S10.E09: Lucas' Journey

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Quote

Living on a homestead with his family, Lucas wants to spread his wings and fly, but at 600 pounds, he can't take off. All he does is eat and game, and if he wants to leave the nest and live a normal life, he needs Dr. Now's help to lose over 400 pounds.

Original air date 2021.12.29

[suev3333]

Zzzzzz...

Welll that was a snoozer.  I want to see more female 600 pounders.   They're usually much more nutty....and more interesting.   Guys just have a much easier time with weight loss.  Such is life 🥱

[nokat]

As usual, the live chat was the best.

[jacksgirl]

Need info. Missed Live Chat, safe dinner with a friend♥️. He said they lived on a "compound" and assuming parents chose not to participate. Religious extremists?  Doomsday Preppers? Fundamentalists? Just Quirky?

Loved Maegan! What a supportive sister. 

[ams1001]

2 minutes ago, jacksgirl said:

Need info. Missed Live Chat, safe dinner with a friend♥️. He said they lived on a "compound" and assuming parents chose not to participate. Religious extremists?  Doomsday Preppers? Fundamentalists? Just Quirky?

Loved Maegan! What a supportive sister. 

There were some hints of religion but they didn't really get into the reasons.

[ams1001]

PS, for those who came from chat - I just ate the apple out of the last slice and left the caramel & chocolate chips like an orange rind. Can't do it. If you get a Mrs. Prindables, share it with someone you love. And be careful cutting it! This has been your PSA for the evening.

[Yoginin]

Finally a positive story I hope he sticks with it his sister. Was amazing with the support 

[catlover79]

Thankfully, we were spared the move to Houston since he was in a part of TX not that far away. All Dr. Now's scenes were in the doctor's office and hospital (no video calls). Very light on drama and even the eating was kept to a surprising minimum. No yelling, but then the Lacey episode was in a class unto itself!!!!

[borealis]

I don't doubt that he wants to go back to school. But y'all, either they couldn't find another, much closer school to give permission to film, or this was a straight up plug for Alvin Community College. There is ZERO reason for him to commute from Conroe to Alvin for community college. It's a long drive ONE way. Lone Star College is in his county (Montgomery), and Houston Community College is all over the city. Conroe is an exurb north of Houston while Alvin is south & on the coast! Commute for a good job, sure. But I am POSITIVE that either Lone Star College or HCC would have the courses he wants & needs. And the show even had a 'Conroe, TX' chyron on the screen while showing 'Alvin Community College' on the building. Um, no. You might as well say 'Austin' while showing the Alamo (in San Antonio).

Edited December 30, 2021 by borealis

[libgirl2]

What a breath of fresh air that man was! No excuses, no "cheat" days.... he wanted to do better than he already was doing. He worked hard and totally deserves it. Even Dr. Now was smiling. For every bozo he sees,  people like Lucas make what he does worth it. 

[Chatty Cake]

When I first saw the compound, I was ready for a shit show but Lucas surprised me. He seemed to commit and want to change. He also wanted to be productive which is kind of rare on the show. 

[Lillith]

Not the most riveting episode but I really liked Lucas. And he is one of the few that jumped into making his life changes as soon as his weight loss started. By the end of the show he was driving himself, working out, takes classes and had a job. I know people who aren't losing hundreds of pounds that aren't that proactive! I wish him well he seems like a good, motivated guy. 

[sagittarius sue]

10 hours ago, ams1001 said:

There were some hints of religion but they didn't really get into the reasons.

There was mention, close to the end, about how his father was against games where characters were brought back to life so I think there was religious fundamentalism in the family. 

[libgirl2]

30 minutes ago, sagittarius sue said:

There was mention, close to the end, about how his father was against games where characters were brought back to life so I think there was religious fundamentalism in the family. 

I was on his FB page and he definitely is not very Fundie. 

[Granny58]

11 hours ago, jacksgirl said:

Need info. Missed Live Chat, safe dinner with a friend♥️. He said they lived on a "compound" and assuming parents chose not to participate. Religious extremists?  Doomsday Preppers? Fundamentalists? Just Quirky?

Loved Maegan! What a supportive sister. 

they are Christian but didn't seem strange about it.  I think more of a hippie vibe.  

