‘Biggest Loser’ trainer calls players ‘half-dead’

The toughest trainer on TV says sometimes contestants need an extra push

Peter Kramer / AP

Jillian Michaels, the tough trainer on "The Biggest Loser," says contestants can be "half-dead."

updated 4/16/2009 3:23:43 PM ET

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NEW YORK — Contestants on "The Biggest Loser" aren't just overweight. They suffer from being not normal and even half-dead.

That's according to Jillian Michaels, the buff, tough-talking trainer on the hit weight-loss show.
Michaels said she would never insult the plus-size players she is helping trim down. But sometimes they need an extra push to get the lead out.

"I push them really hard," the fitness guru said this week. "They are 400 ... pounds! Hello! They are not just going to get on the treadmill and run. It doesn't work that way."

The "Biggest Loser" contestants need special attention, and Michaels said her aim is to provide it.

"A normal person, I could be like 'OK, mama, jump up there. Warm up five minutes.' You'd be like, 'OK.'

"These people are half-dead. I mean, it's not the same."

Michaels marveled that anyone could misinterpret her training style.

"People are like, 'She's so mean to them.' And it's like, 'Really? Do you really think so? Do you really watch the show?' ... Now if I was calling them names, that would be mean."

"The Biggest Loser" airs Tuesdays on NBC.