The pamphlet sparked a memory of a teen girl named Christina that Ruby met at a weight loss camp. This girl was so damaged by the ribbing she took by her peers that she dropped out of school and began being home-schooled.

So, Ruby recruits Christina to enter the pageant, which is in Texas, as a way to boost her self-esteem and get her out of her shell. There’s a short conversation to convince her to enter. But, when Ruby said she’d come too, Christina instantly acted more open to the idea.

Ruby and Anthony (who occasionally comes across as a pompous jerk) proceed to give Christina a makeover before the trip to Texas. After some frustration in finding the right clothes for the pageant, they finally settle on the line that will be used in the show.

The rehearsals for the pageant got off to a rocky start, as Christina was having a hard time with the dance steps and walking in heels, something she’s never experienced on her own. But, Ruby cracked her whip (in a loving way, of course), and got Christina through it. She also showed off her strong influence by getting Anthony, who was opposed to going, to give in and head down for the pageant.

Christina was thrown to the wolves, having to find a way to feel confident about herself, through a business interview, a runway tryout, and whatever else goes on in beauty pageants. She has the hardest time adjusting to high heels walking down the catwalk.

Ruby starts to walk the fine line between motherly support and overbearing beauty pageant mom. But, she does make light of this by referring to herself as a “crazy mentor.” There were some tense moments when Christina was walking in her formal wear that seemed so close to snagging under her heels. But, she passed with flying colors.

The show’s finale is the announcement of the five finalists… and Christina makes it in third. Anthony redeems himself a bit too, showing that he’s not quite as cold as he came off at the start of the show when he applauds Christina for her transformation.

But, the best outcome was that Christina decided to go back to school for her senior year.

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Ruby Recap Season 3 Episode 4: The Beauty Pageant

The declaration opens up all kinds of intrigue and speculation. Sure, the most obvious is wondering what kind of depth of emotional pain one must have to be a virgin at 47. Secondly, how could someone be in a relationship for more than eight years, as was the case with her ex Denny, and not have sex? Their relationship is already intriguing in that you’re looking at a fit guy with a woman who was once 700+ pounds.

While some people may not want to actually say it, that certainly must make most of us wonder. Could he have been a genuinely good person who saw her for who she is on the inside, and not minded her physical shortcomings? Sure. But, the realist – or perhaps cynic – in me has to wonder about his motives. Not that they were necessarily bad, but everyone has to be surprised by the relationship.

Then a possible explanation is exposed when you see that Denny’s brother, who recently died of a heart attack, was severely overweight. You can’t help but wonder if there is a conscious psychological connection, and that maybe Denny wanted to maybe change Ruby in a way he couldn’t his brother.

The theme of the show centered on the dynamics of the continued friendship between Ruby and Denny, and some of the flirting and possibility of them rekindling their relationship. And, in a turn of fate that you would have thought was written into the script, the two attend a church service that dealt with sexual relationships and not settling for someone who doesn’t accept you for who you are.

While the show was centered on the tensions associated with Ruby’s relationship with Denny and the possible feelings that she may still have for him, there were some positives. Sure, Ruby is a virgin, but she experienced other firsts in this episode. She wore jeans for the first time. She was able to make it through a turnstyle without getting stuck. And finally, Ruby went shopping for a bathing suit. And not only that, she “modeled” it to her friends as they shared a hot tub.

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Ruby Recap Season 3 Episode 3: The 47-Year-Old Virgin

Ruby’s show is a 180 from The Biggest Loser, in that it doesn’t share the same combative nature or personalities that are antagonistic. It’s not a competition, rather a sort of open diary as you watch Ruby go through daily struggles and triumphs.

The early drama in season three of Ruby is her struggle with repressed childhood memories – her entire first 13 years. This episode, she and her friends took a road trip to her childhood home in Mississippi. The interesting twist is that she is facing her demons in more ways than one. Not only is she investigating her mysterious childhood, but Mississippi is also the heaviest state in the country, and in Ruby’s case, filled with dietary landmines.

