“I have no regrets, I know I gave it my all,” says Felipe Fa about his experience on Biggest Loser season eight. While he won’t be considered a finalist, he was on the ranch for the entire 17 weeks, an accomplishment worth being very proud of. After his elimination, the final four were also sent home to do it on their own for 30 days before moving on to the season finale. Filipe played every moment of the game with heart, and every time the audience needed it the most, gave us a good reason to laugh.
Filipe lost a total of 130 pounds on the ranch, going from 364 pounds down to 234. He said he left with a positive outlook and “really realized the whole purpose of this show — to inspire people.” He says that he was able to connect with Bob in that final week, and took to heart some advice from his beloved trainer. Bob Harper told him the show was “not about winning a game, but fixing what’s broken.”
Listen now to hear the DietsInReview.com interview with Filipe, before reading more. He shares the five moments that were most epic for him in this most epic of Biggest Loser seasons.
Filipe was 100 percent sure he was going home that night after he fell below the yellow line. And while he was overjoyed to be reunited with his family, says his weight hit a plateau upon returning home. Filipe says that the contestants live life in a bubble, where their only focus is to workout, eat healthy and sleep 24 hours a day. “At home you have responsibilities and you have to make time,” he adds. He’s finally found his routine, having lost about 13 pounds at home.
One of his struggles at home has been with the extra skin that is so common when people lose excessive weight. He follows Bob’s advice, and commits to a high-intensity cardio workout. He says for toning it’s about less weight and more repetitions. Filipe does this by doing a half hour of intense cardio, followed weights and then another round of cardio.
He’s not alone in those workouts, though. He shares a trainer and morning gym sessions with fellow teammate and cousin Sione Fa. Filipe laughs that they are very competitive with one another, saying that when the trainer says stop, he’ll add five more reps, only to have Sione do five more, and so on. It sounds like the friendly trash talk can be heard every morning.
Filipe and Sione are both committed to not only preparing themselves for the May 12 live Biggest Loser finale, but also maintaining these healthy new bodies afterward. Sione is close to completing his certification as a personal trainer, and Filipe is interested in teaching spin classes. He sounds confident the two will find a way to go in to business together. They are both also making a tremendous impact on the health of their families and the Tongan community. Filipe hosts weekly family fitness classes in his backyard and says his family loves the new lifestyle. Holding true to his word, Filipe and his wife are planning a trip to his native Tonga in June to continue sharing his method of health and fitness. “If I say I’m going to do it, I do it,” said Filipe.