tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-236929742024-02-18T21:30:08.417-05:00InfidolCritiques and predictions, originally for North American 'Idol' shows, but now for any reality shows I like, from a hopefully objective point of view.Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.comBlogger113125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-60460402735447442132012-03-07T08:54:00.001-05:002012-03-07T08:54:49.075-05:00No excuses, "I can't get out of my comfort zone"<P>So Conda is not only in good with a strong female alliance, she's also in a secret alliance with a handful of men. Gawd. We are never going to see the end of her, are we.</P><P>Kim's hypocrisy over the 'keep the strong people around you to compete with' plea while simultaneously being in an alliance aimed at getting all the strong men out of the house is pretty disgusting.</P><P>And as much as I appreciated seeing Dolvett in tight clothing, the whole ballet sequence was <I>painful</I>. From the clips they showed us of her dancing, the teacher was not that great; and she didn't seem to make any effort to correct what was HORRENDOUS technique on everyone's part. Emily's ass sticking out three miles behind her as she went down into her pliƩs hurt my eyes a whole lot. And would it have killed the teacher to ask them to point their toes even <I>once</I>?</P><H3>Best. Line. Ever.</H3><P>Dolvett: "Hello, ladies."</P><H3>Milestones achieved:</H3><UL><LI>Cassandra dropped under 175lbs<br />
<LI>Emily hit the 25% mark of total loss<br />
</UL><H3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><UL><LI>Jeremy could drop under 275lbs<br />
<LI>Conda could drop under 225lbs<br />
<LI>Kim could hit the 75lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Kimmy and Chris could hit the 25% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Buddy could hit the 30% mark of total loss<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-70972592904250754592012-02-22T14:10:00.000-05:002012-02-22T14:12:16.785-05:00"No excuses", episode 8<p>Two words: Oy. Vey.</P><p>The stupid was out in force this week, boy howdy!</P><p>I missed the first ten minutes or so of the episode, so I didn't see the lead-in to the temptation, but I think that what Daphne did was pure dumbass. She's just coming off a week where she was the team hero, and Chris has isolated herself from the rest of the Black team. Daphne would have been totally safe this week if she'd just kept her head down and been a team player! Instead, she decided to go for revenge, which is stupid anyway, because in a lot of ways, Adrian brought his being voted out down on his own self.</P><p>(And apparently his sister also inherited this ability.)</P><p>So in retaliation for the Jeremy/Conda team switching and the lying about it, most of Black throws the weigh-in to get rid of Daphne. (And they went about it really stupidly, too - they should have made sure they kept at least one or two people back and doing their best so as to make sure Daphne wasn't the biggest loser on the team. Luckily for them, though, the stress evidently did Daphne in.)</P><p>Except that from Emily's interview, it sounds like <i>Conda</I> was the one who came up with this strategy and persuaded almost everyone to throw the weigh-in. Interesting. So not only is Conda mean, she's manipulative and (evidently) charismatic. Ouch. We're never going to see the end of her, are we?</P><p>Sigh. At least she's nice to look at. Anyone else see a little bit of Kaley Cuoco in her?</P><p>Next week: I bet Black will kick ass on the scale.</P><h3>Milestones achieved:</H3><ul><li>Kim and Chris dropped under 200lbs (as predicted)<br />
<li>Jeremy and Buddy hit the 75lb mark of total loss (as predicted)<br />
<li>Mark (as predicted), Jeremy and Buddy (as predicted) hit the 20% mark of total loss<br />
<li>Chris moved from clinically obese to obese (as predicted)<br />
</UL><h3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><ul><li>Mark could drop under 225lbs<br />
<li>Emily and Conda could hit the 50lb mark of total loss (originally predicted for this week)<br />
<li>Chism could hit the 75lb mark of total loss<br />
<li>Kimmy, Emily, Chris and Chism could hit the 20% mark of total loss<br />
<li>Kim could hit the 25% mark of total loss<br />
<li>Chism could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese<br />
<li>Mark and Kim could move from obese to overweight<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-78555454691013359032012-02-15T14:31:00.004-05:002012-02-15T14:31:52.571-05:00"No excuses", episode 7<P>So we start off getting completely Jerry Springer between Daphne and Conda, while the rest of the house looks on with serious "holy crap" looks on their faces. <I>Awk</I>ward!</P><P>So I guess it's pretty clear who is going to be the target of Conda's hatred this week. Personally, I think there's fault on both sides. Daphne's smoking crack if she thinks not liking someone isn't a good enough reason to vote them off. And Conda's smoking crack if she thinks for one second that denying they voted Adrian out because they didn't like him is even marginally believable.</P><P>As much as it ended up working out well, I think the trainers' decisions were pretty dumb. For Red, I totally would have chosen Buddy. He's got a NEWBORN, for crying out loud, so he should be going home to see the baby. Also, he's a consistent loser, plus he's already proven that he can do really well at home. But instead, Dolvett chooses the person who just had a kick-ass week and likely doesn't have much left in the tank for the next weigh-in. As for Daphne, Chris is right - she's already been home. She's also not as much of a proven entity as, say, Cassandra, who's the biggest loser in the entire house! Hello?!?</P><P>I found it was good to hear more about Conda's story. But on the other side, I was seriously annoyed that Bob wanted Daphne's motivation to be hatred, anger and revenge. The hell?!? How is that psychologically healthy?</P><P>I think it was quite the triumph for Daphne to overcome a two-pound disadvantage and kick ass for her team. Add Chris' generally poor attitude annoying her teammates, and she's quite safe not to be voted off for a while, I should think.</P><P>Bonus nice thing this week: Kim's looking like she's getting abs!</P><H3>Milestones achieved:</H3><UL><LI>Chism dropped under 300lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Conda dropped under 250lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Daphne dropped under 225lbs<br />
<LI>Roy (as predicted), Mark (as predicted), Kim (better than expected) and Cassandra (as predicted) hit the 50lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Roy, Megan, Kimmy, Daphne, Conda and Chris hit the 15% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Kim and Cassandra hit the 20% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Daphne moved from morbidly obese to clinically obese (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Roy moved from clinically obese to obese (as predicted)<br />
</UL><H3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><UL><LI>Kim and Chris could drop under 200lbs<br />
<LI>Emily, Daphne and Conda could hit the 50lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Jeremy and Buddy (originally predicted for this week) could hit the 75lb mark of total loss <br />
<LI>Mark, Daphne and Buddy could hit the 20% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Conda could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese<br />
<LI>Chris could move from clinically obese to obese<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-38033263256456963632012-02-08T14:13:00.001-05:002012-02-08T14:13:35.922-05:00No excuses", episode 6<P>I think Chism summed up Adrian's problems the best not four minutes into the show: "Adrian, stop talking!!! This isn't your moment, this isn't The Adrian Show, this is The Biggest Loser! All you're doing is making trouble for yourself. It's like you're saying everything wrong, and you're just not thinking, and what you should do is step back, and listen to what's going on around you before you start trying to make a scene about every little thing that happens." That right there is everything you need to know about how Adrian's been behaving for the past two shows.</P><P>And honestly, serious kudos to Chism for being firm to Adrian and bringing the focus back to Cassandra's sadness. I wouldn't have had the cojones to do that to an adult many years my senior when I was nineteen.</P><P>At any rate, although I do think Adrian has a point that he wasn't given much of a chance, I also have to say that his complete inability to SHUT THE EFF UP was very annoying; divisive for the house in general; and definitely something I'm glad I won't have to see every week anymore. Now if we can just give Conda the boot, things would be great.</P><P>And about Conda: my kids play Webkinz Junior, and there's a video section in there which runs lessons about good behaviour and bad behaviour, and one of the videos is about "Tattling". In this video, a character named Earthworm starts telling her teacher all about what everybody else is doing: "Miss Lily, Honeydew is looking out the window!"; "Miss Lily, Clover is reading a book!"; "Miss Lily, Hazel is touching the science centre!"; etc. Finally, it's "Miss Lily, everyone is talking!" and the entire class yells out, "Stop it, Earthworm!!!" Miss Lily then sits down with Earthworm to explain that it's not Earthworm's job to make sure other people are following the rules; the only person whose behaviour Earthworm is responsible for is Earthworm herself.</P><P>Yeah.</P><P>I think Conda seriously needs to see that video.</P><h3>Milestones achieved:</H3><ul><li>Mark dropped below 250lbs (predicted)<br />
<li>Megan and Emily dropped below 225lbs (predicted)<br />
<li>Cassandra dropped below 200lbs (predicted)<br />
<li>Chism hit the 50lb mark of total loss (predicted)<br />
<li>Daphne and Adrian hit the 10% mark of total loss (predicted)<br />
<li>Mark (predicted), Kim (predicted), Jeremy (predicted), Emily (predicted), Chism (better than predicted) and Buddy (predicted) hit the 15% mark of total loss<br />
<li>Jeremy moved from super-obese to morbidly obese (better than predicted)<br />
<li>Cassandra moved from clinically obese to obese (predicted)<br />
</UL><h3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><ul><li>Conda could drop below 250lbs<br />
<li>Chism could drop below 300lbs<br />
<li>Roy, Mark and Cassandra could hit the 50lb mark of total loss<br />
<li>Buddy could hit the 75lb mark of total loss<br />
<li>Daphne could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese<br />
<li>Roy could move from clinically obese to obese<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-72064403834959511302012-01-31T23:54:00.000-05:002012-01-31T23:54:06.952-05:00"No excuses", episode 5<P>If Conda rolls her eyes at the current person that she "hates so much" one more time, I'm gonna...well, I dunno. Not much, I guess. But it's still supremely annoying. Conda honey, maybe your life would be so much better if you didn't actively try to be so negative about people all the freakin' time. I mean, seriously, Adrian has a fabulous first workout with Dolvett and everyone else is pretty darn impressed, and all Conda can say is, 'yeah, that wasn't really a hard workout so it doesn't count'. Bite me, lady.</P><P>However, I agree that Adrian suffers from not knowing when to shut up and listen. He has no idea of the dynamics of the house he's just been thrown into, but he keeps shooting off his mouth, and thus simultaneously planting his foot in it. I agree wholeheartedly with him that it is demeaning for him, a grown man, to be told to shut up and listen, but I also have to admit that the people giving him this advice - as much as they should have put it differently - were right.</P><P>And I have to admit that I was thinking along the same lines as Mark in terms of, did Adrian and Daphne throw the weigh-in so they could kick ass next week? I think it's a distinct possibility. However, it's also possible that their different (on-ranch) diet was responsible. Who knows. Based on how they were acting, though, I'm leaning towards thinking it was actually game play.</P><H3>Milestones achieved:</H3><UL><LI>Buddy dropped below 350lbs (predicted)<br />
<LI>Nancy dropped below 200lbs (predicted)<br />
<LI>Megan and Kimmy hit the 25lb mark of total loss (predicted)<br />
<LI>Jeremy hit the 50lb mark of total loss (predicted)<br />
<LI>Megan (better than predicted) and Conda (predicted) hit the 10% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Cassandra (predicted) hit the 15% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Nancy moved from clinically obese to obese (predicted)<br />
</UL><H3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><UL><LI>Mark could drop below 250lbs (originally predicted for this week)<br />
<LI>Megan and Emily could drop below 225lbs<br />
<LI>Cassandra could drop below 200lbs<br />
<LI>Chism could hit the 50lb mark of total loss (originally predicted for this week)<br />
<LI>Daphne and Adrian could hit the 10% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Mark (orignially predicted for this week), Kim (originally predicted for this week), Jeremy, Emily and Buddy could hit the 15% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Cassandra could move from clinically obese to obese<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-1047275040682796872012-01-24T21:23:00.001-05:002012-01-24T21:23:28.805-05:00"No excuses", episode 4<P>Chris is so beautiful I can barely stand it. If she makes it to Makeover Week and they take the silver out of her hair, I am going to be <I>pissed</I>.</P><P>I must admit, Gail's baseless and pointless sob act was grating on my nerves, so I'm kind of glad we won't have to see that anymore.</P><P>Definitely rooting for Adrian and Daphne to get back into the house! (Based on the fact that NBC has videos of them interviewing on-ranch, I strongly suspect they succeeded.)</P><P>And once again, we have Conda deciding that she hates somebody. I don't know what her issues are, but their manifestation does continue to piss me off.</P><H3>Milestones achieved:</H3><UL><LI>Jeremy dropped under 350lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Gail dropped under 300lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Roy and Conda dropped under 275lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Kim dropped under 225lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Kimmy dropped under 200lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Kim (as predicted), Gail (as predicted), Emily (as predicted), Conda (as predicted) and Chris (unpredicted) hit the 25lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Buddy hit the 50lb mark of total loss (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Roy (as predicted), Mark (as predicted), Kimmy (unpredicted), Kim (as predicted), Jeremy (as predicted), Emily (unpredicted), Chris (unpredicted), Chism (as predicted) and Buddy (as predicted) hit the 10% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Emily moved from morbidly obese to clinically obese (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Mark and Kim moved from clinically obese to obese (unpredicted)<br />
</UL><H3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><UL><LI>Buddy could drop under 350lbs<br />
<LI>Mark could drop under 250lbs<br />
<LI>Nancy could drop under 200lbs<br />
<LI>Megan (originally predicted for this week) and Kimmy could hit the 25lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Jeremy and Chism could hit the 50lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Conda could hit the 10% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Mark, Kim and Cassandra could hit the 15% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Nancy could move from clinically obese to obese<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-47742551856101381192012-01-17T23:10:00.002-05:002012-01-17T23:10:58.321-05:00"No excuses", episode 3<P>So this week my distaste for Conda deepened. Clearly she just has to have an enemy of some kind. Mike's gone, so she decided to turn her schoolyard bitchiness on to Cassandra, and then Dolvett (who admittedly looked like he was just trying to shift the blame off of himself when he called her out at the weigh-in). Good grief. I'm also getting increasingly annoyed at Kim's competitiveness. I love determination and grit as much as the next person, but to turn that into insulting your fellow competitors? Not cool. Fortunately, Chism didn't appear to let it get to him (unlike Cassandra with Conda's behaviour, unfortunately). I like that boy.</P><P>Also, could it be any more obvious that Emily's relationship with her dad is a huge source of her issues? Yowza.</P><P>Still not sure why Buddy gave up his video chat to Mark. Buddy's got small children, whereas Mark's kids are older. Mark's already got a kid with him on the ranch, while Buddy has nobody...it's weird. Unless a) Buddy felt that the video chat would send him over the edge and make him want to quit just like Joe; and/or b) Buddy perceives Mark as someone who will be a big power in the house and wants to be owed a favour.</P><P>And speaking of Joe - geez. As was said on the show, his family needs him on the <I>ranch</I>. Loads of people season after season have avoided quitting even though it was eating them up being away from their loved ones. Although Bob was full of it when he said no one had ever quit in the history of the Biggest Loser before. Hello? Can you say...<I>Rulon</I>?</P><P>Sad that Lauren's gone, but in hindsight, I guess it shouldn't have been too surprising. A team that wants to focus on keeping the people around who need to be on the ranch the most would certainly be well-advised to give Lauren the boot first. Add to that the fact that she doesn't seem to be too charismatic or memorable, and you have the kiss of death. So glad to see her doing so well at home!</P><H3>Milestones achieved:</H3><UL><LI>Emily dropped below 250lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Chris dropped below 225lbs (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Roy (better than predicted), Mark, Jeremy (as predicted), Chism (as predicted) and Cassandra (better than predicted) hit the 25lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Cassandra hit the 10% mark of total loss (better than predicted)<br />
<LI>Buddy moved from super-obese to morbidly obese (as predicted)<br />
<LI>Megan (better than predicted) and Chris (as predicted) moved from morbidly obese to clinically obese<br />
<LI>Kimmy moved from clinically obese to obese (as predicted)<br />
</UL><H3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><UL><LI>Jeremy could drop below 350lbs<br />
<LI>Gail could drop below 300lbs<br />
<LI>Roy and Conda (originally predicted for this week) could drop below 275lbs<br />
<LI>Kim could drop below 225lbs<br />
<LI>Kimmy could drop below 200lbs<br />
<LI>Megan, Kim, Gail, Emily and Conda could hit the 25lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Buddy could hit the 50lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Roy, Mark, Kim, Jeremy, Chism and Buddy could hit the 10% mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Emily could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-11673021873531745642012-01-11T01:31:00.001-05:002012-01-11T01:31:59.854-05:00"No excuses", episode 2<h3>Thoughts</H3><P>The Mike issue is a weird one.</P><P>Firstly, Conda was obviously biased against him, for whatever odd reason. I remember very well seeing that thing last week where Mike called out, "Go, Tank!" in support of Jeremy, and Conda instantly took offence and started spouting off about how much she hated Mike.</P><P>Right off the bat I thought that was really odd in a few ways. Mike sounded quite sincere in his cheering, so I thought it was very strange that Conda would be mad about it. (Wouldn't you consider it a <I>nice</I> thing if someone cheered on your brother?) I did wonder a bit about Mike cheering for someone on the other team, but I took it at face value because you often do get individuals bonding with people that are supposed to be their competition, just because they hit it off as part of being in the house. So I really had to wonder what on earth Conda had against Mike. Based on her general bitchy demeanor whenever she was interacting with Mike, though, I would guess that the problem was at least 50% on her side. So far, I don't like her much (although I do think Jeremy seems really nice).</P><P>However, it was also clear that the Red Team as a whole thought Mike had been slacking off this week. And when your whole team thinks so, it's a big hint that maybe the problem is you and not them - very weird that Mike professed to have had no idea that people thought this way. So either the producers are manipulating people behind the scenes to create Teh Drama, or Mike is pretty clueless and in denial about a lot of things. (Or perhaps a combination of the two.) And if you're perceived as the slacker, that's generally the kiss of death if your team loses the weigh-in. So, Mike needs to work on his self-awareness and communication a helluva lot more. It is a real shame that he couldn't have built more of a relationship with Joe before leaving the ranch, although he seems to be doing fine at home. I also really hope he kicks the nicotine habit.</P><P>Also, about the 3.8% bet thing? Dumb. Ass. I'm with Buddy - clearly neither Kim nor Kimmy had ever watched the show. An average of 3.8% is a monumental ask at the best of times, but week freakin' <I>TWO?</I> No chance. And I can't believe Kim <I>taunted</I> Joe and Emily about it. Her competitive streak makes her kickass in the gym, which is great, but I think carrying it outside of the gym like that, it makes her kind of repellant.</P><H3>Milestones achieved:</H3><UL><LI>Mark dropped below 275lbs, as predicted<br />
<LI>Megan dropped below 250lbs, as predicted<br />
<LI>Cassandra dropped below 225lbs, as predicted<br />
<LI>Buddy hit the 25lb mark of total loss, as predicted<br />
<LI>Joe moved from super-obese to morbidly obese, as predicted<br />
</UL><H3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><UL><LI>Conda could drop below 275lbs<br />
<LI>Emily could drop below 250lbs<br />
<LI>Chris could drop below 225lbs<br />
<LI>Joe, Jeremy and Chism could hit the 25lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Buddy could move from super-obese to morbidly obese<br />
<LI>Chris could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese<br />
<LI>Kimmy could move from clinically obese to obese<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-53396502239274753692012-01-03T23:54:00.003-05:002012-01-03T23:56:31.666-05:00"No excuses", episode 1<h3>Milestones achieved:</H3><ul><li>Buddy dropped below 400lbs<br />
<li>Mike, Joe and Chism dropped below 350lbs<br />
<li>Roy dropped below 300lbs<br />
<li>Kim dropped below 250lbs<br />
<li>Chism moved from super-obese to morbidly obese<br />
<li>Roy, Lauren and Cassandra moved from morbidly obese to clinically obese<br />
</UL><H3>Potential milestones for next week:</H3><UL><LI>Cassandra could drop below 225lbs<br />
<LI>Buddy could hit the 25lb mark of total loss<br />
<LI>Joe could move from super-obese to morbidly obese<br />
</UL>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-77403987797122824442011-01-12T13:34:00.001-05:002011-01-12T13:34:29.515-05:00Duelling ranches<P>We are reminded that last week, we lost Ana. Irene weeps in her room and vows to redouble her efforts.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1102-week-2-art-of-focus/1269277/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: The mood is glum in the house right after the first elimination. The on-ranchers are discussing how badly it sucked. Arthur reiterates that Jesse struggled with his diet last week, but promises that this week it'll be on point. (Holy cow, man, your dad is an independent entity, you can't control him like that.) Back in the kitchen, everybody promises not to think about the off-ranchers and to just focus on doing their best.</P>
<P>The next day, Ali shows up and takes the on-ranchers to the video room. She tells them that last week, the off-ranchers lost more pounds with only five teams than the on-ranchers did with six. Which means the on-ranchers were not simply beaten, Ali points out, they were CRUSHED. (Way to make everybody feel great about themselves, Ali.) Our perky host then ups the ante by saying that if the on-ranchers can beat the percentage of the off-ranchers at this week's weigh-in, they'll all get immunity. Quite the prize! Oh, also, the winning group will win ten thousand dollars. (Later we find out that we're not talking ten grand apiece, but rather ten grand to be split among the team. But still.)</P>
<P>Of course, news of this challenge must also be conveyed to the off-ranchers, who are still working with anonymous trainers cast in shadow. They're all pretty happy to learn via Ali-cam that they kicked all kinds of ass last week. News of the ten thousand dollar prize elicits general promising to beat the on-ranchers.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, the on-ranchers are getting a video montage of the beatings that the off-ranchers got last week. Must've been an impressive montage, because there's general stunnedness in the video room as a reaction. Then Jesse talks some smack to the off-ranchers, and Bob starts talking about how "we gotta lotta work to do". Yep, beatings time.</P>
<P>As Bob tortures part of the on-ranch group, the other part is outside with Jillian, boxing. Jill wastes no time, and starts right in with Jay telling him that he's uber-codependent, which, like a good little yes-man, he agrees with right away. Irene gets some good, mean-looking tunnel vision going. Jillian asks Jen when the last time she really reached for something was. Um...turns out this show is the only thing, responds Jen tearfully. Hannah talks about how Jillian with boxing gloves is scary, but she seems to hold her own nonetheless.</P>
<P>Back in the gym, Dan says that he thinks about his wife and daughter constantly when going through the pain of working out, and this is what gets him through. We then work on Marci's psyche for a while, which is apparently flooded with guilt. She works in the fitness industry yet has a balloon daughter. Courtney is bugged that this bugs her mom, because Courtney accepts full responsibility for what she did her own self. (Go, Courtney.)</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1102-week-2-bobs-encouragement/1269292/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: The Marci angst is expanded as Bob takes Aqua outside for a heart-to-heart about her guilt. Bob and Courtney encourage her to stop worrying about Courtney, because the light is on. Like, way on. Bob emphasizes that Marci raised a good daughter and that she's not a hypocrite, she's a <I>good</I> mom. Basically it's a feel-good session for Marci. Courtney is so happy that she and her mom decided to stay with Bob and Jillian on the ranch.</P>
<P>Back in the gym, Bob swings the focus over to Arthur. He tells Arthur he needs to start moving like his age (34), and tells Arthur he's got big dreams for him. Right now, Arthur says he's fighting demons in his head. He talks about the angst of not living up to his potential. He got in with the wrong crowd when he was young, not going to class, so he lost all his dreams. Bob tries to go deeper but Arthur wants to walk away. Bob refuses to let him. He promises to be there when Arthur turns corner after corner. Then he takes Arthur for a 30-second jog at 5.0. Gawd, that's gotta be close to impossible for someone his size! But as we go to commercial, we hear a Bob whoop, so it must go okay, right?...</P>
<P>...Arthur pictures his children and gets going. He freakin' does it! Turnin' the corner! Jesse's pretty tickled.</P>
<P>And back off the ranch we go for a different set of beatings. According to Rulon, this is just like being back in the Olympics! (Oh, that boy is on a good workout high right now.) Q says there's no way they're getting beaten this week. Deni tells us that her dad used to tease her with the name "Dumb Deni" because she didn't get as good marks as her brother. So that's whom she beats up on during her boxing sessions. Wow Deni's dad, you sucked.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1102-week-2-the-carousel-story/1269303/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: But wait, there's more of Deni's father's suckage yet to come. For some reason, there is a merry-go-round on the Fitness Ridge location, which Pink is having a stroll by. This makes Deni tear up, and she tells Sarah "the carousel story". When Deni was small, they'd have birthday parties at a local carousel. When they did this for her sister's fifth birthday, it was at a time when Deni and her brother had been gaining a lot of weight recently, and their parents were fighting a lot, so things were tough. Anyway, everybody got on the merry-go-round, but her brother's horse actually stopped going up and down, presumably because he was so heavy. Naturally, this was very humiliating for him, but what made it worse was that their dad teased him mercilessly about it when he got off the ride. We hear again about how his teasing for Deni involved calling her dumb. (Huh. Looks like we know who gets this season's Parents Who Suck label. Deni, please accept the torch from Ada and ride on.) Deni hopes that telling Sarah stories about her childhood will show where her own lack of confidence come from, and inspire Sarah to belive in herself. Sarah's just glad her mom is getting this all out, as hard as it is to hear. She's really happy about all the internal changes that are happening for them.</P>
<P>Back on the ranch (feel like a see-saw yet?), Jillian tells Jen that being on the ranch is a nightmare - not just because Jillian is here (zing!) but because it makes you face all your shit. Especially when Jillian feels like playing psychotherapist, as she obviously does right now. So...what's going on, Jen? Well, Jen feels the burden of wanting to help her dad lose the weight, but she's sick of that burden. So what happens, asks Jillian, if Jay stays fat and Jen doesn't? Well, Jen will feel awful. And that, Jillian ahas, is why Jen never loses weight. So she brings Jay out and makes Jen beat up on him for a while with the boxing gloves. Eventually Jen breaks down crying. So we have a communication moment. There are many tears and they vow to do this as indiviudals. Tadah - breakthrough! Thank you, Dr. Jill!</P>
<P>The on-ranchers decide to spend some extra time at the gym at night, but as they get in there, they find a challenging note from the off-ranchers, accompanied by gooey donuts. Dan and Don, cops who have probably heard every donut joke in the book, feel this is immensely unoriginal and pooh-pooh the off-ranchers' efforts. But donuts are Arthur's fave thing evah, so it's a big temptation. He takes them outside and they all stomp on the box. Later, Arthur grabs the squished boxes and thinks aloud about eating a flattened donut. He says he had the angel and devil on his shoulders at that moment, but he ended up putting it all in the dumpster. He thinks that the fact he was tempted shows that he still needs to be here. He considers this a victory.</P>
<P>But the on-ranchers aren't the only ones putting in extra time. Man, there are a lot of montages of workouts this episode. Can we please see something else?</P>
<P>Oh, fantastic. The "something else" is the traditional doom-and-gloom talk with Dr. H. Predictably, the news is bad. Even champs like Courtney and Arthur, who lost over a hundred pounds apiece before even coming on the show, are not immune. Courtney's inner age is 40. Arthur has the most excess hydrated fat of anyone on the show ever, and has an inner age of 60. To compound the guilt, Dr. H. brings in Jesse's daughter (Arthur's sister), who has Jesse's 10th grandchild with her. (So cute!) She says that the whole family is rooting for Arthur, who in turn says he's representing hard for loads of people. Jesse's daughter then challenges Jesse to do better than the best he can. Jesse interprets this as challenging him to lead the family like he always has, and commits.</P>
<P>Other people then get the Dr. H. treatment. Olivia hears that her size is actually hampering her career, because she can't sustain long notes with all the fat in her system. The twins get the cop angle. What if, asks Dr. H, he was to tell Don that he knew someone was planning to kill Dan. He even knew what the murder weapon would be! Well, weapon<B>s</B>, actually: sugar, chocolate and corn chips. To hammer this message home even further. Dr. H. puts Dan's wife and daughter on the phone. (Dammit, I thought it would be Don's estranged son.) Dan has never been away from his daughter more than a few days in her entire life, so this phonecall means a lot. Dan tearfully promises to "do this".</P>
<P>Of course, we can't go too long without some smack talk, so we get another surprise video from the off-ranchers. Marci doesn't want to give them the time of day. The on-ranchers agree to take the higher road and just work hard instead of bothering to respond. DH likes her.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1102-week-2-arthurs-problems/1269315/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Arthur and Jesse hang out in their bedrooms. Arthur apparently has some serious problems with his bloodwork. Looks like he's going into the final stages of renal failure. (Oh, crap.) He's been told to drink scads of water and sodium, which obviously isn't going to help him at weigh-ins. But Jesse says, that's how things go, and you gotta do what you gotta do. They're here for their health. Nice keeping of the perspective, Jesse. They hug it out, as Jesse says "Your daddy loves you, baby." Awwww!</P>
<P>Beach! Vereen Stadium in Long Beach, to be precise. For today's challenge, the on-ranchers will be competing against the off-ranchers. The task is to get everyone from the beach across the canal using rafts to build a bridge. Every person has to get to the other side to win. Just a few hours ago, the off-ranchers did the challenge in the exact same spot just a little while ago. We see them hauling ass, Rulon and Justin being the alpha males, and the whole team completing it in 38 minutes and 23 seconds. The prize, by the way, is a 3lb advantage for the winning team at the weigh-in.</P>
<P>And right off...oh gawd, the on-ranchers are a committee. There isn't an alpha in the bunch. They're gonna take <I>forever</I>...</P>
<P>...Aaaaand...they do. It takes them longer to get to the halfway point then the off-ranchers did to complete the whole challenge. Sad.</P>
<P>At Fitness Ridge, Moses shadowboxes while sitting on his bed. (DH: He's a force.) He's doing this because he has bursitis in his knee, so he's limited in the kind of movement he can do. (That blows.) He finds that shadowboxing with his family's picture in front of him is very effective. He sure is working up a sweat with it, I'll tell you that. Kayanee drifts in while he's doing this and looks pretty proud. She even tears up and tells him how proud of him she is and that he's a great example for her. Oh, so sweet. They seem like a really loving family. Moses admits he's ashamed of getting so heavy. He's a total family man. I love him already. :)</P>
<P>Bob arrives on the ranch for the last chance workout, to cheers. Jillian is sick, so he's by himself. (DH wonders what could be wrong with her. I speculate that she probably just has a cold. DH counters, saying it must be flu - a mere cold wouldn't take <I>Jillian</I> out! :) The on-ranchers make Bob feel ill by telling him how badly they did in the challenge. He thinks 3lbs is a lot, but he knows they're not going to let it mess them up. Another plus that I'd like to point out: the on-ranchers have Courtney, who, unlike the rest of them, is NOT on her "dreaded week two".</P>
<P>Today's goal: sweat. Jay reflects that Bob is like a conductor in the gym, with eleven people on four or five different machines. It's like an orchestra. (I wonder if Olivia, who actually knows a little something about orchestras, would agree?)</P>
<P>The off-ranchers are working out, too. Austin says that the female trainer asked him to look in the mirror and focus on what makes him who he is. He realisd he doesn't make sense to me anymore. He doesn't know himself, he has no idea who he is. He's starting to realise this is more than just a weight loss journey, and he's still defining it. Go, Austin.</P>
<P>Finally, we get past the six gazillion workout montages and get to the damn weigh-in. And...glory be! We are shown (albeit very quickly, but I taped it for later replay) the numbers of every single person at Fitness Ridge, which of course gives me all the numbers I was missing from last week, too. Hallelujah, my spreadsheet is complete! The world is bright again!</P>
<P>This means I can give a complete list of milestones from last week:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Arthur dropped below 500lbs
<LI>Rulon dropped below 450lbs
<LI>Jay and Moses dropped below 400lbs
<LI>Justin dropped below 350lbs
<LI>Don and Larialmy dropped below 300lbs
<LI>Dan and Jen dropped below 275lbs
<LI>Ana, Sarah, Olivia, Irene and Deni dropped below 250lbs
<LI>Kaylee and Marci dropped below 225lbs
<LI>Arthur, Jay, Justin, Moses, Rulon and Austin hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Deni, Kaylee, Marci, Sarah and Jen went from morbidly obese to clinically obese
</UL>
<P>There are a lot of successes on the scale. Irene, for example, kicks all kinds of ass. Some people do well but don't appreciate it, like Hannah and Olivia, who lose six pounds each - very good work, I think! Given that it's week two and they're the smallest people in the house, 2.45% and 2.59% is pretty damn impressive.</P>
<P>One thing to note is that Q is, well, kind of sucking with the weight loss. He was the smallest loser off-ranch last week, he's the smallest loser overall this week, and his total loss at this point is only 3.89%. Ouch. Compare that with his nearest competitor, Jesse, who's at a total of 5.12%, especially taking into consideration how big Q is, and you have something weird going on here.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1102-week-2-lunch-time/1269333/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Flash back to earlier in the week, and we see the off-ranchers having lunch outside on picnic tables. They speculate about what's going on with the on-ranchers and talk generally about kicking ass and making sure someone on the ranch goes home this week. (Nice.) But the real focus of this clip is that Q's food choices are not measuring up. Justin and Rulon complain about him in an interview, saying that he chose a chicken sausage with lots of sodium for lunch. We get a lot of cut-in shots where Rulon talks about everyone pulling together...and Q takes a bite of sausage...and Rulon says that everyone needs to do their part...and Q eats some more sausage...and Rulon says...well, I think you get the point. Personally, I gotta wonder, if the chicken sausage is so awful, WHY IS IT EVEN AVAILABLE TO THE CONTESTANTS AT FITNESS RIDGE? Anyway, the strong implication is that Q is not being good with his diet, and also that Rulon and Justin are going to be seriously pissed off at him...</P>
