.  We all have free will.  Use yours to indulge in moderation.  When you do so, close your eyes, smell the aroma, let the fat dance on your taste buds, chew, and as you swallow, be grateful for the gift of the decadent treat and say “Mmmmm”).