You don’t usually see too many fat people like me on TV. Except when they’re trying to lose weight. Is it just me or does it seem like the number of weight loss shows on TV has gone way up in the last few years? In any case, here are a few shows that I regularly watch or have watched in the past.

The Biggest Loser - Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard of NBC’s hit show. There are plenty of things that I like about The Biggest Loser. For one thing, the program emphasizes losing weight through diet and exercise. I also just find the show really entertaining - there’s always somebody who I’m rooting for or somebody who really gets on my nerves. At the same time, I really hate how the show gives people some really unrealistic expectations. I mean some of those people lose like 30 pounds in a week! It took me a year (all of 2007) to lose and maintain 30 pounds! They also don’t seem to emphasize the emotional/mental part of being overweight. I can’t imagine that a lot of those people got so big without some sort of emotional eating problem. And I really don’t think Jillian yelling at them “WHY ARE YOU FAT?” counts as therapy. A number of the contestants from previous seasons have gained the weight back, which to me points to the fact that they’re losing the weight way too quickly and not dealing with the underlying issues. Even with its shortcomings, I still think it’s a really fun show and it keeps me entertained while I’m doing my Tuesday night resistance training workout. And Bob the Trainer is super hot.

Ruby - If you have the Style network, I’m not sure how you can miss this one. Is it just me or is this show on ALL the time? I *HEART* this show. The show stars Ruby, a charming morbidly obese woman with the most awesome Georgia accent (”M so esighted yall”). The show follows her life as she tries to lose weight through the help of a physician, a prepared meal plan, nutritionist, personal trainer, and psychiatrist. I love this show because somebody of Ruby’s size can easily (and justifiably) get gastric bypass - instead, she’s actually doing all the hard work. She’s losing weight the healthy way and focusing on the three key components (food, exercise, emotional work). I was also really impressed with Style’s depiction of Ruby. It’s so easy to objectify somebody of her size and turn the show into a gawk-fest. Instead, you get to see what it’s like to live in her shoes and how hard she has to work to reach her goals. I don’t have the Style network any more but I can’t wait to get the next season on iTunes as soon as it comes out.

Big Medicine - When I had Discovery Health, I used to watch this one off and on. Big Medicine focuses on a father and son team of surgeons who practice gastric bypass surgery. I personally think getting gastric bypass is like cheating - it’s like the fast food solution to weight loss. For that reason, I don’t really have much empathy for many of the patients featured on the show. I do like watching the show because I find the father/son team pretty entertaining. The show also features the world’s worst therapist ever, and merely getting the opportunity to make fun of her keeps me tuned in. This show can get formulaic (obese patient wants bypass -> patient must be cleared by insurance -> oh no we’ve hit a snag! -> Dr. Davis fights with insurance and gets patient cleared -> obese patient now must be cleared by world’s worst therapist -> oh no therapist thinks patient is too depressed for surgery! -> wait, patient is 700 pounds, how could he not be depressed? -> never mind -> surgeons have a hard time sticking long sticky instruments in patient’s enlarged abdomen -> meanwhile, plastic surgeon removes excess skin from another gastric bypass patient -> OK, back to surgeons with long sticky things -> patient lives! -> patient loses weight effortlessly!), which is probably why I don’t watch it as regularly.

Numerous programs on Discovery Health - Discovery Health seems to have bought all the rights to every program ever created about morbidly obese patients. I’ve watched a lot of these and I really find them fairly depressing (and somewhat offensive). The programs tend to really objectify the featured people (e.g. closeup of a bed-bound morbidly obese person eating high-fat food). A lot of the people featured are either in serious denial (”I hardly eat anything! I have no idea how I got to be 700 pounds!”) or looking for gastric bypass for a quick fix. Not particularly inspiring.