<P>...because the off-ranchers lose the weigh-in! After a lot of really, REALLY annoying overly-cocky talk from Arthur, I might add. (Arthur. Calm down.)</P>
<P>Milestones this week:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Courtney dropped below 300lbs
<LI>Courtney, Jen and Don hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Moses hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>Jen, Moses, Rulon and Justin hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Courtney and Moses moved from super-obese to morbidly obese
<LI>Hannah moved from clinically obese to obese
</UL>
<P>So, no elimination this week! Yay! There is much rejoicing.</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<P>Revised and complete Week 1</P>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (9.32)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (41)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Hannah (35.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Deni (7.42)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (32)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Olivia (36.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (7.40)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (31)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Deni (37.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (7.19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Austin, Justin (27)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (38.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Austin (6.82)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (38.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (6.80)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jay (26)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sarah (38.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (6.75)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (21)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Kaylee (39.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (6.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (20)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (40.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jay (6.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Dan, Deni (19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (42.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Hannah (6.45)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Larialmy (42.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>11</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Kaylee (6.44)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Hannah, Olivia (16)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (42.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>12</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Olivia (6.13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (43.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>13</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (6.11)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Courtney, Kaylee (15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ana (43.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>14</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (5.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (43.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>15</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sarah (5.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Marci, Sarah (14)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ken (46.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>16</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (5.10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Courtney, Moses (51.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>17</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Courtney (4.64)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Irene, Ken (13)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>18</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Larialmy (3.99)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Austin (51.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>19</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ana (3.53)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Larialmy (12)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jay (52.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>20</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ken (3.45)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Q (11)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (56.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>21</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Q (2.52)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ana (9)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Q (57.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>22</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (2.39)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (70.3)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>
<P>Week 2</P>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (4.13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (12.05)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (17)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (53)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Hannah (34.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (3.85)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (10.68)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (49)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Olivia (35.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (3.55)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (10.34)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Justin, Moses (12)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (44)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Deni (36.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Courtney (3.25)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (10.07)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (39)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (36.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (3.10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (9.39)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=3>Courtney, Irene, Jay (10)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Jay (36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (37.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (3.01)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (9.02)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Austin (34)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sarah (38.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (2.80)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Jay (9.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (29)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Kaylee (39.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (2.78)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Deni (8.98)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=3>Don, Jennifer, Jesse (8)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (28)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (40.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Arthur (2.73)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Hannah (8.87)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Courtney (25)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (40.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (2.68)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Arthur (8.68)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (24)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (41.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>11</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jay (2.67)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Austin (8.59)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Austin, Ken (7)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Deni, Irene (23)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Larialmy (41.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>12</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Hannah (2.59)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Olivia (8.43)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (42.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>13</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Olivia (2.45)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (8.40)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=5>Hannah, Larialmy, Marci, Olivia, Q (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Hannah, Olivia (22)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (42.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>14</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Larialmy (2.08)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (8.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ken (45.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>15</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ken (1.92)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Kaylee (8.15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Ken, Marci (20)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Courtney (49.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>16</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Austin (1.90)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Courtney (7.74)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (49.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>17</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (1.87)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sarah (6.90)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Kaylee (19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Austin (50.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>18</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Kaylee (1.83)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Larialmy (5.98)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Dan (5)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Larialmy, Sarah (18)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Jay (50.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>19</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Deni (1.69)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ken (5.31)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=3>Deni, Kaylee, Sarah (4)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (54.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>20</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Sarah (1.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (5.12)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Q (17)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Q (57.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>21</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Q (1.41)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Q (3.89)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (68.4)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Potential milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Arthur could drop below 450lbs
<LI>Ken could drop below 350lbs
<LI>Jesse and Don could drop below 275lbs
<LI>Jen could drop below 250lbs
<LI>Irene and Hannah could drop below 225lbs
<LI>Olivia, Marci, Larialmy, Ken, Kaylee, Irene, Hannah, Deni and Dan could hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Rulon, Justin and Arthur could hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>Olivia, Marci, Kaylee, Jay, Irene, Hannah, Don, Deni, Dan, Courtney, Austin and Arthur could hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Moses could hit the 15% mark of total loss
<LI>Jay and Austin could move from super-obese to morbidly obese
<LI>Justin, Irene and Dan could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Olivia could move from clinically obese to obese
</UL>
<P>From TV Guide: <I>The identities of the unknown trainers are revealed. Elsewhere, the players compete for a healthy meal prepared by Curtis Stone and a two-pound advantage at the weigh-in; Dr. Huizenga provides more health assessments; Bob and Jillian look for the roots of players' weight struggles; the winner of a water-carrying challenge receives the sole vote during elimination; and a team's weigh-in results surprise the trainers.</I></P>
<P>From Jam!: <I>The unknown trainers are revealed and share their personal stories; two contestants compete for a two-pound advantage at the weigh-in; a water-carrying challenge.</I></P>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-30947003736659492632011-01-05T12:19:00.002-05:002011-01-05T12:25:58.311-05:00Freaking the newbies<P>To start off the first show of the new season, we see one of the preview clips that's been up on the Biggest Loser site for a while. This introduces us to some of the contestants, such as Arthur, the most overweight contestant in the history of the show. Bob explains that, at 507lbs, he's certainly not the <I>heaviest</I> person they've ever had (that was Michael Ventrella, at 526lbs), but because Arthur is only 5'8" (Wikipedia says 5'9", but we're still talking several inches shorter than Michael), his BMI is higher. (74.9, to be precise, which is even more than Shay Sorrels from three seasons ago.) We also meet Courtney, who lost 105lbs even before coming on the show; and Rulon, a former Olympic gold medallist (Greco-Roman wrestling). We get a few clips of the contestants struggling and succeeding, including a glimpse of some kind of water-hauling challenge where Blue, Aqua, Irene, Green, Black and Purple are participating and Purple appears to have just won; and a celebrating Black team, which, as far as I can make out, contains Hannah, Olivia, Irene, Deni, Courtney, Arthur, Jesse, and at least one other person (looks female), so at least we know those guys will make it to the Blue vs. Black leg of the season. We also hear that we will have two unknown trainers this year, and the contestants will have to decide between them and Bob and Jillian.</P>
<P>But enough of the previews, let's get down to business.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1101-alisons-intro/1268092/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: In Los Angeles, California, Ali walks into a room full of potential contestants. This is the moment when they discover whether they made the show or not. Naturally, Ali has to psych them out and make them think that they didn't make it...before dropping the good news. At which point of course, they all freak the heck out. There are hugs and interviews with really happy people. Jesse, completely hyped up, vows that this will be a season never to be forgotten.</P>
<P>The Blue team will be father and son Jesse and Arthur. The Orange team will be mother and daughter Ana and Irene, who are very excited. The Purple team is sisters Olivia and Hannah, who frankly come across throughout this entire episode as really fun and funny people. I'm biased towards them already. :) Olivia is an opera singer who has been confined to minor character roles because of her weight. The Grey team is father and daughter Moses and Kaylee. They continue the proud Biggest Loser tradition of having Tongans on the show. The Black team are identical twins Dan and Don. They are both cops, both leading a sedentary lifestyle, and both very overweight. But they are very optimistic, and tell us that there is no aspect of their lives that will <B>not</B> be improved by being on the show.</P>
<P>There are, of course, more teams, but we don't hear much about them just yet, because it's time for Ali to welcome everyone to the gym. They're all stoked. It's a nostalgic and awe-inspiring moment. But there's some realism as well - Olivia hilariously tells us, "Oh my gosh, I am going to PUKE in this place!" Rulon reminisces about the pain and suffering endured by past contestants and looks forward to this being his moment to turn things around. Ali hits the message home that the contestants will be fighting for their lives here. She brings in Bob and Jillian, to great cheers. There are many hugs as Bob and Jillian go down the line, and Bob even recognizes Courtney from having met her previously when she was 105lbs heavier. He thinks she looks great. He and Jillian lap up the welcome and the love. Bob tells us that the first part of the season is just so <I>happy</I>...but it won't last long because the first workout is coming up.</P>
<P>Not, however, until everybody gets weighed in. Olivia looks utterly unthrilled. We hear lots of interviews about how nervous-making this moment is. Ken isn't even sure if he can actually go up there.</P>
<P>But first - a commercial break. And hey...a realistic-sized woman appearing in a TV ad which focuses on her body! Wow! I am impressed! Also impressive is the fact that the commercial break was really short. (That can't last.)</P>
<P>Ken interviews that obesity is rampant in his family. We get clips from his and Austin's audition tape, where they're trying to fit into auditorium/theatre seats. Needless to say, they are extremely squished. They giggle about this, but it isn't really funny, and you can tell that they know it. As he discovers his starting weight, Austin reflects that for years, he's tried to shift the blame for his weight on a family environment that ate and unhealthily and didn't play sports. However, he insightfully notes, he now knows that you can't shift all the blame when you get as high as 396lbs. Bob tells us that Ken and Austin's situation is so typical of American families. He laments the future of the country in general. </P>
<P>When Aqua weighs in, Bob remarks on how driven and focus Courtney is and says she's a big threat. When Orange goes up, we discover that Ana and Irene are exactly the same weight: 255lbs. (Irene, BTW, is <I>gorgeous</I>. I predict I will be remarking on this constantly throughout the season.) Ana tells us that her mom is dead and Irene is her only child, basically the only person she has left. And, as her mother, Irene's heaviness is all her fault. Irene tells her mom to stop blaming herself. When Red weighs in, Q tells us he doesn't want to widow his wife.</P>
<P>The theme here seems to be parents blaming themselves for their children's weight, and the Pink team's Deni is no exception. Daughter Sarah tells us that she lost another pregnancy two months ago because of her weight. She and her husband have been trying to have children for two years, and the doctors attribute her multiple miscarriages (gawd, poor woman) to her weight. DH remarks that Sarah is going to be very pretty when she sheds the pounds. I maintain that she's pretty <I>now</I>. But yes, I too am very much looking forward to seeing her shed the pounds.</P>
<P>The Blue team is an interesting case, because Arthur's current weight of 507lbs is nothing compared to the 646lbs he was about a year and a half ago. (Incidentally, that means he was originally at a BMI of <I>ninety-five point four</I>. The mind boggles.) Arthur tells us that it's a very hard thing to lose almost 150lbs but still be at 507lbs. Yes, I agree that that would be a big downer. But Jillian assures him that they have "nothin' but time", and that she and Bob <I>know</I> he can do it. For his part, Jesse is very upbeat and says they're going to kick this problem in the ass.</P>
<P>At Green's weigh-in, Jen tells us that she doesn't actually know what it's like to be thin, but she doesn't intend to quit. Moses of the Grey team reiterates the message we've been getting over the past few seasons that the Tongan culture values food. But he says he needs to stop using that as an He wants to continue the tradition of success of the Tongan teams on this show and, with a big grin, vows that he and his daughter Kaylee will be the next Biggest Losers.</P>
<P>Don of the Black team tells us that his son has basically disowned him, because he can't stand to see how self-destructive his dad is. But at least Don has a shot of getting his relationship with his son back - his twin Dan tells us <I>his</I> son died six years ago, at age 24. This young man had a drug problem and died of an overdose. (Dan and Don being cops makes this cause of death particularly harsh.) Dan doesn't know what he could have done to prevent his son's death, but knows that he somehow failed his boy. He's also cut up because, shortly before his son's death, he'd actually managed to lose about 100lbs, and overheard his son talking about that at a family gathering, saying how proud he was of his dad. Of course, this is manna from heaven to a parent, but after his son's death, Dan let himself go again and feels he let his son down. Man. This family has <I>issues</I>.</P>
<P>Rulon, as a former Olympic wrestler, has naturally done a lot of weigh-ins in his life. But this one, he expects, will be pretty profound. Rulon has been as low as 265lbs in his heyday. This is a far cry from his current 474lbs. He's pretty horrified and upset about it. Bob says he's not that surprised to see this fall from grace, because it's very natural to go from one extreme to another. DH predicts Rulon will be a serious force in this competition, and I agree. Rulon's partner Justin tells us about a time last year when he was watching the show and he was all judgy and harshing on one of the guys weighing in, yet here he is at 365lbs. He despises himself for the hypocrisy and is determined to be someone that his family and community can be proud of.</P>
<P>With that, Ali makes it seem like she's about to release them into Bob and Jillian's clutches...but no! It's CHALLENGE time! Arthur, who has watched the show before, thinks this means people are going to have to go home, just like the Blue and Yellow teams did a few seasons ago. He's not alone in having this theory, and everyone gets really tense. Ali then reveals that the challenge will determine who the trainers will be. Oh, relief! Nobody's going home! Both Bob and Jillian are great, right? Nobody loses, no matter whom they get, right? But guess what? The choice is between Bob-and-Jillian...OR...two back-lit unknown hardbodies on a hill. </P>
<P>Two. <BR>
New. <BR>
Trainers.</P>
<P>Dunh dunh DUNNNNNNH.</P>
<P>Naturally, this freaks everyone right out. Except Rulon, who looks amused. The instant thought for most people is that you want to keep Bob and Jillian. But Ali says that if you get the new trainers, you get immunity for FOUR WEEKS. The hell? Arthur tells us, who is obviously very familiar with the usual Biggest Loser formula. Nobody gets immunity for four whole weeks! That's crazy town! And yet, it's true.</P>
<P>The challenge is as follows: Each team has a manual treadmill. Each team, as a team (which means that when one person gets pooped, the other person can take over), has to run a 5k. This is a very long distance for sedentary overweight people, so there's even more freaking out. This challenge, however, parallels a series of 5ks that the Biggest Loser is holding all over the country, apparently. The order in which the teams finish determines the order in which you get to choose your trainers. Austin reflects that the battle is not so much to choose your trainer as to choose your destiny. There are five spots open for the unknown trainers, which means that finishing in the top five guarantees that you will be able to make a choice.</P>
<P>Rulon and Justin debate a bit about what the good choice will actually be for them. Justin remarks that Rulon will probably be good no matter who his trainer is. (I agree.) They take off right out of the gate. Jen scoffs at this strategy, figuring they're going to run out of steam fast. Kaylee wants to keep up with Yellow. Courtney vows not to let an Olympic gold medallist beat her. It turns out that Yellow has staying power. They hit the 1k, 2k, 3k and 4k marks before everyone else before winning the whole thing. Rulon enjoys the competitive rush, it's been a while since he experienced that. DH remarks that this victory paints a massive target on their backs. But Grey, Aqua and Brown are also looking strong. And y'know, I'm noticing we're not seeing a lot of airtime from Red. What's up with that? :( Moses is pretty amazed at how well his daughter's doing, and he and Kaylee come in second. Aqua comes third. Jen breaks out in a screaming run, it's pretty awesome and kind of reminds me of Tara The Invincible Ass-Kicker Of Season 7. Jen calls herself The Hulk, which is pretty funny, especially since she's wearing a green shirt. They are followed by Brown, Purple, Pink, Red and Orange, in that order. Blue and Black are still on the treadmill. Arthur tells us that doing this at 507lbs is HARD. (I <I>believe</I> him.) Yet, he perseveres. Dan and Don are flabbergasted that the biggest guy here and his <I>65-year-old</I> father are outperforming them. But they come in a pretty close last.</P>
<P>Ali makes some noise about the fact that everyone gets immunity in the first week, which gets me all happy, but this is later proved to be a lie as we do have an elimination at the end of the episode. :(</P>
<P>So...choices!</P>
<UL>
<LI>Yellow chooses immunity. (DH and I reflect this is very smart, as they have a big target on their backs AND they can probably succeed with anybody. Green, however, is surprised.)
<LI>Grey also chooses immunity, shocking more people.
<LI>Aqua goes with Bob and Jillian.
<LI>Green chooses Bob and Jillian.
<LI>Brown goes with immunity. (Austin admits this could be a terrible decision but seems pretty upbeat about it.)
<LI>Purple selects Bob and Jillian. (At this point, Ana's pretty stoked because the choice is going pretty evenly here, so there will be choice for the teams lower down on the totem pole.)
<LI>Pink feels they need immunity because of all the tough teams here, and chooses the unknown trainers.
<LI>Red takes immunity.
</UL>
<P>This leaves leaves Orange, Blue and Black with Bob and Jillian. Ana's disappointed because she wanted immunity.</P>
<P>With that, the contestants remaining on the ranch head over to the gym for their first workout. Where is everyone, asks Bob? Aqua explains the deal with the "unknowns". Gasp! Bob can't believe Aqua chose him and Jillian instead of immunity. So now he and Jill are nervous, and manage to freak Courtney out that she made the wrong choice. But mostly, this is about Bob and Jillian feeling like shit if any of their people go home. They will, however, do their damndest to get the best out of everyone. Onto the first workout! (Time to die.)</P>
<P>We start out on the treadmill and people are already wincing. But wait, here's something new - Jillian has decided not to yell this season. Really? How long d'you think this will last? Not long, apparently. Bob tells us that she makes this resolution at the beginning of every season. :) "Asking Jillian not to scream is like asking the grass not to grow...the fish not to swim...the lions not to roar..." (Bob is so awesome.) And sure enough, mere minutes into the footage, Jillian starts losing her shit on people. Bob focuses a lot on Arthur, who gets really daunted and frustrated. We find out really quickly that Jen is a screamer. You can even hear her loudly in the background when the focus is on other people. Courtney is really impressive and focused. Bob loves her. Jillian demands AGONY! Following which, Ana collapses and has to be attended to by a medic. One of the twins pukes. Marci testifies that she has never seen workouts this intense in all her years owning a health club. </P>
<P>Meanwhile, at a secret location...</P>
<P>Oh no, wait, it's Fitness Ridge. Not so secret. But anyhoo...</P>
<P>We still have no idea who the trainers are. We do find out that the man has a pre-med science background, and the woman is a boxer and has won the Golden Gloves twice. She wants to teach the Losers how to fight. DH speculates briefly that it could be Leila Ali, but I shoot this down fast. Leila Ali doesn't have such a wimpy voice, nor such a small frame. (But my heaven, wouldn't it be cool if Leila <I>was</I> one of the trainers?) The new trainers certainly seem to be effective, though. Everyone is whipped but determined. Rulon reflects that he didn`t even train this hard when he was trying to make the Olympics.</P>
<P>Back on the ranch, we get a lot of shots of Arthur wimping out.</P>
<P>"Arthur, look at me!" exhorts Jillian. "Do I look like a woman who gives a shit?"<BR>
"No, you don't," he admits.<BR>
"Then get up!"</P>
<P>This is followed by a lot of nagging to get his ass moving. Jesse finds watching all this pretty tough, but knows he has to let it happen. Finally, Bob takes Arthur outside for a heart-to-heart. Arthur tells Bob he wants to get himself back. Bob asks him how he got here in the first place. Arthur used to be a great wrestler, football player and baseball player, but he stopped moving. Then he lost his job, had some kids, and kept gaining weight...it all added up. Finally, he saw some TV shows where they have to actually cut overweight people out of their houses to get them to leave home (probably to go to the hospital), and he knew he was on the same road, so he promised to do something about his weight. He's so overwhelmed at the prospect of having to lose an additional 300lbs, but Bob (quite rightly) tells him he can't think about that. He must only think about what he has to do TODAY. (Bob, where was this philosophy two seasons ago when Michael lost his shit?) Arthur feels really reassured to know that Bob has his back.</P>
<P>Just as things are winding down for the day, Jillian brings her truck around. So help me, they're going to have to push the truck all around the campus. Ranch tour, the hard way! There is much groaning. There are even hills! Wow, Bob and Jillian are sadists. ;)</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1101-videos-from-home/1268091/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Apparently, people got videos from home during the first week. One family member testifies that Ana's devotion to her daughter led to the downward spiral of her health. She thinks Ana being on the Biggest Loser is good because she's finally doing something for herself. We also hear from Jen's mom/Jay's wife. Apparently it's been years since Jen's been on a date, because she's not comfortable with her looks. Mom/wife vows to support them when they return home. Jen tells everyone she's never gotten below 210lbs. Hannah and Olivia's dad talks about their PCOS condition. It keeps their metabolisms low, making weight loss almost impossible. They confess that they're worried about getting on the scale for weigh-ins. Dan's wife and daughter come on and his daughter starts crying because she thinks her dad's going to die soon. Yes folks, time to whip out the tissues. Poor, dear, little thing. We also hear that Dan made two promises to his dead son: get his master's degree (he did) and lose the weight (not done yet). Olivia is very impressed to have seen how much all the families love and support the contestants.</P>
<P>Scale time? Already? Apparently so - Ali congratulations the on-ranch contestants for making it through their first weeks. She then proceeds to freak them out AGAIN by telling them the highlights of the weigh-in of all the contestants who are with the unknown trainers. The first highlight is that the most weight lost by any one team (we are shown it's Justin and Rulon but the on-ranch contestants don't get that detail) was 59lbs. The second highlight is that the most weight lost by any one person (we are shown it's Moses, but again, the on-ranch contestants don't know that) was 41lbs (which must mean that Kaylee lost less than 18lbs). Not only does this put the fear of gawd into the on-ranch contestants (although Hannah further endears herself to me by quipping that 41lbs equals "a kindergartener and a <I>bulldog</I>"), it also pisses me off something fierce because those are the ONLY NUMBERS we are shown of the off-ranch contestants! What the hell! WHAT ABOUT MY SPREADSHEET, PEOPLE, HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO WORK LIKE THIS WITHOUT FULL RESULTS?!?</P>
<P>Deep breath...ohmmm...</P>
<P>Okay, back to the weigh-in at hand. The on-ranch people don't do too shabbily, I must say. Jesse kind of screws the pooch - from an interview, it sounds like this was due to his not doing great with his food during the week. Hopefully losing just 2.39% will give him the kick in the ass he needs to get his food sorted out by the next weigh-in. Particularly impressive is Purple, who had a team loss of 6.29% (Hannah 6.45%, Olivia 6.13%.) Not damn bad for people with PCOS <I>and</I> who are the least overweight in the house! Very glad to see them sticking around.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Arthur dropped under 500lbs
<LI>Rulon dropped under 450lbs
<LI>Jay and Moses dropped under 400lbs
<LI>Justin dropped under 350lbs
<LI>Don dropped under 300lbs
<LI>Dan and Jen dropped under 275lbs
<LI>Ana, Olivia and Irene dropped under 250lbs
<LI>Marci dropped under 225lbs
<LI>Jay, Justin, Moses, Rulon and Arthur hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Jennifer and Marci moved from being morbidly obese to clinically obese
</UL>
<P>(Note that Austin, Deni, Q, Kaylee, Ken, Larialmy and Sarah's weight loss numbers are unknown so I can't include any of their milestones here.)</P>
<P>In the end, it's the Orange team below the yellow line.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1101-orange-teams-plea/1268084/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Orange team are below the yellow line and have to plead to the rest of the house to send each other home. Ana wants Irene to stay, as she thinks Irene would benefit the most. Irene wants Ana to stay because her mother's health is at risk and she doesn't have a "foundation" in her life (whatever that means) to work out every day. She doesn't believe Ana actually will work out every day at home, but if Ana stayed longer, it would help her incorporate fitness into her life. Ana admits in an interview that Irene has a point, but she still wants Irene to stay. (Ah, the streotype of the ever-sacrificing mother.) Marci points out that Irene is more of a threat, but that the house will vote according to their hearts.</P>
<P>After a vote, Ana gets sent home, where she's down to 205lbs. She can carry mail again! And she's going out! DANCING! That is awesome.</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (9.32)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Moses (41)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Hannah (35.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (7.40)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (32)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Olivia (36.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jennifer (7.19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (31)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jen (38.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (6.80)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (27)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (38.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (6.75)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jay (26)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (40.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (6.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (21)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Justin (42.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jay (6.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jen (20)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (42.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Hannah (6.45)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Dan (19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (43.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Olivia (6.13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Hannah, Olivia (16)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ana (43.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (6.11)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Don (43.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>11</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (5.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Courtney (15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Courtney, Moses (51.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>12</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (5.10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Marci (14)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>13</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Courtney (4.64)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Irene (13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jay (52.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>14</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ana (3.53)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ana (9)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rulon (56.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>15</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (2.39)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Arthur (70.3)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>
<H4>Coming up (potential SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Possible milestones next week:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Jennifer, Dan and Don could hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Moses could hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>Moses could hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Dan could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Hannah could move from clinically obese to obese
</UL>
<P>TV Guide description for next week's show: <I>The players compete for immunity, which is awarded to the group that loses the most weight. Elsewhere, Dr. Huizenga provides health assessments of the contestants, whose loved ones are also briefed; the players compete in a bridge-building challenge.</I></P>
