The 2020 Biggest Loser reboot will welcome a new format, new trainers and a familiar face joining as the show’s host.
According to People, the reboot will include trainers Erica Lugo and Steve Cook, who will head up two teams, while original ‘Biggest Loser’ trainer Bob Harper will join the show as the host.
In their role as trainers, Erica and Steve will work the 12 contestants in all areas, from gym workouts to supporting each of them mentally. While both trainers have plenty of experience in online coaching, they were motivated to join the show in order to have the opportunity to work with people in-person.
“We have so many online clients and you forget how nice it is to actually work with somebody and get to know them and have them train right before your eyes and transform,” Steve said. “You get to see people every day, their highs and their lows, and it feels like a family in there. That’s pretty rewarding and something you can’t get on social media these days.”
As for Erica, she’s bringing a unique perspective to the training process, having previously lost 160 pounds herself.
“They just trust me because I was there,” she said. “I know when they’re crying during a burpee, I’ve been there. I’ve cried the same tears.”
In addition to burpees, the contestants will fill their six-hour-per-day workouts focusing on weight and circuit training.
“We love circuit training, we like HIIT training and we like Tabata-style workouts,” Erica said. “I just try to simplify it for them because they’re eventually going to be away from us and we want to make sure they can implement these workouts on their own.”
Steve added that the goal is to leave the contestants with the tools they need to continue making progress on their own.
“Four days a week we’re in the gym doing some kind of weight training but there’s only so much high impact stuff you can do with people, especially if they’re coming from a de-conditioned state,” he said. “So sometimes we just go out and walk for two hours. That’s already better than what they were doing at home.”
The original ‘Biggest Loser’ show— which aired on NBC for 17 seasons from 2004 to 2016— was highly criticized after a 2016 study claimed that the contestants’ rapid weight loss on the show may have caused medical issues that make it very hard for them to keep the weight off. Many of the former contestants have admitted to gaining back all of the weight they lost on the show in the years since they appeared on ‘The Biggest Loser.’
In 2017, NBC quietly cancelled the show after 17 seasons .
Steve said that the show will also be shifting their approach to weight loss.
“There has been such an emphasis placed on the holistic,” he said. “It’s really this 360-degree approach — mentally and physically. We make sure we’re doing this in a healthy way first and foremost.”
The ‘Biggest Loser’ reboot will air on USA Network in 2020.
(Photos: USA Network; Instagram)
4 Responses
I remember once in our Biggest Loser when a contestant basically starved herself (three days no food, not even drink) to have less on the scale. And still she wasn’t happy about it. She’s still keeping the weight (the show was 2 years ago here though) but she’s really obsessed with dieting.
As someone who has struggled with weight for all of her life, I can say that’s not the way. You just need a ‘switch’ in your head that makes you say how much of food you actually need for life and that you not live for food. I think that’s exactly why it doesn’t work long term-they go back to their eating habits and eating empty calories so of course you gain it all back.
I wonder what they are going to change on this show. The majority of the “Biggest Losers” all gained their weight back. Some were able to keep it off for a few years, but after about 5 years they all gained it back. Agree, that they need to look at the long term results.
Six hour a day workouts are still not realistic long term, so I’m curious how exactly this approach to weight loss is really any different than the old show and how these contestants long term results will differ from the old contestants.