[borealis]

9 hours ago, borealis said:

I don't doubt that he wants to go back to school. But y'all, either they couldn't find another, much closer school to give permission to film, or this was a straight up plug for Alvin Community College. There is ZERO reason for him to commute from Conroe to Alvin for community college. It's a long drive ONE way. Lone Star College is in his county (Montgomery), and Houston Community College is all over the city. Conroe is an exurb north of Houston while Alvin is south & on the coast! Commute for a good job, sure. But I am POSITIVE that either Lone Star College or HCC would have the courses he wants & needs. And the show even had a 'Conroe, TX' chyron on the screen while showing 'Alvin Community College' on the building. Um, no. You might as well say 'Austin' while showing the Alamo (in San Antonio).

Yep-- I went to his FB page. It says 'Studied at Lone Star College System'.

[libgirl2]

20 minutes ago, borealis said:

Yep-- I went to his FB page. It says 'Studied at Lone Star College System'.

I don't know a lot about it but I give him credit for getting his ass out of the house and going for something. 

[borealis]

Just now, libgirl2 said:

I don't know a lot about it but I give him credit for getting his ass out of the house and going for something. 

I'm not criticizing him. I'm talking about the production team. Many years ago I saw another show on ID channel. They showed a town and said it was Humble, TX. I thought, that doesn't look like Humble AT ALL. I did some digging and sure enough, it was some small town in the Midwest! LOL Just examples of how production can mess around with stuff like this.

[libgirl2]

3 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

I don't know a lot about it but I give him credit for getting his ass out of the house and going for something. 

Usually, the only thing a lot of these people go for is the door for their take out. 

3 minutes ago, borealis said:

I'm not criticizing him. I'm talking about the production team. Many years ago I saw another show on ID channel. They showed a town and said it was Humble, TX. I thought, that doesn't look like Humble AT ALL. I did some digging and sure enough, it was some small town in the Midwest! LOL Just examples of how production can mess around with stuff like this.

No worries! WE all know how they mess around with things. 

[ams1001]

3 hours ago, sagittarius sue said:

There was mention, close to the end, about how his father was against games where characters were brought back to life so I think there was religious fundamentalism in the family. 

Yeah, I noticed that, too.

2 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

I was on his FB page and he definitely is not very Fundie. 

His parents might be more religious than he is, but he just felt stuck there because he needed help (though not as much help as a lot of folks on this show, plus he was actually contributing, helping take care of his sister's kids, instead of lounging in a chair while people brought him food). He said he'd like to get his own place, which I took to mean outside of the family compound. 

2 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

I don't know a lot about it but I give him credit for getting his ass out of the house and going for something. 

He was a breath of fresh air compared to all the people insisting that they have to focus on losing weight (while ordering pizza multiple times a week) before they can do anything else in their life, as if not eating so much is a full time job. They never seem to realize that having something else going on in their life might help them with that.

  

13 hours ago, ams1001 said:

PS, for those who came from chat - I just ate the apple out of the last slice and left the caramel & chocolate chips like an orange rind. Can't do it. If you get a Mrs. Prindables, share it with someone you love. And be careful cutting it! This has been your PSA for the evening.

Fun fact: Facebook just reminded me that six years ago today I cut my finger with a pair of scissors. Maybe I should just get rid of all the blades.

 

Edited December 30, 2021 by ams1001

[borealis]

4 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

Usually, the only thing a lot of these people go for is the door for their take out. 

No worries! WE all know how they mess around with things. 

Yep. And I agree with you about him getting out there. I like Lucas and glad he's going after what he wants. 🙂

[libgirl2]

2 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

He was a breath of fresh air compared to all the people insisting that they have to focus on losing weight (while ordering pizza multiple times a week) before they can do anything else in their life, as if not eating so much is a full time job. They never seem to realize that having something else going on in their life might help them with that.

He had goals that didn't involve getting a pizza. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

Lucas is one of the few that claim they're going to go back to school, or get a job, and actually do both.  

[LuvMyShows]

12 hours ago, Lillith said:

Not the most riveting episode but I really liked Lucas. And he is one of the few that jumped into making his life changes as soon as his weight loss started. By the end of the show he was driving himself, working out, takes classes and had a job. I know people who aren't losing hundreds of pounds that aren't that proactive! I wish him well he seems like a good, motivated guy. 

He seems like the kind of person who should be involved in weight loss motivation.  Not because he is dynamic, cause he's not.  But because he is what every pounder dreams of...getting a life back.  He wasn't all about some concept of how he'll look when he's done, he was about incremental results as he gets there.  And he's got the life changes to back it up.  The fact that he's still big is actually a plus, because other pounders can look at him as a realistic role model, and can see that life changes can begin relatively quickly, rather than perhaps someone like Christina or Milla, who people may feel have achieved a level they just can't reach.