<P>Jam! TV listings description for next week's show: <I>The ranch-based contestants attempt to lose a higher percentage of weight than the unknowns in order to get immunity; Dr. Huizenga talks to the contestants about their health.</I></P>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-74643798604136382592010-11-17T13:19:00.008-05:002010-11-17T22:21:14.550-05:00Waterworks<P>We begin this week where we left off last week: in the elimination room. Jesse and Aaron have obviously just left and there is silence in the room except for the quiet sobbing of Jessica. We are reminded about how Patrick betrayed his friendship for Jesse by voting for him. Patrick interviews that this was the hardest vote yet, but he had to vote for Jesse because he was partnered with Aaron, whom Patrick considered to be his biggest threat.</P>
<P>Ali points out that we are down to eight people from 21 original contestants. The next Biggest Loser is somewhere in this room. And we're now going to singles. Yes, it's time for everyone to stand on their own two feet. Speaking of which, Elizabeth is mad because Bob and Jillian both went off on a tirade last week during the weigh-in that she was still not standing on her own two feet. So she's excited, and determined to prove them wrong.</P>
<P>In the gym, Jessica reflects on how far she's come - the first challenge was a mile, and she found it extremely hard. But now, it's her warm-up. As they're all warming up. Bob and Jillian show up and notice that Aaron and Jesse are gone. Bob gets a little pissy about this because he was under the impression that Brendan wasn't going to gameplay anymore. (Say what, now? What naive fantasy land are you living in, Bob?) Brendan explains his choice by declaring that he wasn't willing to send Elizabeth home as the alternative. Bob goes off to have a sulk and interview about how gameplay sucks. He gets a bit of it out his system by torturing Brendan one-on-one for a while. </P>
<P>Jessica is struggling because apparently she was very attached to Jesse. She realises that she really needs to learn how to do this sort of thing on her own. Mark reflects that people are really starting to realise that there's no safety net now. Patrick vows to take full advantage of this opportunity. He's been unemployed for months and has had to borrow money from his parents and his wife's parents to get by. Translation: I will do whatever it takes to win this show. He and Bob talk about the elimination and he explains that he had to weigh his family's needs (money) against his friendship with Jesse. Bob is just angry about the situation. He wants good competitors like Patrick to keep other good competitors around him to make winning more meaningful. Y'know, I like Bob a lot, but he can be ridiculously unrealistic about human psychology. NO ONE who is genuinely serious about winning a reality show grand prize is going to keep their biggest competitors around them for honour's sake. Bob needs to stop taking eliminations personally. In fact, he's actually done the opposite of what he wanted: his conversation with Patrick only strengthen's that boy's resolve to "put himself in the best situation" to win the show.</P>
<P>Bob and Jillian then try to get the contestants to destress by watching videos from home. Everyone's really excited, but Bob takes Ada aside to warn her that she doesn't have a video. The show called her family several times and never got a response. Ada is clearly sad about this but tries really hard to put a brave face on it. Sadly, she is also clearly unsurprised, classifying her family's "support" not as loving so much as "you'd better have lost a hundred pounds or don't come back". (Aaaand my burning hatred for her parents ramps up a few MORE notches.)</P>
<P>Awkward silence.</P>
<P>Bob attempts to get Ada to talk about how hurt she's feeling, but she doesn't want to acknowledge that she's sad about it. (God forbid we should display weakness, after all.) Bob then proceeds to demonstrate that he was the last person who should have been having this conversation with Ada, since at NO TIME does he take the opportunity to a) tie in her feelings of inadequacy with her family's unacceptable behaviour and b) tell her that showing sadness does not equal being weak. Jillian, on the other hand, would have been all over both of those points. Mostly, his focus is simply on "overcoming this". Sigh.</P>
<P>Ada tries to pass off her family's disinterest in her as "cultural", which I think is bullshit. I mean, yes, when I was growing up I watched some (not all!) of my Chinese/other Asian friends get ENORMOUS pressure to succeed "or else", but I don't believe for a second that they all experienced the kind of verbal abuse and lack of emotional support that Ada got dumped with. I don't buy that <I>that</I> kind of behaviour is "cultural". (And frankly, to say that it is doesn't reflect very well on Chinese people in general. I imagine that there are now a bunch of white people all over America - those who don't have enough contact with Asian communities to know better - who now think the home dynamic of all Chinese families is abusive and unsupportive. Yeah, that's going to do wonders for racism in that country.)</P>
<P>So everyone minus Ada gathers in the TV room to watch their videos, and there are some mutterings about where Ada has gone. Lisa declares that she's sure Ada didn't actually get a video, and Elizabeth figures she hasn't come downstairs to watch with them because of that. This bums people out, but they have to turn the TV on anyway. Patrick is first, and there are many squeals and aws as we see his super-cute sons. (Who look exactly like him, so sweet.) His wife (who for some bizarre reason is named Bradley) comes on and tells him that she's lost a whopping 40lbs! Patrick is super-proud. </P>
<P>Frado's (young-looking and hot) wife tells him how proud she is of him. His daughter Danielle offers to run the last 10 miles of the marathon together if he makes the Final Four. He would love that.</P>
<P>Lisa has a huge crowd of people on a single couch cheering for her. Her kids tell her they love her and they're proud of her. Lisa starts really feeling like she wants to stay on the ranch. (At last!)</P>
<P>Brendan's mom is as New England as they come. :) She tells him he's great. He interviews that over the past few years, he really hasn't been a good son or uncle or friend, but he has people who love him unconditionally anyway, and that's very special. He needs to stop making excuses and be more thoughtful in the future.</P>
<P>Incidentally, one of the Biggest Loser bonus videos from a week or two back offered an interesting explanation for Brendan's general jerkiness and how he could have become so depressed that he kicked his fiancee out of his life. He apparently has some kind of genetic condition that screws with his hip, causing him a lot of pain. (The added weight obviously doesn't help with this.) As a result, he's been on narcotic painkillers for a number of years, which do help with his pain, but which also contribute to depression. He's now addicted to the painkillers, and freely admits it, but wants to lose enough weight first so that his pain is more manageable when he starts going off the narcotics. However, in the video, we see that his prescription has run out and Dr. H. refuses to give him any more because he doesn't want to feed Brendan's addiction. This pisses Brendan off but he decides to try it Dr. H.'s way. However, he vows that if the pain is unbearable, he will have no qualms about leaving the show so that he can get the prescription from another doctor. (Personally, I think Brendan's argument makes a lot of sense: stay on the painkillers long enough to lose enough weight so that the pain isn't unbearable, and then you'll have a much easier time kicking the narcotics habit.)</P>
<P>Jessica's mother sends her messages of pride, love and support. This seems a far cry away from the emotionally and physically abusive relationship that Jessica described herself as having had during her childhood. So clearly they've put it back together, which is quite astonishing. This makes her mom's message very meaningful.</P>
<P>Elizabeth's mom has lost a lot of weight and is now cooking healthy meals and working out. She points out that when Elizabeth returns home she will be in an environment that supports her diet and her exercise regime. And that is really freakin' awesome. Elizabeth is super-happy about this and is inspired by her mom.</P>
<P>Mark's cousin has lost a spectacular sixty-five pounds while he's been on the ranch! And Mark has been her motivation. That is amazing. Mark thinks so, too, and he's very touched. He's absolutely gobsmacked that he's inspiring people before he even gets home. He points out that his cousin is proof that there's no reason everyone can't do it at home.</P>
<P>So everyone else thinks Ada deserves her own video, so they make one for her. (Awwwww. :) It's really sweet and uplifting and says a lot of wonderful things about how amazing and funny and strong and special and smart and beautiful Ada is. (Although I bet they wouldn't hesitate to vote her big-threatness out if they got the chance!) Ada's very touched and says she's never been in an environment full of people who cared so much about her. (Sad.) Group hug!</P>
<P>Jillian gives us what is probably the biggest laugh of the week when she defines going to singles as "no more gameplaying". Day-um, and I thought it was just <I>Bob</I> who was off in the sunshine, rainbows and sparkly ponies land of naivete! </P>
<P>Jessica tells us she's struggling emotionally and physically this week. Wow, she <I>really</I> must have been attached to Jesse if his departure is messing with her head that much. Romantic possibility, maybe? (They'd make a super-cute couple.) Jillian makes Elizabeth's life a living hell to demonstrate that she doesn't need to be "carried" by other people. With fantastic insight, she brings out a step platform and makes her do the 500 stepups challenge all over again in front of everyone. Because Elizabeth never finished that challenge to get in the house; rather, she came into the house because Jillian chose her for the spot. So by doing this challenge successfully, it will help Elizabeth feel like she really deserves her spot in the house. It seems to work really well and is one of those great Biggest Loser accomplishment moments. Everyone takes turns counting out Elizabeth's steps while Jillian keeps up a running commentary about how Elizabeth will know she earned her spot here and that she's just as good as everyone else. At 360 steps, which is the point where Elizabeth passed out originally, Jillian gives her weights to carry, which she starts pumping (although by 398 she's pooped out from that and is just holding them). She then runs the last ten steps and - tadah! Done! Yay! "You deserve to be here," Jillian tells her intensely. "Act like it."</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1009-bonus-scene-big-accomplishment/1260573/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Inspired by helping Elizabeth redo the step-up challenge, Patrick gets everyone together to try and recapture the helping-each-other spirit that they all had at the beginning of the season. He tells everyone that being with them on the ranch has been one of the most amazing experiences of his life and he's looking forward to all of them being "hot as hell". :) Lisa points out how far they've all come. Frado, in thinking back about an experience with his daughter, reflects that becoming fat doesn't affect just you, and that he will never be a burden on his family again. Brendan says he's been crying every day for almost a week and a half, and he just doesn't cry that much normally. He brings out a letter from his mom which he asks Mark to read because he can't get through it himself. She talks about how many of the things he does in his life are wonderful and make her proud, but watching him stuff himself with junk food and make the couch bow in the middle when he lies on it makes her feel helpless. She blames herself for some of his depression and offers to talk about her divorce from his father if he wants to. Brendan acknowledges that he's discovered he did have an issue about his parents' divorce and has more emotional issues than he thought, and that he hasn't been happy in a long time. Elizabeth interviews that these are things he'll have to deal with once he gets home, and that all of them have to deal with the stuff that got them there. Mark interviews that he's not lying to himself anymore and he loves it. We get a flashback of Jessica in the elimination room saying that Jesse taught her more about herself than she'd learned so far about herself in a long time. She interviews that she hasn't been cared about like that by a guy in a long time. (Ooh!) Ada came to the ranch feeling very empty as a person. But for the first time she feels worthy. She's not used to this, but she feels good about herself and is proud of her accomplishments. Patrick feels this has all solidified the group. "Biggest Loser Ten, Never Fat Again" is their new motto.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1009-bonus-scene-bobs-talk/1260422/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Bob talks to Brendan to see where his head's at. Brendan is feeling like a mess because he's starting to deal with repressed issues. Bob points out that Brendan's been so focused on gameplay that the dam is only breaking now. But he thinks Brendan is in a good spot to start figuring things out. Brendan feels that he's on the right track, even if he's just at the very start of the track. </P>
<P>Balance-over-water challenge! This freaks Ada out because one of her little brothers died in a kiddie pool when she was about three. Pools freak her out. (Also, her parents totally blamed her for it and so she thinks that she should have been able to swim and save her brother. Sigh.) Lisa is initially ecstatic because she thinks it's going to be a swimming challenge, but no. The rules are kind of bizarre. One person starts (Frado gets to choose who since he's got the highest percentage of weight loss in the house) and they have to balance on one foot for five seconds. If they're successful, they get to choose the next person to balance. At certain points (I never did figure out how this was determined), the time required to balance gets increased by another five seconds.</P>
<P>This thing where the last person to balance successfully gets to choose the next person to do the balancing means that it's possible for some people to not have to do any balancing while others do it a bunch of times. And sure enough, that's exactly what happens. It doesn't take too long for Lisa, Ada and Mark to be the only ones left (Elizabeth is really pissed off when she goes out, because balancing is her strength), and Lisa and Mark pass the buck back and forth for ages leaving Ada doing zippo for quite some time. Finally, Lisa falls in and it's just Mark and Ada left. Really, it's quite surprising that Mark is still in it, you would think this is a lighter person's challenge what with all the balancing to be done and all, but Mark actually ends up winning it!</P>
<P>Big Subway product placement! The contestants have to make the best sandwich. It has to be low in calories and taste great. They all get to vote on the best sandwich but they can't vote for their own. The prize is a $500 Subway gift certificate, which Lisa wins.</P>
<P>Last chance workout. Bob focuses on Elizabeth. (He should have focused on getting himself into a shirt that didn't have little holes all over it. Are the royalties from the Wii version of the Biggest Loser not paying you enough to buy new clothes, Bob?) Brendan interviews that he feels great in the gym. Frado looks strong, too, and is gunning for hitting the 100lb mark of total weight loss. Elizabeth starts fantasizing about losing six pounds, as that would put her below 200lbs, which she hasn't seen the likes of in about eight years, and vows never to lose sight of again. Jessica's trying to get her head back in the game. Ada's running really well on the treadmill. Bob gets a bunch of people on the step machines and pumps them up to really high levels. "Elizabeth! My head's gonna blow off my shoulders if you stop!" vows Bob, and makes her say, "I feel good, Bob!" Everyone's grunting and groaning except for Ada, who looks awesome. He gets evangelical, making everyone lift themselves off their elbows and raise their heads up. Elizabeth has an asthma episode, but the workout is over and Bob is pleased.</P>
<P>At the weigh-in, Ali announces that everyone really wants to stick around because the next week is...MAKEOVER WEEK! (<I>SQUEE!!!</I>) There is general excitement and anticipation from everybody, making me really wonder...why do none of the men ever seem to pack freakin' RAZORS when they come on this show? It always seems that there are huge beards to shave off every year. I don't get it. (DH mumbles something at this point about playoff beards. Yeah, I still don't get it.)</P>
<P>Once again, all the women are in the bottom half...except Ada, who is the week's Biggest Loser. I luvs her so much.</P>
<UL>
<LI>Frado and Brendan dropped below 275lbs
<LI>Frado hit the 100lb mark of total loss
<LI>Lisa hit the 20% mark of total loss
<LI>Mark, Frado and Ada hit the 25% mark of total loss
<LI>Lisa and Elizabeth moved from clinically obese to obese
</UL>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1009-bonus-scene-tearful-plea/1260506/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: It's Jessica and Elizabeth below the yellow line, and they plead their cases. Elizabeth is very frustrated because, with the exception of when they were in two groups, she has been under the yellow line the whole time. She feels that having real proof that she can kick ass and be above the yellow line is more important than making the Final Four or making Makeover Week or whatever. She wants the chance to be above the yellow line, maybe even the week's biggest loser. Jessica reflects that she's latched onto people her whole life because she feels like she can't do it by herself. So this week has made her realise that she has a lot more issues than she thought, and she needs more time on the ranch to figure out how to stand on her own two feet. She asks for mercy.</P>
<P>However, since Frado and Brendan adore Elizabeth and Lisa was Elizabeth's partner last week, Jessica is toast. She goes home, but not before treating herself to a little makeover of her own. Alas, the haircut makes her face look fatter, but she still looks great and feels really confident. Her family is very excited to see her and she is profiled as being down to 200lbs - great! Her goal is to be 160lbs by the finale.</P>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Next week, watch for less hair and the following milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Patrick and Mark could drop below 300lbs
<LI>Lisa could drop below 225lbs
<LI>Elizabeth could drop below 200lbs
<LI>Patrick could hit the 100lb mark of total loss
<LI>Patrick and Brendan could hit the 25% mark of total loss
<LI>Frado could move from clinically obese to obese
<LI>Ada could move from obese to overweight
</UL>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/makeover-time/1260538/" TARGET=_blank>Video preview</A>: Everybody's favourite episode - Makeover Week! Girly squeals and lots of shaving. (A quick shot of Mark sans beard shows us he's looking pretty awesome - actually, looks like they're leaving him with a little goatee, which looks good.) The screenshots also look very similar to the year they did the Tyra Banks show, so watch out for a potential television appearance. In a waiting room of some sort, contestants meet gobsmacked loved ones. Patrick (who has been given a silly-looking 50s-style cowlick of some kind) hugs his wife while his sons frolic around them. Lisa's daughter tearfully thanks The Biggest Loser for saving her mom's life. Also, on Wednesday, there's a Where Are They Now show, which will be really fun. Sneak peeks: Ed (of Ed and Heba) looks like he's gotten much larger again, and we also see that Max Morelli (Ron's son, Mike's brother) has dropped a lot of weight. Apparently all the previous winners are getting together to inspire someone who's gained the weight back. Warning: I've seen a promo group shot from the Where Are They Now episode, and Daniel Wright has become big again, it might be him.</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (4.04)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (27.25)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (10)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Mark (112)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (30.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (3.26)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (26.60)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (9)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (100)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (34.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (3.22)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (26.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=3>Ada, Brendan, Mark (8)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (99)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (34.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (2.86)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (24.86)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (90)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (35.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (2.56)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (24.75)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (68)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (36.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (2.52)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (20.83)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (60)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (36.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (2.43)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (19.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (55)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (38.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (0.44)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (17.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (1)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (43)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (38.6)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-79485907141375427292010-10-13T16:06:00.000-04:002010-10-13T16:06:58.101-04:00Drama Club<P>Sunrise on the ranch, plus inspiring chamber music. Oh, and cupcakes. Hundreds of them. Why deary me, it must be a temptation!</P>
<P>Adam is unmoved. He's not a cupcake guy. But Burgandy is tempted by the very smell. Apparently when you get four hundred cupcakes all in the same room, it is an olfactory assault.</P>
<P>However, forget about basking in the cupcakey goodness, because Ali reveals that TWO (count 'em) people are going home this week. Yes, this week there will be a RED LINE. And as anyone who's been watching the past few seasons knows, anyone below the red line is automatically eliminated without any challenge or vote to give them the slimmest possibility of reprieve. But today's temptation could pull your ass out of the fire! There is one cupcake out here with the Biggest Loser logo on it. Finding that cupcake means you can choose to have a 1lb advantage at the weigh-in. BUT, for every week you keep the logo and choose not to use it, the advantage increases by another pound the following week. So, for example, Ali tells us, if you held onto the logo for eight weeks, you could cash it in for an eight-pound advantage. So, that's huge. Suddenly, Adam is a cupcake guy.</P>
<P>But it's not just blind chance. If you eat a cupcake and don't find the logo, you will get a clue as to where the winning cupcake actually is. Rick, Adam, Jesse and Elizabeth all play. Rick goes for a small one on the first shot to minimize calorie consumption. Elizabeth had no such strategy and stuffed a big one in her mouth. Lisa's strategy was to just stay away from the whole damn mess. Jesse gets "lapped" in cupcakes by Adam and Rick and wishes he'd never started. Rick eventually gets one more clue than Adam, a clue which REALLY narrows it down, but Adam picks the right cupcake first and gets the advantage. He feels great - this on top of his work ethic puts him in a really good position. The price, however, was 1350 bad calories consumed. He says it's no big deal because he'll just burn an extra 1350 calories tonight. Whispers break out behind his back and someone calls him "cocky". (I don't think it was cocky myself, I thought it was just good sense.) </P>
<P>Ali notes that Frado and Brendan didn't play, and Brendan says he didn't want a target on his back for a prize that wouldn't pay off for a while. Adam reflects that he didn't realise about the becoming a target thing. Oh, well!</P>
<P>Elizabeth is tearful and regrets participating. She's also terrified of the red line and going home. She's trying to work hard but doesn't feel any change. Brendan, standing behind her, comforts her with a bit of a back rub. This makes me realise that what Elizabeth doesn't know is that she actually has a big advantage - Brendan and Frado both competed with her in the city challenges to get on the show, and they like her and seem to have a soft spot for her...<I>and</I> they're part of a secret three-person alliance and could probably convince their fellow conspirator Patrick not to vote for her. So whether Elizabeth knows it or not, if it's between her and someone else (who isn't in the alliance), she's probably got three votes that won't swing her way. That's some powerful stuff.</P>
<P>Ali points out that when they go back to the real world, they're not going to avoid desserts for the rest of their lives. So, for healthier options, she brings in Curtis Stone! (Probably to make up for the woody-fest that was the Anna Kournikova visit last week. Now it's the <I>ladies'</I> turn to get their freak on.) Squeals ensue. "Who needs cupcakes?" exclaims Lisa. Apparently everything about him is "delicious". (I cannot help feeling sorry for Curtis.)</P>
<P>So we're going to make something decadent, delicious, and healthy. The winning cupcake, for example, was one which Curtis made, and it was just 100 calories. So you really can have sweet stuff when you're trying to lose weight, but you need <I>positive</I> temptation. Curtis suggests saying, "Do you mind if I make some cupcakes and bring 'em round?" if you're going off to a party at someone's house. That way, the healthy option will be right there for you.</P>
<P>Use egg whites instead of eggs, honey instead of sugar, wheat flour instead of white flour, use raspberry puree in the frosting. Patrick interviews that the resulting cupcakes are good, and this is great compared to the 5500 calories he was eating every day at home. (Ho. Lee. Shit.) Lisa obsesses about Curtis some more and gives him a nice, long hug.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1004-lizs-disappointment/1253349/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Elizabeth is still mad at herself about participating in the cupcake temptation and opens up to Rick about it. She doesn't even like cupcakes, she laughs. But she's still terrified about going home. She talks about not having control over her body, and we hear that she once had a benign tumor the size of a softball that had to be removed. Rick reflects that having a high-up yellow line only dials up the pressure. He points out that even if she loses just 3lbs a week like she did at the last weigh-in, she'll be at her goal weight before the finale. (THANK YOU! WISDOM AT LAST!) And that's what we're all here for. Elizabeth talks about her father, whose health is falling apart, and she sees her life as his. Again with the fantastic wisdom, Rick points out that every single person in the house could do awesome, but there's still going to be someone below the red line and people below the yellow line. Does that mean the people under the lines did badly? No. He says the worst thing to do is put pressure on ourselves. Just do the best you can, and at the finale you'll do great. Elizabeth appreciates it and thanks him for always listening to her. "I don't have any of my kids here," he shrugs. :) They hug it out.</P>
<P>Adam and Aaron start talking about the temptation and how Adam now has a target on his back. Meanwhile, in another meeting of the super-secret alliance (only this time with Ada included for some reason), Brendan says that Adam went for the temptation because he's scared of the three of them. (Y'know, I want to like all the contestants, but every week I get more and more evidence that Brendan is a jerk.) Frado reflects that as time goes on, the target on Adam's back will just get bigger, so Adam should play the advantage sooner rather than later. But Aaron and Adam think it'll work out. Aaron is of course on Adam's side because Adam saved him from the elimination challenge last week. Finally, Frado points out that the advantage/target thing is kind of immaterial if you just go and put the work in. Adam, he says respectfully, puts the work in. So <I>they</I> have to put the work in, too. I do like Frado, I have to say. In the other room, Aaron and Adam come to the same conclusion. But Brendan is now on an anti-Adam vendetta. He asks Ada if she's in on the anti-Adam action, and she agrees.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1004-hidden-insults/1253346/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: So there's drama. Ada has been getting annoyed by Adam, so she vented to Brendan, and Brendan blew it up into drama, and then Frado got on board. Oy, vey. So apparently Adam thinks that Frado is a "shady", Godfather-like character and that Brendan is his concigliere and does whatever Frado tells him to do. Frado is very affronted and feels that Adam should have said such things to his face. You know, "like a man". Frado clarifies that he doesn't mind being called stupid or arrogant, but <I>shady</I>? That cuts deep. (I do notice, however, that Frado doesn't go <I>back</I> to Adam to confront him about these things. You know, "like a man"?) And it turns out that <I>that</I> is how Brendan ends up getting Ada to side with them against Adam.</P>
<P>Ooh. The plot thickens.</P>
<P>Everyone's sitting around and Rick points out that the trainers will be coming soon and grilling them about the temptation. (Rick just keeps proving over and over that he's the smartest man in the house.) Jesse is really nervous and knows Bob and Jillian are going to kick his ass. Sure enough, the trainers show up. Sophia explains the deal. They're blown away by the prize. Oh, and the red line thing, too. They find out that Adam won and are pretty fatalistic about it and the 1350 calories he consumed to get the victory. Sophia is SHOCKED that they didn't chew him out. "Where the heck is the hellfire?!?" she interviews, as we see Tracey flashbacks from a few seasons ago. Bob and Jillian are just having a really good day, I guess. :) Also, Adam is a hard worker, so I think they trust him.</P>
<P>Workout. Everyone has the red line uppermost in their minds. (Probably because Bob and Jillian keep TALKING ABOUT IT!) People freak out in interviews. Patrick remarks that the girls are under a lot of stress, as Lisa walks out of the gym to have a panic attack. Elizabeth fights through another asthma attack. Jillian feels that this is a defense mechanism and knows, from her years of training experience, that asthma isn't really the thing that's holding her back. So they talk it out. Elizabeth doesn't want to die like her father. But she doesn't really believe in her ability to control that. Jillian says that this internal battle with her crap is holding her back, that's what's affecting her breathing. Elizabeth suddenly seems to realise this and gets back on the bike. </P>
<P>Frado tries to keep a low profile but then Bob grabs him, saying that he loves training guys like him. He says that Frado doesn't even know how far his limits are. But Bob wants more. So Frado yells a bunch more. We hear that Frado was taking an unbelievable amount of pills every day and injecting himself with insulin, but now he's off his meds totally...which, I must say, is completely freakin' <I>awesome</I>.</P>
<P>More beatings.</P>
<P>But then Mark screws up his back on the rowing machine. :( This doesn't look good, and Mark is scared.</P>
<P>Next we focus on Aaron. Jillian has him doing ten two-minute sprints, which is pretty unbelievable for a 431lb man. He doesn't think he can do it, either, but Jillian doesn't let him quit. Then we have one of those great moments that keep me watching this show. :) Right before his last sprint, Jillian asks him how it's going to look, that he has an opportunity to change his whole dynamic and finish strong. She interviews that he needs an experience of success in an activity he didn't think he could do. This will help this whole illusion of inability that he's built up about himself to start crashing down. As she asks, "What's the last one gonna be like," Frado calls out from behind Aaron, "London!" which is the name of Aaron's son, the light of his life. Apparently Frado regularly yells this out whenever he sees Aaron ready to quit, which is fantastic. "It's gonna be my best one," Aaron says quietly. Jillian jacks him up until he's yelling it like he means it. "Come on, let's go!" yells out Frado. Aaron interviews that the two things he wants his son to understand are a) unconditional love and b) relentless, passionate, hard work. And he wants London to look at him and say that he wants to be like his dad. So here we go. Supportive yells and whoops come from all over the gym as he sprints it out. And Jillian actually gives out compliments.</P>
<P>Now that is good TV.</P>
<P>Also, eat broccoli. Bob says so.</P>
<P>So...weigh-in! Adam bets on himself and holds back his advantage. Bob and Jillian get into a philosphical argument of gameplay vs getting your life back.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Adam dropped under 350lbs
<LI>Rick dropped under 300lbs
<LI>Ada and Elizabeth dropped under 225lbs
<LI>Ada, Lisa and Jessica hit 25lbs of total loss
<LI>Adam, Rick and Frado hit 50lbs of total loss
<LI>Aaron, Frado, Patrick, Brendan and Ada hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Rick hit the 15% mark of total loss
<LI>Jesse moved from super-obese to morbidly obese
<LI>Jessica and Lisa moved from morbidly obese to clinically obese
</UL>
<P>Sadly, though, it's Sophia under the red line and she has to leave campus immediately. Back at home, she's down to 225lbs (a BMI of 35.2, which is clinically obese on the cusp of moving to just plain obese), and is able to coach her cheerleading team properly without looking like a ridiculous hypocrite. The team, for their part, is really supportive of her and is happy to see her doing so well. She also leads spin classes. Her goal is to be down to 172lbs by the finale.</P>
<P>Frado, the biggest loser of the week (thanks to the extra boost from his obvious waterloading last week) has to decide whom to save from the elimination challenge. So he talks to Mark about how his back is doing. Mark wants to be okay so that he can participate in the challenge and Frado can pick someone else. He doesn't seem very sure, but he tells Frado that he can do the challenge.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1004-frados-choice/1253400/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Frado continues to weigh his options. He says he truly adores the six people at risk, so it's a tough choice. He talks with Jessica, who calls him "Pops". She's pissed off at being under, because she busted her ass this week. She asks Frado to reward her for doing really well this week. He calls her the "top dog of the bottom six". Then he talks to Elizabeth. He asks whether she wants him to save her, or whether she wants to compete. She says that she will always fight. Lisa gets all tearful, which I have to imagine is at least a little bit annoying for a guy like Frado. She claims that she wants to be here and doesn't feel ready to go home, which is how you can tell that she's not, well, ready to go home. Jesse says he's always up for a challenge, so if Frado doesn't pick him, he'll just do his best. Frado obviously likes this, and they clap hands and man-hug it out. Frado really likes Jesse. Burgandy says she feels like she works like crazy. She's never asked for the nod before, she says (hello? last week with Adam?), but she's asking for it now. However, she says, if she doesn't get it, the two of them are still totally cool. At the end of it all, Frado is torn between Jesse and Jessica.</P>
<P>Hey, did you know that Subway is doing breakfasts now? It's called "Build a Better Breakfast". Like OMG, wow! The contestants had no idea they could get breakfast at Subway! And <I>you</I> can, too! Nutritious breakfasts are now easy and delicious! And also, Subway! For breakfast!</P>
<P>Workout time. Ada is in trouble because she basically asked for beatings from Jillian during the weigh-in. We actually get a good bit of insight as to how the weigh-ins are filmed: they take a really long time to do and there's a lot of downtime, during which there's a lot of opportunity to talk. So Ada made the dumbass move of telling Jillian she didn't feel she'd had a breakthrough yet. But what it turns out that what this all is is Ada's way of setting up a failing experience for herself, because that's what she's used to and comfortable with: pushing Jillian to push her so she can give up. And this is exactly what happens. (Incidentally, Jillian is wearing a t-shirt that says Disco Sucks. I think my husband will now love her forever.) "Does this feel <I>just</I> like home?" Jillian asks Ada. "Yup," Ada responds. Jillian follows through: "Good and comfortable here?" This pushes Ada beyond her emotional limits and she leaves the gym.</P>
<P>Outside, they have a heart-to-heart. Nothing Ada has ever done has been good enough for her parents. They call her an idiot, tell her she's worthless. She's always felt they were never proud of her. She tells Jillian about her brother drowning in the kiddie pool with her when her parents went away to get a towel. She knows that they blame her, even though she didn't cause it. But her parents have actually said, "Why couldn't it have been you." They also go on about her weight, saying that she's so fat, she can't do anything right, and they can't stand to look at her.</P>
