NEWS - TV SHOWDOWN : SKINNY MORMONS VS. PLUS SIZE MORMONS

im already rooting on 3 teams on this show, one from Columbia, SC (the red team), another from Oklahoma city (The black team), and then my favorite Underdog team, as well...and i JUST learned about these 3 teams being members of my faith! UGH! this competition will be super tough for me to choose without bias...lol thank goodness im not in any judges seats to make any determinations about any of these teams...lol

TV showdown: Skinny Utahns vs. fat Utahns

Published on Jan 5, 2011


So what do you want to see on Tuesday nights? Skinny Utahns who dance or fat Utahns who work out?


That's the choice the major networks have given us, with their casting of two reality-competition shows: NBC's "The Biggest Loser" and CBS's new Paula Abdul-starring vehicle "Live to Dance."


On "The Biggest Loser," Logan's Rulon Gardner -- the former Olympic gold medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling -- tipped the scales at 474 pounds. He and his friend Justin Pope weighed in as the heaviest of the 11 teams in the competition.


Another Utahn, Deni Hill of Bountiful, is competing with her daughter, Sarah Nitta, who lives in Las Vegas. There's also a father-daughter team from Shelley, Idaho, Moses and Kaylee Kinikini.


"Six out of 22 [contestants] are Mormon,” Gardner told the Tribune's Scott D. Pierce. "It was kind of like, 'This is cool. It’s almost like back home.' But reality sets in. You’re not here to hold hands. You’re here to work out."


All six survived the first week's elimination.


Over on CBS, a dance group based at a dance studio in Lindon, Utah, cajavascript:void(0)lled The Vibe survived their first audition on Abdul's "Live to Dance." Here's how the entertainment website HitFix described the group's size: "The entire state of Utah is in The Vibe."





Olympic athlete Rulon was born and raised in Afton, Wyoming, the youngest of 10 children. He was overweight growing up but still in good shape from wrestling and playing football. He graduated from Nebraska University with a degree in physical education and went on to become an Olympic athlete, winning the gold medal for wrestling in the 2000 Olympics, and the bronze medal in 2004. Rulon says he gained the weight when he continued to eat like an Olympic athlete after he stopped training for the Olympic team. He knew he had to change his life when he tried to weigh himself and his 435-pound scale would not register his weight. Being diagnosed with sleep apnea and high blood pressure made it even more imperative that he lose weight. Now 39 years old, 474 pounds and married, Rulon looks forward to starting a family with his wife and getting into his jeep without straining after he's lost the weight. Season 9 winner Michael Ventrella inspired him because he made the commitment to get the weight off, despite being the show's heaviest contestant ever.





Being around as long as he can be for his family was Justin's primary motivation for trying out for "The Biggest Loser." Justin was born and raised in Cokeville, Wyoming, the middle child of 10 siblings, and attended Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho. He knew he wanted to change his life when he was watching the show last year and cried because he weighed more than the contestants did. It was an "aha moment" for Justin, who says he never cries, but didn't realize until that point what he looked like. Justin, who weighs 365 pounds, has always been heavy, and he and several family members have diabetes. Now married and the father of a 10-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter, the 39-year-old looks forward to shopping in regular stores, riding horses again, playing sports, and being able to do more with his kids once he loses the weight.





Denise was born in Burbank, California, and raised with five siblings in southern California. At 59, she realizes she has always taken care of other people but never really taken care of herself. She has eight children, ranging in age from 18-37, and gained weight with each pregnancy without ever really losing the weight afterwards. Denise realized she needed to change her life when she could barely make it up the stairs carrying her one-year-old grandson, and worried she might drop him. She knew if she wanted to be around to watch her grandkids grow up, she'd have to lose weight and get healthy. She had lap band surgery, but only lost 50 pounds and then the weight slowly crept back up. Denise currently weighs 256 pounds. Now pre-diabetic and suffering from high cholesterol, she says she always felt like good things happen to other people but never to her. "I now realize that good things will happen for me if I step outside my comfort zone and make them happen," Denise says. "That's why I'm here - to become all that I was meant to be." She looks most forward to playing with her grandchildren once she loses the weight





Having lost several pregnancies because of her weight and experienced the devastating emotional loss each time, 27-year-old Sarah Nitta is determined to finally lose her weight so she and her husband can become parents. Sarah was born in Boulder City, Nevada and grew up the middle child of eight children in California and Utah before recently relocating to Las Vegas. She received an associate's degree in general education at Southern Utah University, and is currently attending the University of Utah, studying human development and family. Sarah was always overweight, and says she was relentlessly teased and didn't fit in, leading her to find comfort in food. With each pregnancy loss, she says, "I seemed to lose more control and gain more weight." Now 261 pounds, Sarah was inspired by Season 8 winner Danny Cahill, and says once she loses the weight she can't wait to start a family - and also to be able to have her husband pick her up and spin her around.