[pdlinda]

Agreeing with everything positive that has been said about Lucas, the only thing I would add is that I wish he would have shown a modicum of attention to his "scruffy" appearance. 

I thought a nicely trimmed beard (if facial hair was his preference) would have coincided beautifully with the steps he was taking to get healthy by losing weight.  

Through the years I've noticed that many of the pounders (like Joe or Shawn) had very sparse beards.  A few straggly wisps of facial hair that could easily have been trimmed were each so inclined. 

Then, others, like Randy and Gideon (who did so well with weight loss years ago) had full beards and chose to keep the "disheveled look" regardless of how much weight they lost. 

Justin, on the other hand, neatly trimmed his beard at the end of his weight loss shows and I thought that significantly contributed to his excellent overall appearance.

 

Edited December 31, 2021 by pdlinda

[Boston]

Just came off a short nap.  Booster yesterday.  Chills, fever of 101.4, muscle aches.  I'm better now.. looking forward to 1000 lb sisters.  This guy.. ugh

[Elizzikra]

Quote

There was mention, close to the end, about how his father was against games where characters were brought back to life so I think there was religious fundamentalism in the family. 

I wasn't paying super-close attention but didn't the dad appear and explain that his issue with the video games is that he is a Vietnam veteran and he feels that the games in which characters die and then come back to life sort of cheapen the value of life? Or something like that?

[KateHearts]

14 minutes ago, Elizzikra said:

I wasn't paying super-close attention but didn't the dad appear and explain that his issue with the video games is that he is a Vietnam veteran and he feels that the games in which characters die and then come back to life sort of cheapen the value of life? Or something like that?

Yes, this. There was no mention of fundamentalism or religion. 

[AZChristian]

Dr. Now should keep multiple copies of the video from this episode.  When a person shows up for their first appointment, the 600-pounder and whoever comes with them should be put back into a private room and made to watch the entire episode.  They need to be told that there will be a test after they watch it (related to Lucas' gym time, portion size, etc.).  If they pass the test and are still interested, THEN Dr. Now should give them a copy of his book and the diet program and tell them that if they miss ONE appointment or do not lose weight to their target, they are OUT.

Period.

[ams1001]

13 hours ago, Elizzikra said:

I wasn't paying super-close attention but didn't the dad appear and explain that his issue with the video games is that he is a Vietnam veteran and he feels that the games in which characters die and then come back to life sort of cheapen the value of life? Or something like that?

13 hours ago, KateHearts said:

Yes, this. There was no mention of fundamentalism or religion. 

Did he? I missed that; only caught what Lucas said.

[IvySpice]

I like the successful Pounders! Bring on more Lucases.

This episode was a reminder that poverty, ignorance, and isolation play a big role in recovery or lack thereof. Lucas had been to college prior to his descent into addiction. He has a safe and stable place to live, with family who appear to be comfortably middle or working-class and employed. He didn't appear to have the kind of personality disorder that drives away healthy contacts and attracts codependents and abusers. It's not that surprising that he was able to implement the goals more accurately and quickly than some of the hopeless cases we've seen.

[jacksgirl]

14 hours ago, KateHearts said:

Yes, this. There was no mention of fundamentalism or religion. 

I think I planted the religion seed early on this thread. Only half watched, but with the "compound" talk, the homeschooling of Maegan's kids (although those 2 were barely school age), and no parents participating on camera, it was just a hypothesis. No preconceptions about religion or fundamentalists intended. 

Loved that he looked at Dr. Now as kind of a coach. That's such a great coping skill. He prob had a good relationship with his former high school coach, so seeing Dr. Now in a similar role is smart.

Edited December 31, 2021 by jacksgirl

[ams1001]

3 minutes ago, jacksgirl said:

I think I planted the religion seed early on this thread. Only half watched, but with the "compound" talk, the homeschooling of Maegan's kids (although those 2 were barely school age), and no parents participating on camera, it was just a hypothesis. No preconceptions about religion or fundamentalists intended. 

Same. I wouldn't have thought much of them saying grace before breakfast (though the fact that they chose to include it in the episode makes it seem like it's important to the poundicipant, he might just do it with the kids because his sister wants them to), but combined with the "family compound" and homeschooling ...it puts certain associations in one's head. I know there is a wide range of motivations for and methods of homeschooling; some do it well and some don't. I don't assume what we saw is representative of the level of schooling they are getting, either. The whole scene was almost certainly staged for the show; their real school time is presumably more than a few workbook pages (I hope). They're obviously religious to some degree but we really didn't see enough to judge.

