"They" say motivating teenagers is really difficult. Of course, motivating teenagers is easier when they want motivation and they're on a reality TV show.
Sunny has been the most difficult one to connect to on exercise. Jillian sets up a Bollywood dance class for her, being of Indian descent. While Jillian is doing something nice and culturally sensitive (something she hasn't always done — Native Americans and fry bread), Jillian wears a sweater with a huge cross on it. India isn't a Christian country by any stretch. Perhaps I am reading too much into that, but I can't be the only person who noticed the juxtaposition.
Sunny mentions her "healthy eating" as she cracks an egg on her "diary cam." Wish the show would spend 2 minutes on what that means. This isn't just about exercise; food is important, too.
Biingo wants to be a part of baseball, but has been hampered with the boot on his foot. When Biingo was playing with his club, he moved OK with the boot. The show spent time with Biingo being frustrated with the boot; David was on crutches and also had problems, but he stayed longer on the ranch than he should have.
Lindsay gets to work with the high school cheerleaders again to try and be an honorary cheerleader. When working out with the cheerleaders, Lindsay talked about her biggest cheerleading dream.
"It's the most dreams that I ever wanted since I was little was to get on top of that pyramid and give the world the biggest cheer and everyone would be roaring for me."
Lindsay could get into good enough shape to be a cheerleader, but the idea of her being at the top of the pyramid isn't very likely. This would be like putting the fastest person on the offensive line in football or the biggest person at wide receiver. Lindsay can be a cheerleader, but probably not on top of the pyramid.
As the teenagers rarely talk about food, Lindsay actually made a food joke. She was nervious working with the high school cheerleaders, but found working with them easier than she thought.
"It was just so easy, it was just like slicing a cake … or vegetables … that are streamed … because they're yummy."
Slicing a cake is a new phrase to my ears. But this also points out where Lindsay has been and where she is now.
If these kids went to "The Biggest Loser" to get individual help so they would lose weight, well, we can't see any progress. The teenagers may be helping other kids in person and on television, but at some point, we need to see progress on them, too.
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Last week, the teenagers didn't do much and the adults did even less. The episode wasn't about helping themselves but teaching them how to help others.
Bob encouraged Biingo to recruit more kids to his sports club. Biingo had 10 people but Bob wanted him to get more kids involved. Sunny got her classmates to run a circuit of exercises. Lindsay gave an anti-bullying seminar with help from Cody Simpson, a pop star with an Australian accent.
The three kids can get confidence from doing these steps, and that can certainly help. We know the show isn't tracking individual progress from the teenagers, but some of what happens on the show is clearly meant as a broader message. Still think this should be a separate show, even with a summer run.
Adults need confidence and support, too.
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