Luis Hernandez exits ‘Biggest Loser,’ but weight loss journey continues

PHOTO: Luis Hernandez, during a competition in his last episode on “The Biggest Loser.” He has since gone on to lose another 29 pounds. ~Tyler Golden~NBC

Luis Hernandez admits he liked food before he went on “ The Biggest Loser” and he still enjoys it now that he is back home.

The difference is in what he learned about food during his nine weeks with the NBC weight-loss reality show, which is in its 17th season.

“I still like eating, but now in a more controlled setting,” says the high school physical education/health teacher.

“Biggest Loser” viewers saw Hernandez eliminated in the episode that aired Monday (Feb. 1) night. He says he gained valuable lessons during his time on the ranch.

The show taught him how to control himself and what he is eating, according to Hernandez. It also brought about a difference in preparing foods now that he’s back in Chicago. Frying foods, something he says was a big thing in his Mexican-American family, is out. He also is keeping a watchful eye on his portions.

The 36-year-old says “Biggest Loser” also got him to try new foods, and he discovered a lot of them taste pretty darn good. “Now I am a big-time salad guy,” he says.

He and his wife, Lubina, are preparing healthier options — and again, being mindful of portions — as well as spending time fixing food for the week ahead of time so that they know what they’ll be eating each night. “That’s helped a lot,” Hernandez says.

To anyone trying to lose weight, Hernandez recommends to just “take it one day at a time.”

After his elimination, “Biggest Loser” viewers Monday night saw during the Where Are They Now segment that the 5-foot-7 Hernandez, who started the show at 308 pounds, now weighs 203 pounds. (He was 232 pounds when he left the show.)

The weight loss has helped him in his job. His students look up to him and when he tells them exercise is good for them, they are hearing it from someone they can see is making fitness a priority in his own life.

“Kids look at me and admire me,” he says.

Now that he’s home he’s doing a number of things, fitness-wise: spinning, CrossFit, boxing. Exercise is a must for him. “You gotta find a way to get it in,” Hernandez says.

Hernandez is still in the running for the $100,000 at-home prize while his twin, Roberto, remains at the “Biggest Loser” ranch where the Burbank resident is a contender for the $250,000 grand prize.