Moses knew he had to change his life in February of 2010 when he reached 475 pounds. He had so much pain in his legs that it hurt to get up and down, and he realized he couldn't live that way anymore. A longtime fan of the show, he was inspired by Season 8 winner Danny Cahill, and decided while watching that season to try out in Salt Lake City with his daughter, Kaylee. Moses wasn't overweight as a child. He was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, raised in Southern California and Nampa, Idaho with six siblings, and graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in marketing. He was big, but always athletic. Food was an important part of his Tongan culture and he eventually became obese when he was in his early 30s. Now, the married, 47-year-old father of two daughters suffers from sleep apnea and high blood pressure and weighs 440 pounds. He hopes to have a closer relationship with his wife and play volleyball at a competitive level after he loses the weight.





"The reason I started my journey to go on "The Biggest Loser" was to help my dad change his life," says 20-year-old Kaylee. Her father Moses is obese, and she wanted to do whatever she could to help him get healthy. And seeing the health struggles that her dad faced made her realize what her future might be like too, if she didn't make a big life change. Kaylee, now 233 pounds, has been overweight her whole life, which she says is due to a poor diet, no exercise, and because she was shy and lacked self-confidence. She was born in Provo, Utah, raised in Nampa, Idaho as the oldest of two children, and currently attends college at Brigham Young University, Idaho. She had the opportunity to go skydiving last year, but couldn't because of a 200-pound weight limit, so she hopes to be able to skydive and just live her life to the fullest after she gets her weight off.

NEWS- OKLAHOMA TWINS ON 2011 'BIGGEST LOSER'

ok, so my last post was about the couple from columbia, SC...
this post is about the twins from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma..where im living now...

tough decission on who too root for, HOME TOWN? or CURRENT TOWN? or the UNDERDOG?

BIGGEST LOSER 2011 : DON EVANS

Hometown: Oklahoma City, Okla


Occupation: Police lieutenant
Don Evans says, "Obesity prevents me from living the kind of life that I want and it hurts my family." The 54-year-old husband and father of two adult children says that his obesity has also caused discord in his family, which he hopes will be fixed when he loses the weight.  Don was born in Raleigh, N.C., and grew up with his identical twin brother, Dan, and an older brother.  They lived in various states and countries due to his father's career in the Navy and his parents' divorce when he was six, which resulted in shared custody and many moves.  He graduated with an associate's degree in police science from Oklahoma State University, and earned bachelor and master's degrees in liberal studies from the University of Oklahoma.  He has been an Oklahoma City Police office for 30 years.  Don started gaining weight when he joined the police department, and became significantly overweight when he was 28 years old.  He even tried lap band surgery in 2004.  Now, at 309 lbs. and suffering from high blood pressure and sleep apnea, Don looks forward to getting healthy and enjoying activities with his family and doing all the things that his obesity prevented him from doing.

The Biggest Loser 2011: Dan Evans


Hometown: Oklahoma City, Okla.
Occupation: Police captain

Dan Evans was born in Raleigh, N.C., and grew up with two brothers, including his identical twin brother and "Biggest Loser" teammate, Don. As a child, he lived in several different states due to his father's Navy career and his parents' divorce when he was six years old. He attended college in Oklahoma, where he now resides, getting an associate's degree in police science from Oklahoma State University, and bachelor's and master's degrees in liberal studies from the University of Oklahoma. He wasn't overweight as a child or young adult, but his weight began to increase after he joined the police department in 1979. He began really gaining when he was 28 years old, due to poor eating habits, lack of exercise and a sedentary lifestyle. Dan had a son who died at age 24 in 2004, and also has a nine-year-old daughter. Now 54 years old and 287 lbs., with sleep apnea and high blood pressure, Dan says his weight adversely affects every aspect of his life, and he wants his old life back. He looks forward to running and playing with his daughter when he loses the weight.

but so far, my fav has to be:


