DietTribe's Jessie Pavelka
With DietTribe Season 2 having just wrapped up, we caught up with Jessie Pavelka, the Lifetime weight loss reality series’ trainer who helped the five women of Season 2 lost 50 pounds, compete in a triathlon and give them the tools they need to lead a healthy lifestyle.
Here’s what Jessie had to say about DietTribe Season 2 and the ladies that made this season an inspiring story of the power of team work, great friends and a committment to healthy living.
1. How was DietTribe Season 1 different for you than Season 2?
In Season 1, since it was a brand new series, we hit a few obstacles along the way that needed to be worked through but in Season 2, the series was that much more developed. The program we created for Season 2 was a strong program that really worked for the five ladies.
2. Even though the goal weight for each of the ladies on this past season was to lose 50 pounds, with the exception of Rita, can you tell us about your process for designing a workout plan that is specific to each one of the five women yet had the same end result?
With all of my clients the most important thing is to find out what they can and cannot do and improvise from there. If you can’t do a push-up, then we modify it so that they are doing it on their knees. For instance on DietTribe, Lanessa had hip issues so we had to work around that and develop a plan where she was getting a strong cardio workout but not aggravating her hip.
The workout plan is a joint program and that is what DietTribe is all about: A genuine team effort.
3. You strongly promote a clean-eating plan. Can you describe a bit more about what this kind of a plan looks like?
The diet we had for the DietTribe ladies was higher in carbohydrates than in protein. The ladies were preparing for a triathlon so their body needed the fuel that comes from complex carbohydrates in order to properly and successfully train. Carbs help to efficiently absorb food and their nutrients. While there is a fear of eating carbs, if you are eating the right kinds in the right amounts, you’re using those carbohydrates as energy and your body is not going to store them as fat.
We also had to make sure that this eating plan was enjoyable as well as nutritious.
4. Even though the season has wrapped up, will you continue to check in with ladies from season 2?
I go out to Torrance periodically, which is where the five women live, or they can come out here in Los Angeles where I am to train. But the idea is for them to be able to do this on their own. And as long as they stay accountable to their diet and exercise, they will be just fine.
5. Why do you think that season 2 was so successful?
They are mothers; they are very used to working hard. They do a lot in their every day lives and they wanted to do something for themselves. So when they had the opportunity to be on DietTribe, they fully committed themselves. They followed through the weight loss plan for the entire 120 days. And they found a way to make it a healthy competition; they supported each other and we all had fun.
6. What advice do you have for anyone who has just lost weight on a reality TV series to keep the weight off once the show has wrapped up?
They have to develop self-awareness and realize what parts of them – their thoughts, behaviors or emotions – are contributing to their weight gain. Then they must take on these things on a day-to-day basis. But if they allow situations in their lives to overtake them and control them, then they risk giving in to those parts of themselves that got them into trouble.
In the real world, former participants in weight loss TV series must learn to deal with themselves again and that comes down knowing to what your flaws are and being self-aware.
Thanks so much Jessie. We’re keeping our fingers crossed for a DietTribe Season 3 in 2024!
Also, be sure to check out Jessie in the Lifetime original movie, 12 Men of Christmas, a heart-warming (and easy-on-the-eyes) holiday story. Visit the Lifetime Network for more information.