<P>Man, you know, I already heard most of this before and despised her parents for it, but hearing it again in greater detail, I now loathe them with the heat of a thousand suns. How CAN you do that to your own children. Children are precious, they're gifts to us. It is our sacred responsibility to build them up, and cushion them always with unconditional love, so that they have stability and confidence and self-belief. Hearing the story of a person who experienced the exact opposite of that just breaks my heart. It goes against everything that is good and right and humane. HOW can you do that to a child. Ugh.</P>
<P>But back to Ada specifically. She <I>wants</I> to be happy about the good things she's achieving on the ranch, but she doesn't know how to have those feelings. Jillian advises her to give herself time. She says that until Ada is strong enough to deal with all of her pain, she's not going to be able to feel the good stuff, either. She also identifies to Ada that the environment she grew up in was abusive. (I'm glad someone finally said it.) But, Jillian says, there must be some part of Ada that doesn't believe she's a complete screwup, or she wouldn't bother being here at the ranch. Ada looks up with a hopeful smile that really is like the sun coming up. She wants to be happy with the person that she is. </P>
<P>Okay, it's a start. I just wish Jillian had pointed out that maybe Ada <I>hasn't</I> been failing her whole life, that it's her <I>parents</I> who have been failing her.</P>
<P>For Bob's part, he's pissed off that the girls (yeah, the show is still calling them that) keep falling below the yellow line. He tries to whip them up into a fury of effort. As part of his below-the-yellow-liners rehabilitation effort, he goes to DESPERATE methods and tries something that has NEVER been tried before. </P>
<P>He...</P>
<P>Wait for it...</P>
<P>It's rather shocking...</P>
<P>He...</P>
<P>INVITES THEM TO HIS HOUSE FOR DINNER.</P>
<P>Dunh, dunh, <I>duuuuuuunh.</I></P>
<P>So, unsurprisingly, Bob's home is impeccably decorated. He remarks at how nice everyone looks in their off-ranch clothes and how loosely they fit. :)</P>
<P>Mark asks to see Bob's fridge. It contains a lot of fruits and vegetables. But generally he doesn't keep a lot of food in the house. Burgandy doesn't either, that's why they go out for fast food so much, so she's wondering how Bob hacks it. Bob says that the food in the house should have a shelf life of no longer than two weeks, because that means that the food you have is unprocessed. He also works in a little plug for Brita water filters.</P>
<P>He then treats everyone to a vegan meal. Not that he prepared it himself, of course (although he did consider faking it by putting it in pots, which was hilarious), he got a friend to cook for them, but it all looks spectacularly delicious - roasted wild mushroom leek and fennel salad, tomatoes and basil salad, broccolini with pine nuts, and cauliflower. Gawd that makes me hungry, it all looks fantastic. He points out that colourful food is healthy food, that's where all the nutrients are. He remarks that he's been all around the country and seen a lot of beige food, which is not the way to go. (Take note, audience at home!)</P>
<P>Bob then asks people what dinner at their houses look like. Lisa points out that there's a pizza place near their house where they can get a large pizza to feed the family for five bucks. Bob admits that he can't compete with that, but good food (like a bag of beans or whole wheat pasta) is also inexpensive. But he says that Lisa, as a parent, has a responsibility to teach her kids how to eat properly, and he tells her the kids are worth more than a $5 pizza. He knows she's tired, but she can do things to help the kids more. Lisa is jazzed to show her kids how to eat healthily. Everyone's very enthusiastic about the vegan meal, and thank Bob for his hospitality. They all clink their water glasses.</P>
<P>Back at the ranch, Burgandy has been experiencing shin pain for a while now, and finally went to Dr. H. Turns out she has severe tendonitis. She gets a boot to take stress off the bone and immobilize the tendon. But she's out of the elimination challenge. Dr. H. doesn't care much about the yellow line thing, he's more concerned about Burgandy's long-term health, and gets all Dr. McCoy on her ass: "I don't take care of the yellow line, I'm a doctor!"</P>
<P>So Burgandy is therefore automatically up for elimination. They still need to do an elimination challenge, though, because she needs to have someone else with her so people can decide whom to vote for. Meanwhile, Frado has decided to save Jessica from the elimination challenge because she came so close to making it over the yellow line. She is really grateful. Therefore, we have Mark, Jesse, Lisa and Elizabeth duking it out over...carpet! No, not <I>that</I> kind of carpet, you gutter-minded people (although that would be an interesting challenge of...uh...endurance and...er...dexterity ;). I'm talking about actual carpet. They each have 300ft length of carpet (weighing over 900lbs) rolled up on a big SQUARE tube (the square part making it damn hard to roll, of course) which they have to unroll over the length of some kind of massive sports arena. Then they have to run back and push their button to indicate they're finished. Last one to push their button is up for elimination with Burgandy.</P>
<P>Mark takes an early lead and stays there. Jesse comes in second, so it's down to Lisa and Elizabeth. Elizabeth struggles the whole time because she has a hard time getting a bounce momentum going with the tube. Lisa loses steam near the end because she gets her carpet off-course, but ends up saving herself, encouraging Elizabeth to keep going as she runs back to her button. Elizabeth refuses to give up the whole time and fights, even when she gets her foot stuck under the thing. Mark, Jesse and Lisa then come out to encourage her into finishing, which she does with fantastic, screaming energy. She seems genuinely happy about how she did, which is great.</P>
<P>Personally, I <I>like</I> Elizabeth a lot better than Burgandy (whom I find a bit annoying), but I think Elizabeth has a better shot of succeeding at home. I keep thinking of Burgandy and her military wife-ness and her five children and her foster children, and her having an autistic child as well, and I just cannot imagine where she's going to get the time to work out.</P>
<P>No one else is thinking along these lines, though, because only Ada votes to keep Burgandy around. However, it turns out that I needn't have worried. Burgandy incorporates fitness into her life and takes her kids <I>with</I> her when she does it. As a result, she's down to 180lbs, which gives her a BMI of 30.9. That's very close to being down to just overweight. So she's doing very well indeed. She also seems to be running a community walking club kind of thing, which she seems really good at. Also, she's looking great. Burgandy is a pretty lady.</P>
<P>Ali then springs a surprise on the remaining contestants. The house is empty by one more person...<I>for the moment</I>. But behind them on a balcony are the five contestants that didn't make it out of the city challenges: Montina, Anna, Corey, Sandy and Shanna. All with arms folded and looking fierce, as no doubt instructed by the producers.</P>
<P>A-<I>ha</I>! I <I>knew</I> we'd be seeing those guys again! This of course explains why the show ditched two people this week - to make room for one more.</P>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>TV Guide: <I>Players who didn't make the initial cut for a spot on the ranch return to weigh in, and the person with the highest percentage of weight loss wins entry into the competition. Later, the contestants are split into blue and black teams and compete in a food-trivia challenge in downtown Los Angeles.</I></P>
<P>Predictions:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Mark and Patrick could drop below 350lbs
<LI>Jessica could drop below 250lbs
<LI>Elizabeth could hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Aaron, Jesse, Patrick and Brendan could hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>Elizabeth, Lisa and Jessica could hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Ada, Frado, Mark, Jesse, Brendan and Adam could hit the 15% mark of total loss
<LI>Aaron could move from super-obese to morbidly obese
<LI>Ada could move from clinically obese to obese
</UL>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (5.93)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (15.14)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (20)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Mark (60)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (36.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (4.27)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (14.25)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (12)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (56)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (36.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (3.37)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (13.93)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (11)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (53)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (38.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (2.94)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (13.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=3>Ada, Adam, Patrick (10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (39.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (2.81)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (13.18)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (49)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (39.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (2.78)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (13.01)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (48)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (39.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (2.73)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (12.98)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (9)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (47)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (42.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (2.68)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (11.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Jesse, Mark (8)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (44)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (43.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Elizabeth, Lisa (2.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (10.47)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (34)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (43.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (9.93)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Jessica, Lisa (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Jessica, Lisa (28)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (44.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>11</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (2.43)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (9.72)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (45.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>12</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (2.29)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (8.61)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (22)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (45.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>13</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (2.17)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (8.09)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (21)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (48.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>14</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (0.79)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (7.79)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (2)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (18)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (51.0)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-50183204041843464882010-10-13T12:56:00.001-04:002010-10-13T12:57:29.372-04:00Selfish is good<P><I>(This is an incredibly late recap of the October 5 show.)</I></P>
<P>We must immediately flash back to last week so that the viewership can understand what's going on. The most important message is that THIS SEASON IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT FROM ALL OTHER SEASONS SO PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GAWD DON'T CHANGE THAT DIAL. The yellow line at weigh-ins is around the halfway mark. This drops a ton of people below, which means we need an elimination challenge so people can fight to stay out of the elimination room. Also, the first weigh-in did not go well for the ladies. Finally, it came down to Allie and Tina. Tina begged tearfully to stay and was kept, leaving Allie terrified of going home.</P>
<P>So what's happening now? What a great question! Could there be...<I><B>drama</B></I>??? Patrick interviews that things are TENSE. People are upset and aggravated. The concept of eliminating contestants every week is finally starting to sink in and people are feeling a little stunned. Brendan continues to have one of the hairiest torsos I've ever seen.</P>
<P>Having survived the elimination, Tina is feeling really guilty about having begged to stay over Allie. Lisa interviews that she's really bummed that Allie is gone. And Ada says there are "whispers" going around the house that Tina actually now wants to go home.</P>
<P>Seems like the whispers are true! Tina addresses the entire house and thanks them for keeping her, but then breaks into tears. Almost incomprehensibly (what with all the crying), she confesses that she has guilt, says that her begging to stay was "being all screwed up", and says she's going to ask to go home today. </P>
<P>The hell?</P>
<P>Look, chickie, going home now is not going to bring Allie back! She was already eliminated, her plane has probably touched down in Oklahoma by now, you're not doing ANYBODY any favours by going home, you're just giving up on yourself.</P>
<P>Frado sums my feelings up nicely by telling Tina she's being selfish and she needs to take advantage of the opportunity. Moreover, he says, as Rick nods in agreement, her responsibility is to honour Allie and stay. Brendan also points out, quite rightly, that going home the day after the elimination makes no sense. Tina claims she just doesn't want to bring anybody down, which makes even LESS sense. If she's a weak link that's guaranteed to be below the yellow line, she would actually bump everyone else UP one position. I'm thinking Tina just isn't too bright. Brendan also calls her selfish. Rick, that wise and perceptive paternal figure, asks her if there's anything at home that she wants to go back for. Tina reveals that right before she came on the show, she withdrew $16K from her retirement fund to take her entire family on a once-in-a-lifetime vacation.</P>
<P>Ah.</P>
<P>Okay, NOW her actions are making sense.</P>
<P>This doesn't change much, though - the rest of the house is still flabbergasted that she wouldn't want to be here. But <B>wait</B>, there's even <B>more</B> flabber to gast! Lisa says that Allie going home has shortened HER stay in the house, because she believes Allie can't lose weight at home and she wants to go home so she can help Allie to do it.</P>
<P>The hell?</P>
<P>Patrick, again expressing my feelings beautifully, interviews that that's absurd. However, Lisa has certainly been effective in taking the heat off Tina, because now everyone concentrates on pointing out how ridiculous LISA is being. Seriously, Lisa? Your mothering complex is THAT BAD that you are willing to throw away a lifetime, life-changing opportunity and sacrifice yourself for some young woman that you only met, what, a month ago? What about Lisa's kids, Frado asks. Lisa has no answer, she just says that she and Allie can do this together because they live just ten miles apart. Elizabeth points out that Lisa needs to take care of herself. Lisa isn't listening. Like, at all. Frado shakes his head pityingly in an interview. Jessica offers to help the both of them pack.</P>
<P>So the show sends Bob in to handle All Teh Drama. When he finds out what's happening, he calls bullshit and tells Tina she's not ready to go home and that every person here is just as deserving to stay as everyone else. He reflects that the first elimination always makes everyone crazy. His cure is to take them all to the gym. No Jillian, just Bob, and it will be a major circuit workout. In fact, from now on, ALL workouts have to be insane because weigh-ins can obviously apparently at any moment. Adam senses impending doom.</P>
<P>Adam interviews that he thinks Bob is on a mission to find out if anyone else is feeling less than totally committed to this process. Case in point: Bob threatens to break Jesse's legs and beat him with them. Much sweat is exuded. We get a bit of focus on Patrick and hear again that his purpose for being here is his children. Who, I might say, are really cute. :) Elizabeth's focus is to be healthy so she can do things she loves, like dancing. </P>
<P>Moans. Falls. Puking. Yells. Sweat. Etc.</P>
<P>Great line from Burgandy: "Bob crushes you into dust and then asks you to enjoy it."</P>
<P>But it works, because Lisa walks out of the gym that day feeling good about herself. </P>
<P>Bob is also having the same problem with Brendan as I have with my older daughter getting ready in the mornings: he's not going fast enough and is hoping to take advantage of Bob's inattention to go slower. Bob channels my parenting and calls him on his shit.</P>
<P>Frado interviews macho-ly that Bob gave him the toughest workout of his life...and he's been in the <I>Marine Corps</I> and played <I>football</I>, dammit, so you <I>KNOW</I> that Bob's a goddamn hardass. Rick gets amused in an interview about how loud Frado is in the gym. He sure does yell. :) He also, with classic military mindset, refuses to talk back to Bob. It's Bob's gym, and Bob is in charge.</P>
<P>Sadly, Jesse has no such mindset. "You got something to say to me, Jesse?" Bob asks him. "I don't have shit to say to you, Bob," replies Jesse as he walks away to a stair machine. Bob's eyes go wide with disbelief. Jesse starts whining about how things are hard for him, while Bob demands respect. Jesse apologizes. But it's too late. In return for Jesse's bad behaviour, Bob decides not to give everyone the easier thing he was planning for them to do. Naturally, this makes Jesse feel like crap, especially since he really does respect Bob a lot.</P>
<P>Tina shows Bob pictures of her kids and grandchildren. Oh, says Bob, she's such a nurturer. But how can you take care of others if you don't take care of yourself? We also find out that Tina's daughter is enormous and has diabetes and other obesity-related health problems. Her daughter tried out for the show but it's Tina who's here. (Geez. If I were Tina, I would be <I>happy</I> to stay on the ranch, rather than going home and risking my kid coming after me with a shotgun because I screwed her up so badly.) Bob talks to her about not giving up, and tells her that she does have strength, and she needs to be here so she can pay it forward to her daughter. Tina decides that she owes it to her daughter to stay.</P>
<P>Yeah, I don't buy it. Tina's just an emotional see-saw.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, Jillian is (predictably) really pissed off because almost all the women were below the yellow line last week. Bob's not particularly happy about it, either. Jillian takes the girls outside and tells them this is unacceptable and she does not want this season to be a jockfest. Well, maybe Jillian, if you didn't call them GIRLS all the time, and maybe started referring them as WOMEN, so that they could internall DEFINE themselves as such, they'd start kicking a little more ASS? Just a suggestion there.</P>
<P>Tennis, anyone? The show has brought in Anna Kournikova. Burgandy is very excited. The camera assists with Anna's entrance by slowing down and softening up, and the Biggest Loser crew brings out a wind machine for her hair, and we get an interview with Mark telling us that all the male contestants were especially gobsmacked. Jesse also tells us that she is "slammin' hot". Apparently, Anna could teach him <I>calligraphy</I> and he would be riveted. (As a calligrapher, I find calligraphy very interesting, and I take exception to that statement. Unfortunately, I suspect that Jesse's backup "most boring activity ever" would have been knitting, which I'm also obsessed with, so either way, I must be the world's dullest recapper.) At any rate, in case you didn't notice, the point here is that Anna Kournikova is hot.</P>
<P>Anna tells us that the most important thing is to always keep your feet moving and your heartrate up. Adam had no idea that tennis was so demanding. Brendan interviews that it's a great workout and is much more fun than the gym. Anna was inspired by the contestants and hopes she inspired them, too. Turns out she inspired Brendan to hug her for an inappropriately long length of time and comment on how great she smells. Fantastic, now she has a hairy-backed stalker.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1003-tennis-lessons/1252974/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Cardio tennis! In which the point is not to be good at tennis, but to burn calories. (Okay, then, I'm in. I <B>SUCK</B> at tennis.) Rick (whom she calls Richard, which I bet thrills him no end) gets a hug from Anna. Aaron is a big fan, so this is a dream come true. She demonstrates hopping side-to-side to Brendan and all he does is look at her ass. He admits in an interview that it was very hard to concentrate with her around. Jesse plans a proposal. Burgandy feels likes she's in her element. Ali thanks Anna for coming and Anna is deluged with sweaty hugs. By golly, she's a good sport.</P>
<P>But wait, the fun is not finished, there's a challenge! The prize is immunity at this week's weigh-in. Everybody gets a cylinder and has to fill up other people's tubes with tennis balls they have to run onto the court and get. Once your tube is full, you're out.</P>
<P>Brendan's goal is to avoid giving balls to Frado or Patrick, as the three of them have an alliance. Frado just wants to give balls to Tina. And he's not alone - everyone gets in on the action. Adam defines this as "making Tina earn her spot". Tina receives the message. The next target is Burgandy, who apparently was talking about taking all the men out first, so Brendan wants her gone. Burgandy doesn't quite know why she was targeted, but chooses to believe it's because she's viewed as a threat. (Um, honey? No.) Sophia, Ada, Lisa, Aaron, and Adam are next to go. Things are getting tough and gruelling for the remaining players as Elizabeth is taken out, and then Rick, Mark, Jessica, and Jesse. Unsurprisingly, it's the three-man alliance of Frado, Patrick and Brendan left standing. Adam remarks that maybe they have some kind of agreement? (Good call, Adam. I'll be interested in seeing where you go with that line of thinking over the next few weeks.)</P>
<P>Finally, it's Frado with immunity. In triumph, he yells. (No surprise.) He vows not to take it as a free ride and will continue his intensity in the gym.</P>
<P>Oh, and hey, surprise! Weigh-in tomorrow! Rick tells us that the contestants have been completely wrong so far in predicting what will happen next, so they might as well give up trying.</P>
<P>Super-secret meeting of the three-man alliance! And Patrick makes absolutely sure that it will be super-secret by sticking his head out the door and making sure the hallway is TOTALLY CLEAR before going back inside whoever's bedroom they're meeting in. (Yeah. Like if anyone happened to see him do that, they would NEVER GUESS that something was going on.)</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1003-strong-bond/1252925/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: more footage of the super-secret meeting. Brendan admits that he's sort of dumb as sand, but he's got <I>street smarts</I>, dammit. Also, people have apparently been trying to listen to their super-secret meetings. Patrick interprets this to mean that people are scared of them. (Gawd, what are these, people, five?) Brendan suggests coming up with a strategy to vote specific people out, but Frado would rather just work hard in the gym and keep each other safe. Brendan points out that that's great, but there are going to be weeks where, y'know...which I guess means that there will be weeks where the opportunity will present itself to eliminate serious threats (Mark immediately springs to my mind, for instance). Brendan defines Frado as a tough Marine and Patrick defines himself as a country bumpkin. Frado welcomes him to the city. :)</P>
<P>Nothing really interesting happens, except that they all tell each other how great they all think each other is. Oh, and they promise to make sure that no one finds out what they've got going on. Fist-bumps ensue.</P>
<P>And now, the Dreaded Second Weigh-in (introduced by Jillian, who is still not over the lack of female achievement on the scale), where people typically throw up very low numbers. And indeed, my weight predictions this week are based on subtracting an entire percentage point from people's weekly average so far (remembering that last week's weigh-in occurred TWO weeks after the initial weigh-in, so I divided last week's results by two to get "average"), and my predictions kicked some serious ASS. I guessed exactly right for several people.</P>
<P>(Yes, I'm tooting my own horn. Shut up, it's my blog. Besides, being selfish is good.)</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Mark hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>Patrick hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Adam, Mark and Jesse hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Sophia moved from being morbidly obese to clinically obese
</UL>
<P>Frado's number was particularly bad, with just a 3lb loss. He pretends that he feels bad, but come on, he totally waterloaded. A good week to do it, since the Dreaded Second Weigh-in provides an excellent screen for bad numbers. Even Jillian is taken in, saying that she doesn't think Frado is a game-playing type of person. (Oh, Jillian, what charming naivete.) But he practically admits it in an interview.</P>
<P>I should go on record here to say that I don't think badly of <I>anyone</I> for waterloading when they have immunity. It is an extremely smart move, it makes total sense, and actually I think it would be silly NOT to do it. Artificially raising your weight by drinking a bunch of water when your weight loss doesn't matter one week means that you will have a fantastic number at the next weigh-in once the water is out of your system and you've had another week of working out and eating right. So getting immunity one week is actually like getting immunity for two, if you play it right. Frado played it right. I have no qualms. I just wish people would be more honest and not pretend that they're not doing it.</P>
<P>The ladies do somewhat better than last week, but not a whole lot - this time there are <I>two</I> of them above the line instead of just one. (Notice that the only female who's been above the line both times is Ada. I am starting to love her. Sadly, she still has no love for herself. But hopefully we'll get around to fixing that soon.)</P>
<P>Adam, as the biggest loser of the week, gets to save someone. Burgandy, who lost just a pound this week, pleads her case to him for staying, and he looks like he's seriously considering it. </P>
<P>After a product placement and Tina telling Bob she actually now wants to stay (see-saw!), we have a workout. Bob promises Aaron - who is very frustrated at dropping below the line - that they're going to fix things. Jillian kicks the guys' asses. Bob reflects on the need to not beat the crap out of the contestants who need to participate in the elimination challenge, since they need to be fresh for the challenge. My husband remarks how that sucks, since people who fall below the line would then get a substandard workout and run an even greater risk of falling below the line the following week. </P>
<P>Bob uses the workout to try and teach Lisa to be selfish. She cries and Bob tells her he sees something special in her. Oh, also, he mentions the pay-it-forward theme again.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1003-huge-decision/1252973/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Adam marvels at all the alliancing and gameplaying that's starting to go on - why not just do your best and work out? But of course he has a gameplay-related decision to make about whom to save from the elimination challenge. Lisa reassures him that she doesn't expect the pass just because they're good friends. Plus, Bob gave her An Epiphany, so everything's cool. "I don't know what I'm gonna do," Adam reflects as she leans on his shoulder. "I mean about lunch," he then clarifies. Okay, that was funny. :)</P>
<P>Aaron's workout has him thinking about getting rid of his losing attitude. This makes him start to think about how maybe he should fight for himself. So he asks Adam to consider saving him. This is kind of a breakthrough realisation for Aaron, asking for help, that's pretty good. And it makes a difference, because Adam does end up choosing to save Aaron.</P>
<P>The elimination challenge is to dig through four massive piles of sand (one pile at a time) looking for a brass ring. Whoever finds the brass ring in a pile first is safe from elimination, and the remaining people at risk have to move to the next pile and dig again. By the end of it, there will be two players without rings, and they will be the players up for elimination. Brendan does a lot of whining about how he deserves a ring and can't believe he hasn't found a ring, and how he uncovered a ring, but Sophia grabbed the ring, and ring ring ring waa waa waa...suck it up boy, dig!</P>
<P>Once all the dust, er, sand, clears, the two people on the block are Lisa and Tina. Burgandy notes the poetic justice that the two people who said they wanted to go home at the beginning of the week are the two up for elimination. Lisa makes a heartfelt plea, saying that for a while she was wanting to go home to her kids and wasn't really working hard, but she now knows she's not ready and needs to stay. Brendan is unmoved, he calls bullshit. Tina simply says that she worked hard and it's up to the rest of them. She doesn't put much effort into her case, which disgusts Adam. He doesn't seem to be alone in these feelings, because Tina gets the boot without Lisa even receiving a single vote.</P>
<P>Back at home, Tina is continuing to fight the good fight and has helped her daughter lose a bunch of weight, too - 85lbs! Tina is down to 205lbs, which is a BMI of 32.1, so she's now merely obese. Tina wants her and her daughter to come on the finale together on stage.</P>
<H4>Next week:</H4>
<P>Look for the following milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Adam could drop below the 350lb mark
<LI>Rick could drop below the 300lb mark
<LI>Sophia could drop below the 250lb mark
<LI>Elizabeth could drop below the 225lb mark
<LI>Ada, Sophia, Tina, Lisa and Jessica could hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Aaron, Rick, Jesse and Adam could hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>Aaron, Tina, Patrick, Brendan, Frado, Jessica and Ada could hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Adam, Rick and Mark could hit the 15% mark of total loss
<LI>Jesse could move from being super-obese to morbidly obese
<LI>Jessica and Lisa could move from being morbidly obese to clinically obese
</UL>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>total lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (3.26)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (12.57)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Adam, Patrick (12)</TD>
<Td VALIGN=top>Mark (52)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (37.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (3.17)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (12.35)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (46)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (37.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (2.95)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (11.44)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (11)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (44)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Tina (38.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (2.89)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (10.84)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (40)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (39.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (2.61)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (9.94)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (8)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (37)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (39.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (2.55)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (9.30)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Aaron, Jessica (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (40.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (2.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (8.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (34)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (40.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (2.33)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (8.17)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Ada, Sophia (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (30)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (44.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (1.84)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (7.91)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (24)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (45.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Tina (1.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Tina (7.60)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Brendan, Lisa (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Jessica, Lisa (21)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (45.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>11</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (1.60)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (7.45)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (45.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>12</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (1.51)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (7.35)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Tina (4)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Sophia, Tina (20)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (46.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>13</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (1.29)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (7.29)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Elizabeth, Frado (3)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (47.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>14</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (0.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (6.15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (50.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>15</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (0.46)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (5.63)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (1)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (52.5)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-34016841837609766542010-09-29T12:52:00.002-04:002010-09-29T12:55:59.746-04:00Surprise!<P>So here we are! On campus! Ali officially welcomes the 14 competitors. She then instantly surprises them by saying that there's another team coming to join them. Of the seven eliminated contestants from last week, Bob and Jillian each got to pick someone to "save" and bring on campus. Bob chose Aaron, and Jillian chose Elizabeth. (Personally, I'm really happy with those picks. Well done, trainers.) Aaron and Elizabeth are now the Yellow team. Sophia is particularly happy to see Aaron, as she competed against him in Detroit and cares about him and his family. Frado is likewise glad to see Elizabeth as they had bonded when they competed in Boston.</P>
<P>Ali then makes it clear that although there are colour-coded teams, everyone is playing as individuals. This kind of bums people out, as they realise they have no support system whatsoever. And on that note, they get sent to the gym for some beatings. They run over with tremendous cheering and enthusiasm, which is very short-lived, as Bob and Jillian get right down to business. Bob tells us that the point of the first workout is to show the contestants what rock bottom is like.</P>
<P>(I'm just glad that Bob and Jillian are teaming up again this season instead of being adversaries. I think it's much more productive.)</P>
<P>Montage of sweating and screaming contestants. Puke shots. "This is hell," reflects Tina. Testimonial from Lisa that natural childbirth doesn't compare to the first workout. Jillian dabbles in playing psychoanalyst with Jesse. Patrick has a great session with Bob, who is tremendously encouraging and finds exactly the right motivation to keep him going. That was a great moment.</P>
<P>Now that everyone's spirit is broken, Jillian gleefully quips, "Where's the cheering? No cheering? What happened to the cheering?" right before Tina falls off her treadmill. She's got something to prove, though, so she gets back up. Adam digs deep and thinks about his family members to help him keep going. Jillian bullies Sophia and pushes her buttons by implying she's in a victim mentality.</P>
<P>Rick gets lightheaded from the workout, starts to pass out, and has to stop. He's very disappointed. He's not the only one having trouble - Elizabeth's asthma is firing up again. Bob makes her calm down and get her breath back. He's beautifully encouraging and self-esteem providing. Damn, you know, Bob could make a really good labour coach. :)</P>
