Outside of sporting events and political news shows, I just don’t find the time or interest in television.  However, I must admit that I find myself drawn to the primetime show, “The Biggest Loser”.  I couldn’t put my finger on the reason why until last season.

For those who have never watched an episode, it is part of our reality TV genre in which 16-20 grossly obese people get locked away on a “ranch” with personal trainers, nutrition advice, and support as they compete to see who will lose the most weight over a several month timeframe.  The person who loses the largest percentage of body fat wins a million dollars.

The show pulls excellent ratings and attracts a wide and large audience for many reasons including:

• Emotional roller coast tied to the physical and mental challenge of losing a massive amount of weight
• Helpful nutritional and exercise tips
• Friendships and bonds that are formed when you go through this transformation

 

For me, I’m fascinated by the end of show weight in.  For those who have not viewed an episode, each week ends with a public weight in of sorts in which the person who loses the lowest percent of weight is eliminated.

At the end of the day, the report card for large weight loss or gain is the scale.  It is the single biggest accountability tool we have that lets us know if we’ve been doing the little things and big things correctly.  On this show or in our own lives, we can convince ourselves that we are putting the right food and portions in our mouth but the scale does not lie.  We can sit down with our friends and tell them how hard we are working out, but the scale does not lie.

Incorporating accountability into our lives, doesn’t guarantee success, but it does deliver honesty, reality and a true indicator of where we are at that point in time.  It grounds us in a baseline with which we can chart a course.  It tells us whether we are improving, regressing or remaining status quo.  Accountability for many is the single most powerful tool for improvement.

Let’s face it, how many of us would get up at 4-something in the morning to workout if we didn’t have a group holding us accountable?  How many of us have thought about passing on dessert, not having the extra beer, dropping the second helping of dinner because we know that it leads to weight gain, which leads to a less than desirable feeling when we are running Jacob’s Ladder?

By building accountability into your food and exercise plan, you will made great strides.  By applying it across your everyday activities with family, work, church, friendships and more, your effectiveness as a husband, father, church member and friend will rise to another level.