“Happiness is eating,” says Ruby about her fellow Southerners’ view of life. And that’s the challenge she faced in her travels. She faced enablers and other obese people, one after another. The owner of an all-you-can-eat buffet said that her restaurant has healthy food… and you don’t know whether she believed it, was purposely deceptive, or just being coy. Another lady espoused the healthy antioxidants in chocolate while dangling a milk chocolate dessert of some sort under Ruby’s nose.

Then there was a friend of a friend who was 500 pounds. And it’s nothing short of jaw-dropping when you hear the level of denial he is in. He starts his conversation with Ruby saying that he doesn’t eat too much food, just the wrong food. Then he proceeds to say that on any given day he eats 6-7 eggs and a pack of bacon… for breakfast.

The show culminated with Ruby hiring a private investigator to search for the mysterious Dr. Duke, someone she trusted as a child. Her PI turned up well over 200 potential candidates. Whether or not the doctor holds any clues to Ruby’s mysterious childhood, we’ll have to wait for future episodes.

Learn more about Ruby here on DietsInReview.com, including more about her OurLife Health diet and videos from previous seasons.

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Ruby Recap Season 3 Episode 2: The Search for Her Missing Childhood

Image via The Style Network

Ruby Season 3 premieres this Sunday, February 14 on the Style Network.

This season promises to have all of the heart, struggle and charm as the two previous seasons in addition to new breakthroughs and challenges as Ruby Gettinger continues on her transformative weight loss journey.

From purchasing her first pair of jeans in years to coming to grips with some very difficult personal questions and answers and from considering plastic surgery to deal with the loose skin from her weight loss, Ruby Season 3 will continue to inspire and motivate.

The season premiere finds Ruby in high spirits, but plagued by recurring nightmares. 

She turns to a new therapist Dr. Jane Weilenman, who not only helps her analyze the disturbing dreams, but also forces Ruby to confront the severity of her food addiction. Part of Ruby’s weight loss journey becomes participating in a 12-step recovery program for treatment per the recommendation of Dr. Weilenman. 

 As the season continues, Ruby starts to piece together the fragmented components of her childhood. Confident that the lost memories and her obesity are linked, Ruby hires a private investigator to find more clues to her mysterious past.  While researching Ruby’s early years, he tracks down her childhood physician who reveals a number of startling revelations.  

She continues her efforts to help others, mentoring a friend in the Plus Teen Pageant and supporting others as they grapple with their weight issues. In addition, the Style Network’s website will feature Ruby’s blog, never-before-seen videos, Ruby’s diet and fitness tips, a blog where you can communicate with Ruby and share in other weight loss stories and store, where you can purchase Ruby-inspired t-shirts, hats and much more.

Plus, DietsInReview.com will be recapping all of the season’s episodes so if you happen to miss one, we’ll fill you in on all of the details.

The new season of Ruby”premieres on Style beginning Sunday, February 14, at 8 PM ET/PT.

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Ruby Season 3 Premieres February 14

Ruby is the star of Ruby, her own self-titled, Style Network reality series. The show’s third season starts on February 14th and will continue to chronicle this Southern belle’s weight loss battle. At her heaviest, Ruby was classified as morbidly obese and once topped the scales at 715 pounds. Since the show’s debut in 2008, she has lost an astonishing 400 pounds.

On The Oprah Show, Ruby will face plastic surgery, which is needed after all of the weight she lost and she will also reveal a big family secret.

You can read DietsInReview.com’s review of Ruby’s own diet, the OurLife Health diet, which is now available for anyone to follow.

Check your local listings for show times.

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Tune In: Ruby on The Oprah Show

Star of Ruby – The Inspirational Weight Loss Journey, this once 750-pound Southern belle, has opened up her life to the rest of the country as she has lost an astonishing 400 pounds on her self-entitled Style Network’s reality show.

