HEALTH

Former NFL quarterback, ‘Biggest Loser’ contestant refuses to let obesity win

Mar 21, 2019, 9:13 AM | Updated: 9:19 am

Scott and Melanie, hosts of Really Healthy Podcast....

Scott and Melanie, hosts of Really Healthy Podcast.

Salt Lake City, Utah — From weekly weight checks in the NFL to weekly weigh-ins on national television, Scott Mitchell has been through a lot when it comes to his weight and trying to find the healthiest version of himself.

Now he is committed to finding out what real health — mental, physical and emotional — looks like for him on Really Healthy Podcast with his co-host, a certified trainer and registered dietician, Melanie Douglass.

Douglass is committed to spreading helpful information about health while helping Scott achieve his own version of optimal health.

Finding The Motivation

Mitchell lost his dad a few years ago. His dad died from complications relating to type II diabetes.

“It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, I spent six years watching my dad die an awful, painful death and I saw my own future if I didn’t make a change,” said Mitchell.

His motivation comes from his father.

On the podcast, Mitchell shared a recent check-up with his doctor revealed he needed to be on high blood pressure medication.

His weight put him in the “morbidly obese” category of the common Body Mass Index (BMI) chart. That classification can put you at risk for numerous health problems including diabetes, heart attack and stroke.

Dreading NFL Weigh-Ins

In the NFL every player is given an “ideal weight.” Each week players weigh-in in front of their entire team to ensure they are maintaining the ideal weight. Scott always struggled to maintain his given weight and dreaded the weekly weigh-ins.

Mitchell recalled his first NFL coach with the Miami Dolphins, Don Shula, humiliating players who were above or below their ideal weight. He witnessed his teammates being called “fat” and a “disgrace” for being overweight.

“It was 100% intended to humiliate you and it worked,” said Mitchell.

Although he was never overweight, he was always right on, and sometimes went to extremes in order to make his ideal weight. Those extremes would sometimes include starving himself the night before and binge eating immediately after he made weight.

He recognized that this was unhealthy behavior, but did what he needed to do to have a successful career as an NFL quarterback.


LISTEN to Scott talk about the grueling physical side of playing in the NFL on Helmets Off Podcast.


 The Biggest Loser: Living In A Vacuum

In 2014 Mitchell went on season 16 of NBC’s hit show The Biggest Loser. This particular season was called “Glory Days” and focused on former athletes. Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, a lot of former athletes struggle with weight gain later in life.

He was 366 pounds when the show started and lost over 120 pounds in four and a half months. Although he didn’t win the show, he said he gained his life back.

“It changed me in ways emotionally that still stick with me today,” he said as he recalled the daily journals he kept while on the show.

He realized losing 120 in pounds in three months was not healthy or sustainable long term.

He explained the show was heavily focused on low calories and lots of cardio exercises.

“All I did was exercise and eat healthily, it was like living in a vacuum, no one actually has the time for that,” said Mitchell.

He recalled doing 8 hours of cardio per day and being told not to lift weights because strength training adds pounds in muscle and the show was a competition based on the number on the scale each week.

On Really Healthy Podcast, Douglass has told listeners time and time again how important strength training is and recent research proves it. Building muscle has countless benefits including speeding up your metabolism, protecting your joints from injury and protecting your bones as you age.

Like most contestants on The Biggest Loser, Mitchell gained all the weight he had lost and more.


WATCH Scott talk about the lessons he learned from The Biggest Loser on Really Healthy Podcast.


Really Healthy Podcast

In August of 2018, after months of planning, Mitchell and Douglass launched Really Healthy Podcast. They describe the show as a way to get honest, unbiased health information to people without trying to sell anything.

The journey hasn’t been easy. There have been ups and downs. There have been experiments with different diets and types of movement for exercise, but Mitchell’s goal is simply to find what health means for him.

Mitchell has tried intermittent fasting, high fiber, high protein and is currently experimenting with the Keto diet. He is determined to take things from some of these popular methods and build a healthy lifestyle that works for him.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Still going strong 💪🏻 have you tried yet?? #Repost @veganfitnessinfo with @get_repost ・・・ 🌱Intermittent fasting by @davidclearyveganpt # Let me know if you’ve tried it or currently do it? ⬇️⬇️⬇️ 🤔 I get alot of questions regarding intermittent fasting (IF)and if it’s suitable for people, so wanted to post about it again. # ⏲What is intermittent fasting? It’s a pattern of eating where you alternate between periods of eating & fasting. The most common example is 16/8, which is described above in the pic. No calories between 8pm at night and 12pm the next day. You then consume all your calories between 12-8pm. 🕣 IF can be useful for calorie restriction, but has been found to work no better than other calorie restriction diets. I personally find it easier to follow to control my calories and regularly fast, especially on days I’m not as active and don’t require as many calories. 🧐 There are some potential health benefits, but the research is limited at present. 🏋️‍♂️ IF is unlikely to be optimal for muscle building, especially when you struggle to consume enough calories and it may not be optimal for muscle protein synthesis. 🧘‍♀️ So should you try it? It may work if you are trying to lose fat or maintain weight, but is not any better than other diets with calorie restrictions. 🤾‍♂️ I use it as it’s fits my lifestyle, allows me to get more work done in the morning, as I’m not worried about cooking and eating, helps me control calories and eat bigger meals which I also prefer. There is also growing research around it’s benefits which are interesting, but still need further insight. . #intermittentfasting #fasting

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Not only does he want to find the answers for himself, he wants to share his discoveries with others who may be struggling with their own issues related to health and well-being. You can join the community by subscribing to Really Healthy Podcast wherever you get podcasts or on the KSL Newsradio App.

We want to hear from you.

Have a story idea or tip? Send it to the KSL NewsRadio team here.

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Former NFL quarterback, ‘Biggest Loser’ contestant refuses to let obesity win