<P>Great line during this workout, from Jesse: "Jillian was in my face so close that I could smell what she had for breakfast."</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1002-jillian-and-bobs-push/1251847/" TARGEt=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Jillian likes training singles, it lets her psychoanalyse easier. She gets Burgundy to work out her frustrations by bouncing medicine balls, carrying Jillian, doing pullups, etc. She interviews it was adrenaline-raising, overwhelming and incredible. Meanwhile, Mark tells Bob he's not married, and is 421lbs. Bob asks Mark to imagine what he's going to look like at 215lbs. "Sexy!" Mark enthuses. Bob praises the control of Mark's form and wants to know how Mark lost control over his life. He refuses to accept "I don't know" as an answer. He thinks Mark is different from other people he's trained and doesn't understand what could be happening. Mark replies that he eats his worries away and he wants to redirect his focus.</P>
<P>Everyone is wiped.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1002-bob-and-jillians-reasoning/1251825/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: We learn more about why Bob and Jillian chose to save Aaron and Elizabeth, and bring them to the ranch. Bob wants them to know that he and Jillian saw special stuff in them. This is a pretty good warm fuzzy for the Yellows. Aaron confesses that his son was the only thing that kept him going through the workout. It's all feelgood. :)</P>
<P>So let's really make <I>everyone</I> feel cheerful with a visit to Dr. Huizenga! That's always good for kicking the depression up a notch. He introduces this segment by telling us that most of the contestants either haven't seen a doctor in ages, or have sub-par doctors who are just "phoning it in" with them. Way to generate goodwill among your colleagues there, Doc. ;)</P>
<P>Lisa's wakeup call comes in the form of a side shot of her belly. And her cholesterol is completely whacked. And her vessels are riddled with plaque. And yet, she's only 31. Oh, also, she's a smoker. Based on all this, Dr. H tells her her inner age is 62. And to further scare the crap out of her, he says that even though some of the sickest people in the world come on this show, he's hardly ever seen anyone whose inner age is DOUBLE that of their real age. He then gets quite aggressive (for him) and tells her that she's not acting like she wants to live. He assures her it's all reversible as long as she's willing "to kick some serious ass". Wow, who ARE you and what the HELL have you done with Dr. H? Lisa is gobsmacked. (At the state of her health, that is, not at Dr. H.'s new-found in-your-faceness.)</P>
<P>But we then see that Dr. H. has added new scare tactics to his arsenal this season, as he shows Tina a realistic, squishy model (at least, gawd, it BETTER be a model) of a human heart with a normal fat content. Tina, on the other hand, has a heart with about four or five times that normal amount of fat. Plus, large fat pads on the outside of the heart. So fat is being deposited in her organs as well as under her skin.</P>
<P>Aaron gets to see a scan of his insides, showing bone and muscle and fat, and - no surprise - there's a lot of fat there. 51%, to be exact. Also, he has diabetes. His whole approach to food needs to change.</P>
<P>Patrick has significant cholesterol plaque in his neck arteries. It's like a 65-year-old man in there.</P>
<P>Rick is simply scary. Normally, someone of his age would have a 4% risk of heart disease. But Rick's is 32%. Those are bad odds. Dr. H. wants to hit the message home and gives Rick a video phone call to his family. He promises to work hard and his family is unbelievably supportive and loving, it's super-touching.</P>
<P>Adam tells Dr. H. that diabetes killed his mom and wants to know if it's too late for him. Yes, Dr. H. tells him, it's curable, but not with the amount of fat his body has right now. He also gets a video call, apparently to his grandparents and brother.</P>
<P>Finally, we move to Allie, and Dr. H. kicks it up yet another notch. As we learned last week, Allie had gastric bypass surgery when she was younger, in an attempt to control her weight. Her doctor told her it was that or death, so of course she took the surgery. We now learn that she was FOURTEEN at the time. Dr. H. also tells us that it's very typical for people who have had this surgery to lose a significant amount of muscle, not just fat. Consequently, Allie has a higher body fat percentage than anyone else currently on the show. Dr. H. also tears her surgeon a new one for giving her the surgery so young, and for not following up after it was done to make sure she was okay. (With very strong implications that all the doctor wanted was the paycheque.) Allie then gets a video conference with her mom and sister and tells her mom that their family absolutely MUST make a change together. She really wants this change to be she and her mom together, not just her.</P>
<P>Of course, it's not just about working out. Bob and Jillian round everyone up in the kitchen to talk about their food intake. They stress wholesome, real food, and ask everybody what they used to eat. Aaron's fave is The Terminator, a sandwich with prime rib, cheese, and french fries. Brendan likes The Gravedigger, a bacon double cheeseburger with mayo. Jillian makes pukey faces. (Personally, I can't believe that restaurants can actually get away with naming their dishes like that. And people still BUY them! Gawd, why not just name your restaurant Our Food Will Kill You If You Eat Here Every Week and have done with it!)</P>
<P>Bob says the common denominator in all of these death foods is the SIZE. He makes reference to how everything is bigger and better in America, but in this case, bigger isn't better. (Personally, I wish he'd gone into a bit more of a rant about the North American penchant for excess and greed, but baby steps, I guess. Also probably not so great to offend and alienate your audience by dissing their worldview.) He stresses portion control.</P>
<P>Jillian realises that the contestants don't even really know what "eating right" means. Adam finally pipes up that it means eating fewer calories. At least they know that a calorie is a unit of energy. I'm also impressed that a lot of them know that 3500 calories equals a pound. (Hell, I didn't know that.) We start hearing interview clips from the contestants (filmed <I>after</I> the information session in the kitchen, obviously) talking about what <I>is</I> good food to eat: non-processed, not a lot of sugar, lean, green. A little protein, a little fat. Bob stresses that drinking your calories is a bad idea. This is all pretty good information for the folks at home, even if it was delivered quickly.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/ep-1002-learning-more-about-jessica-and-aaron/1251803/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: It's a getting-to-know-you session. Jessica tells everyone she's always been big, even in kindergarten. She moved out when she was 17 and went to college. She learned that she had to be outgoing if she wanted anyone to be her friend. She got drunk at a party at one point and was locked in a room and raped. This was her first sexual experience. She never said anything about it but she did put on 80lbs. Now, as a wedding planner, her job is to make women's fantasies come true. She watches brides walk down the aisle every week and then goes home and cries because she's never had love like that and she doesn't love herself. Aaron knows he's supposed to be doing this for himself, but really he's doing it for his son. He's pushing his wife away. He's disgusted with himself so he doesn't want to be intimate with her. But he made himself a promise that he would always be there for his son, which rules out the possibility of divorce. He grew up without a father himself and he won't put his son through that. These two stories put everyone in tears.</P>
<P>Everyone's pretty focused during workout #2 and does good stuff. Elizabeth struggles again with her breathing but is determined to do it. Rick is happy to get a full workout this time.</P>
<P>Brendan, however, is the exception. He's having a hard time and ACTUALLY ASKS BOB IF THEY'RE ALMOST DONE. Mis<I>taaaaaake</I>! Thank heavens he said it to Bob instead of Jillian - Bob merely gave him a really hard time; Jillian would have <I>destroyed</I> him in retaliation. It's still rather torturous for Brendan, though. However, the viewing audience also gets some torture, in the form of a massive booger dripping out of Brendan's nose and into his mouth. Yummy. Thanks for that, I'm sure Brendan appreciated the humiliation also. I find it incongruous that you can't say the word "shit" on television, but shots of a massive, disgusting booger being eaten by a human being are considered okay. Bleargh. </P>
<P>DH: "Boy, Bob's taking his nasty pills this year."</P>
<P>Trainer tip: Jennie-O turkey rollups are magical!</P>
<P>Then, surprise gifties for the contestants arrive in cardboard boxes! There's a lot of suspense and buildup to what these presents could possibly be, and it turns out to be the favourite horrible foods that they talked about when they were in the kitchen. So we get to see Aaron's Terminator and Brendan's Gravedigger first-hand. (They look pretty gross.)</P>
<P>Brendan has an intense emotional reaction to the gift food. He can't believe he's done this to himself. He used to have a great body and a great girlfriend and threw it all away. He thinks about her all the time. It is sooo obvious that he's hoping she'll come back to him if he gets thin. (Of course that would be lovely and romantic if it happened, but unfortunately things don't always work out like that.) Bob tells him he can't live in the past, it's time to move forward, and he's capable of big things. Brendan has to try to forgive himself. Don't know if Brendan can do that right now, though.</P>
<P>Well hello, Ali! Aren't you looking pretty today! But of course your presence here can't possibly mean anything good...</P>
<P>Ali tells us this season is going to be a little different, and today, there's a challenge...which is a weigh-in. In two hours. Yeah. Seriously. They're all completely shellshocked. But I'm completely stoked - at last, RESULTS!!! Indeed, we can expect good ones, because it's been over two weeks since the contestants were first weighed in.</P>
<P>As promised in preview videos last week, the yellow line is moving up this week, and half the people will be below it. Mass freakouts ensue. The deal is that the eight players in the bottom half will all be in danger of elimination. Those eight players turn out to be Tina, Lisa, Patrick, Allie, Burgandy, Sophia, Jessica and Elizabeth. But there is a way out, Ali tells them. Firstly, Rick's the biggest loser of the week (I'm telling ya, <I>never</I> count out the old guys!), so he will be asked to save one player from that group of eight. There's also going to be a challenge, where only the people under the yellow line will compete. But one person will be voted out. Sophia's jazzed because she gets to fight for a spot back in.</P>
<P>The elimination challenge (at which Ali is wearing a really kicky jacket, I must say) is a footrace, with a flag hanging down at the finish line. The person who finishes first and grabs the flag will not be up for elimination. There will be five races, which means - once Rick saves his one person - that there will be two people up for elimination at the end of it all. So whom has Rick chosen? Well, he's spoken to everyone below the yellow line and has decided to save Patrick. DH is very unsurprised as it is clearly a Green team alliance thing. However, it does make all the women (except Ada, who was the only female above the yellow line) look weak, which I despise seeing.</P>
<P>I figure that the shoo-ins here are Burgandy and Jessica, and the people at the biggest disadvantage are Elizabeth and Tina. However, after Sophia wins the first race, Elizabeth actually wins the second race, which impresses the crap out of me! (I am finding myself frequently in admiration of Elizabeth, actually.) It's in that second race, though, that Jessica strays from her lane and elbows out Burgandy. Burgandy calls Jessica on this (fair, although Burgandy was not very nice about how she approached it), and Jessica is, well, kind of a bitch in response. Great. The next races are taken by Burgandy and Lisa (which surprised me), and finally, <I>finally</I> Jessica gets a fag. Tina is very discouraged at how her best efforts have not been enough.</P>
<P>So it's Tina vs. Allie. The oldest vs. the youngest.</P>
<P>This takes me back to the first elimination of Season 7, when it was Jerry (the oldest) vs. Daniel (the second-youngest). The voting might have gone either way, but then Ron spoke up and pointed out that Jerry had been thin once. He had a reference point in his head to go back to. But Daniel had never been thin, and he was young, with his whole life ahead of him, and he needed this chance more. We are in the same kind of situation here with Tina and Allie - Tina has been thin; Allie never, ever has. I firmly believe it should be Tina going home.</P>
<P>And yet, the votes do not go that way. This makes me pretty pissed off. I'm especially pissed off to hear that despite all the lip service Allie got from her mom about making a change, there was NO support for Allie's new lifestyle once she returned home. Seriously! :( Allie had told her mom that they absolutely had to get rid of the chocolate, but she walks in the front door and there's chocolate sitting right on the counter. So, no support for this poor girl at all. She then made a very smart decision and reached out to "her Biggest Loser family", enlisting the help of Season 8 winner Danny Cahill. As a result, she's down 60lbs (YAY!) and is now starting to speak with her mother again. I wish Allie all the best.</P>
<P>It also appears that the eliminated contestants from week one all got to go to the Biggest Loser Fitness Ridge resort, so that's nice.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved at the weigh-in:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Aaron dropped below 450lbs
<LI>Patrick, Adam and Mark dropped below 400lbs
<LI>Rick, Jesse, Frado and Brendan dropped below 350lbs
<LI>Lisa and Jessica dropped below 275lbs
<LI>Ada and Tina dropped below 250lbs
<LI>Burgandy dropped below 225lbs
<LI>Aaron, Mark, Brendan, Adam, Jesse, Frado and Rick hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Rick hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Rick, Adam, Patrick and Mark moved from being super-obese to morbidly obese
<LI>Ada, Elizabeth and Tina moved from being morbidly obese to clinically obese
</UL>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Look for the following milestones: (I adjusted estimates downwards because we typically see low performances in second weigh-ins)</P>
<UL>
<LI>Mark could hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>Patrick could hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Mark, Adam, Jesse and Brendan could hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Sophia could move from being morbidly obese to clinically obese
</UL>
<P>And from TV Guide: <I>Tennis pro Anna Kournikova leads a group workout before a surprise challenge. Elsewhere, a player's confession leads to tension in the house; bob singles out a contestant to gain respect; Jillian tries to nurture a pair's competitive streak; and those who fall below the yellow line must compete in an elimination challenge involving 175 tons of sand.</I></P>
<P>(Looks like the yellow line will be permanently placed around the halfway point and that we'll keep going with the elimination challenges. Interesting!)</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>loss %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>lbs lost</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (10.29)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (41)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (37.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (9.74)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Ada, Tina (38.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (8.56)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (34)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (8.46)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (31)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (39.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (8.13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Aaron, Jesse (30)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (40.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (7.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (41.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (6.98)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (27)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (42.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (6.41)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (22)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Brendan (44.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Tina (6.08)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ada (18)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Frado (46.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Lisa (5.56)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Allie (17)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Rick (46.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>11</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (5.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Lisa, Tina (16)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Adam (47.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>12</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Allie (5.28)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Mark (47.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>13</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Burgandy (5.19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Jessica, Sophia (14)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Patrick (48.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>14</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sophia (5.15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Allie (50.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>15</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jessica (4.96)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Elizabeth, Burgandy (12)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Jesse (51.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>16</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Elizabeth (4.92)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Aaron (53.3)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-90095439851734497142010-09-22T11:36:00.001-04:002010-09-22T11:39:05.952-04:002010-09-21: And so it begins<P>So obesity is a serious problem in America. And The Biggest Loser is here to fix it. It's Season 10, and we're going around the country to gather up contestants. We're going to seven cities, and there will be three contestant hopefuls in each stop. We start in Detroit. Here, Bob puts a bunch of people - mostly obese - through their paces for a mass workout. Bob sees hope in the crowd as he tells us this season is about Paying It Forward. We won't actually see concrete examples of this theme in this week's show, but maybe things will pick up.</P>
<P>The first three people to meet are Jessie, Sophia and Aaron. Bob reflects that everyone in the crowd needs to be here, though. The show has brought back the humiliation/motivation of the very public weigh-in, and that's what the candidates have to do first.</P>
<P>Jesse is 27, a law clerk from Saint Paul, Minnesota, and weighs in at 369lbs. His mom was overweight, and his own weight is a fog that hangs over his life. He makes excuses not to go out.</P>
<P>Sophia's big goal is to wear a white dress without looking like a marshmallow. Her brother Edwin died in a car accident, hitting black ice and getting t-boned by a truck. Poor Sophia is clearly ripped up about this. Her brother's death shut her down. She's a counselor herself, but can't seem to work through this. She says a lot of admirable things after finding out she weighs 272lbs, and seems like a great person.</P>
<P>Aaron is married and has a three-year-old son. He's been trying forever to lose weight. His father was an alcoholic and Aaron picked up that addictive behaviour, but in the form of food instead of alcohol. He recognizes he's literally eating himself to death and needs the miracle that is being on The Biggest Loser ranch. At 468lbs, I have to agree with him.</P>
<P>Of course, getting on the ranch is never so simple. First, Ali announces, there will be a challenge, in which the three candidates will compete for two spots. Jesse immediately thinks he's toast. It's a step-up challenge, and the first two people to finish 500 step-ups get to go straight to the ranch. </P>
<P>Aaron busts it out right away to psyche Jesse and Sophia out, but can't sustain it and slows right down. Sophia takes the lead and stays there throughout, crying as she gets the first spot. To motivate her, she thought of what her brother used to say: "Do work, son. Do work." Her extremely young-looking mom claps in triumph. Jesse wants to quit but refuses to stop. He outpaces Aaron and feels great, delightfully surprised that he ended up having the strength. He and Sophia don orange shirts and head out, Sophia remarkign that maybe she could actually become skinny. Aaron has of course not made the ranch, but he takes a lesson from watching previous seasons of the show and refuses to quit. It takes him a while, but he gets to 500 step-ups. It's pretty touching. Sadly, though, he feels that he blew his opportunity. Bob has a heart-to-heart with him and says that he thinks Aaron is made of great stuff and knows Aaron can do it. They man-hug it out.</P>
<P>Onto the next stop, where we meet Adam, Ada and Montina.</P>
<P>Adam has been overweight for a long time, and lost his mother - a terrific and supportive lady - to an obesity-related heart attack. This has been devastating for him. His initial weight is 402lbs.</P>
<P>Ada is a first-generation American whose parents, not to put too fine a point on it, sound kind of evil. The family has gone through some awful tragedies - they lost one son to a drowning in a kiddie pool (Ada was there at the time) and one son to SIDS. They have blamed her for a lot of stuff - when she was in a car accident with her third brother in the car (she was driving), her dad yelled at her for trying to kill another of his sons. It's pretty clear that her parents have never made her feel like she could be successful, and as a result, Ada feels totally inadequate. It's also pretty clear, though, that Ada believes fixing her weight problem - she's 258lbs - will make her a success in her parents' eyes and thus solve everything. Boy, is she in for a surprise when she starts touching her deeper issues.</P>
<P>Montina is a backup singer. She has been pretty successful, even doing backup for BeyoncƩ. However, her 287lb weight makes her non-marketable in her business, and she doesn't want to be in the background anymore.</P>
<P>It's time for another step-up challenge. Adam sprints right off the mark and when he starts pacing himself, Ada takes the lead. She didn't want to be in second place because that runs the risk of slipping to third. Adam goes into a "deep place in his heart" and talks to his mom, asking her to help him. (Is it just me, or does everything Adam say come off as staged and insincere?) Montina's husband gives her encouragement, and she wants to respond, but her knee is hurting a lot and it's holding her back. Ada wins the challenge (which is great, the girl needs some successes under her belt), and Adam puts on a burst of speed to come in second. They get blue shirts and a limo ride on outta there. Montina goes home, but says she's going to work harder.</P>
<P>We are Ali-less at the next stop. Her hosting duties are taken over by Season 7 finalist Mike Morelli. He's put on a bit of weight over his freshman year at college, but still looks good. He introduces Corey, Burgandy, and Tina.</P>
<P>Burgandy is Super Mom. She's a military wife, has five kids - one of whom is autistic - and foster kids, too. She is too busy doing for others (ya think?) to do self-checks, and so she is overweight, to the tune of 231lbs. She's insecure and doesn't feel beautiful, so her relationship with her husband is suffering. Her goal for the ranch is to be ready to back home when it's time for her to leave.</P>
<P>Corey feels that he's letting his wife down with his 391lb weight problem and is angry with himself. </P>
<P>Holy cow, Tina's nipples could cut glass. She has 2 kids and grandkids. She was smokin' hot when she was younger. But her second husband cheated on her and she started gaining weight because she was upset with what was going on in her life. She is now 263lbs.</P>
<P>We're switching up the challenge a bit in this stop and will be doing a one-mile race. Burgandy manages to pass Corey and pulls further and further away. He feels, though, that he should be able to beat Tina because he's 30 years younger than she is, but she gets ahead of him. Refusing to be beaten, he catches up and passes her. Burgandy, however, is way out in front. She wants to get on the ranch because she believes she can't do it on her own. She believes this because she <I>hasn't</I> been doing it on her own. BUt she feels amazing and strong as she crosses the finish line. Meanwhile, Tina feels she's going to lose because Corey is ahead of her. She doesn't want to let herself down, so she pushes. Corey pushes back in response...and falls down 20 yards from the finish. He has apparently pushed himself beyond his limits because he genuinely can't get up. So Tina staggers into second place. This, naturally, is bittersweet for her, and she feels really sad because Corey was so close. (I would feel crappy in that position, too.) She and Burgandy get purple shirts and a free ride to the ranch. For his part, Corey feels awful. He hates that his body doesn't listen to him when he tells it what to do - not just for the one-mile race, but in general. He doesn't understand why his body won't listen when he tells it that something isn't good for it to eat. But on the bright side, this experience has him feel that there's no chance he won't succeed now. Bob uses Corey's body giving up on him as an object lesson, and encourages the crowd to change.</P>
<P>Ali returns to bring us to Atlanta. She tells us that nearly a third of the deaths in Georgia last year were linked to obesity. (Holy crap.) We meet one lady who was never able to get on the show, and lost a whopping 95lbs at home. Awesome! We then meet Patrick, Anna, and Rick, who get a big ol' stink-eye from Jillian.</P>
<P>Anna is 39, and her story is heartbreaking: she lost her 3-year-old son to cancer. We see pictures of this beautiful boy as she tells us that she was constantly there throughout his treatment. She fell asleep with him in her arms and when she woke up, he was gone. :( (Although, I have to say, that if your child is sick and dying, that is a beautiful way for him to go.) Now, Anna eats to drown her sorrow and doesn't take care of herself properly. As a result, she weighs 330lbs.</P>
<P>Rick is from Arkansas. He's been happily married for 32 years, and has 5 kids and 9 grandkids. He seems like an awful lot of fun, a real character. He wants to be around for his grandkids and knows that he hasn't modelled a healthy lifestyle for them. He wants to change that. He weighs 350lbs.</P>
<P>Patrick is a family man who weighs 400lbs. His kids are pretty young right now, and he wants to change before they really pick up on his unhealthy lifestyle. He is determined that this is it.</P>
<P>Time for another one-mile race. Rick is intimidated, as he hasn't run a mile in 25 years. However, he believes that a lot of this is heart, so hopefully his age disadvantage won't matter. Patrick just doesn't want to be last. Anna starts up pretty quickly with the drama and the moaning. Jillian tries all kind sof motivational techniques, but nothing works. This lady is absolutely determined to come up with excuses for not breaking out of her comfort zone. Unsurprisingly, the guys come in first and second and receive their green shirts while the drama llama is still wailing and gnashing her teeth in the back. But at least she finishes.</P>
<P>Did you know that obesity costs Arizona $1.5 billion dollars a year? (Again, holy crap.) Fortunately, Phoenix is up for the challenge of making a change. We meet Amy, who has lost almost a hundred pounds - way to go, her! Our three potential Losers here are Jessica, Mark, and Shanna. Also, it's really hot outside today.</P>
<P>Jessica - who bears a resemblance to Mary Murphy, I think - has always been The Big Girl. Her relationship with her mom became quite bad. Her mom said she wasn't going to find love because of the fat and then became physically abusive. So Jessica retaliated by eating. Wow. This girl has massive issues. This becomes even more obvious if you watch her interview videos on The Biggest Loser website - as part of her anti-mom retaliation, she became promiscuous in college, put herself in dangerous situations, and was sexually assaulted in her sophomore year. She weighs 282lbs.</P>
<P>Mark started getting bigger in high school because he was playing football, but then stopped working out in college, so his weight ballooned. Currently, the ballooning has hit the 421lb mark. His mom is overweight and has health problems and is miserable about it all. He knows how she feels, and wants to help her succeed. </P>
<P>At this point, my younger daughter cries out for help and I have to go miss some of the show. But I know we were introduced to Shanna, a breast cancer survivor who currently weighs 242lbs.</P>
<P>It's another one-mile run for these competitors. Mark's ready to go. Shanna's excited. Jessica is determined to be heading to the ranch. Shanna slows to a walk early and gets discouraged, but isn't ready to give up. Mark's got a good jog going and is absolutely determined to make the ranch, especially since his father is running the mile with him. Jessica doesn't want to let anybody catch her, and comes in first. She squeals girlishly with triumph. (Oh lord, the Mary Murphy resemblance goes beyond the face. Heaven help us all.) Mark's next as he sprints home. Shanna runs in, too, but is disappointed. She's still determined to do it at home, though. As Mark and Jessica get red shirts, Jessica reflects the Deep Symbolism of the fact that her father's name is Red, too. Bob then has a heart-to-heart twith Shanna and tells her she's a survivor. There's nothing she can't do. He tells her to take the power back whenever she feels things are too much.</P>
<P>As we go to commercial, Bob has a heart-to-heart with us, too. He tells us we can stay motivated and make changes at home, even without a gym. For example, plant a vegetable garden. This gives everyone a workout, saves you money on groceries, AND is good for the environment. What's not to love about this plan? Oh, but don't forget that when you're gardening, you need to drink lots of water. You know, filtered with a Brita water filter.</P>
<P>Yes, that would be our first product placement of the season. Arg. Brace yourself, there will be more. MANY more.</P>
<P>In Oklahoma City, we have Season 8 winner Danny Cahill filling in for Ali. He is resplendent in pink, which is awesome. The only downside is that he seems to have gotten a gut back. :( Although, I suppose it's possible that that's extra skin from all the weight loss, which is visible now because he's not wearing belly Spanx as he would have done at the finale? Anyhoo, he introduces Allie, Sandy, and Lisa.</P>
<P>Allie had lapband surgery as a teenager under pressure from her doctor...but she is still fat. She reflects that the surgery fixes your stomach, but not your <I>thought</I>. She talks about the complications from obesity that her mom is experiencing, and she doesn't want to go through that. She wants to break the cycle. She's very pretty. I can't wait to see what she looks like once she drops considerably from the 322lbs that she's at now.</P>
<P>Lisa's daughter suddenly lost her vision three months ago. Turns out, it happened because she was dehydrated. And she was dehydrated because she hadn't been eating or drinking. And she hadn't been eating or drinking because...she didn't want to be fat like her mom. Ouch. That's pretty devastating stuff. Lisa, who is 288lbs, reflects that if her children don't want to be like her, how can she raise them?</P>
<P>Sandy's brother tried out for the show, but 5 days later died in his sleep. She's doing this for him, herself and her family. She saw how devastated her kids were hearing that their uncle died; what if, she reflects, they heard that she had died? She has too much to live for. She is 259lbs.</P>
<P>So we have another step-up challenge. Lisa starts out slowly but Allie looks pretty fast. And indeed, Allie reaches all the milestones first and wins. Lisa, highly motivated by her daughter who almost killed herself trying to be fat, comes in second. Sandy wants to quit, but is determined to finish for her brother. And, like her brother, she isn't afraid to tell the world she's going to do it; she is determined to be healthy. Bob reminds us that pink is a colour which always kicks ass on the Biggest Loser ranch as Allie and Lisa get their shirts.</P>
<P>The last stop is Boston, where one viewer has lost 107lbs so far. I <I>love</I> these profiles of people who turned it around by themselves! Filling in for Ali today is Mark Kruger from Season 5. He still looks amazing, I have to say; good for him. He introduces Frado, Elizabeth, and Brandon.</P>
<P>Brendan has a very hairy back, but more relevantly, has always been fat. He lost a lot of weight as a kid, but after that, his weight yoyoed unbelievably. He is currently sitting at 362lbs. He was engaged to the love of his life, but broke it off because he didn't love himself. Okay, that's very sad. :(</P>
<P>Elizabeth used to be slender and happy. But her marriage was verbally and physically abusive. She felt ugly and her self-esteem was destroyed. Accordingly, she gained about 90lbs. She's now divorced, but at 244lbs, she doesn't even recognize herself, and wants to make a change.</P>
<P>Frado is as New York as you can possibly get. :) His health is not good - he's a Type II diabetic and is on a <B>LOT</B> of medication plus insulin. His doctor has said he'll be dead within five years if he doesn't lose the weight. 367lbs is a far cry from the ripped Marine Corps dude he was in his youth. He's married with three kids and has been very successful in his career, but that just gives him more excuses to "celebrate". (Translation: Eat lots.) His wife seems to be in denial, too, telling him that as long as he's bringing home a good paycheque, his chub is okay.</P>
<P>It's another step-up challenge, and Brendan is the first to the 50-step milestone. He has some kind of tattoo on his arm that talks about self-respect, and uses that to motivate him. Unfortunately, Elizabeth is not so successful, as she has an asthma attack partway through the challenge. She really tries to stay in there, but come <I>on</I>, it's a freakin' asthma attack! Jillian earns my enmity by actually trying to push her THROUGH it. Poor Elizabeth. Fortunately, the EMTs override Jillian's authority and give Elizabeth some TLC while Brendan and Frado cruise to victory. Elizabeth does not take the loss well. She feels like she's failed and like her life is over. Frado feels for her and gives her hugs and encouragement. Also, the show makes her go to the hospital even though she doesn't really want to (good for the damn show), while they give Frado and Brendan their black shirts.</P>
<P>And now that we've got all our contestants, you'd think we're headed for the ranch, right? Yeah, wrong. This whole cross-America 7-city tour has taken up our entire two-hour time slot, and all we've got time for is a quick preview of the upcoming season before we fade to the medical warning. </P>
<P>The first thing we're told is that the seven rejected candidates from the cross-country tour are going to get a chance to get back on the show somehow. Various shots show us that a yellow team is coming, which means that two of the seven are coming back in. We can tell from all these clips that this yellow team is going to be Aaron and Elizabeth, which means sayonara for Anna, Corey, Montina, Sandy and Shanna...at least for now. (<I>Never</I> rule out unexpected plot twists on The Biggest Loser.) Another preview video available at The Biggest Loser website shows a wide shot of multiple contestants showing all eight colours. This must mean that Aaron and Elizabeth get to come onto the ranch right at the outset.</P>
<P>Another thing we see in the quick preview before the end of the episode is Ali announcing a weigh-in where the yellow line is moved <B>up</B>, to the halfway point, meaning that half the people are going to fall below the yellow line. Close examination of this part of the clip shows that the number of spots on the board when the line is moving up is 16, which means this half-below-the-yellow-line weigh-in must take place at the end of the very first week. This may sound crazy, but remember that at no time does Ali say that the people who fall below the yellow line are going <I>home</I>. Perhaps they're in for something else undesirable...</P>
<P>...Like training with the Marine Corps, perchance? That's the next thing we see in the preview clip: training with Marines. I should have counted the number of losers shown on the screen training with the Marines, but I <I>suspect</I> that what is happening is that they're splitting up the teams - the half above the yellow line stay on the ranch, and the half below the yellow line have to go off with the Marines and train with them for who knows how long. This is very similar to the sort of thing they do on The Biggest Loser Australia, where every now and then people are sent off to train with The Commando, an Australian drill sergeant army-type dude who is set up to be this big brutal and scary thing.</P>
<P>Other things we can look forward to:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Patrick is told he has the arteries of a 65-year-old man.
<LI>Jillian psychoanalyses Ada.
<LI>Lisa gets a big dose of Bob telling her she's wonderful.
<LI>Rick gets a video from home.
<LI>Huge success on the scale for Mark. (A close-up of the shot reveals a tantalising glimpse of the leaderboard behind him: Ada in 3rd, Sophia in 4th, an unreadable name in 5th, Tina in 6th, and Aaron in 7th, with the yellow line immediately below Aaron.)
<LI>Sweat in the gym.
