Tracey Yukich was a contestant on the eighth season of The Biggest Loser and she claims she “died” while competing in the first challenge of the show.
For the 8th season, producers made all of the contestants run a mile along the beach to earn a spot on the show. Anyone who didn’t complete the run would be automatically eliminated from the season.
Tracey thought she would be able to finish the run without an issue, but she ended up having a medical emergency during the challenge.
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While appearing on the Netflix docu-series Fit for TV, Tracey said, “In my head, I’m like, ‘I can run, I’ve got four kids. I’m running after them all the time.’ But it was the longest mile ever.”
Tracey collapsed just before reaching the finish line.
“I don’t remember a lot,” she said. “I remember hearing the helicopter. I just felt like I was floating. And then my grandpa was there. And then I saw darkness. But then I saw light. So I knew, I knew I died that day.”
Tracey further explained, “My organs were literally shutting down. I didn’t realize that I had rhabdomyolysis. And rhabdomyolysis is your body’s way of saying, ‘I’m going to shut down on you.’ It started with my liver, then it was in my kidneys and then it goes to your heart. And that’s where I almost died.”
The show’s doctor, Robert Huizenga, says he wasn’t aware of the challenge before it happened. While there were talks of sending Tracey home immediately, she was allowed to stay and compete.
Tracey said, “I thought it was my fault because I was fat. I knew I had to make some changes in my life in order to be the best version of what I wanted out of life. I don’t want to be disrespected. I don’t want to be yelled at. I don’t want to be harmed. I don’t want you to tell me what I can do and can’t do. I had to put myself first to do that.”
“I felt like my weight and everything about it was something that constantly was bringing me down. I wanted to change my life, and I do feel like at that time that it was, like, my only hope,” she added.
Tracey weighed 250 pounds when she started the season. At the finale, she weighed 132 pounds, for a total weight loss of 118 pounds. That was 47.2% of her starting weight!
Look back at before and after photos for all 18 winners from the show.
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