"Naked and Afraid" is an American reality series that airs on the Discovery Channel. Each episode chronicles the lives of two survivalists who meet for the first time naked and are given the task of surviving a stay in the wilderness for 21 days. The show presents a unique lens through which to examine the interplay of diet, exercise, and weight loss under extreme conditions. While the show itself focuses on survival skills, the dramatic weight loss experienced by many participants offers a compelling case study.
The Premise of Naked and Afraid
The survivalists are allowed to bring one helpful item, such as a machete or a fire starter. The events of each couple's journey play out in a single episode. Partners strip down and meet each other. They are provided with rough cross-body satchels containing a personal diary/camera, for use when the camera crew is not there at night, and a map. They all wear identical necklaces with a center bead, which is a microphone with a wire that connects to a wireless audio transmitter hidden in the satchel. Some personal jewelry is allowed. There is a camera crew who are not allowed to intervene except for medical emergencies when it is "absolutely necessary". At the beginning of the fourth season, the survivalists were given a third "surprise" option. A team is allowed to "tap out" at any point during the 21-day challenge. If they do not tap out, they must arrive at the designated extraction point on the final day to be picked up by a helicopter, plane, automobile, boat or other vehicle suitable for the environment. Viewers are updated throughout with statistics, including how many days have passed, the time, and the temperature. Naked and Afraid computes and then updates the cast members' PSR (Primitive Survival Rating), which is based on predictions and observations of survival fitness in skill, experience, and mental strengths.
Weight Loss as a Consequence of Survival
"Naked and Afraid" captures the struggles of two survivalists who are deposited in an uninhabited hellhole. The contestants are required to do their own hunting, which is pretty difficult because their only weapon is usually a machete. As you can imagine, the contestants usually do not eat a lot during the 21 days. The result is that by the end of the challenge, most of them have lost gobs of weight. We are talking 20 to 30 pounds of weight loss.
The show inadvertently highlights the fundamental principles of weight loss: caloric deficit and energy expenditure. Given the scarcity of food and the necessity for physical exertion, participants invariably find themselves in a state of caloric deficit. This deficit, combined with the energy demands of building shelter, finding food and water, and navigating the environment, leads to significant weight loss.
Case Studies in Weight Loss: Cassie's Example
Cassie is an attractive woman, but at the beginning of the challenge, she was carrying a little bit of extra weight in her butt. Her partner was Forrest Galante. Forrest was also a bit pudgy at the beginning. Typically, both partners contribute about equally to the success or failure of the team. But Cassie was different. Rather than help her partner, she spent her days either sunning herself on the beach or sitting in the shelter that her partner had constructed. Whenever Forrest asked her to do something like help build something or hunt, Cassie said that she was tired, and that there was no hurry. This left Forrest to do all the heavy lifting. He did everything. He did kill one large animal, but they were not able to eat it because Cassie didn’t know how to start a fire even though she had boasted about her fire starting skills at the beginning of the challenge. That meant that they both ate very little. Cassie, on the other hand, lost only a few pounds. Her butt was still a bit large.
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Cassie's experience provides a counterpoint. Her relative inactivity meant that she burned fewer calories, resulting in minimal weight loss despite the limited food intake. This underscores the importance of physical activity in achieving weight loss goals.
Diet vs. Exercise: A False Dichotomy
If you watch commercials, you might be led to think that the best way to lose weight is exercise. Think of Beachbody infomercials. On the other hand, if you check Amazon for books on weight loss, the majority of the books that turn up are diet books. The messages behind these books are contradictory. Some encourage us shun fat. Others tell us to avoid carb. So which is it? Diet or exercise?
The best way to maintain or lose weight is to combine a healthy diet with daily exercise. The exercise doesn’t have to be hard-a long walk daily will do the trick. The experiences of "Naked and Afraid" participants, and Cassie's in particular, reinforce this principle. Weight loss is most effectively achieved through a combination of reduced caloric intake and increased energy expenditure.
The Primitive Survival Rating (PSR)
Viewers are updated throughout with statistics, including how many days have passed, the time, and the temperature. Naked and Afraid computes and then updates the cast members' PSR (Primitive Survival Rating), which is based on predictions and observations of survival fitness in skill, experience, and mental strengths. A metric for evaluating an individual's level of primitive survival skills on a scale from 1 to 10. The show's producers say about the metric is that it is established by a team of experts who evaluate the participants at the beginning and end of each episode, but they do not provide a rubric for its evaluation. I gathered all the data into a spreadsheet (here) and imported the data into R. I then used ggplot2 to plot the data. I should comment on notation. Box plots show the median as a dark bar in the "center" of the plot. On average, yes (Figure 3) by about 0.65. I believe that I have answered my wife's three questions. I do have some questions of my own that I want to address. One question that I have is whether the PSR difference between men and women has any correlation with the fact that the women are younger. This entry was posted in Statistics. The PSR offers an additional layer of analysis. It would be interesting to see if there is a correlation between a participant's PSR and the amount of weight they lose during the challenge. It's plausible that individuals with higher PSRs are more efficient at acquiring food and expending energy, potentially influencing their weight loss outcomes.
Controversy and Authenticity
There has been controversy related to how real the show is. Mike Hale of The New York Times expressed skepticism that the dangers implied by the situations faced by the couples in each episode were authentic, even by the standards of reality television, observing that the couple in the series premiere appeared to be cleaner and more shaven than he would have expected. Former Naked And Afraid participants raise new concerns about whether the show is real or fake.
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While the show aims to depict genuine survival scenarios, questions have been raised about the extent of intervention by the camera crew and producers. Some critics argue that the participants appear too clean and well-groomed for individuals facing true wilderness survival. Others suggest that the producers may manipulate situations to create more drama. Despite these concerns, the show's core premise of survival in the face of adversity remains compelling, and the weight loss experienced by participants is a tangible outcome of the challenges they face.
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