</UL>
<P>None of this, however, makes up for the disappointment that I felt in not seeing any weigh-in results this episode. I live for <I>results</I>, people! My spreadsheet has been <I>denied</I>! I had <I>better</I> start seeing some freakin' <I>numbers</I> next week, I tell you!</P>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07130370980787749356noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-43184237018426724562010-05-26T12:19:00.003-04:002010-05-26T20:56:18.499-04:00Goldilocks and the Three Bears<P>Tuesday night. Biggest Loser live finale. 8pm.</P>
<P>Moment of panic as whatever channel DH has turned to switches suddenly from displaying the NBC logo to CTV. Frantic channel flipping. And...</P>
<P>Digitized Final Four, at their largest, projected onto the stage.</P>
<P>(Success!)</P>
<P>Welcome to the live finale of this season's Biggest Loser. Ali, as always the lovely host, takes us back to the initial at-home public weigh-ins, the humiliation of which has <I>got</I> to be some kind of motivator to these people to not revert to the fat lifestyle. We are then taken through the torture of the gym, successes on and off the scale, and we see a montage of ass-kicking in general.</P>
<P>We then focus on the Final Four: Michael, Ashley, Daris, and Koli. We are reminded that Michael and Ashley, by virtue of coming top of the heap at the final weigh-in on the ranch, have secured their spots in the Final Three. The third member is still unknown; America had to vote as to whether to promote Koli or Daris. Being in the Final Three is very important, because the person in that trio with the highest percentage of total weight loss wins a quarter of a million dollars, which is brought to us by Yoplait Lite. (Gawd. Five minutes into the show and already we're starting with the product placements.) Ali also introduces the all-important scale, with the usual accompanying ominous music; and reminds us that all the contestants who did not make it into the Final Three will also be weighing in, for the chance to win $100,000.</P>
<P>The first order of business is to find out who's moving on to the Final Three, Koli or Daris. So let's bring them out. Daris is first, and of course he looks great. Also, we're once again taking a leaf out of the Australian Biggest Loser playbook, by projecting digitized versions of contestants-from-day-one walking down the runway as the actual, slimmer contestants walk down the other side of the runway, to get a more complete idea of just how awesome they've done. (It's a fantastic technique, I love that they're using it in the American Biggest Loser now; I just wish they'd do it for all the contestants like they do in Australia.) It's hard to tell by looking at Daris in a suit how much weight he's lost since the last ranch weigh-in, but clearly he's at least maintained the good lifestyle, so that's great. He was having serious problems at home with binge snacking in the wee hours due to stress. DH remarks on the dangers of obsessing over getting a girlfriend. Ali is completely overcome with how freakin' cute Daris is (probably the best transformation this season, honestly), and she actually squeals. Daris has been spending the last number of weeks working on figuring out why he was stress-eating at night. He talks about managing his stress differently, but also remarks on the foolishness of eating dinner at 5:30, staying up until 3am, and expecting not to get hungry in the intervening time. Grasshopper is gaining wisdom, I see. Oh, also, big news, he's landed himself a girlfriend. She's beautiful and her name is Heather. We see absolutely no indication for the rest of the show that they're particularly into each other, but at least he's probably siphoning off some stress by having sex. Go, Daris.</P>
<P>Koli's up next! He bursts out, looking pretty damn full of himself and roaring insanely. Koli, you have no business putting on that kind of swagger while wearing those red pants. (Urg.) "Too much Red Bull, dude," DH says. As the crowd continues to cheer, though, it no longer seems that it's Koli doing the roaring, because although it's still going on, Koli is clearly mouthing other stuff in a much calmer way. So...maybe he was never roaring to begin with? Maybe not as arrogant as he first appeared? I hope so. Koli talks to Ali about figuring out who he is and having self-worth. He looks sooo nervous. "Don't mistake my confidence and swagger for being cocky," he says. (Then dude, don't swagger. Also, I must mention again the need to lose those pants.)</P>
<P>So anyhoo, Ali has the results of the vote and will destroy Koli's blood pressure by refusing to reveal them until after we get back from commercial. Koli and Daris pat each other buddy-like as DH complains extensively about the too-short length of Koli's jacket. (Poor guy. He is not winning style points in my household with his clothing choices tonight.)</P>
<P>Curtis Stone and Dr. H. are in the house as we come back for the vote reveal. This cannot truly be suspenseful for anyone, can it? I mean, is there anyone who really believes Koli has a shot here? And sure enough, after millions of votes, it's Daris for the Final Three. Koli accepts it sportingly and hunches offstage. (Argh! All that swagger and he's STILL doing the meek posture? Koli honey, walk tall. Please.)</P>
<P>We then focus on some more well-known faces in the audience. Danny (last season's winner), Bill (season 4 winner) and Erik (season 3 winner) all stand up for some cheers. As promised, this is Erik's big moment of accountability, and indeed he looks much healthier. He's gone to the Biggest Loser Fitness Ridge resort (so much for learning how to do it on his own at home) and has lost over 150lbs. Awesome.</P>
<P>And speaking of bringing people back for this season's finale, it's time to check in with Shay! For those not in the know, she was the most overweight contestant in Biggest Loser history. (Yes, Michael from this season was the heaviest, but his starting BMI of 65.7 seems light and airy compared to Shay's staggering 72.4.) At the finale last season, she weighed in at 304lbs, which represented a loss of 172lbs and 36.13%. Very good, of course, but she was still morbidly obese. So Subway gave her a challenge - to lose as much weight as possible, and then weigh in again at this season's finale. For every pound lost between then and now, they would give her a thousand dollars. And of course I'm sure she had to go all over the place in the intervening time preaching the gospel of Subway deliciousness and low-caloriness. She is still quite large, but clearly much lighter. A lot of weight is gone off her face, she looks lovely. Her current weight is 252lbs, which represents a total loss of 224lbs and 47.06% from her starting point, and a clinically obese BMI of 38.3. That's nice. Subway's other spokesperson, Jared, comes out to present her with the giant cheque. However, it's blank. This is intentional, he announces, because Subway isn't done with Shay yet. (Oh, good lord, when are they going to allow this woman to stop shilling sandwiches and just live her life?) They want Jared and Shay to train to do a marathon togetehr at the end of the year. If this challenge is successful, Subway will double Shay's earnings, which translates into a total of $104,000. And, OF COURSE, Shay gets free breakfasts and lunches from Subway to help her do all this. Groan.</P>
<P>Okay, time to flash forward to the current season's contestants. We are introducing them four at a time, and they get to come out from one side of the stage, go down some steps, present themselves on stage to the audience, and then walk over near Ali. Cherita is out first, looking all kinds of good. Victoria is rocking a little blue dress - okay, she's still chunky, but she was the second most overweight woman in the house to start with, so this represents a vast improvement. Sherry looks fantastic and has skinny little arms. Also, she bears an even more uncanny resemblance to Helen Phillips (season 7 winner) than usual. We get a shot of Ashley's sister in the audience looking much smaller than when we saw her in Makeover Week, so it looks like the whole family's been getting in the healthy action! Yay! Last out is Maria, who has been made up far too heavily, but has also clearly lost a lot of weight. Ali reminds us that Cherita didn't spend a single night on the ranch and yet looks terrific. (Oh, she does indeed.)</P>
<P>Before we can see the final weights of these ladies, though, we have to bring out Bob and Jillian, the trainers. They look very nice and are even dressed appropriately. (I believe Jillian was in black spandex and leather boots at the last finale.) Jillian is, however, completely at sea wearing heels and has to lean heavily on Bob, which is pretty funny. The highlights of the season for her were helping Maria (who was deathly afraid of water) in the pool and helping people overcome their fears in general. Bob loved helping O'Neal to walk up stairs properly.</P>
<P>At last, results. Each contestant gets a little fast montage of their start, their at-home profile, and then a moment or two (or three) of particular importance from their time on the ranch. Cherita is 186lbs, Victoria is 222lbs, Sherry is 119lbs, and Maria is 167lbs. Sherry is strongly in the lead and I predict she'll stay there for a good while.</P>
<P>The next group starts with Patti, who hasn't lost her big tummy, but she is certainly looking nice. Stephanie is looking pretty tiny. (DH points out that she trains with Sam.) Twin brothers James and John are still huge, unfortunately, but John is NOTICEABLY trimmer, which is terrific. Stephanie gets to talk about falling in love with Sam. "Who didn't?" Ali counters. (True! :) Patti (who really never got enough air time, she seems like a nice lady) is 170lbs, Stephanie is 165lbs, James is 357lbs (a serious improvement from his starting point, even if he has a long way to go), and John is 335lbs. Sherry's still in the lead.</P>
<P>The next group starts with the villain of the season, Melissa. She looks very nice indeed, and then spoils the effect by giving a pouty face and mouthing "Boo-yah." Lance looks great. Migdalia doesn't look too different at all, although she does a sexy dance move to demonstrate confidence. Miggy looks really good. And she knows it. :) We see that she has a big tattoo on her back (badass), and DH remarks that in her case, "Revenge is best served hot." :) Melissa interviews that for her and Lance, coming on the show was never about the money, it was about changing their lives. "Really?" asks DH, "I couldn't tell that, the way you were strategizing." But later he reflects that maybe Melissa simply can't help trying to win anything she's presented with. I think that's pretty likely. Unsurprisingly, Lance doesn't get to talk, even when Ali offers him the opportunity. Sigh. Instead, Melissa talks about paying it forward to their kids.</P>
<P>Melissa - who, we are reminded, appeared to throw some weigh-ins for strategic reasons and was livid that the trainers didn't believe her scale failures were genuine - blows away my predictions by being 143lbs. "Hey Bob?" she calls over to where the trainers are, "I love you! Do you believe me now?" He grins widely and says she looks great...but I notice he did NOT say that he believed her. :) Lance also destroys my predictions by being 237lbs. Migdalia is 213lbs. Miggy is 149lbs. Sherry's still way ahead.</P>
<P>O'Neal bops out onto the stage looking spritely, <I>jumping</I> down the steps! :) Sunshine looks gorgeous, although DH speculates that she may have put weight back on. I'm not sure, I think it's possible that it's just the dress. We shall see. Darrell looks UNBELIEVABLE - thin neck, thin face, flat tummy; I love it. By contrast, Andrea unfortunately looks quite large and really, REALLY should not have chosen that dress. O'Neal tells us that he feels fantastic. (And looks damn slick, too.) He and Darrell share a warm handshake because they love being fathers of daughters who have grown into womanhood and confidence. Darrell says this is the best thing that could happen to a dad. I am amazed anew by how freakin' awesome he looks. He's a real contender here.</P>
<P>Ali defies the producers and gushes about O'Neal's wonderfulness for a few extra seconds of airtime before we find out that he's 230lbs. The Tongans in the audience go wild for him, which is great. Sunshine is 161lbs, Darrell is 224lbs, and Andrea is 214lbs. Darrell dethrones Sherry for the lead.</P>
<P>The last group is just three people because the number of at-home contestants isn't evenly divisible by four. Cheryl starts us off. She has chosen a ridiculous dress and haircut that make her look frumpy and bigger than she is. :( How unfortunate. She was looking so smokin' when Daris returned home, too. Sam is wearing a short-sleeved buttoned-down shirt with a tie, and has parted his hair on the side and combed it down smoothly. I really, REALLY hate to say this, but the look is evocative of Hitler Youth. I'm not a fan. He makes it a little better when he shows off his extremely impressive guns. Koli grooves down the stairs as DH says, "And here's the man who's going to win a hundred grand." Ali grills Sam about Steph. "Big pictures and bright futures," he responds. (Grey team is all about the catch-phrase philosophies.) We get a shot of Steph looking like she totally agrees with this. I just hope all of this means that the two of them and Koli are all cool now. Cheryl doesn't talk about herself. She says she couldn't be prouder of her son Daris. She's watched him go from a boy to a man, and a "man's man" at that. Koli just gives a cheezy smile and a thumbs up when asked about his chances to win. I thought that was pretty funny.</P>
<P>Let's check in with Jillian, because she needs to plug her new show. This involves her leaving the ranch and actually moving in with families for a week. We get a sneak peek. She's going all over the country making housecalls. And it appears that she doesn't just help people shed pounds, but crap, too - one family has what looks like the biggest yard sale in the history of the universe. DH sums it up when he says that it's basically Supernanny, but for weight loss. The show is called "Losing It," and clearly it's what's going to get me through an entire summer without a Biggest Loser season to watch. :)</P>
<P>Darrell doesn't think much of his chances of keeping the lead here. "Boys look goooood!" he says, leering playfully at the Grey team. :) Ali takes him to task for not giving hetero props to Cheryl. :) Good times. We are shown clips of Cheryl in the gym, the crazy lady screaming at Jillian and earning my love. Ali then points out the contrast between then and now, saying to Cheryl, "You look so dainty and delicate and feminine standing up there!" (She looks like Lucille freakin' Ball is what she looks like, people.) She's also 151lbs. Sam, who is the only person ever to have knocked the boxing gloves off Jillian while sparring with her, is 230lbs. DH marvels that he looks like Ali. (That's Muhammad, not Sweeney.)
<P>So Darrell is still in the lead with only Koli left to weigh in. At this point, I figure out that the only way Koli could lose this is if he GAINED any weight since the final ranch weigh-in. (What an awful situation that would be, eh?) "Pick up your head, man!" DH calls out as we watch Koli assume his typical hunch. I think he's just beyond nervous, he looks really, REALLY freaked out. Before we can hear Koli's weight, though, we have to chat with Darrell some more. (Perhaps they're hoping that Koli will drop dead of a suspense-induced heart attack before he gets a chance to weigh in?) Ali lists Darrell's accomplishments, which he likes hearing. Ali then tries futilely to goad Koli into admitting that he wants to win. JUST WEIGH THE MAN IN, PEOPLE!!! At last, we get Koli's final weight: 188lbs. This blows Darrell out of the water and Koli wins the $100K. Sadly, the man who dreamed of confetti actually gets the most unbelievably cheezy, tinny music in celebration instead. That sucks. "I just wanna go home with my family, it's all I really wanna do right now," he tells Ali. "I feel great." Y'know, he may <I>say</I> he's gained confidence, but the dude is still clearly very shy at heart.</P>
<P>I wish him all the best.</P>
<P>We then get a profile of the Pound-for-Pound Challenge. The deal is that people pledge to lose a certain amount of weight, and for every pound pledged, a pound of food is donated. People are helping at food banks and working out all over the country. We see Coach Mo from last season, Scotty Hamilton, and DH says he saw Katherine McPhee in the montage, too. We get a few people's weight losses profiled. Over 5.8 million pounds of food have already been pledged. You can pledge, too, until June 30. And - surprise! - General Mills will donate a can of soup or vegetables for each pound pledged.</P>
<P>More shilling - Ali tells us that the characters from the upcoming movie Despicable Me visited the ranch this season. Um...it's a CGI movie. The virtual characters visited real live people how? Well, we're never told. Instead, we get a trailer for the movie, folowed by dead air. Ohhhh...kay?</P>
<P>Alright, time to bring out the finalists! Daris's appearance is no surprise, of course, but we still haven't seen Ashley or Michael yet. Nor will we until Ali is finished telling Daris how amazing it was that he ran the marathon in about four hours. Daris confirms that it felt amazing. (Okay, I admit, it was amazing.) But moving on...Ashley and Michael were the heaviest man and woman of the season, and they both made the Final Three. Ashley looks pretty small. I mean, not skinny chick small, but still, definitely holy-crap-you-lot-a-lot-of-weight small. "Never count out Pink," DH says. Alas, her top clashes with her skirt. Ali says she went from the girl who fell off the treadmill to the Pink Ninja. How <I>did</I> she do it? DH wants Ashley to respond with, "Head trauma." :)</P>
<P>Michael comes out looking...well, looking like the person who's going to leave the stage $250K richer, not to put too fine a point on it. Unfortunately, he is wearing a very ridiculous belt buckle. And a low-cut v-neck with a silver chain necklace, leather jacket, and too-tight jeans. Um. Okay, I don't know if he was actually <I>going</I> for a gay biker kind of look, but he certainly managed to <I>achieve</I> it. Regardless, he looks terrific. And he feels terrific. And he's going to keep going. </P>
<P>The biggest loser on the ranch gets to choose the order in which the finalists weigh in. That's Michael, and he chooses to go youngest-to-oldest, so: Daris (who has no chance here), "Beautiful Ashley!!!", and himself. As the three of them go offstage right before the commercial, Michael loses the jacket, and he's got some nice-looking guns under there. DH and I think he's going to take this.</P>
<P>DH: "Owen Wilson as Marmaduke. The role he was born to play."</P>
<P>We're back. And for some reason, Michael is holding a single white rose.</P>
<P>We start with Daris. He started at 346lbs, and pledged to make himself and his loved ones proud. He'd never had a girlfriend in his life. He wanted to have a wife and kids more than anything else. In the gym, Bob watches him work out and asks how he got to be so overweight with the determination and strength that he has. In response, Daris points to his head and says, "Right here." Later in the journey, we see Daris being jettisoned off a whirling treadmill, getting up, and getting back on. Also, he won the marathon challenge in four hours and two minutes. He wants to be #1. He's 178lbs. That's 48.55%.</P>
<P>Ashley's starting weight was 374lbs. Her dad died when she was 16, and he always wanted her to be healthy. So it would mean a lot for her to be able to conquer the weight. We see, for the GAZILLIONTH time, her infamous fall off the treadmill, and then Sherry presenting her with the possibility of success if she goes back in the gym. Success indeed, because we then get a montage of her being determined in the gym. Sherry tells her she knows her dad would be proud of her, and Sherry is proud, too. But she wants Ashley to be proud of herself. We see successes on the scale, and it is reiterated that Ashley is the Pink Ninja. She's 191lbs. That's 48.93%. She's in the lead.</P>
<P>Finally, it's Michael's turn. Standing up there on the scale, he looks like Sly Stallone before the man got all scary-looking. But as good as he looks now, back in the day, Michael was 526lbs, the most of any American Biggest Loser contestant. (Possibly the most of any kind of Biggest Loser contestant.) Bob, who was saddled with 300lbs of strap-on weights at the beginning of the season so he could emphathise with Michael, had no idea how he carried it every day. "I'm gonna do it...definitely," Old Michael vows. "Watch me America." And then...the miracle transformation begins. "Are my abs showing?" he asks gleefully with a pseudo-sexy pose after his first week when he lost 34lbs. He feels proud of himself, which is a new feeling. All the hurt is going away. He breaks show records all over the damn place.</P>
<P>So..."What's with the flower?" Ali asks. Well, it's for his number one motivation and inspiration...his mom. He runs over and gives it to her. DH loves that he was able to run. Michael says it's an honour to face off against Ashley, because she's one of the strongest women he's ever met in his life, strong and beautiful. (Aww. :) So here we go. Michael's weight is...</P>
<P>Is...?</P>
<P>Nope, no joy, we just get Ali babbling to produce filler for a while. Sigh. She even turns to Bob and asks him what he thinks. Bob says this is what the show is all about. Thanks for that clichƩ, Bob, can we PLEASE GET ON WITH IT?!?</P>
<P>Finally, Michael gets on the scale, and flings away the ubiquitous white headband. His final weight: 262lbs. That's a total loss of 50.19% and he has won the grand prize.</P>
<P><B>Confetti!</B></P>
<P>Michael cries. His family cries. His parents hug him. Ali says farewell for another season. </P>
<P>Yes, the money prize reign of Pink is over. Although admittedly, Pink has never failed to make the finale. Also, Koli may not have won the grand prize, but he certainly - as promised - "won the show" by getting the highest percentage of weight loss of all the contestants this season.</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<P>Finalists' names are in bold. Background colours on names show what their BMI category was to start with; background colours on BMIs show their final BMI category. Colour legend:</P>
<UL>
<LI>grey = underweight
<LI>green = healthy
<LI>yellow = overweight
<LI>orange = obese
<LI>red = clinically obese
<LI>purple = morbidly obese
<LI>pink = super-obese
</UL>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=3 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:13px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH>Contestant</TH>
<TH>Predicted</TH>
<TH>Actual</TH>
<TH>Since last seen</TH>
<TH>%age</TH>
<TH>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Migdalia</TD>
<TD>185lbs</TD>
<TD>213lbs</TD>
<TD>6lbs</TD>
<TD>19.62</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>31.5</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>James</TD>
<TD>288lbs</TD>
<TD>357lbs</TD>
<TD>28lbs</TD>
<TD>26.39</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>42.3</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Andrea</TD>
<TD>201lbs</TD>
<TD>214lbs</TD>
<TD>8lbs</TD>
<TD>28.19</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>33.5</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Patti</TD>
<TD>172lbs</TD>
<TD>170lbs</TD>
<TD>30lbs</TD>
<TD>30.04</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>29.2</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>John</TD>
<TD>302lbs</TD>
<TD>335lbs</TD>
<TD>45lbs</TD>
<TD>30.79</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>39.7</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Cherita</TD>
<TD>175lbs</TD>
<TD>186lbs</TD>
<TD>14lbs</TD>
<TD>32.85</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>28.3</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Cheryl</TD>
<TD>145lbs</TD>
<TD>151lbs</TD>
<TD>13lbs</TD>
<TD>33.48</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>25.9</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Lance</TD>
<TD>254lbs</TD>
<TD>237lbs</TD>
<TD>28lbs</TD>
<TD>35.07</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>29.6</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Stephanie</TD>
<TD>141lbs</TD>
<TD>165lbs</TD>
<TD>3lbs</TD>
<TD>37.50</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>25.1</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Miggy</TD>
<TD>160lbs</TD>
<TD>149lbs</TD>
<TD>30lbs</TD>
<TD>37.92</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#00DD00>22.0</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>Victoria</TD>
<TD>202lbs</TD>
<TD>222lbs</TD>
<TD>18lbs</TD>
<TD>37.99</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>32.8</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Sam</TD>
<TD>235lbs</TD>
<TD>230lbs</TD>
<TD>6lbs</TD>
<TD>38.17</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>28.0</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Melissa</TD>
<TD>162lbs</TD>
<TD>143lbs</TD>
<TD>25lbs</TD>
<TD>38.63</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#00DD00>23.1</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Maria</TD>
<TD>148lbs</TD>
<TD>167lbs</TD>
<TD>63lbs</TD>
<TD>40.57</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>28.7</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>O'Neal</TD>
<TD>214lbs</TD>
<TD>230lbs</TD>
<TD>20lbs</TD>
<TD>40.87</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>32.1</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Sunshine</TD>
<TD>149lbs</TD>
<TD>161lbs</TD>
<TD>1lb</TD>
<TD>41.45</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>26.0</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Sherry</TD>
<TD>115lbs</TD>
<TD>119lbs</TD>
<TD>19lbs</TD>
<TD>45.41</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#00DD00>22.5</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>Darrell</TD>
<TD>215lbs</TD>
<TD>224lbs</TD>
<TD>69lbs</TD>
<TD>45.76</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>32.1</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD><B>Daris</B></TD>
<TD><B>174lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>178lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>19lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>48.55</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow><B>25.5</B></TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink><B>Ashley</B></TD>
<TD><B>186lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>191lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>22lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>48.93</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange><B>31.8</B></TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink><B>Michael</B></TD>
<TD><B>264lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>262lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>37lbs</B></TD>
<TD><B>50.19</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange><B>32.7</B></TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>Koli</TD>
<TD>198lbs</TD>
<TD>188lbs</TD>
<TD>30lbs</TD>
<TD>53.35</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#00DD00>24.8</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-84757028809314564852010-05-19T14:17:00.004-04:002010-05-19T14:27:17.553-04:00Road to glory<P>Night. Stadium lights illuminating the Final Four. They look mean but lean. Their mean faces (which I'm sure the producers instructed them to assume) dissolve as a big screen behind them starts showing flashbacks of themselves at the beginning of the journey. Koli wanted love but kept pushing women away because of his size; he didn't believe anyone could truly love someone so big. Ashley had a weight problem her whole life. She never felt beautiful. She wants to get married and have kids, but has to stop running. Daris's weight has always been there and he was eventually accepted for his weight. He's the fat kid walking into a fast food restaurant or hiding in his car eating fast food so no one will see him do it. Michael (on whom the stadium lighting is REALLY flattering, I must say) had so many goals and plans for himself that haven't come to pass. His weight is now so bad that his life is at stake; he wants to live.</P>
<P>Now the good news starts to roll. We see Koli's successes on the scale; Ashley's determination in the gym; Daris's strength in training and his first challenge win; Michael's challenge wins and scale triumphs. They smile watching themselves, although Ashley also tries to put on a pouty model face, oi. </P>
<P>The scene shifts to the end of last week's weigh in, right after Sunshine left. Ali congratulates them on becoming the Final Four. They're pretty stoked. Ali then sends them home for 30 days before the last weigh-in.</P>
<P>Group hug!</P>
<P>Everyone goes home to parties. They all appear to be in the exact same places as their first, public, weigh-ins. (Okay, except for Koli, who's in a gym - I guess the football field wasn't available today.) But this time, Michael is going with pride instead of embarrassment. Ashley wants to make people proud. Koli wants to wow his peeps. He's nervous. Daris makes his limo stop by the side of the road so he can look out over the broad Oklahoma farmlands before getting to the party.</P>
<P>Of course everyone goes absolutely wild when the Final Four arrive at their respectives fetes. It's all really, really moving. Love abounds. Vorklemptness is everywhere. The contestants' mothers are particularly overcome. Speaking of whom, Sherry looks terrific. So does Cheryl, she looks spectacular. Maria doesn't look that different, but we never really get a full-body shot of her to double-check.</P>
<P>But the joy doesn't end here, because the contestants each have to weigh in again at their homecoming parties, to demonstrate just how well they've done. Naturally these weigh-ins come with flashbacks to the originals. The scales have obviously been pre-programmed, because each contestant is exactly the same weight as they were in the weigh-in we saw last week. Of course the Final Four are a lot more proud and enthusiastic this time around on the scale. :) They interview about the contrast between then and now. Koli talks about his battle with depression, which his weight exacerbated; and his feelings of shame and embarrassment. But he feels great now - strong, like a winner. He tells the crowd that, as promised, he did better than Sione and Filipe from Season 7. His new promise is to win the whole show.</P>
<P>But hey, guess what. No sooner have they stepped off than Ali appears on the scale screen. She announces that the final challenge will be a full marathon...this time, without the bikes. Everyone who finishes this challenge gets to give $10K to the charity of their choice. Ali says that only a select few people have ever participated in this challenge, but all of them have completed it. "Will you?" she challenges before the screen goes snowy.</P>
<P>Surprisingly, we don't immediately get into the contestants freaking out over having to run 26.2 miles. Instead, it's time for Flashback Filler. To sum up: the contestants' lives all sucked when they were fat. Now they're strong and healthy and life is great.</P>
<P>Okay, there's a bit more to it than that. Firstly, Koli has a conversation with his dad over breakfast. Koli's dad is extremely non-communicative and undemonstrative, which probably explains a lot about Koli. However, today he is letting it all out. In an unemotional tone, he tells Koli stuff that the guy has been hoping to hear his whole life: His parents were always worried about him, and it hurt watching him struggle to do stuff like breathe; but they're both very proud of their son. Having received the affirmation from his all-important father figure that he has wanted to get since he was born, Koli...nods and responds totally unemotionally. GAWD! This is a stupid man thing, isn't it. Lord, can we not stop doing this to our sons?</P>
<P>Secondly, we need a product placement. Michael - who is taking the optimistic view that although he's still an overweight person, he's an overweight person who can run and hike and do stuff - wants to make meatballs and pasta with his family. But of course they have to do it the healthy way. How can we do that, Michael? How? Why, by using Jennie-O 99%-fat-free extra-lean ground turkey for the meatballs, OF COURSE. Maria is actually caught on camera rolling her eyes. :) Yes, gone are the days of putting breadcrumbs in meatballs and frying them. (FRYING them? Who the hell fries meatballs?) Now, they put chickpeas in them and bake them up. (Oh, MAN, that sounds good.) Michael's heavy sister Rosangela doesn't look tremendously confident about these changes, but too bad, here we go. Michael reflects on how good it is to keep the good Italian tradition of food, in a healthy way.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Cheryl needs to have a conversation with her son that juuuuust borders on icky as she basically tells him how smokin' hot he is. (I give her a free pass because, well, who can argue with her.) Daris wants to talk about the values of hard work that his parents have instilled in him and how he loves that, and he's really grateful for receiving that. Cheryl turns it around and gives him the credit for doing the hard work. She also says he's gone from being a boy to a man. Clearly she is absolutely delighted for him, and can't take her eyes off him and how gorgeous and smiley he is. Daris is really glad he's impressed her because his mom is important to him. It's a feel-good moment.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Ashley - who ran from her father's illness and her weight problems - is happy, happy, happy. Life is good, life is swell, she's happy and healthy, and she finally knows that this is what her dad always wanted for her.</P>
<P>But wait...turns out life is not always flowers and butterflies for our Pink lassie. She has the, like, omigawd, awful problem of a cellphone that doesn't stop ringing and flooding over with text messages. It's, like, sooo distracting! How will she balance her life here? (Well, chickie, try GETTING RID OF THE PHONE!) She tells her mom (who's looking pretty svelte) that she's planning to go out partying tonight. However! She's not planning to drink. This is something she used to do a lot: escaping the pain of her dad's death through alcohol. But now the thought makes her sick and she has made a decision to avoid that lifestyle, there are more important things to do in life. Sherry says this is a huge victory and is absolutely thrilled and relieved to hear it.</P>
<P>Okay, now we have to start thinking about training for this marathon thing coming up. Daris is completely stoked. He's discovered a love and talent for long-distance running, and wants to win this challenge commandingly. (Right, like anyone expects someone beside Daris to win it.) This is a stark contrast to the days when he avoided running trails completely because he was fat. Ashley is intimidated by the challenge, but thinks it's pretty cool to be training for a marathon. Michael is scared to death but reflects on how far he's come. He can't even imagine what it will be like to finish it, but he plans to get it done and be proud. (Also, there's still snow on the ground in Chicago.) </P>
<P>It's pretty daunting training for a marathon, though, so Ashley uses her omnipresent phone to call Michael and gab about it. She gripes about the craziness of being at home. It's not what Michael expected, either, and admits that he actually weighs more now, he's not losing weight. (Oh dear.) He's also bummed because just a few miles of running is wiping him out. "Ya wanna do it together?" he asks her. (It took a while into the conversation for it to become clear that they were talking about the actual marathon, not the training. Because people living over 500 miles apart can't actually train together.) "You and me, Mikey!" Ashley enthuses, and threatens to ride on his back to the finish line. He calls her Shortcake, she calls him Babe, leaving DH and I wondering if there's a little something something going on around here? </P>
<P>Enter Curtis Stone, to make good on Daris's prize from the last weigh-in. Daris remarks that he can't hang out the same way he used to, such as going to his favourite restaurant, "Budrow's", which doesn't serve the sort of food he should be eating now. (It's a rib joint.) What could we possibly do about that? Well, when you have a sexy Australian chef, a major television network, and thousands of sponsorship dollars behind you, you can convince the restaurant owners to let you do pretty much anything. Such as: putting a "Daris" section on the menu. (Yes, seriously.) So Curtis and Daris go shopping (at Kroger!) for the ingredients to let Curtis work his magic. He adds four new things to the restaurant's menu: spicy black bean soup (160 calories), smoked trout dip (240 calories), green bean salad (90 calories), and grilled pork tenderloin (300 calories). Gawd, it all looks amazing, I gotta say. I particularly wish I were eating that soup, boy howdy. At the restaurant, Daris and Curtis serve the new foods and everyone at the restaurant digs in. Even a very, VERY large dude sitting next to Daris says it tastes terrific.</P>
<P>Over in California, Koli and Sam go to their old bar to catch up with old friends. As nice as this is, though, Koli is feeling EXTREME PRESSURE from all the bombardment of love from friends and family! It destroys his focus! So he's having a hard time with the challenge of being at home. He grabs Sam and asks him how he's been coping. Sam has only been at home a week at this point, of course, so he hasn't figured it out, either. He does, however, advise Koli to focus on himself. So they leave the bar and plan for an early day in the gym. (Good plan.)</P>
<P>DH, with a look filled with meaning: "Are the THREE of them gonna work out together?" (He means Koli, Sam and Steph. Heh. That oughta be fun.)</P>
<P>HILARIOUS Jason Alexander commercial for Jenny Craig. There are no words. You must see it.</P>
<P>Roll out the home cams! It's 1am and Daris, resplendent in a wife-beater (urg), just got home (partying?) and decided to eat something because he's been stressed. Stressed about the marathon, stressed about weight loss, stressed about whether he'll find a girlfriend, etc. etc. (Stressed about finding a girlfriend? Hello? Huh? Why is this the ultimate goal at this stage of the competition?) He knows that he's doing the same thing he's always done: eat when he's stressed, because it makes him feel good. And yet, he does it anyway. Snacking now, he's had twice the amount of calories he's had all day, feels like crap, and then...eats some more. So he backslid. He knows this is not the way to make himself feel better, but...he does it anyway. (To be fair, the calories he's sucking back at least look like decent ones; cereal and nuts and something that could be bread or chicken, that kind of thing.)</P>
<P>Ouch.</P>
<P>In response to the bombardment of attention from friends and family, Koli is driving to Vegas in order to focus. Really? VEGAS is the place to go to avoid DISTRACTION?!? Oh, wait, apparently there are gyms in Vegas. This one is a mixed martial arts facility, where a buddy of his works, who's training him. It's very intense. His life right now is to work out, go home and sleep, and then repeat the cycle the next day. DH reflects that Koli's not really learning how to live his life here, he's running away from it; going from one plastic bubble to another.</P>
<P>But fear not, help is on the way! Bob and Jillian are out in the wildernesses of Illinois, Oklahoma, Vegas, and Tennesse, hunting down their elusive Losers. They are expecting their peeps to be surprised. In Illinois, Bob is even disguised by driving a pizza delivery van. (No one will suspect!) Michael is out for a run when Bob pulls up and blocks his path. Michael thinks this is hilarious. In Tennessee, Ashley answers her front door to find Jillian. On the west coast, Bob meets Koli at his gym. "Why am I in Las Vegas?" he asks Koli. "Because I wanted to gamble and eat the buffets," Koli banters. :) The hardest person to find is Daris, who's out for a run. Jillian actually uses a HELICOPTER to find him. She complains about what she goes through for her people. Oh, the humanity of her life. Having to take a helicopter ride over a gorgeous vista of vast plains and running horses. Someone put her out of her misery by shooting her now.</P>
<P>It's time to talk about the challenges and downside of being at home. Michael is feeling good...sort of. Just okay. He's getting his workouts in, harder, he says, than at the ranch. Bob calls him on this crap by immediately saying, "You're not." :) They head over to Michael's place where, doubtless, there will be some Deep Talks and some Hugging It Out. Once there, things take a little twist and we see the real reason Bob has come: Michael's sister Rosangela is this year's Max Morelli. She feels like she doesn't fit in, even into her family, which feels awful. It's basically like a mini-intervention for her. Bob wants her to decide that she's worth it enough, and that her next step is asking for help.</P>
<P>(We do finally get a decent body shot of Maria, though - she looks pretty good!)</P>
<P>Jillian's still in her damn helicopter. "There's a whole lotta nothing out there," she tells us. (No there isn't, that's where they GROW YOUR DAMN FOOD, chickie!) Finally, Daris comes into her sights and she gets the helicopter to land. Cue Wagner's Flight of the Valkyries, for some bizarre reason. (DH: "Yeah, she is a bit of a Valkyrie.") Daris is so surprised that he SWEARS. He can't believe she helicoptered in to see him. They hold hands and walk down the road while he skates vaguely around how he's doing. Fortunately, Jillian recognizes that, for a generally quiet and internal guy like Daris, this translates into not-so-great news.</P>
<P>Back to Koli. Why isn't he at home? Because it's crazy there. Won't it still be crazy when he goes back after the show? Well, yeah, but Koli won't have the show to win when he gets back after the finale. WARNING! This is classic show-winner mentality, Bob tells us, and is very concerned. He needs to know that Koli isn't going to do the same thing as people like Erik Chopin: focus exclusively on winning the finale and then regress once the pressure's off. Koli says he knows Bob's concerned, but he really is committed to stay healthy, this focus is really just for right now. I guess we can only wait and see.</P>
<P>More home cams:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Koli: The weight is not dropping as fast as he wants, although it is going along. The big problem is that he lives with a bunch of college guys. He's constantly surrounded by burgers and pizza.
