The early 2000s were ripe with reality television programs, and one of the biggest premiered in 2004: NBC's The Biggest Loser. The show continued for another 16 seasons, raking in millions, before quietly disappearing in 2016. But, what ever became of the winners? Here's what they look like now.
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00:00The early 2000s were ripe with reality TV programs, and one of the most sensational
00:05premiered in 2004, NBC's The Biggest Loser.
00:08The show continued for another 16 seasons, raking in millions, before quietly disappearing
00:13in 2016.
00:14So, whatever became of the winners?
00:16Here's what they look like now.
00:17Ryan Benson
00:18When Ryan Benson joined the first season of The Biggest Loser, he weighed over 300 pounds,
00:22and after five grueling months of extreme workouts and dietary restrictions, he clocked
00:27in at just 208 pounds.
00:28But once the camera stopped rolling, Benson started slipping back into old habits almost
00:33immediately.
00:34He told Business Insider,
00:35"'In my mind, I just thought, I've been training so hard, I want to eat something I craved
00:38for a few months.
00:39A burger, fries, some ribs.
00:41That was one of the things that propelled me to the finish line."
00:44"...I just slipped back into my old habits really quick within the next year or two,
00:49and within about four or five years, I'd put back on all the weight."
00:53It turned out Benson had gained back the weight he lost, plus some.
00:56He told Inside Edition in 2017 that he was once again dieting to lose the weight.
01:01"...I'm still losing weight slowly and steady, and I don't plan on ever changing."
01:08Today, his Instagram says that he's doing his best to live a healthy, plant-based life.
01:13Matt Hoover debuted on Season 2 weighing 339 pounds, and by the time he was crowned the
01:17second-ever winner, he'd lost 157 pounds.
01:20"...I'm motivated by waking up and saying, I look pretty good today.
01:24I need to have something to reach for."
01:25But unbeknownst to viewers at the time, Hoover and third-place winner Susie Preston had fallen
01:30in love on the show.
01:31According to People, the couple said,
01:33"...I do, in 2006, and have since welcomed two sons."
01:36"...That show really changed our lives."
01:38By 2010, Hoover had regained some weight, revealing to NBC News Chicago that he weighed
01:42237 pounds.
01:43Preston, too, had gained back over 40 pounds.
01:46In 2011, the couple confessed via YouTube that they feel guilty for not maintaining
01:50their weight loss, but recent pics of the family prove they're doing great together.
01:54In 2006, Eric Chobin became Season 3's biggest loser after dropping an incredible 200 pounds,
02:00but he admitted to Us Weekly,
02:02"...After about a year and a half, I started to put the weight on.
02:05I got back to 368 pounds.
02:07In my head, it sounds almost the same as my starting weight."
02:10Chobin ultimately decided to give dieting another go in the 2010 documentary Confessions
02:15of a Reality Show Loser.
02:16While he's been pretty quiet about his weight in recent years, he revealed to the Bucks
02:20County Courier-Times in 2011 that he was working as a spin instructor and was down
02:24to 245 pounds.
02:26As of 2018, Eric is looking good.
02:29After losing 164 pounds on The Biggest Loser, Bill Germanacos was chosen as the winner of
02:33Season 4, and, like past winners, Germanacos faced big challenges after returning home,
02:39telling Today in 2009,
02:40"...I'm a morbidly obese person in a fit body.
02:43I'm hungry all the time."
02:45By the end of 2010, he told Newsday that he was maintaining about 120 pounds off his weight
02:49loss.
02:50Even though he had yet to hit his goal weight of 205 pounds, he was working out and inspiring
02:54others to get fit.
02:56Today, he promotes healthy living and education via his social media.
03:00For the first time in Biggest Loser history, a woman was crowned the winner in Season 5.
03:04When Allie Vincent first appeared on the show, she weighed 234 pounds, dropping to a slim
03:09112 pounds by the finale.
03:11Although she maintained her new body for seven years, she started putting weight back on
03:14in 2015.
03:16Vincent revealed on OWN that she had been assaulted while getting a massage that year,
03:19admitting that she dealt with her feelings through mindless eating and drinking.
03:23She said,
03:24"...I don't share the story of me being assaulted because it's an excuse or something I'm dwelling
03:30on.
03:31It's something that I'm working through."
03:32Since The Biggest Loser, Vincent has gotten married and started a family.
03:35In 2008, Michelle Aguilar lost 110 pounds to win The Biggest Loser Season 6.