[AZChristian]

58 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Same. I wouldn't have thought much of them saying grace before breakfast . . . 

It caught my ear that they didn't even say a very common grace prayer correctly.  They said, "God is good, Got is great."  That prayer is a poem.  It is "God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food."

I read comments here before watching the show, and was expecting something different from the "compound"; it looked to me (and sounded from the narration) that this was a working class family who bought a good-sized parcel of land.  They then moved structures onto it to make homes available for their families.  The sister's place was pretty nice, but Lucas was living in what amounted to a large shed.  It sounds like the parents' home was more of a typical home.

With fundamentalists, it would be odd for both parents to have been married so many times to other people.  Of course (as in the case of Kody Brown and his multiple wives), INDEPENDENT followers of a made-up religion can write their own rule books.

[ams1001]

4 minutes ago, AZChristian said:

It is "God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food."

That bugs me because good and food don't rhyme. 😜

[Teriacky]

Better than “great” and “food”!

[CrazyInAlabama]

2 hours ago, AZChristian said:

 

I read comments here before watching the show, and was expecting something different from the "compound"; it looked to me (and sounded from the narration) that this was a working class family who bought a good-sized parcel of land.  They then moved structures onto it to make homes available for their families.  The sister's place was pretty nice, but Lucas was living in what amounted to a large shed.  It sounds like the parents' home was more of a typical home.

With fundamentalists, it would be odd for both parents to have been married so many times to other people.  Of course (as in the case of Kody Brown and his multiple wives), INDEPENDENT followers of a made-up religion can write their own rule books.

I agree about the compound.   When I lived in New Mexico a lot of families would buy a few acres outside of town, and buy trailers, and have five or six related families living on their own part of the property, but it was economic, and they could share running errands, baby sitting, and it was a lot easier to help anyone who needed it.  

 

[LuvMyShows]

1 hour ago, jacksgirl said:

I think I planted the religion seed early on this thread. Only half watched, but with the "compound" talk, the homeschooling of Maegan's kids (although those 2 were barely school age), and no parents participating on camera, it was just a hypothesis. 

IIRC we did see the parents...at the very least, we saw the dad, right?

[GrammyPammy]

I really like Lucas. His parents are awful, though. Multiple marriages/divorces (to each other!), neither can “remember” him overeating, his dad made him quit college when he was close to graduating to learn a trade he didn’t enjoy…ugh. His sister and mother both agreed that he was neglected. I liked his sister,too, and how supportive she was.  I hope they both are able to escape those nightmare parents.

Edited January 2, 2022 by GrammyPammy
Typo

[Starlight925]

I, too, thought his attendance at Alvin Community College was odd, given that it's 80 miles from Conroe.

I'm wondering if that was the only college that allowed filming, so it was more or less used as a location, just to show that he was in college, since he apparently attends classes at Lone Star, which has locations all over Houston, including Conroe.  

I bet the Lone Star system wouldn't allow filming, but Alvin Comm. College allowed it for the advertising.  90% of viewers wouldn't know the distance, so it wouldn't matter to most of the audience.  But those of who know, know.

I looked up his gym, and it's definitely in Conroe, probably less than 5 miles from their "compound".  

[borealis]

1 hour ago, Starlight925 said:

90% of viewers wouldn't know the distance, so it wouldn't matter to most of the audience.  But those of who know, know.

Yes. I felt a little silly 'nitpicking' it, but for those who know the Houston area-- it's like WOW.

[Starlight925]

22 hours ago, borealis said:

Yes. I felt a little silly 'nitpicking' it, but for those who know the Houston area-- it's like WOW.

Right?  When I saw "Alvin Community College", my first thought was that maybe they are like Lone Star, with locations all over, including Conroe?  But apparently not.  That's when I looked up his gym, which is in Conroe, so like you, I figured something was odd with showing Alvin.  That's the closest community college they could get on air?

[Hellga]

Just caught up with this episode today... he seemed like a nice guy who from the beginning was doing things for himself and for others, not just sat there like a blob to be waited on hand and foot.  Glad he did well.  Hope he continues to lose weight, maintains a job, etc.  Wish him best, and wouldn't mind a follow-up on him.

[CrazyInAlabama]

They're rerunning this episode on Discovery Life, I only remembered which one he was when I read the synopsis on here.     Don't read too much into the family compound, I know a lot of people who would buy a few acres, and everyone built a house, or had a mobile home moved on the acreage.    It's a relatively cheap way to live.