Jillian Michaels, the high-profile fitness trainer best known for her tough-love persona on NBC’s The Biggest Loser, is pushing back hard against a wave of accusations brought to light in the new Netflix documentary Fit for TV: The Reality of the Biggest Loser. The three-part docuseries, which aired in August 2025, pulls back the curtain on the show’s controversial methods and the internal dynamics of its cast and crew during its 18-season run. But Michaels, never one to shy away from confrontation, is fighting to set the record straight—one Instagram post, email screenshot, and public statement at a time.
The Netflix documentary doesn’t mince words, painting a picture of a competition show where contestants were allegedly pressured into dangerous weight loss methods. Among the most damning claims: that Michaels ignored the advice of the show’s medical advisor, Dr. Robert Huizenga, and that she restricted contestants’ calorie intake to unhealthy levels. Dr. Huizenga, who served as the show’s medical advisor for years, told Netflix filmmakers that Michaels “often ignored his medical advice.” He wasn’t the only one to speak out. Bob Harper, Michaels’ longtime on-screen counterpart, revealed he was hurt that Michaels never reached out after his life-threatening heart attack in 2017. “We weren’t besties,” Harper told The Guardian in an August 14, 2025 interview, “but we were partners on a television show for a very long time.”
On August 19, 2025, Michaels took to Instagram to respond directly to these allegations—and she brought receipts. In a move that’s become standard in the age of social media accountability, Michaels posted a screenshot of an alleged text message she’d sent to Harper back in 2014. The message, which reads, “I really think it’s s--ty of you to not even respond to my texts. It’s this kind of thing that always makes me so disappointed my [sic] our relationship,” was intended to show that she had, in fact, attempted to communicate with Harper in the past. “This is my second to last text ever to Bob Harper. Take from it what you will,” Michaels captioned the image.
But Michaels didn’t stop there. Facing claims that she was sneaking contestants caffeine pills—a charge that’s captured plenty of public attention—she turned to both Instagram and TMZ to clarify. According to her, caffeine pills, Ambien, and smokeless tobacco were all “approved for use” on set. In an email chain she shared publicly, Michaels referenced communication with Bob Harper, producers, and Dr. Huizenga’s associate, Sandy Krum, about which fat burners and caffeine pills to purchase for contestants. “Dr. Huizenga did approve caffeine pills on many seasons of Biggest Loser,” Michaels wrote. She even claimed that the so-called “stackers fat burner” was Harper’s suggestion, not hers. “I wanted to use my brand instead because they were cleaner and had no more than 200mg of caffeine (equivalent to a strong cup of coffee). Caffeine was NEVER banned on The Biggest Loser,” she asserted. “Wild how some folks still lie like it’s 1985 before texts and email were a thing.”
The heart of the controversy, though, centers on whether Michaels and the show’s staff put contestants’ health at risk by restricting their food intake. The documentary suggests that Michaels limited calories to unsafe levels, but again, she countered with documentation. On August 19, 2025, she posted a screenshot from a 2010 email to a contestant, instructing them to consume 1,600 calories per day. “I have an example of a direct written correspondence with a contestant, while she was home for the holidays during filming,” Michaels explained, “in which I explicitly instructed her to consume 1,600 calories per day.”
To further reinforce her point, Michaels shared two more screenshots—this time, alleged communications with The Biggest Loser staffers—emphasizing her “ongoing priority of ensuring contestants were adequately nourished and the need to provide a steady supply of fresh food in the BL house to guarantee ready access to calories.” These posts, she said, were meant to show her commitment to contestant health and nutrition, directly contradicting the documentary’s more damning narrative.
One particularly explosive claim from the Netflix series was that Michaels once told a contestant their dramatic weight loss would make her a millionaire. Michaels was unequivocal in her denial. “I want to state unequivocally that this is false,” she wrote on Instagram. “The full moment was captured on camera, and both the contestant and I were wearing microphones. If such a comment had been made, it would exist on the audio record.”
As the controversy swirled, Michaels hinted to TMZ that legal action might be on the table. She described the docuseries as “so egregious and so damaging that I don’t think I have a choice” but to consider a lawsuit. For a show that made its debut in 2004 and awarded a $250,000 prize to the contestant who lost the most weight, The Biggest Loser has long been a lightning rod for debate about the ethics of reality TV and the boundaries of health and entertainment. Michaels herself starred as the coach of the Red Team, often going head-to-head with Harper’s Blue Team, and was a fixture on the show for a decade before departing in 2014.
This isn’t the first time Michaels has found herself in the middle of a public spat. The world of reality television and celebrity culture is littered with feuds, from Taylor Swift and Katy Perry’s olive branch moment to the enduring tension between Kim Cattrall and Sarah Jessica Parker. Yet Michaels’ latest battle stands out for its intensity and the sheer volume of documentation she’s produced in her defense. “Here is an email chain with @bobharper – the Biggest Loser’s producers – @drhuizenga’s guy, Sandy Krum, who stayed on set with us and distributed the fat burners about which ‘fat burners’ / caffeine pills to purchase the contestants,” she wrote, determined to show that she wasn’t acting in isolation or without oversight.
Despite her efforts to clear her name, the documentary has reignited a larger debate about the responsibilities of reality TV producers and trainers, the pressures contestants face, and the often-blurred lines between entertainment and well-being. As of August 20, 2025, E! News reported that neither NBC nor Netflix had responded to requests for comment from Michaels, Harper, or the production staff.
With the story still unfolding, Michaels continues to fight for her reputation, armed with screenshots, emails, and a determination that’s as fierce as her on-screen persona ever was. In the end, whether her receipts are enough to sway public opinion—or prompt legal action—remains to be seen, but one thing’s clear: the reality of The Biggest Loser is still up for debate.