03:41Michelle reported at the time that Aguilar lost over 45 percent of her body weight, and
03:45at her final weigh-in, she was 132 pounds.
03:48Even though she no longer discloses the number on her scale, she said coming home from the
03:52ranch was even more challenging than filming the show.
03:55She told Life Today,
03:56"...a candy bar is just 99 cents away from you and you can choose that.
04:00That I think is when the struggle really comes in."
04:02"...when I would get really upset or depressed, I thought, well, if I could just get something
04:07really good to eat, then it'll make me feel better."
04:10In January 2019, Aguilar shared pics from 2009 and 2019, looking just as happy as she
04:16did back then.
04:17At 48 years old, Season 7's Helen Phillips was the oldest person to ever win the competition.
04:22Having shed 140 pounds, her end weight was just 117.
04:26She told Today in 2009,
04:27"...never in a million years did I think I was going to win.
04:30I thought I was either going to die here the first month or they were going to send me
04:34packing.
04:35But here I am."
04:36When Helen Phillips turned 51, she revealed she was still exercising every day.
04:40"...I have completely transformed my life."
04:43When Danny Cahill was announced as the Season 8 winner, he was 239 pounds lighter than when
04:47he started.
04:48But while he may have headed into 2010 feeling like a million bucks, by 2016, he had put
04:53back on over 100 pounds.
04:55"...when you gain weight back, even when you're in school, it's shameful.
04:58When you're in front of America, then it's even, it's ten times as shameful."
05:02Through the process of losing and regaining weight, Cahill's metabolism had essentially
05:07come to a screeching halt.
05:08As The New York Times reported, he has to eat a whopping 800 fewer calories than men
05:13of the same size, otherwise he will gain fat.
05:16At 526 pounds, Michael Ventrello was the heaviest contestant to participate on the show, but
05:21by the end of Season 9, he had lost over 50 percent of his weight, making him the winner
05:25at 262 pounds.
05:27"...I'm like an anomaly.
05:29It's crazy.
05:30My body is just bouncing back, and I love it."
05:32Although he expected his life to change exponentially after being crowned the Biggest Loser, things
05:36didn't pan out as he had hoped.
05:38He went through his prize money quickly and struggled to find footing in Los Angeles.
05:42Ventrello also started gaining weight immediately after returning home, but despite putting
05:46on 20 pounds, he had firmly set his sights on bodybuilding.
05:49As of 2018, Ventrello is an independent associate of Isagenix, which specializes in weight loss
05:54products.
05:55Patrick House
05:56Season 10 winner Patrick House once told People,
05:59"...had it not been for Biggest Loser, I could be 500 pounds.
06:02I could be dead.
06:03I could have had a heart attack."
06:04During his time on the show, House lost 205 pounds and trimmed down to a slim 219 pounds
06:10by the season finale.
06:12Six years later, he'd gained back nearly 50 pounds, but he doesn't hold the show responsible.
06:16He claims,
06:17"...the weight I have gained back is directly proportional to my time focused on diet and
06:22gym time.
06:23The only place to point the finger is at the man in the mirror.
06:25Maintenance is tough, but it's not impossible."
06:27"...but we need to steer clear of this aisle.
06:29There's nothing good over here, of course."
06:31In 2017, Rock and Roll Marathon series shared a video of House participating in their 2017
06:36New Orleans Marathon, confirming that the Season 10 winner continues to embrace an active
06:41lifestyle.
06:42"...actually, came in first and second, we won Season 11 of NBC's The Biggest Loser."
06:46"...high five for us."
06:47Olivia Ward
06:48The winner of Season 11, Olivia Ward, originally appeared on the show weighing 261 pounds.
06:52By the finale, she was clocking in at 132 pounds, and remains one of the very few Biggest
06:57Losers who has maintained their finale weight.
07:00"...this has been such a life-changing thing for me, and I've been so thankful that I've
07:05been able to hang on to it for almost five years."
07:07In 2017, she shared photos of herself from 2001 and 2017, writing,
07:12"...it's never too late.
07:13If you want a change, go and get it.
07:15I feel better at 41 than I ever did at 21."
07:18Ward continues to work on her fitness goals by also working as a senior SoulCycle instructor
07:22in Atlanta.
07:23"...don't let life just pass you by.
07:26Why not you?
07:27Why not now?"
07:28John Rhoades
07:29When Season 12 began in 2011, John Rhoades stepped onto the Biggest Loser scale weighing
07:31445 pounds, and went on to capture fans' attention with his dramatic 220-pound weight loss.
