The Biggest Loser on NBC has been shedding the pounds since 2004 for 14 seasons. What makes it almost startling that there have been no openly gay contestantsuntil now.
Jackson Carter, 21, hails from Utah and started this cycle with 328 pounds of baggage that he would like to lose. He volunteers at a LGBT youth outreach center where he counsels and gives advice. He has been overweight and struggling with bullying issues over his sexuality since age 14.
Windy City Times called Carter while he was in the middle of the show to find out his story.
Windy City Times: Hey, Jackson. How are you?
Jackson Carter: I'm just fabulous.
WCT: You are from Utah. Isn't that a pretty religious state?
Jackson Carter: There is definitely a big Mormon and LDS [Latter-day Saints] culture along with several other religions sprinkled in. It is definitely a very religious and conservative area.
WCT: You were picked on in school when you were younger?
Jackson Carter: Oh, yeah. It started very young for me. I am originally from a Ute Indian reservation in eastern Utah. When I was in kindergarten the other children would call me horrible names and throw rocks at me because I was the only white kid there. I didn't understand why I was different from them. I didn't know why they didn't like me.
I would go home and be devastated. My mom would then take me to get candy and a movie. That really led me to emotional eating. So then I got heavy then was picked on for that. When I came out at 14, then I was bullied for that. It was a whirlwind when I was kid.
WCT: Are you still living in Utah?
Jackson Carter: Yes, my hometown is still Layton, Utah.
WCT: Why didn't you move away?
Jackson Carter: I do love Utah. For the most part the LDS culture is very loving and family oriented. Kids are horrible no matter where you go. Everywhere you go you are going to encounter bad people. It is definitely a nice place to live because your neighbors are very supportive.
WCT: What led you to audition for The Biggest Loser?
Jackson Carter: I had seen the open audition call for the Salt Lake City audition on TV. I thought about it but knew I had rehearsal and work and school so not a lot of time to go audition. The rehearsal got out early so I didn't have to work and everything lined up perfectly.
I wanted to show the kids that I work with that they could achieve anything. I had drilled into their heads for so long that they only had to want it bad enough to accomplish anything. This was finally an opportunity to walk the talk instead of talk the talk. I went down to audition and got a call back. A couple of months later I wound up on The Biggest Loser ranch.
WCT: What were you rehearsing for?
Jackson Carter: I was rehearsing for a community production of Romeo and Juliet. I'm a theater major at Weber State University.
WCT: What are some of the ways that this show has already changed your life?
Jackson Carter: Aside from being hugged by strangers all the time, the biggest changes have just been my attitude and the way I view myself. Before the show I was very hard on myself. I was very critical. Because I had been picked on for so long as a kid nothing I ever did felt good enough. I was striving for the approval of everybody. It didn't matter how I felt about me my self worth was tied up in how everyone else perceived me. So being on the ranch and doing my best on every work out was originally done for my family, friends, and trainer but eventually that is not enough.
What I had to learn was that as long as I am happy with myself and a hundred percent then everything I do will be 100 percent. I gained so much self-worth out there, and that is something I will be able to keep for the rest of my life.
WCT: Have you heard from other people about their own personal stories?
Jackson Carter: I am buried under tweets, Facebook messages and emails just saying that I am an inspiration to them on the show: "I really identified with you. I'm a lesbian teenager or I'm a parent of a gay teen and you really helped me with my relationship and my child." It has been nothing but positive. It was never my intention to go on as the first openly gay contestant. I just happened to be a contestant who was gay. I never really thought of it as anything other than that until I got home and realized what an impact it had made on so many people's lives. For that I am very happy that they have been so positively affected.
WCT: It's unbelievable that there has been 14 seasons and you are the first gay [contestant].
Jackson Carter: I don't think it has anything to do with the show. It just so happened that no one wanted to talk about it, or they found people with stories that were heterosexual for so long.
WCT: You started at 328 pounds. How much have you lost?
Jackson Carter: As of episode seven, which aired [Feb. 11], I am down to 267 pounds.
WCT: They must help you after the show to keep up diet and workouts.
Jackson Carter: The biggest support I am finding is from previous Biggest Loser contestants. I talked to Emily and Chism from season 13. I talked to Hannah and Olivia from season 11. The Biggest Loser alumni are the biggest group of support and love. They meet up all the time and hang out. It is a really cool support system.
Of course, I talk to trainer Bob all the time. Probably more than any other reality show that you will watch, this one cares so much about one another. Waking up every day and filming for 12 hours and working out for six of those 12 hours can be so hard. Unless you have a good support team and a happy crew, it would be impossible to do what we did. I am very fortunate to have met and worked with so many awesome people.
WCT: What do you want to do in the future with this experience?
Jackson Carter: Like I said I was a theater major at Weber State University but I got out to Los Angeles to film Biggest Loser and realized how much I love the television industry. It has been so much fun. The days are long and TV is much more fun to watch than it is to make but I love it. My next step is to get a scholarship to a very big film school somewhere and start studying film. It has been a blast.
WCT: With your theater background you could do motivational speaking.
Jackson Carter: You know, I did a lot of that before the show. I worked with a youth resource center for queer teens and would speak at all of their events. I would tell my coming out story. I did a lot of outreach with youth and taught a lot of sexual health classes. I have done a lot of that before so that would be nothing new to me.
WCT: You should check out the theater in Chicago.
Jackson Carter: Well, Jeff is out there and Danni is there so I will have to come there to visit!
The Biggest Loser airs Mondays on NBC.