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Stepping on the Family Scale with 'Biggest Loser' Winner Michelle Aguilar
by Troy Rogers
 After a highly competitive season of The Biggest Loser Families that saw many dramatic and emotional highs and lows as family teams were eventually split apart, with one sibling or spouse lasting longer than the other. In the past four seasons, men have dominated the battle of the bulge on their way to leading a healthier lifestyle thanks to The Biggest Loser and trainers Bob and Jillian. As Season 5 of the popular weight loss competition came to a close, a tight and heated race saw Vicky from Louisiana, husband and wife duo Heba and Ed from North Carolina, and Michelle from Dallas, Texas all vying for the title of The Biggest Loser. While both Vicky and Heba became the villains after fans didn't take well to their aggressive personalities and questionable strategies, Michelle Aguilar sidestepped the simmering tension of the dark side of competition to become not only the fan favorite but the winner of The Biggest Loser Families
The day after Michelle's win, we stepped on the scales for our own weigh-in inspiration before hopping on the phone to talk to Michelle about how she maintained a healthy attitude while competing, whether we got to see the real Michelle, why fans feel so strongly about the show, and how she'll be keeping the weight off, especially during the holiday season.
THE DEADBOLT: Since your approach on the show was a lot different than how Heba and Vicky competed with the others, how tough was it to maintain a healthy attitude and not get distracted?
MICHELLE AGUILAR: You know, there were some days that were better than others. I mean, you get really tired and exhausted and you realize, "Uh oh, I’m kind of being short with people." But I think a lot of it is just personality differences. I’m the girl that wants to be the peacemaker and if I can’t be the peacemaker then I’m just going to go sit in the other room and be quiet and let them have their way, because I’d rather not stir them up any more. But it would be frustrating at times, and I think during NFL week was when people started to see my frustration get to the breaking point. I started to say things on camera while I was pouting, which is never a good idea.
THE DEADBOLT: How accurately do you think you were portrayed on the show? Was it the real Michelle or was it camera work?
 MICHELLE: I feel that the show accurately portrayed who I was. I think all of the things I said - I mean, it’s not like they dubbed over my voice or spliced anything together. I mean, it’s me, for better or worse, those are the things I said and that was the way I acted. So I think they did a good job.
THE DEADBOLT: Prior to starting the show, how do you feel the extra weight affected your state of mind and how you look at the world?
MICHELLE: I looked at the world with limitations before. I put limitations on myself for what I was capable of. I had fears that I didn’t realize I had, you know, just social type anxiety of going out and not doing things to the fullest, because I was preoccupied with how I looked or how I would look in clothes. Whereas now I don’t have those kinds of fears, so it was definitely a concern before that I don’t have now.
THE DEADBOLT: Did the four of you have a chance to talk and put things into perspective after the show?
MICHELLE: No, weren't actually allowed to talk to each other. So, as things went down, I was just kind of like, "Well, hopefully they’re getting something from watching the show and maybe that’ll make the difference for them going forward."
THE DEADBOLT: Why do you think people feel so strongly about how each of you played the game?
MICHELLE: I think America has this really cool thing where they take a little bit of ownership of each of us in a good and bad way. I mean, reading some of the stuff online, or people like, "Don’t worry, Michelle, we got you. If we can vote you, then we’re going to protect you." The fans of the show, I think, are very dedicated. They’re watching to be inspired. And I think if they’re not seeing something that inspires them, then they’re going to vocalize it. And if they do see something that inspires them, they’re going to vocalize it. So I think that’s probably the unique thing about the show and having the types of viewers that they have.
THE DEADBOLT: What part of your exercise regime do you think gave you the best results?
 MICHELLE: I think the spin-bike is where Jillian was able to get the most results out of me. That was something where she could push me and I wouldn’t freak out. If she pushed me on the treadmill, sort of at an incline, going really, really fast, you tend to end up crying and that was never good. But on the spin-bike we were able to control it a lot better and I was able to be a lot more successful on there.
THE DEADBOLT: With the holidays here, are the temptations harder given the fact that the competition is over and no one is looking over your shoulder.
MICHELLE: No, because today has really been the only day that nobody is really - Well, they’re still kind of looking over my shoulder [laughs]. But it’s just the thing where, you know, that people are going to look and they’re going to want to know, "What’s she eating?" And I kind of signed up for all of it, not just half of it, so it comes with the territory and that’s okay.
THE DEADBOLT: So keeping the weight off will probably override any temptations you have?
MICHELLE: I think being healthy overrides the major temptations. I know what it’ll do to me. I know what effects it will have on my body. And just having that knowledge, having your eyes open to it, makes a huge difference. You see how far you let yourself go and how far you’ve gone to bring yourself back. You don’t want to go back - go back to living that way of being consumed every day by your weight or what you look like or how you dress your body. You want to feel good in your own skin.
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