<LI>Ashley: She went out partying and is feeling a little guilty. Then her phone rings while she's interviewing and we have to fast forward to when she can get back to the camera. Also, she has a cold, but she's still out until midnight. Oh well, live and learn. (Chickie! TURN OFF YOUR DAMN PHONE!!! Why are people calling you at midnight?!?)
</UL>
<P>With all this struggling-at-home bad news, it's time to infuse the Final Four with a little ranch-style dressing down. (See what I did there? Heh.) Bob and Jillian take their people through their paces at the gym. Ashley loves how Jillian is forcing her to realise what she's doing. Michael had forgotten how psychotic Bob can get in the gym. :) Jillian ends off the Ashley workout with a big ol' smack on her bum.</P>
<P>As we get closer to Marathon Day, we get more home cams:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Michael: 3 days until the return to the ranch, and he's been trying to walk 20 miles at a time. Looks like he uses his feet to do errands instead of taking a car.
<LI>Ashley: She wants to see how well they've all done at home.
<LI>Koli: He's packing. He does look smaller. He says he thinks he's done everything he can.
<LI>Daris: Looks like he's been overtraining for the marathon, and now he's wearing a knee brace. Yeesh. Looks like that's gonna screw with his chances to kill the challenge.
</UL>
<P>And finally...we're back! It's Marathon Day! Hugs of greeting. And it's raining. Oh, that so sucks. Koli tells us it's also freezing cold, which is even worse. "At least it won't be hot!" chirps Little Miss Pink Sunshine. But Koli finds this pretty scary. Daris reminds us that the top time to beat for this challenge (Tara, Season 7, natch) is four hours and fifty-five minutes. He wants to beat that, knee or no knee.</P>
<P>Ali starts us off, but not before informing us that the charitable donation prize money comes from the makers of the Biggest Loser fitness game for the Wii. (I have lost track of the number of product placements we've had so far.) And...they're...OFF!</P>
<P>Koli feels good. He's going to try to keep up with Daris. Behind Koli, all Michael sees is an orange blur. :) Also, he wants to throw up. Further on in the race, Koli isn't able to see Michael and Ashley behind him anymore, they're way back behind. But it looks like they're having a great time; they're ridiculously upbeat and chipper. They even hug and, according to DH, kiss (!!!) while running out of pure exuberance. (What drugs are they taking, because I want some.) Daris, even with the knee thing, is way out in front. He wants to do the best; this has been his goal for a long time. Michael and Ashley stop running and walk. Koli is still running, but slowly. Daris, of course, never stops. Koli reflects on how, five months ago, he was on the couch doing nothing, really. This indicates to him that ANYBODY can do it. That's some good inspiration for the people at home.</P>
<P>And then - the sun comes out! This is definitely cheering, especially for Daris. Nice day for a run!</P>
<P>Koli is really struggling, and starts talking to himself to keep himself motivated running up a hill. He just does NOT want to stop running. Ashley and Michael start having an unbelievably saccharine "Any happiness you can point out, I can point out happier" contest. Ashley reminds Michael that they were the biggest man and woman in the house at the start, and here they are, Final Four, doing a freakin' marathon! (That is pretty awesome, I have to say.) Michael counters by saying he's in the best shape of his life and feels great. Ashley ups the ante by saying she loves living a healthy life and now she's truly happy, not just pretending, like she was before. At mile 9, Koli has not stopped running. Michael, meanwhile, says they're doing great with their time. He feels damn good about himself. Daris passes some running horses. (Heh. Must remind him of home.) He's amazed at how good he feels. Koli has never run this fast before.</P>
<P>If this gets any more cloying, I'm going to throw up. (Spot the reference, David Eddings fans.)</P>
<P>But all this running does wear on people, especially first-time marathoners, I would imagine. So, as is traditional, around the halfway point, the show brings out surprises for the contestants. Daris is the first to the halfway point, and waiting for him is Matt Hoover, the winner of Season 2. Matt is another former contestant who has put a lot of weight back on. However, he seems to be keeping himself fit still - in last season's "where are they now" show, he was just two or three minutes shy of a qualifying time in an Iron Man, which is an amazing accomplishment. Unfortunately, it looks like he's put on even more weight since then. :( He's still able to run with Daris, though, so that's something.</P>
<P>At his halfway point, Koli is in a lot of pain, but is buoyed by the surprise of Sione, his inspiration for going on the Biggest Loser, waiting for him! That is a nice surprise! Until...it becomes evident that Sione's put on a lot of weight again. :( Nevertheless, he's here to run. He and Koli do a quick hug and start running together.</P>
<P>Ashley and Michael need inspiration a little earlier than the halfway point, so they get their surprises at Mile 11. Michael is expecting their moms, but nope! Ashley gets a fellow Pink Sister, the Season 5 winner, Ali Vincent! As always, she looks awesome. She and Ashleyi Pink it out. :) For Mike, there's a huge surprise, it's Mike Morelli, Season 7 finalist! It's absolutely wonderful to see Mike again, but it's going to destroy my ability to recap this section of the show. :) Two Italian Biggest Loser Mikes? I'm screwed. Okay, let's use colour to differentiate. White Michael is absolutely stoked and delighted to see Brown Michael. Two Italians? How surreal! He freaks out, seeing Brown Mike gives him a total energy boost. He's utterly star-struck, it's soooo cute! And speaking of cute, Brown Mike is still gorgeous and has kept practically all the weight off. (He's a freshman in college; he's done really well to maintain such a good weight.)</P>
<P>So everyone's energy is cranked up. Daris likes having Matt run with him. Matt advises him that most people find Mile 20 is the hardest. Ironically, though, at Mile 20, Matt peels off. "Thank you, Matt!" Daris yells as he flies on. (Okay, not bad, seven miles of keeping up with Daris; Matt's fitness must be pretty good.) Michael has real problems between Mile 15 and 20. Things are getting really painful. But he is determined to dig down and do it. Brown Michael advises him that you don't have to win the show to be a winner; White Michael already has his life back. </P>
<P>There's more running, and tons more retrospectives.</P>
<P>What's really cool this season is that there seems to be more of a public awareness that the marathon is happenng. Random people clap for Michael as he goes by, which jazzes him, and he expresses thanks. He also flashes the American Sign Language for "I love you" a whole bunch. "You're almost there!" screams a woman with a baby as Daris runs by. Cars beep their horns in support all over the place. That's all pretty awesome. Let's hear it for random Californians.</P>
<P>Back to Daris. We start hearing about his real goal here at the marathon. Not only does he want to win; not only does he want to beat Tara's record time; he wants to do it all in four hours. Um. That's REALLY ambitious! But he wants to be a real marathon runner. And he's by the ocean now, seeing dolphins play. (That is so cool.) His sister Micky meets him at Mile 25 and runs with him for a bit. But he really wants that four-hour time and decides to go for it. He takes off, leaving her behind. "Go for it!" she yells at him, "oh mah gawd!" She is amazed. As am I - he's really running HARD and he's at the end of the freakin' marathon! As is traditional, they throw in that extra bit of torture right at the end by making them do the last stretch on sand. As hard as it has to be, he keeps running towards the finish line. His final time is 4:02:12. That's unbelievably awesome!</P>
<P>Sione may be big, but his fitness is obviously okay because he's still running with Koli by the time they get to the coastline stretch. Good for him! And it gets better - at Mile 24, Sione insists on a faster pace.</P>
<P>Michael is at the end of the pack. He wants to know how far ahead Ashley is, because they promised to finish together. So he and Brown Mike pick it up. White Michael isn't sure where he got the energy and power to do that, but catch up he does, which is amazing. "Your hot male escorts have arrived!" he announces. (That is AWESOMELY hilarious.) Ashley is really glad he caught up to her. </P>
<P>At Mile 25, Sione and Koli are still going strong, and Koli's sister shows up to run the last stretch with him! This is emotional for Koli - not only is his sister there, but he's really close to the finish. "This is the fun part," Sione announces as they hit Mile 26 and head for the sand. With the finish line in sight, Koli really picks it up. I mean, REALLY picks it up. I can't believe he's doing that over sand. His final time is 6:08:09. He's pushed himself incredibly hard, though - he's making unstoppable whimpery sounds and Dr. H has to come over to advise him to keep moving for a bit. </P>
<P>As the last group walks along the coastline, Ali advises Ashley and White Michael that she and Brown Mike will be behind them, but will let them finish first because this is something they have to do themselves. Ashley barely pays attention to this, she is on a mondo runner's high. "Woo! You can do it too!" she screams at the people watching them from the beach. The good times keep rolling at Mile 25, because Ashley's brother, resplendent in pink, is waiting for her. She starts to cry and run when she sees him. Michael starts running too - his sister Maria Stella is his Mile 25 prize! (Seriously. Rosangela, Maria Stella, and...Michael? Not Adalberto? Marcoantonio? Severiano? How come he didn't get a multi-syllable Italian name? Shafted!) Ashley's brother means the absolute world to her and she breaks down completely upon seeing him. For Michael, Maria Stella really pushed him at home, so it's great for him to have her here now. Ashley and Michael run on the sand. RUN. Cue the moving music. Their final time is 6:26:18. Seriously? Two clinically obese people doing a marathon in under six and a half hours?!? That's awesome. </P>
<P>This is GOOD TV, people!</P>
<P>Some time later, once everyone's had a chance to catch their breath and, no doubt, be examined by an anxious-looking Dr., H, it's...giant cheques for everybody! Alliance for a Healthier Generation (Daris), Beast Cancer Research Foundation (Michael) and two other payees that we never get to see, but I'm sure they're good causes.</P>
<P>Final weigh-in before the finale. "This is it," Ali confirms. The two people with the highest percentages will be guaranteed a spot in the finals. The two people under the yellow line will, as is now traditional, be at the mercy of the viewing audience - America will vote which one goes on.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Ashley and Koli dropped below 225lbs
<LI>Michael dropped below 300lbs
<LI>Ashley hit the 150lb mark of total loss
<LI>Koli hit the 175lb mark of total loss
<LI>Michael hit the 225lb mark of total loss
<LI>Koli went from being obese to overweight
<LI>Michael went from being morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Ashley and Michael hit the 40% mark of total loss
<LI>Koli hit the 45% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>Michael breaks down and cries at being under 300lbs. He has never done that in his adult life, no matter how he tried or what he did. So he feels wonderful about that accomplishment. Koli's weight loss doesn't measure up to Michael's and Ashley's, though, and he's under the yellow line, which I don't think has ever happened to him before. He admits he was too focused at home and couldn't celebrate the small victories, but that's hard for him. Ashley tops them all and inspires Daris to say some really wonderful things about her strength. He recalls the first week on the ranch that it was very obvious she knew who she was, and he wanted that for himself. He thinks she's amazing, and that she's helped him. "You mean a lot to me, girl," he says, with tears in his eyes. She loves it. :)</P>
<P>Um...holy fuck, where the hell did that come from? I'm not complaining, it's wonderful, but...does this Mean Anything, or was Daris just opening up? They didn't show Michael's face throughout all of that, either, so I couldn't tell whether he looked jealous/outraged/happy/neutral/whatever. Is it just me, or are Romantic Possibilities cropping up everywhere?</P>
<P>And speaking of Daris, he delivers the biggest shocker of the night - a 2lb gain. He tries to explain this away by saying that he concentrated on training for the marathon instead of losing weight. My first reaction is that this makes no sense. I don't seem to be the only one, either. Ali nods sagely like she understands, but her face is saying, "I don't know if I buy that." Surprisingly though, the first person to call bullshit is Bob. Then Jillian gets in on the action and says that she knows that Daris knows that there are other things going on, and he has to face it, not go into denial. "We all fall down," she tells him, but points out that after that, you have to get up and keep going again, and that everyone expects that from him. He nods, clearly upset with himself. Jillian interviews that Daris has obviously just been eating too much. (Wait until she sees the home cam binge footage, she's going to go ballistic.)</P>
<P>Regardless of Daris's backslide, I don't think Koli has a chance in hell against him in a popularity contest, which is what the vote of course is. Daris is:</P>
<UL>
<LI>super-nice and sweet and cute
<LI>extremely popular
<LI>not focused on the superficial goal of winning
<LI>without a single instance of gameplay this whole season
<LI>honest and non-manipulative
</UL>
<P>Add in the extra whammies that Daris is white and from The South, and you have yourself a winner with American reality show voting audiences. Koli's toast. But they have to plead their cases anyway, so here we go.</P>
<P>Koli admits that being in this position is a very humbling experience. He talks about hard work having been his mantra - stay above the yellow line, and you don't need to worry about votes. Yet, here he is. It's hard for him to ask for things, but he begs for the chance to get that confetti. He leaves it up to the people. He hopes that if he has inspired or touched us in any way, that we can give him our vote. He is sincere, but not really humble.</P>
<P>Daris has to admit that he gained 2lbs, and he's not proud of it. He guesses that Jillian's right in that he sabotaged himself. The tears begin. He says that at home, he would stay up and eat after doing fine all day long. He's not proud of that. DH: "He's still hurting inside." He asks for a second chance and lets out a deep breath before expressing gratitude. That was some seriously sincere humble pie.</P>
<P>Ali uses 'whom' correctly in a sentence as she asks people to vote. The vote, by the way, is sponsored by Yoplait. Product placement to the bitter end, people! If you're in the contiguous United States, you can vote until 12pm the day before the finale.</P>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS and predictions)</H4>
<P>TV Guide: <I>After viewer votes determine the third finalist, the winner of the $250,000 prize is crowned in the Season 9 finale. The eliminated players also return to weigh in for the $100,000 at-home prize, and former contestants share their weight-loss progress since leaving the show.</I>
<P>(Those former players, as we learned in last season's finale, will be Shay from Season 8 and Erik, the Season 3 winner who gained a lot of his weight back. But I'm hoping we see other alums, too.)</P>
<P>Here's how I think things are going to fall out next week on the live show. Projected finalists' names are in bold. Background colours on names show what their BMI category was to start with; background colours on BMIs show what their projected BMI category will be at the finale. Colour legend:</P>
<UL>
<LI>grey = underweight
<LI>green = healthy
<LI>yellow = overweight
<LI>orange = obese
<LI>red = clinically obese
<LI>purple = morbidly obese
<LI>pink = super-obese
</UL>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=3 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH>%age</TH>
<TH>Name</TH>
<TH>BMI</TH>
<TH>Weight</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD>29.22</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Patti</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>29.5</TD>
<TD>172lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>30.19</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Migdalia</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>27.3</TD>
<TD>185lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>30.41</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Lance</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>31.7</TD>
<TD>254lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>30.47</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Melissa</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>26.1</TD>
<TD>162lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>32.55</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Andrea</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>31.5</TD>
<TD>201lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>33.33</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Miggy</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=green>23.6</TD>
<TD>160lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>36.12</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>Cheryl</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=green>24.9</TD>
<TD>145lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>36.82</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Cherita</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>26.6</TD>
<TD>175lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>36.83</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Sam</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>28.6</TD>
<TD>235lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>37.60</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>John</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=red>35.8</TD>
<TD>302lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>40.62</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>James</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>34.1</TD>
<TD>288lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>43.58</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>Victoria</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>29.8</TD>
<TD>202lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>44.99</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>O'Neal</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>29.8</TD>
<TD>214lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>45.82</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Sunshine</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=green>24.0</TD>
<TD>149lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>46.59</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Stephanie</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=green>21.4</TD>
<TD>141lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>47.25</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Sherry</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=green>21.7</TD>
<TD>115lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>47.33</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD>Maria</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>25.4</TD>
<TD>148lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>47.94</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>Darrell</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange>30.8</TD>
<TD>215lbs</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD><B>49.71</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=#DD00DD><B>Daris</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow><B>25.0</B></TD>
<TD><B>174lbs</B></TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD><B>49.81</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink><B>Michael</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange><B>33.0</B></TD>
<TD><B>264lbs</B></TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD><B>50.27</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink><B>Ashley</B></TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=orange><B>30.9</B></TD>
<TD><B>186lbs</B></TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD>50.87</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=pink>Koli</TD>
<TD BGCOLOR=yellow>26.1</TD>
<TD>198lbs</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>
<P>Prediction is Ashley for grand prize (maintaining the tradition of Pink never having failed to win a prize in American Biggest Loser history), Koli for at-home prize. So technically, I think Koli stands a good chance of making good on his promise to "win the show" by getting the biggest percentage of weight loss out of everyone. But to get the grand $250K prize he has to win the vote, and I just don't think there's any way he's going to do that.</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (7.79)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (45.91)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (23)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (227)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (28.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (7.14)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (43.16)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (18)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (185)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (28.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (5.63)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (43.06)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (161)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (35.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (-1.03)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (43.05)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (-2)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (149)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (37.4)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-21463760412069154212010-05-13T14:46:00.000-04:002010-05-13T14:46:56.023-04:00Geez, don't you people ever get sick of saying "Final Four"?<P>Moon.</P>
<P>Night.</P>
<P>Mist rising from the swimming pool.</P>
<P>Looks like we're in for a deep and meaningful conversation. It appears to be right after the elimination, and Michael is expressing his appreciation and debt to Ashley and Daris, whose votes were responsible for keeping Michael around and giving Sam the boot. Ashley tells him that all he has to do to show his gratitude is pay it forward. She expects him to vote with their three-way alliance next week.</P>
<P>(Given the way the producers obviously think, showing Ashley saying this probably means that Michael will be breaking ranks and betraying her and Daris this week.)</P>
<P>Michael reflects on how the three of them have gone from being the underdogs to the alpha dogs. Ashley reminds us that this is the do-or-die week: one more person is going to be eliminated, and then we're into that goal of goals, the Final Four. And because the "outsider" alliance of Ashley, Daris and Michael has superior numbers over the Grey/Yellow alliance, as long as at least one Grey/Yellow person is below the yellow line, everybody in the outsider alliance will be safe.</P>
<P>Koli, meanwhile, is shellshocked at the ousting of Sam. He thinks the logic of keeping Michael around is just dumb, because of what a huge threat Michael is in terms of what a big percentage of weight loss he can ultimately lose. Sunshine comes to visit Koli in his room and expresses the same opinion. Koli reflects that the outsider alliance just took a Final Four spot away from themselves, because he himself is going to be above the yellow line this week, and he plans to take Sunshine with him, so one of the outsiders will be gone. Koli then interviews that Michael is his strongest competitor and now there's a fire lit under him. He wants to win the whole show, and believes his opponents have created an animal.</P>
<P>DH: "You still have to deal with Daris, boys."</P>
<P>A new day dawns, and Ali greets the contestants as they walk outside. She immediately annihilates everyone's strategic plans for the week by announcing that there will be no yellow line this week, and no vote. Yes, this week there's just a single red line, and the one person who falls below it will be automatically gone. Alliances are irrelevant.</P>
<P>Koli smirks. Ashley looks pissed. Michael looks terrified. Ashley can't believe it. Her alliance FINALLY has the voting numbers to give them the upper hand, and it's been rendered totally useless. (Thus demonstrating the real reason we were shown that clip of Ashley instructing Michael to pay it forward - to highlight the irony that he's not going to be able to do so!) Koli, however, loves this news, of course. He also anticipates serious tension in the house as a result. Michael interviews that he doesn't want to have come so far in the competition and go home empty-handed. He believes he deserves a chance. Sunshine just sits there looking gorgeous, with a shrewd look on her face.</P>
<P>But enough with the gameplay discussions - Ali has some visitors to spring on the contestants. First, we have Helen Phillips, the oldest grand prize winner in Biggest Loser history, from Season 7. She looks great. She's obviously put on a little weight, but since she was verging frighteningly close to an underweight BMI at her finale, that's a good thing. Ashley loves Helen. (That's because she's almost indistinguishable from your mom!) Helen, for her part, is happy to be back.</P>
<P>Our next visitor is the Season 3 winner, Erik Chopin. As has been widely publicized, he is fat again. However, although there's always tons of talk about how he "gained all the weight back", he never did. He gained a lot back, true, but never got as bad as he originally was at the start of his season. The good news is that he's been working on it, doing a lot of soul-searching as well for the reasons behind his regain, and he's lost 70lbs. That's great! Sunshine, though, is confused about his situation. How could he gain so much weight back? She's looking forward to hearing what he's gone through to get a better idea of his story. Erik assures the contestants that they don't want to do this process twice. Ashley tells us that she definitely doesn't want to be in Erik's position.</P>
<P>Ali sods off to give the champions some alone time with the contestants. Erik starts telling them about tell-tale signs which are warnings that they're on the path to regaining weight. He gives them some really good things to watch for, such as associating food with good times and giving yourself "passes" as excuses, that sort of thing. Helen then gets them to break off and talk one-on-one. Naturally, as a former Pink team member, she insists on taking Ashley first. :) Ashley is stoked because she has tons of questions for Helen. Ashley has realised that she needs a lifelong game plan to keep the weight off. They talk about wine and partying. Ashley wants to know what to do about the fact that her friends and family still have this party-hardy lifestyle while she's trying to be good about her health. Helen recommends sitting these people down and telling them that she's on a journey, this is her life, and she has to live it right.</P>
<P>Daris knows he's going to have struggles at home. He's single and thinks that'll be a distraction, because the dating scene could be tempting in terms of food and alcohol and whatnot. He tears up in an interview about not ever having been able to find someone to love him...including HIMSELF. That's a big thing he's gotten out of this process - he loves himself. And now he's going to go looking for someone who can love him, too. Awww. That's really, REALLY sweet.</P>
<P>Sunshine talks to Helen about going to the gym after the finale. What's that going to be like? Once the finale's over, will she have the same drive to work out? Will she let herself down? Helen reveals that she felt the same way. She started working out too much after the finale, thinking that she had to continue the same intensity at home as she did at the ranch. She had a lot of fear. Then she realised that she should be in maintenance mode, she no longer had to do 6-8 hours of working out each day. If you're eating properly, she tells Sunshine, working out just an hour a day is okay.</P>
<P>Koli tells Erik that he's having a hard time at the moment because finale is all he's thinking about right now. Erik says yup, that was him at this stage in his own season. Erik tells Koli that he looks great. (True.) Koli reflects that sometimes, being so strong now and looking so much better, that it's easy to think 'I'm so strong, the issues that got me fat aren't going to affect me anymore,' but he's realising that they actually could. Erik's big concern is that right now, Koli is so totally focused on winning. That's fine, Erik tells him, but you have to remember that the finale isn't a finish line. There's stuff beyond that. He hopes some of his message is sinking in. For his part, Koli's really happy he met Erik.</P>
<P>Michael has asked to talk to both Helen and Erik together, so of course, they oblige, leaving him a little star-struck. He tells them his starting weight and his current (much lighter) weight. However, he's very frustrated because everyone's putting emphasis on the weight he's lost, when all he can see is where he needs to go. It's upsetting to him that his finish line is so far away, and what's making it harder is that all his fellow competitors are so close to their finish lines. (I'm not sure why he's glossing over the fact that Ashley has a rather whopping 88lbs to go before she hits a healthy weight, but anyhoo.) Michael's even getting anxiety just talking to them, because he's feeling pressure to go and work out. He starts tearing up. Erik tells him not to get caught up in the whole 'how much left to lose' thing. (Yes. Brilliant advice there, Erik. Just switch off the worrying! Why didn't I think of that before?) Helen assures Michael that he will be able to find the balance he needs. Michael starts crying and Helen can't help but hug him. She's a mom, after all. Neither of them, however, have solved Michael's problem. "Who leaves a reality show about weight loss and is still obese?" he vents. Helen and Erik tell him that he can't start thinking like that. Michael admits in an interview that he's getting kind of neurotic about this issue. (Ya think?)</P>
<P>Next, everyone's in the gym starting to work out on the treadmills, and Bob and Jillian arrive. They seem to want to have A Talk with everyone, because they make them get off their treadmills and line up in front of them so they can hear what happened at elimination. But Bob, Yoga Man, with his Super Emotion Sensing Powers, quickly turns the conversation to something else. "There's so much tension in this room, what's going on?" he asks. The trainers are promptly told about the red line. Ah. That explains the tension. "Boy," is Bob's response. (Deep.)</P>
<P>Koli assures the trainers that there's no actual animosity, it's just pure tension. "This air is thick in here," confirms Bob. Ashley agrees. Daris says that he knows Koli isn't happy with the decision to boot Sam, and nobody expects him to be. This statement is delivered with honesty and understanding. In return for this consideration, Koli gets completely snitty. He goes off on Daris and the rest of his alliance about how they shouldn't try to guess what he's feeling. (Dude, guessing what people are feeling based on situations and reactions is what humans do ALL THE TIME, including YOU in a moment, wait for it.) Then Koli starts making the censors earn their pay as he talks about how badly he wants to be in the Final Four. Wow. It's just a tirade that seems to come from nowhere, and it makes him look kind of nasty. What the hell. I'm not the only one who's surprised by this, either. Bob's eyes narrow, and Jillian is obviously really flustered about it. "Oooookay..." she says, and suggests that they just get right down to the beatings. Great idea.</P>
<P>It is immediately obvious that Michael is not on his A-game. Koli, however, is, boxing hard with Jillian. Bob tries to get Michael to focus, and just keeps going on and on and on about how far Michael has come. Michael is just not buying it. Yes, it's nice he's lost all that weight, and wow, but he's still FAT. Bob isn't listening and keeps trying to get Michael to celebrate his success instead of looking so far into the future that he can't appreciate what he's already done. I get increasingly frustrated watching this because nobody is telling Michael what I think he's needed to hear for about two weeks. And that is this:</P>