07:38He revealed to Today in 2014 that he'd gained 50 pounds since the finale, but also became
07:43the owner of a CrossFit gym in Arizona.
07:45"...CrossFit is all about total fitness.
07:47You are prepared for anything you can adapt and overcome.
07:50I'm here so I can learn and so I can share with others."
07:53Nearly 200 pounds lighter, Jeremy Britt walked away the winner of The Biggest Loser Season
07:5713.
07:58"...let me start with saying that I hate burpees."
08:01When Digital Spy asked how he planned to keep the weight off, Britt explained,
08:05"...all these things that I've learned have helped me to do that going forward here.
08:08If I do something that keeps me in the public eye, it just keeps me accountable."
08:12However, in the years since his big win, Britt has kept an incredibly low profile, but according
08:16to a Facebook post in 2017, Britt is likely busy with family life.
08:20Danny Allen
08:21Danny Allen started her weight loss journey at 258 pounds and clocked 137 at her final
08:26weigh-in.
08:27The Season 14 winner revealed to Today that, by 2014, she'd gained a little over 10 pounds
08:32back, but she'd also become a managing partner of a yoga studio, a motivational speaker,
08:36and even ran her first marathon.
08:38"...what you can do in just a year can truly shock you."
08:42Allen continues to encourage others to get fit and works on her own fitness goals, despite
08:46having been diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome in 2016, a condition she's likely
08:51had her whole life.
08:52In an interview with Fox 32, Allen also revealed that losing so much weight so quickly on The
08:57Biggest Loser had some unintended consequences, possibly impacting fertility.
09:01"...your fat cells are full of estrogen.
09:03I lost over 140 pounds worth of estrogen."
09:05Despite her challenges, she continues to live a healthy lifestyle and strives to bring awareness
09:10to PCOS.
09:12Rachel Fredrickson, arguably the most controversial winner of The Biggest Loser, took home a $250,000
09:18grand prize after going from 260 pounds to 105 pounds in Season 15.
09:23But many viewers were concerned that she'd lost too much weight.
09:26After having shed 60 percent of her body weight, she revealed to People,
09:30"...maybe I was a little too enthusiastic in my training to get to the finale."
09:34"...it's that moment where I had to say, I'm going to embrace being me and being different."
09:39She also denied having an eating disorder, as some had speculated at the time, according
09:43to The Mad.
09:44By April 2014, Fredrickson revealed to Us Weekly that she had put on around 20 pounds,
09:49announcing,
09:50"...I think I'm at my perfect weight."
09:51Fredrickson has stayed out of the limelight since 2016, but she was looking happy and
09:55healthy at that time.
09:57After being named winner of Season 16, Thoma told Us Weekly,
10:00"...it's so mind-boggling and overwhelming.
10:03I look in the mirror and I still have a hard time recognizing myself, knowing that I've
10:06lost in the last year over 200 pounds, it's just amazing."
10:11Thoma revealed that he started the show at 366 pounds, but that he was 377 pounds at
10:16his heaviest.
10:17Clearly, even he couldn't believe his extreme weight loss.
10:20By 2016, though, Thoma revealed in a Facebook post that his weight was starting to creep
10:24up on him after sustaining a calf injury a few months prior.
10:28In an effort to avoid returning to his previous weight, he hosted a diet bet to lose the weight
10:32he'd gained.
10:33The Season 16 winner hasn't spoken publicly about his weight since, but shares parts of
10:37his life on Instagram.
10:38Roberto Hernandez
10:39Although viewers weren't aware of it at the time, Roberto Hernandez would be the last
10:42person to ever win The Biggest Loser.
10:45Hernandez weighed 348 pounds when he first appeared on the 17th and final season of the
10:49show, and by the end, he'd lost 160 of those pounds, weighing in at 188.
10:54"...It wasn't about the money.
10:56It was all about making a transformation that I wanted and be that father that I wanted."
11:01Six months after the finale aired, Hernandez told the Chicago Tribune that he'd put back
11:05on about 40 pounds, but had also just run his first half marathon.
11:09The weight didn't worry him, he said, because he'd been eating more carbs and building muscle.
11:13And while many have faulted the show for the seemingly inevitable weight gain that often
11:17follows, Hernandez claims he's holding himself accountable instead.
11:21Although he says that maintaining his weight has been the most difficult thing he's had
11:24to overcome, as of 2019, according to him, he's determined to keep on keeping on.
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