The Biggest Loser 2011: Arthur Wornum 

Hometown: Portland, Ore.
Occupation: Stay-at-home dad/day care provider
Arthur's primary motivation for going on "The Biggest Loser" was to save his life.  Having weighed 646 lbs. in January 2009, he got down to his current weight of 507 lbs., but hasn't been able to lose beyond that.  A Seattle native raised in Portland with a younger sister, Arthur was always a big kid, but sports helped keep his weight in check until his junior year in high school when he had trouble making the weight of 275 lbs. for wrestling.  In the year 2000, he lost his insurance agency and gained 200 lbs., and then gained an additional 100 lbs. after the birth of his son in 2007.  Now a father of two, 34-year-old Arthur has high blood pressure and diabetes.  He was inspired by season seven contestant Ron Morelli, and looks forward to going to the Portland Trailblazers games when he has lost weight, something he always enjoyed doing as a child with his father.  He also hopes to inspire people who are too large to go on "The Biggest Loser" and let them know that there is hope for them too.

i think im rooting for aurtur because he has the most too lose and the most to gain. and, in allot of ways, i feel like him...so..GO AURTHUR GO! 
and if he loses, ill root : COLUMBIA GO! then OKALHOMA GO! 
those are my top 3, in just that order! :)

MICHELLE

NEWS - COLUMBIA COUPLE IN NEWEST 'BIGGEST LOSER' SEASON

Monday, Jan. 03, 2011

Columbia couple in newest ‘Biggest Loser’ season

By OTIS R. TAYLOR JR.

Avoiding mirrors and scales was how Larialmy Allen ignored her weight.
Until that wasn’t enough.
“I cut the tags out of (my) clothes so I didn’t know how big they were,” she said.

Similar stories of denial will be told on “The Biggest Loser: Couples,” the 11th installment of NBC’s weight-loss franchise. Millions of viewers will watch Allen and her husband, Jaquin, step on the scales when the new season premieres at 8 p.m. Tuesday on WIS-10.
The Allens, who live in Columbia, will be one of 11 twosomes competing to shed pounds. They are the second pair of South Carolinians to be on the show, following Phil and Amy Parham, who were on season six.
Jaquin, a patient services representative with the USC School of Medicine, attended a July 31 casting call at the Colonial Life Arena with his boss. His wife stood in line with them for support. When casting directors called Jaquin the same day, they asked if Larialmy would be interested in being on the show, too.
He didn’t have to ask her twice.
“We had decided a couple of months before to lose weight,” she said. “It was a blessing in disguise.”
“The Biggest Loser,” which debuted in 2004 and is hosted by Alison Sweeney, has attracted more viewers than other recent weight-loss shows, including VH1’s “Celebrity Fit Club” and “Kirstie Alley’s Big Life,” which began on A&E before moving to Lifetime.
The Allens, who will wear red T-shirts, began filming the show in September with the cast, which includes former Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler Rulon Gardner, who let his weight drift near 500 pounds. The Allens were home for a holiday break from taping when they spoke to a reporter by telephone last week. They weren’t allowed to share their current weight, but they did talk about what we’ll see tomorrow night: their first weigh-in.
“I honestly had no idea,” 27-year-old Jaquin, who was over 400 pounds, said. “I really didn’t know that I had gained that much weight. I just skipped the 3s.
“Once you see those numbers, your whole perspective on things changes.”
At 26, Larialmy, a student services program coordinator at USC, was over 300 pounds. She had been told to lose weight before she has children. Now she is losing weight for her future family as well as her current family members.
“I have to be an example. I can’t let myself get back into bad habits,” Larialmy, a Columbia College graduate, said, adding that she has a 23-year-old cousin who weighs 600 pounds. “There are so many people in my family that are overweight and morbidly obese.
“I’m trying to break that cycle.”
That’s something that seems easy with “The Biggest Loser” trainers Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels designing workouts and screaming into the ears of contestants. Harper has a cajoling manner about him when trying to get maximum effort, while Michaels, who is in her final season with the series, can get downright scary.
“It’s real. It’s authentic,” Jaquin said about Michaels’ tough-love approach. “It’s beyond tough. I don’t even know what the word is for it.”
“The Biggest Loser” puts contestants through rigorous workouts, but the show also dedicates time to educating about proper nutrition. Jaquin said the show altered him physically and emotionally, but it also changed the way he thinks about food.
“I had that mentality that it’s just more so how you eat things and you can have ‘this’ from time to time,” he said. “You can’t have those kind of things because that’s your abuse.
“That’s the thing that got me up to 437 pounds.”
Jaquin’s boss was supportive of his going on the show.
“It’s a big moment that’s really going to define the rest of my life,” said the Benedict College graduate. “I will never see that starting weight again.”
And Larialmy will no longer have to remove the tags from her clothes. But for her, the opportunity is about more than simply losing weight.
“It’s about changing your life,” she said.