This Monday, Rachael teaches healthy kitchen basics as well as how to cook up a meatless version of one of Ruby’s favorite dishes, Pasta Bolognese using portobello mushrooms as a “meaty” alternative to traditional ground meat. This skinnier recipe promises to save on fat but not on flavor.

Check your local listings for exact show times.

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Tune In: Ruby Gettinger on Rachael Ray

In a meeting with Dr. Bradley, Ruby is encouraged to visit a kids’ weight loss camp in the Pokonos. Ruby wants to help these kids curb their weight issues now before they end up in the same situation she is. She takes Georgia and Jeff with her, and they spend three fun-filled days with the campers. Ruby even considers wanting to be a full-time camper herself.

“This place is so awesome!” she says shortly after arriving. “I’ve only been here five minutes and I’m already playing volleyball. This plays means business.”

Everything at the camp translated to exercise, explained Jeff. And the three friends got in a lot of exercise with the young campers. They did volleyball, aerobics, table tennis, dancing, paddle boats and horseback riding. It was one of Ruby’s life-long dreams, and a horse named Moose made it come true! She was nervous at first, asking “Are you sure the horse can hold me?” Reassured, Ruby went on a trail ride and enjoyed it. Saying the experience was “unbelievable!”.

Ruby was also asked to give a presentation to the campers. She met with a co-ed group of students to get to know more about them and what they’re going through. She was nervous about the speech, but Georgia and Jeff knew she’d be inspirational. Ruby wants to get in the kids’ minds, let them know she is them, she is still in their shoes and still trying to beat it. She wants the kids to beat it now while they’re young.

You couldn’t help but feel empowered by Ruby sharing her dream list with the campers. She asked the kids to write their own dream lists and so many went up stood to read theirs:

• Have people cheer for me for coming in first, not coming in last
• Go to school a whole grade without someone making fun of me
• Get to my goal weight and join a varsity team
• Get Presidential Fitness Test under 9 minutes (was at 12)
• Travel to all the continents and break three world records
• Run in local triathlon
• Be a U.S. senator
• Go skydiving
• Cross my legs when I sit
• Be a better daughter and a better sister
• Join Doctor’s Without Borders

“Don’t believe what other people tell you, believe in you,” Ruby encouraged.

Before leaving camp, Ruby has the season’s final weigh-in. Very disappointed, she finds that she’s gained two pounds since her last weigh-in. Ruby wraps the season at 357 pounds. But no less proud of her success so far.

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Ruby Recap – Season Finale, Episode 2.10

We’ve known for a while that her beloved dog Lucy was not well, as her kidneys were failing. Each night Ruby lovingly gave her shots for treatment, and she and friends prepared for the worst. The relationship Ruby has with her dogs is as definitive of man’s best friend as you’ll find. “I don’t think I’ve ever had love like they give me,” Ruby tearfully remarks.

Her roommate and close friend Jeff said that Lucy’s loss would be “like losing a child for her.” In this episode, Lucy does leave Ruby and it’s one of those emotional hurdles that has Ruby questioning if she’ll end up throwing away all of her hard work thus far.

Friends gathered for a memorial service for Lucy, and Ruby’s ex-boyfriend now turned friend, Denny, arrived to help her cope. He said that Ruby always told him that the dogs have no concept of how much bigger she was than other people, and that they just offered unconditional love.

Best friend Georgia was proud of Ruby, as she said this time Ruby “didn’t fall into a big pot of spaghetti, instead she fell into church.” Which is exactly where the two friends went the night after Lucy’s funeral. Ruby is confident that this time she’s going to deal with the pain and the emotions, rather than turning to food.

On the high end, Ruby got to enjoy one of her favorite evenings – Women’s Fat Night. It’s a support group of friends who are each battling their own weight issues. They meet to talk through mishaps and successes and gain motivation and support from one another. Ruby has the bright idea that their next meeting should be an extended one and they’d call it the first Women’s Fat Night Workshop.

In the first part of the workshop, the women shared diet gimmicks that didn’t work, like the sexy stripper workout or the Thighmaster. Then, they each shared a diet tip that has worked for them, like eating more slowly and stopping when you start to feel full. Another woman started a quilt, and for each pound she loses, she adds a square.

