'Biggest Loser' Celeb Trainer Jillian Gives Fitness Tips

CBN.com Pat Robertson talks with Jillian Michaels, the fitness guru on NBC’s The Biggest Loser, about the importance of working out.

PAT ROBERTSON: Well, we welcome to The 700 Club the author of Winning By Losing. She’s got a new book out that I know you want to get. She’s one of TV’s toughest fitness guru, it says, Jillian Michaels. Jillian, it’s so good to have you with us.

JILLIAN MICHAELS: Thank you so much for having me.

PAT: You coached your team on The Biggest Loser. I saw those people. There is no way they can lose that much -- together, 450 pounds.

JILLIAN: Yes. That was actually season one. On season two they lost even more. Pete, who you recently had on your show, lost 185 pounds in seven months.

PAT: What did you do? I see somebody that overweight, and I say heart attack in the making. How do you keep them from falling over dead?

JILLIAN: Well, truthfully, when they come to the show, they are screened by a doctor. So they’re given EKGs and stress tests before I get my little paws on them.

PAT: You’re brutal. Well, what are some of the tips? What do you do to them to get them in that kind of shape?

JILLIAN: In my opinion, my success at helping people lose weight is based on three things: self -- I help them understand the emotional reasons behind their weight, so we can get to the bottom of it and teach them to commit their mental resources towards change; number two, the science behind diet and proper nutrition; and then number three is sweat. You have to work out in order to be healthy and lose weight.

PAT: Well, Pete was saying that he did --what was it? -- four hours a day of work? That is a lot of training.

JILLIAN: It’s craziness. I’m not going to lie. It’s insanity. And unfortunately, because it is a reality TV show, it moves in a very accelerated pace. In my book, I recommend four hours a week, not four hours a day. Four to five hours a week. It is a TV show. That’s why that’s happening.

PAT: You use the terms fast oxidizer, slow oxidizer, balanced. What are you talking about? That’s body types you’re talking about?

JILLIAN: What I’m talking about when I speak about an oxidizer is how people oxidize their food: in other words, how quickly you metabolize your food and turn it into fuel. And that’s why you’ve got all these different diets out there like South Beach or Atkins or Pritikin. All they really are is a different macronutrient ratio, meaning some diets are no fat, higher carb, lean protein. Then some are equal fat, equal protein, equal carbs. Then some diets, like Atkins, are zero carbs, fat, and proteins. People don’t know if they’re coming or going. And the truth of the matter is that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to nutrition. Therefore, I help people identify which one of those macronutrient ratios is right for them.

PAT: How are they going to know?

JILLIAN: There is a quiz in my book. It basically talks about your physiological traits, your energy levels, your preferences. Again, it goes back to what you guys were saying earlier about knowing your body, learning to listen to your body. It’s like when you just have fruit for breakfast in the morning, are you sustained, or are you hungry within an hour? And it’s like learning to listen and really pay attention. A lot of times we’ll take the quiz in the book, and we’ll think, ‘Gosh, I never thought about this. I don’t know.’ And so take some time and think about it.

PAT: Say somebody is a fast oxidizer. What should they eat?

JILLIAN: Well, at the end of the day, the one universal truth when it comes to diet, in my opinion, is that it is math. It’s calories in, calories out. That said, the oxidizing is helping you identify the best foods for you so you’ll have the most energy possible. A fast oxidizer would do better with less carbohydrates, because they would take carbs that already break down more quickly in the body, and it would give them quick energy, and then they would have a sugar crash.

PAT: Right.

JILLIAN: So, for them, they’re going to do better on foods that are a little bit heavier, like a steak, natural fats, salmon, nuts, eggs, things like that, and carbs that are more complex.

PAT: What about the balanced oxidizer? What do they do?

JILLIAN: They’re pretty lucky. They can take leaner proteins and heavier proteins. They can choose a wider variety of carbohydrates, vegetables, fruits, grains. And they would have the more balanced meal; so, for example, equal portions of carbs, fat, and protein in their meal.

PAT: None of them can eat candy and cake and pies and sweets, right?

JILLIAN: Eating a little Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup is not a tragedy, but you know.

PAT: Well, now, people have thought that cardio was the way to go, and you’re saying cardio, straight cardio, may not be the answer anymore. What is it?

JILLIAN: Well, we are doing a show about heart health today, so cardio is important for that. But with that said, the way I do resistance training is very cardiovascular. So, in my opinion, cardio is great. It burns some calories. It gets your heart rate up. Fantastic. But the most effective way is to do your resistance training in a cardiovascular fashion, so you’ll do things like squats and lunges and presses and biceps curls, but no stopping. Keep yourself moving at the gym. Keep your heart rate up at 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. It is really most effective for heart health, in my opinion.

PAT: Yes. But that gets the muscles as well as gets your heart pumping.

JILLIAN: Exactly. It tones and conditions your cardiovascular system. It helps you burn more calories as well.

PAT: How often should people do all this, in your opinion?

JILLIAN: I like for people to do their resistance training four times a week. And then I say throw some extra cardio in for gravy.

PAT: All right.

JILLIAN: Because I think if you train each muscle group more than twice a week, you can begin to break it down. You need adequate time for your muscles to rebuild and recover.

PAT: I’m for that one.