by Gina Scarpa

 

A season of The Biggest Loser would not be complete without its shares of twists and turns. 30 days in to their weight loss journey, the blue and yellow teams (who were eliminated in the first episode) were brought back to the ranch. Whichever team lost the higher percentage of weight loss would be back in the game and get the only vote at this week's elimination. With over 11%, Sunshine and O'Neal of the yellow team were able to return but didn't have to cast a vote. John fell below the yellow line and, as the only remaining brown team member, was automatically eliminated. Today, John spoke to RealityWanted in an exclusive interview about his experiences on the show and his weight loss journey at home.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What made you decide to try out for The Biggest Loser this season?
A. John: I had come to a point where it was simple; I either get surgery, try out for the show, or possibly die. You can't become 500 pounds without having some serious medical issues. I happy to say now that I'm feeling great and I'm on zero medications!

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: How difficult was that first public weigh in for you and your brother?
A. John: It was crazy!! To weigh-in in front of friends, family, coworkers and even strangers was the hardest part. These are the people you try to hide your weight from the most. So having to weigh in without a shirt on was a huge step. All I kept thinking was "if you can do this it really shows that you are committed." I definitely was not going to go shirtless in front of all those people and then not commit to changing my life.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Was there a trainer that you gravitated towards more on the ranch (Bob or Jillian)?
A. John: Not really, they both are really nice, except during last chance workouts! I obviously had an emotional experience with Jillian which I think really helped me get to thinking about the emotional issues I had leading up to weight gain. Bob was really helpful in pushing me beyond what I thought I could do and he genuinely seems to care about getting you to that next level, but getting there without injuring yourself.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Do you feel that losing your brother so early in the competition affected you mentally?
A. John: I think it affected me but in a positive way. I kind of felt like I had to represent the brown team alone now, and I didn't want to let anyone down, especially myself.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What was your reaction when you found out that either the blue or yellow would be back to compete on the ranch?
A. John: I thought it was great! I really didn't like four people having to leave the very first day at the ranch, that was crazy. Everybody there deserved at least a week on the ranch and if I had my way, there would be no elimination for two weeks and then start the game. But I was really glad to see them back, I'm all for mixing it up and more competition and I think at that point in the house we were all ready for some new personalities to mix things up.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: When you stepped on the scale at this week's weigh in, what number were you expecting to see and why?
A. John: I wasn't sure, but I always expect double digits. It was, by far, the scariest weigh-in just because I completely changed my workout. So going from something I knew was working to something totally different was not a good feeling. A part of me thought I would have the best week ever, while another part was saying, "You're going home."

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Do you wish that you had been voted out or are you okay with being automatically eliminated?
A. John: I would have preferred it to come down to a vote, I think I would have had a good chance of staying just because of all the friendships I made. Under the circumstances, I was okay with automatically being eliminated, it all comes down to me and the scale and sadly the scale won that week.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What were some of the challenges of transitioning home from the ranch?
A. John: I would say sleeping and going to the gym. It took me a long time to get off of California time as I like to call it. I would be up until 3:00 AM almost every night which is not good for weight loss; you need your rest. Also, going to the gym was just getting boring to me, I had to find something more fun but at the same time extremely intense. I am so happy I found the best fitness trainers in MMA. Jon and Jamie Burke are the best and I actually have a whole team of trainers that are like family to me now. I am extremely grateful to Jon, Jamie, Ryan, and Nick.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What are you doing to prepare for the live finale and compete for the At Home Challenge?
A. John: I am working out with co-workers every morning for an hour and a half. Then I get my intense MMA training at "The Six Levels" around 4 in the afternoon. Doing different types of workout at MMA everyday keeps my body in a state of "muscle confusion" and is really helping me build a lot of muscle as well as burning fat. If I'm not too tired at night I also throw in a treadmill work-out before bed.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: How do you and your brother support in each other in your weight loss journeys?
A. John: As always we just compete with each other and make fun of each other. We kind of size each other up every couple of weeks and if one is looking smaller then we bump up the intensity. We let our wives be the supportive ones and tell us that we are looking good or losing weight. My brother and I tell each other "I'm beating you" or "step it up." That's how we bond!

 

The Biggest Loser airs Tuesdays at 8pm ET on NBC.

 

(Image courtesy of NBC)

 

Follow Gina at twitter.com/ginascarpa

 

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