14 DAY TRIAL // Bob Harper, one of the professional trainers on NBC’s The Biggest Loser, admits he was absolutely “stunned” when he saw contestant Rachel Frederickson, who went on to be declared winner, walk in on stage after having lost over half her body weight and gone down to 105 pounds (47.6 kg).
The controversy around the dramatic weight loss recorded by Frederickson is yet to die down and, while Harper initially said that he would not comment on it because he had not trained her, he is now making an effort to distance himself from all the negative buzz.
He’s probably thinking that, in the process, he will help the show’s producers and the network in terms of explaining the situation so that they don’t get as much criticism as they have so far.
“What people don't understand it, when the contestants leave to go home... they're in charge of themselves,” Harper told Rachel Ray the other day during an interview, as cited by AceShowbiz.
Viewers of Biggest Loser must know that the contestants on the show aren’t monitored around the clock: they spend a few months on the ranch, with trainers and nutritionists, and then they’re sent home, where they’re supposed to follow the instructions given to them at boot camp.
“So I had not seen her until that night, and so when she walked out, I was just kind of like, whoa. And I've been on the show since the beginning,” Bob continues.
“I was stunned. That would be the word. I mean, we've never had a contestant come in at 105 pounds,” he says.
He’s not lying, obviously. Cameras zoomed in on him and Jillian Michaels right after Rachel stepped out, and anyone could see that they were shocked by how thin she was. Michaels, for that matter, even mouthed “Oh my God” a couple of times, while Harper looked on in apparent disbelief.
As far as Rachel is concerned, she is now $250,000 (€184,311) richer, considerably healthier and, as per her own words, infinitely happier, prouder, and more confident in herself.