Next, Ruby’s doctor, Dr. Bradley, volunteered to host the event in his home and have the OurLife Health chefs attend to show the women how to prepare fast, simple, delicious and healthful meals. They enjoyed sampling the food prepared by Gene and Blair, who recommended the use of olive oil, fresh herbs, and making sure meals were colorful (meaning more nutritious).

Finally, at Dr. Bradley’s recommendation, the women were joined by Sandy Baker, a food addiction specialist who has herself lost 135 pounds and kept it off for more than four years. She taught the women that emotional eating is when you eat instead of feeling. The women vowed to continue to support one another.

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Ruby Recap: Episode 2.9

For those of you who love Ruby, she’s releasing Ruby’s Diary September 8, 2009; and it’s a must for any fan! Filled with deeply personal thoughts, fears and insights, many of which were never revealed on camera, this memoir chronicles her journey up to her current weight loss status, about 150 pounds. Ruby’s Diary simply started out as just that: her own private diary. But as her weight loss journey has cascaded into a story of inspiration and commitment, yet also challenge and difficulty, she decided to share her thoughts and emotions with others.

With chapters like, Ups and Downs, Cravings, Southern Hospitality and Charm, Missing More Than Just Food and Tired of Weighting, Ruby’s Diary discusses the comforts of being obese, the foods she misses most, her favorite meal makeovers, her workouts and a cost-conscious seven-day meal plan which was created by her own dietitian, Kate Melei.

But Ruby’s Diary is more than just food, weight loss and exercise. It’s about Ruby trying to take ownership for her life, assuming responsibility for her past and connecting the pieces of her childhood to the person she is today. Ruby’s Diary is not just for the dieting audience. Rather, this book is meant to inspire anyone who is finding their way through a personal obstacle, whether it’s a food addiction, a substance abuse problem or a relationship issue.

Watch for Ruby’s tour dates as she travels all around the country promoting her new book, available for pre-order now.

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Ruby’s Diary: Reflections on All I’ve Lost and Gained

She weighed herself for the first time in two weeks, to see that she’d dropped to 323.6 pounds. Jeff pointed out she was losing at a rate of about five pounds per week – which is definitely a healthy rate of weight loss. However, a few days later she went to visit her nutritionist Helen who also weighed her in and found that Ruby had actually gained about 20 pounds, as she weighed in at 355 pounds. She was shocked and just kept saying “no way.”

Her nutritionist, trainers and even roommate Jeff prodded to find out where she fell off. She admitted to not using the OurLife meals, not using her food journal, and not exercising each day. She expressed her anger at the scale, but recognized that the fault was her own.

The entire situation made Ruby “want to give up,” but she persevered, met with her trainers and they decided to use this slip as motivation to continue working.

She had a disappointing meeting with her psychiatrist, Dr. Brewerton, and it was likely her last. He felt that she was blowing him off, avoiding her and being disrespectful. Unable to resolve the issues, Ruby walked out saying she’d “gone as as far as I could go with him.”

Then she met with Dr. Bradley and expressed a desire to consider bariatric surgery. He referred her to a colleague, Dr. Angstadt. In that meeting Ruby learned that the surgery is “not an easy way out.” He explained that weight loss surgery is 25 percent operation and 75 percent working the program – meaning diet and exercise. The prospect of a psych consult prompted Ruby to tears and she may not follow through knowing what she now knows about the surgery.

This week she was also confronted with a huge temptation – a bake sale at her church. “I’d be lying if I said I don’t crave it,” remarked Ruby standing next to a sea of cupcakes and pies. She told Dr. Bradley her sugar cravings were hard to suppress lately. He said you have to be fair to yourself when you find yourself in situations like that, but also know how to quench cravings responsibly. Watch this video to learn more about the Glucerna diabetic-friendly snacks he recommended.

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Ruby Recap – Episode 2.8