“Biggest Loser” Winner Is Too Skinny

Last night’s newly crowned “Biggest Loser” winner, Rachel Frederickson, looks like she’s lost too much weight. Weighing in at 105 pounds, she lost 58.62 percent of her starting weight to win the $250,000 prize.

That’s skinny even by Hollywood or supermodel standards. Her body looked toned, but her rib cage was sticking out, and her gaunt face looked as if she’d spent time in a concentration camp. Standing next to host Allison Sweeney, she made even the svelte Sweeny look a tad chubby.  You wanted to reach out and feed this woman a cheeseburger…with a large order of fries and a thick shake.

For me, it was a bizarre ending to what has been one of the most enjoyable seasons of the show.

When I predicted who would win, I said that since Rachel started out at 260 pounds and was down to 150 by the time everyone left the ranch, she couldn’t lose much more weight before she was down to skin and bone.  So I was right on that score, she did really look like she was down to skin and bone.

Bobby Saleem lost 52 percent of his body weight, and David Brown lost 54 percent. They both looked great, as did Tumi, who won the at-home $100,000 prize.

Rachel, a former swimming champion, showed once again that she’s a fierce competitor who will do whatever it takes to win. I hope that didn’t include starving herself.

Perhaps now the competition is over, she will allow herself to put a little more meat on her bones. Being obese is unhealthy, but sometimes being too skinny isn’t healthy either.

One former “Biggest Loser” winner agreed with me.

“Way too skinny!!! Not healthy!!!” Deni Hill, who won the Season 11 at-home prize, commented on my Facebook post. She wasn’t able to attend the finale because she is currently serving a Mormon mission in Mongolia, but she saw enough from the photos to draw her own conclusions.  Keep in mind that Deni went from from 256 pounds (almost the same as Rachel’s beginning weight) to 131 at the season finale — 26 pounds more than Rachel’s 105-pound finish. Deni lost 48.83 percent of her body weight, but that wouldn’t have been enough for Rachel to beat Bobby and David.

Deni also dispelled the idea that the players are monitored during their time at home before the finale.

“When we go home we don’t have much contact with Bob and Jillian, so I think they were shocked!” she wrote. “We are told to NOT do anything crazy, Dr Huizenga says please, please, Please, don’t go under 1200 calories, and don’t do anything stupid, but they don’t have any control over us when we are home.”

Hence, the shocked look on the trainers’ faces.

Over the years, I’ve interviewed several “Biggest Loser” contestants.

Here are  Jackson Carter’s weight loss tips.

Here are Deni Hill’s weight loss tips.

Here are Justin Pope’s weight loss tips.

Here are Sarah Nitta’s weight loss tips.

Here are my parting thoughts on the disastrous Season 13:

For more stories and updates on these former contestants (such as Sarah Nitta’s miracle babies, Rulon Gardner and Justin Pope parting company, and Deni Hill leaving on a Mormon mission to Mongolia)  you can click on the Biggest Loser tag.