People stunned by before and after photos showing how much weight contestants lose on show Survivor

If you thought I'm A Celebrity stars look unrecognisable after three weeks in the Australian jungle, just wait until you see what Survivor does to people.

The US reality TV series might be seriously entertaining for those watching from home, but it's downright gruelling for the contestants taking part.

Essentially, a gang of people are dumped in an extremely isolated location and the aim of the game is literally to survive - so they need to sort their own food, shelter, fire and water.

On top of the physical stresses they are under from all of this foraging, Survivor contestants also have to deal with a lot of mental turmoil too.

It's a test of both the mind and the body, as participants are forced to compete in a series of challenges, which are taxing in pretty much every way you can imagine.

That's not to mention the fact that each person is competing against one another in the hopes of winning $1million, too.

After that explanation, I'm sure you can see how the show's creators decided on the name Survivor.

By the time most contestants finish their stint on the hit programme, the majority of them look a shadow of their former shelves.

Which goes to show just how much of an impact a lack of sleep, an insufficient supply of food and living outdoors, while being battered by the elements, can have on a person.

The 48th series of Survivor premiered on CBS back in February, so it's clear viewers still have an appetite for seeing people being pushed to their absolute limits.

The reality show used to span over a whopping 39 days before it was reduced to 26 during COVID, but people still look unrecognisable after just over three weeks.

One contestant, whose jaw-dropping transformation really stuck in the minds of Survivor fans, is that of Spencer Bledsoe.

He starred on two seasons - Cagayan and Cambodia - and lasted a majorly respectable 39 days during his first stint, and 38 in the second.

Before-and-after images of Bledsoe have been circulating on social media recently, as one fan of the show reckoned the snaps were proof that the reality show isn't 'fake' as some people may think.

And after seeing the bloke's drastic weight loss, people were left absolutely stunned.

One person wrote on X: "It's actually really scary. This is IRL Hunger Games. People on the brink of death for our amusement."

Another said: "The early seasons when they used to make them weigh themselves at the end were crazy."

A third added: "For people saying 'why does he look different in the second image?' Well maybe because he's on Survivor and literally starving????"

And a fourth chimed in: "It’s more than physical destruction. Personally, I wouldn’t let my worst enemy play the game."

Bledsoe previously explained his body had quite the shock when he returned to society following his appearances on Survivor.

"I felt the same stuff nearly every [contestant] feels - trust issues, weird neuroses around food, and fear of the rain," he told Entertainment Weekly in 2020.

"Also shocking to be reacquainted within American culture: consumerism, mirrors (I mean literal mirrors this time), and our obsession with our own appearances.

"Getting away from this on Survivor was such a blessing in disguise, and coming back to it, I felt like a fish who'd just been airborne on this crazy Survivor ride and was now returning to sea.

"First, I was a fish in water who wouldn't have been able to tell you what water was. Second, I was a fish out of water, which you saw.

"Finally, I was a fish back in water who could now understand water, or culture, as a real thing, thanks to that extreme experience of Survivor that provided airborne contrast.

"Finally, I could start swimming, aware of the water and its inevitable influence on me, beginning to ask the real questions of life for the first time."

Although it took its toll on him, Bledsoe said that the show was the 'first step toward reevaluating life and ultimately toward happiness - a real happiness it's doubtful I ever would have known otherwise.'