<P>Nobody can get from 526lbs to 250lbs without first going through the 334lbs point. That's where you are now, and that means that you're doing it. Really DOING it! This moment is you IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING IT HAPPEN. You're getting hung up at the moment on where you are and how much there is left to do because this is a long journey and you're getting tired, but that's to be expected. If you focus on the finish line you'll just get discouraged and it will sabotage you. What you need to do to get through this rough spot is to focus only on what you can do NEXT. Then once that's done, focus on the next thing after that. And so on. But you are doing it. THIS IS WHAT DOING IT LOOKS LIKE. Just keep going.</P>
<P>(My first daughter was born after over 44 hours of labour with absolutely no pain-relieving drugs. So I know a little bit about long, arduous, seemingly insurmountable slogs. If you've come a long way, and have a long way yet to go, and you place your focus on the finish line, you're SCREWED. At that point in the game, you have to keep your head down and concentrate only on what you can do next, or the process will beat you.)</P>
<P>Alas, however, no one in the gym with Michael is me, so Bob just keeps making things worse. He actually tells Michael that he's been singing Michael's praises around the country and that people will be looking to Michael for inspiration.</P>
<P>Yeah.</P>
<P>Have you ever seen that episode of Cheers where Sam and Rebecca are trying to have a baby, and Sam's having a problem getting it up for the baby-making sex because it's no longer dirty and sexy; whereas Rebecca (because they never actually communicate with each other) thinks his hang-up is due to not fully appreciating the wonder and glory of having sex for baby-making purposes? So what ends up happening is that Sam is trying to think sexy and dirty thoughts and Rebecca won't shut up about babybabybaby. Finally, in desperation, she suggests that they get down on their knees and thank God for the gift of conception that he is about to bless them with. This is, OF COURSE, the absolute WORST thing she could possibly have said and Sam lets out a roar of frustration.</P>
<P>Yeah. That scene.</P>
<P>Well, Bob's 'you will be an inspiration to a nation of millions' speech is exactly the same sort of thing. The WORST thing he could possibly have said. The opposite of what Michael needed to hear. Unsurprisingly, Michael loses it completely, bashes around a few machines to let out his feelings, and storms out of the gym, slamming the door behind him. It's a rather impressive temper tantrum, actually. Normally I have intense contempt when people go in for that sort of behaviour, but in Michael's case I'm thinking it was actually pretty justified.</P>
<P>Emotionally tormenting Michael doesn't end there, though, oh, no. He wants to walk it off away from the guy who's making things worse, and Bob is having none of it. Bob follows him out and demands that they talk it out. What the HELL is going on, he asks. Michael feels ashamed. He feels that everything is against him, just like it has been his whole life. Wow! What a great opener to help Michael discover his deeper issues! Does Bob jump on it? Of course not. He simply doesn't want the pain to get the best of Michael.</P>
<P>Sigh.</P>
<P>Moving on...</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-17-koli-and-bobs-talk/1226880/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Bob and Koli talk about the elimination and how Koli feels. Koli thinks that Daris, Michael and Ashley are walking on eggshells around him because they think he's mad at them. (Hold on, wait...Koli, did you just...GUESS HOW SOMEONE WAS FEELING? Oh, look at that!) But he actually isn't mad at them, he gets why they did what they did, he just thinks it was stupid. He thinks they should be concentrating on keeping themselves above the yellow line instead of worrying about voting power. But he also brings up something Sam said at the elimination - that Koli is a champion in his heart, and that making Final Four or winning the whole competition or whatever doesn't change the fact that Koli is a champion, and that Sam sees him as such. Koli reflects that he has indeed been using the achievement of hitting Final Four as a measuring stick for himself, and thinking that if he doesn't make it, he's worth nothing. But now he's seeing it differently - if he doesn't win, hey, he's still lost a lot of weight, and that's great. He still wants to win, though. :) Bob approves of this attitude shift, but warns Koli about Erik's story. Erik was so focused on the finale that he had no goals beyond it, and lost focus. Bob then gives Koli all kinds of compliments about his strength and potential. Koli feels the conversation helped him not only focus, but also calm down. (Thank goodness.)</P>
<P>Sunshine notes, rather unnecessarily since I think all of us had already figured it out, that "Final Four" is the focus of this week. It's all anyone is thinking about. (Unfortunately for audience interest, it's all anyone is TALKING about, either.) Daris also has the blinkers on in this regard. Ashley vows to make good on her promise to sneak up like a ninja on everyone's asses. :) Michael is glad he let his emotions out earlier because now he feels like he can breathe, and is more centred. Well, that's something.</P>
<P>This week's challenge looks long and gruelling. It should also look familiar. We've come to the point in the competition where the challenge theme is "put the weight back on", and apparently, viewers got to vote this season on which manifestation of this kind of challenge they wanted to see. So we've gone back in time to Season 7, where everyone has to climb over 16 hills of sand (representing 16 weeks of ranch time), carrying a backpack with 16 packages of various weights inside, each package representing the weight lost for each week. (I'm not sure how this thing works for Sunshine, who wasn't on the ranch for the first 30 days, but that's never really explained.) The backpacks, incidentally, are emblazoned on the outside with a picture of themselves all fat on Day One. As they get to each hill, they get to drop a package of weight symbolising their loss for that week.</P>
<P>Daris wants to win. I'm sure he wants to win even more when Ali reveals that the prize is ten thousand dollars. (Cue the Doctor Evil finger on the lips.) But of course this challenge is also an emotional retrospective journey. To start with, it's going to suck having to carry around all that weight again. Sunshine's backpack contains 97lbs, Ashley's 136lbs, Daris's 141lbs, Koli's 159lbs, and of course Michael's 192lbs. Michael is not happy. He doesn't want to deal with that weight anymore. (I don't blame him.) Although actually, he says "no more". (His grammar has totally gone to hell this week.) Koli looks at the picture of himself on the backpack and can't believe how fat he was.</P>
<P>DH says his money is on Daris, and sure enoughk, Daris takes the lead right off the bat, with Sunshine and Koli close behind him. Koli reflects on his wildly successful Week 1, when he lost 29lbs. Michael says this is an awesome reminder of how miserable he was. By the time we get to Week 5, Daris is still in the lead. He remembers how good his 12lb loss that week was, and it feels just as good to throw it out of his pack. Ashley grunts makng her way up the Week 4 hill, it's a real struggle for her. She can't believe she had that weight on her. No wonder she was miserable, she reflects. It's the same misery she felt while struggling on that hill.</P>
<P>Daris just keeps making it to each hill first, time after time, and after he throws out his Week 13 weight, he starts to really motor. Once the Week 15 hill has been taken care of, he has only 9lbs left, and runs all the way up the big hill. This challenge is obviously his, he's way out in front all by himself. He hits the finish line and then roars as he tosses his bag over the edge. He's hoping he also get rid of a little emotional baggage in the process.</P>
<P>The wonderful surprise is that Sunshine reaches the finish line SECOND! Good for her! Koli's not far behind, though - they throw their bags over the edge simultaneously, Koli promising never to see the 400lb him ever again. Sunshine says it felt so good saying goodbye to her old self.</P>
<P>Daris, grand guy that he is, runs back to help Ashley and Michael, who are still struggling over the hills. They're also helping each other, as they're both really stuck. Koli and Sunshine also go back, but to offer mostly moral support, it looks like. Despite their struggles, Ashley and Michael make it to the end and feel good about the journey. Ashley reflects that she's just not the same person anymore. Michael tells us that we all have the common denominator of getting healthy and bettering our lives. "NEVER AGAIN!" he cries as he tosses out his bag. This makes him feel a lot better. He likes to think that the bag took all his pain and anger with it over the edge.</P>
<P>Top dog today, of course, is Daris. In fact, Ali tells us, he bettered Tara's winning time from Season 7 by a whopping ten minutes. DH: "Whoa! Someone who can beat Tara!". (Hm. Maybe Tara and Daris should get together. They'd make stunning children, boy howdy.) Ali then presents Daris with the same choice that Tara had after she won the challenge: he can exchange the $10K for a 1lb advantage at this week's weigh-in. What'll it be, Daris? Well, he's got some student loans, but he takes the 1lb advantage anyway. I think this was a dumb move and that he should've bet on himself. But we shall see.</P>
<P>It's been far too long since we had a product placement, so now it's time to pay the piper. What's up, Bob? Why, we're cooking some delicious Jennie-O! And once we finish gobbling that down, Bob has a stress-relieving treat that turns out to be another product placement: they go shopping for athletic clothes, specifically, Danskin performance apparel, all branded to the hilt with Biggest Loser logos. Bob also brings out Tony Romo, who is apparently a football player. DH informs me that he is also the ex-boyfriend of Jessica Simpson. Really? The contestants are supposed to take advice from a guy who thought that dating Jessica Simpson was a good decision?</P>
<P>Tony tells the Losers that they're inspiring, and terrific, and special, and then plugs Danskin some more. And after the shopping, he tells them, they're invited to come out on a hike with him. Michael can't wait to run past Tony. :) At the end of the hike, they get to some kind of lookout point which has a really lovely view. With this as the backdrop, Tony assures them all that when they go home, they'll have people at home they can lean on. Bob nods in agreement, looking particularly scruffy today. Time for a beard trim, Bob.</P>
<P>No deep and meaningful retrospective-filled episode of how far the contestants have come would be complete without video flashbacks. Daris starts us off. Bob takes him into a room filled with a massive screen, upon which is displayed a flashback of Daris's massive self. Whoa. He really is unrecognizable now. Tears fall from Daris's eyes as he watches. Then, the miracle of weight loss begins, and we see clips of Daris killing it in the gym. Finally, the video ends with Fat Daris talking to Future Thin Daris. "I hope you're never this way again, and I know you won't be." Watching, Daris gives Bob a big smile and wipes away tears.</P>
<P>Sunshine gets to watch her video with Jillian. She cries as she watches herself say that she's never been on a date or kissed a boy (oh lordy is THAT going to change once she gets back home), and that she's not happy even though she's always smiling. But Sunshine's tears turn to delighted joy as she watches the clip of herself and O'Neal at the weigh-in that got them back on campus. There are a lot of fantastic flashback clips of her, and then we see Fat Sunshine encouraging her and saying that she deserves happiness. "Unbelievable," Sunshine tells Jillian. She knows she can go home and be okay. Yay!</P>
<P>Koli watches himself weigh in at 403lbs. "I was so scared," Koli reveals watching that moment. He cries watching his big successes on the scale, and Sam tearing up telling him he's proud of him. We also watch Koli winning the at-home bike marathon challenge, which was a great moment. Fat Koli tells Future Thin Koli to remember all the times he felt inadequate and didn't want to wake up in the morning; he wants himself to become a husband and father. "I'm just so proud of what I've accomplished," Koli tells Bob. He interviews that he is the happiest he's ever been and that he's gained self-confidence.</P>
<P>Ashley's immediately reaction to seeing herself weigh in is, "Ugh, my GAWD!" :) Of course we have to play the famous clip of her falling off the treadmill in Week 1. She laughs and says, "Oh no" when she realises that's coming up, and then a gleeful "Here we go!" as it plays. But then we start seeing some successes in the gym. We also see the moment where she confronts her mom Sherry, saying that she can't worry about her anymore. "Love her, man! She's great," comments Ashley about her mom. We also watch the three-way scream of her sisters showing up in makeover week. "Hi Skinny Ashley, this is the Fat Ashley that you used to know," her old self tells her, wearing the stupid headband that I thought we'd seen the last of in Week 1. Ashley is stoked at how far she's come. She's got a terrific attitude about what a great headstart she's gotten.</P>
<P>Last up, of course, is Michael. Bob knows this retrospective is going to be a very important one. Michael grins as he watches himself lose 34lbs in the first week. We see him winning immunity in a challenge. We're also reminded of when his grandma got sick. We watch him do his first 5K. It's all good. (Well, except for the grandma thing. :( ) Finally, we see Fat Michael telling himself to never quit. "You can see the pain in my eyes," marvels Michael watching all this. He has a lot of bad memories, and soon he's going to be reborn into his new life. For the first time, he starts seeming enthusiastic about the 192lbs he's already dropped. Yay!</P>
<P>Sadly, the product placements have not ended - Subway gets a nod, too. It's the only fast food place that Bob would go to. Ashley follows up on that thought by revealing that she lives right across from a fast food joint, so she was in and out of there every morning for breakfast, but now she can do fast food in a healthy way.</P>
<P>The feel-good train continues on its madcap journey as Dr. H arrives to give great news. He starts by calling Michael "big guy" before realising that this is not so appropriate anymore. Michael had a lot of nasty health problems at the beginning of his journey. To illustrate, Dr. H. whips out Before and After shots. "Wow," Michael interviews, his eyes going scary big. (And I mean SCARY big.) Michael likes seeing his new jawline, alert eyes, and all those good things. It's not just his appearance which has improved, either - his biological age has dropped from 54 to 38, and he has only a 1% chance of a stroke now. That's EXCELLENT.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-17-dr-hs-update/1226902/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: When Sunshine started, she had 54% body fat. She's halved that and is now at 27%. Sunshine's pretty disgusted by what it looked like when she had so much fat on her. But she's heartened to hear that she's gained 10 years of life expectancy. When Daris started on the show, walking around was really hard on his back, his knees hurt, and he waddled. The waddling was due to a massive gut, which we get to see a picture of in side view. It ain't pretty, but we get a comparison shot of what his stomach looks like right now - much reduced. The sight of the old gut kind of horrifies him. "I look like I was fixin' to have a litter!" he says. :) His biological age is down from 46 to 28. He loves that his hard work is what has made him healthy.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-17-dr-h-visits-koli/1226907/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Koli, like Sunshine, gets to see a scan of his fat surrounding his frame. Dr. H. points out how it was eliminating his neck and forcing his arms to stick out even when he was relaxed. This illustrates very clearly to Koli where the 159lbs he's lost came from. It's something he couldn't see on a daily basis because he was used to it, but when viewed in contrast like this, it's obvious. It makes him feel a lot better about the work he's put in. 17 weeks of healthy living have brought his biological age from 51 down to 33. Dr. H. asks about how this change will affect his coaching work? Koli responds that his whole mentality has changed - before, he was always telling his trainees that they had to gain weight and get bigger, all technical stuff. Now he can also teach health - nutrition, good treatment of one's body, etc.. He's glad he's getting healthy. Last up with the good health news is Ashley. We see Before and After shots of a front view of her face. Of course her face is scads slimmer now, but the changes are internal, too. She remarks on how the smile in the before shot was fake. She was very unhappy, but never saw it. Now when she looks back, she can't believe she let herself get to that point. She's reduced her biological age from 57 to 31, and her health risk has gone down to 1%. Ashley reflects on the idiocy of drinking, smoking, and overeating, and that the biggest change is what's happening to her on the inside. She's motivated to keep going and looks forward to an even more improved health score in the future.</P>
<P>Bob asks the contestants if they'll miss having him scream at them at the gym? Yes, it's time for the last-chance workout. There's a red line in their immediate future! Koli is excited and nervous. We flash back to his first last-chance workout and he says he's expecting the best workout they've had all year. (No pressure, trainers.) Jillian dials up the treadmill freaky fast. Sunshine looks at it, says she can do it, and then gets on and kicks ass. Ashley, also asked to do fast treadmill running, gets on her stank face and zones into it.</P>
<P>DH and I reflect on what a good group this is. :)</P>
<P>Also, seeing Daris doing interviews this week, I no longer think his red stuffy nose is due to it being cold outside. I think he actually has a cold. That sucks.</P>
<P>Michael does pushups with Bob on his back! He likes waking up with happiness. Hell, all the contestants are blissing out. Koli loves his future. Sunshine believes she is beautiful, and worth it, and can do anything. It's a completely different level of happiness. "See what I can do now," she tells Bob. She's so special.</P>
<P>And now, finally, the last hurdle. The red line. The weigh-in. But surprise! For the biggest loser of the week, Curtis Stone will be coming to your home and helping you with your food preparation. Ashley practically vibrates at this news - you can tell she's THIS CLOSE to getting on her knees to beg God for this prize. (Needless to say, she has a serious thing for Curtis Stone.) Michael just wants to lose 200lbs on campus. He's up first to find out whether he's done it. Bob crosses his fingers. It works! Michael hits 204lbs of total loss and is deliriously happy. Hooray! Koli also has a good week - he shrieks with happiness at his number and whispers that he wishes Sam was there. He looks into the camera in an interview and thanks Sam for believing in him.</P>
<P>SCIENCE ingredients? Really, Raid?</P>
<P>Once all three guys have weighed in (Daris, incidentally, didn't need to spend $10K on a 1lb advantage, but the extra pound did edge him out over Koli to win the Curtis Stone prize, so I guess that's something), Ashley starts freaking out, because the men pulled out big numbers. Her number isn't great comparatively, but nonetheless, there is good news for her - Ali tells her that she has broken the record for most weight lost by any woman on campus. That's excellent.</P>
<P>Last up is Sunshine. She looks ill. She goes up and Ashley looks deeply distressed as we go to commercial. When we come back, we find that Sunshine has lost a paltry 2lbs. She's going home, and Ashley's in the Final Four.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved this week:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Daris goes below 200lbs
<LI>Daris hits the 150lb mark of total loss
<LI>Michael hits the 200lb mark of total loss
<LI>Koli hits the 40% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>Sunshine, the dear, is so lovely with her immediate congratulations to everyone else. She's really happy at what she's accomplished. As Bob compliments her tenacity, Koli looks completely stunned. Ashley tells Sunshine she's beautiful and strong. Sunshine is diappointed, but won't let that beat her up. Bob and Jillian walk her out. Michael looks after her as she goes...longingly, perhaps?</P>
<P>With the ranch behind her, Sunshine heads home in a limo, and there's a massive crowd waiting for her at a high school. She looks awesome. O'Neal loves her dress, smile and confidence. He's happy and proud. The crowd chants her name. She thanks them for being here. It's a huge step to get started, she says, but do it, and celebrate the small victories. How bad do you want it, she asks. She advises the crowd that if they fall, that's okay. Get back up and do it again, but don't quit. She wishes everyone could be as happy as she is right now.</P>
<P>Flash forward, and she is going with her family to a baseball game. She is a rabid Minnesota Twins fan, which disgusts my husband and seems to bring her down a notch in his estimation. "The TWINKIES?" he asks indignantly. (Dude, she's from MINNEAPOLIS! Whom else d'you think she's going to root for?) She used to have to wear oversize men's jerseys, but today that's all changed. She's actually wearing a jersey that the Twins gave her, which warms the cockles of her Twins-fan's heart. :) But wait...it gets better! She gets to throw out the first pitch! WOW! Before the game, everyone eats really heathily and the food all looks great, I gotta say. She starts crying on the field at the prospect of her dream come true. We find out that she's lost a total of 113lbs and wants to lose another 20.</P>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Look for the following milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Koli could drop below 225lbs
<LI>Koli could hit the 175lb mark of total loss
<LI>Michael could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Koli could move from obese to overweight
<LI>Michael could hit the 40% mark of total loss
<LI>Daris could hit the 45% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>TV Guide: <I>The players train for a marathon at home and must work to stay on track while away from the ranch. During the race, the contestants receive support from former players and family members. Later, Bob and Jillian hold last-chance workouts before the weigh-in, which determines who's moving on to the final round.</I></P>
<P>Week after next: <I>After viewer votes determine the third finalist, the winner of the $250,000 prize is crowned in the Season 9 finale. The eliminated players also return to weigh in for the $100,000 at-home prize, and former contestants share their weight-loss progress since leaving the show.</I></P>
<P>(Those "former contestants" will, of course, as promised in the previous finale, be Shay from Season 8 and Erik from Season 3. For every pound Shay's lost since we last saw her, she'll win $1,000 from Subway. Erik is just apparently doing this as a face-saving thing.)</P>
<H4>Standings (eliminating advantages/disadvantages)</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (5.33)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (43.64)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (13)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (204)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (28.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (4.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (42.68)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (12)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (172)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (28.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (3.59)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (38.78)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (151)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (30.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (2.94)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (38.24)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (143)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (38.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (1.12)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (36.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (2)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (99)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (40.2)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-54774730310085490692010-05-09T15:34:00.001-04:002010-05-09T15:34:26.579-04:00I feel pretty<P>With the departure of her father last week, Sunshine is now alone on the ranch. This is a very new experience for her, so things are weird.</P>
<P>Ali breaks in on the contestants' breakfast, which is really a product placement for Multigrain Cheerios. At first it looks like a product placement merely by virtue of showing the product while they're eating, but wait for it...it gets worse. Ali points out that the six of them together have lost 805lbs, all thanks to the Cheerios, of course. (But wait for it...it gets worse.) Ali then announces that it's makeover week, and everyone is thrilled. "Make me prettier!" yells Sam. :) Michael wants his hair gone. He is not alone. :) Limos are going to pick them up to take them shopping, and everybody gets $1,000 to do work with, again, thanks to...the Cheerios people. (I did warn you it was going to get worse.) Sam is especially stoked about this, because he loves clothes and fashion. And a good thing too, because he, like his fellow contestants, is on his own with the shopping thing. Whither Tim Gunn? Guess they couldn't afford him this season. Of course there will be hair and makeup, too, followed by a concert of some kind. Sunshine remarks that she's always gotten so excited for the contestants on makeover week on the show, and she's really excited that this time it's for her. Yay!</P>
<P>Swanky music, swanky clothing shops. Sam really likes looking at the sizes and knowing he can fit in them. He's tired ofdriving tons of miles to get to the nearest Big and Tall store. "This is my new reality, and I love it," he says of the sizes he can just pick out off the rack. Sunshine claims she's forgotten how to shop. Ashley is a bit nervous because she still has 100lbs to go, so this shopping expedition isn't really for her permanent wardrobe. Sunshine tries on something huge. The store doesn't even have her SIZE, she's so much smaller. Hee hee. Good times. In another shop, Daris reflects that he used to wear t-shirts and jeans at farm & ranch supply stores, right next to the tarps. So where he's at now is a totally different world, he has no idea what he's doing. usually all the nice stuff he's ever had was picked out by his mom or sister. Naturally, given a chance to do this himself, he picks out a plaid shirt and jeans. Oi. </P>
<P>But all is not fun and games and slipping into small sizes. Michael, for example, is bummed that after losing a whopping 183lbs, he STILL has to go to a specialty store for big and tall men. He doesn't even get to shop with any of his fellow Losers, and the stuff he likes still doesn't fit. He's very frustrated. I feel really bad for him, that does indeed suck. But Michael, you just have to keep remembering: if you're going to get down from 526lbs to your ideal weight, you can't possibly do that without passing through 343lbs first. Keep on keepin' on, Mike.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-16-kolis-style/1224947/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Michael's not the only one experiencing disappointment. Koli was thinking that this would be the day he could try anything on and not worry about the size. But it turns out that that hasn't happened. While Sam is capering through the store grabbing anything that catches his eye and looking sizzling in it, none of the pants in the store fit poor Koli. So he's thinking he hasn't done enough. He wants to know he can walk into a store and know he can get anything. He reflects that he is progressing, but he's still got a lot of mental stuff to work through; stuff that will take longer than it'll take to get the weight off. He's had twenty-nine years of beating himself down and doesn't know what it will take to get him to the mental place he wants. :(</P>
<P>Salon time! No Tabitha Coffey of the undead, thank goodness. Instead we have Jonathan Antin, the head judge of Bravo's new show, "Shear Genius". He calls himself the "go-to hair guy". (Clearly, incredibly modest as well.) For Sam, he's feeling the "classic penitentiary look...the handsome version". I don't know what the hell that means, but I'm sure I'll find out. Sunshine is nervous. We see colour applied, locks being clipped, etc. Michael's hoping to walk out of there feeling great. We get funny shots of Michael's hair falling to the ground and the camera shaking with the weight of it all as Jonathan says he's clipping off the pounds. He waxes eloquent about how they're just "raw canvases". Daris is another guy who's (fortunately) ready to shed some hair. Alllll the contestants stop and watch as the curly locks come off. Jonathan reckons he's chopping off about ten inches and asks Daris to consider donating the hair to Locks of Love. That's cool. </P>
<P>With hair, makeup, and clothes all set, the contestants enter the 360-degree mirror room. Sunshine is first. Holy shit, does she look hot. She can't believe it's her. She can't stop smiling. (Duh, honey, you're GORGEOUS!) Behind the mirror are two of her brothers, Jazz and Arece. It's a two-way mirror, so they can see what she looks like, and they're amazed. She screams as the mirror opens and they grab her and lift her up. It's pretty awesome, the sibling bond in that family has always seemed so terrific. Oh, she looks like such a star. </P>
<P>Koli's next. We get flashbacks from 16 weeks previous. He's put himself in really geeky glasses (which DH isn't keen on) and given himself a kind of Poindexter look. (I read an article online somewhere where Sam interviews that Koli doesn't actually need glasses, it's just a "look".) Koli's parents are behind the mirror with a lei to drape around his neck. The lei is traditionally given on occasions of great importance and/or accomplishment, so of course this is very significant for him. He cries to see them and his mom is really delighted. She pats his stomach because the big belly isn't there anymore. She's so happy that he's happy and healthy. Koli's really happy that they're proud - he hasn't had a lot of that for a while.</P>
<P>Ashley is floored at the changes she sees, even though she's elected to go with spandex leggings for this auspicious moment. (QFM.) She's still very large, but there are big, big differences. She feels more sexy and womanly than ever. (She should, her waist-to-hip transition is stunning.) Her sisters are behind the glass flabbergasted at her tiny little waist and neck and gorgeousness, etc. etc. Cue the three-way scream as they're revealed. They assure her that she looks different and great and you can even see her collarbones. They slap her butt as they freak out over her waistline and reduced ass size. And with the three of them in that tiny little mirror room, that is a whole lot of cleavage. :)</P>
<P>Time to see Sam! Ladies, start your engines. Oh, they've given him a niiiiice. goatee. That looks great. His parents are all vorklempt behind the mirror. He gives this fantastic roar when he sees them, and of course his mom puts a lei around his neck. </P>
<P>My younger daughter cries and I go up to settle her. But I don't miss much; mostly ads. When I return, we're onto Daris. And...Ho. Lee. Shit. Wow, does he ever clean up good. He looks completely different! He loves it. I can see more of Cheryl in him now, too. His dad and sister Brandi are there and he's very surprised. He's really missed his family. "What happened to this, it all went away!" exclaims his dad, touching his stomach. Daris is now in size 34 jeans. We see another flashback to Fat Daris, and holy crap, he really is totally different. His dad thinks he's looking good. Daris loves the reaction. DH: "He's going to be in demand!"</P>
<P>Lastly, we have Michael's reveal. Oh, WOW. He's got a slick goatee and a really nice haircut and DH sez: "He's got a bit of Ed Robertson going." Michael's sisters are gobsmacked behind the mirror. Rosangela, who is quite large, wants him to teach her what to do. He says she's missing a lot because she's hiding behind her weight. She doesn't like that she's the bigger sister now, and she's very emotional about the journey she knows she has to take.</P>
<P>Chandeliers. Other fancy lighting. Persian rugs. No chairs. It's like the Sultan's Tent restaurant! "Pull up a pillow," Ali offers to the families as they arrive. She also says that the journey is far from over - they've committed to the rest of their lives, and are celebrating a new outlook on life. Someone named Ashanti has come to give them all a private performance. Sunshine and Ashley are pretty stoked over this. And I'd imagine the guys are particularly stoked, too, because having to sit on the floor enables them to see up her skirt even better. She tells them to always shine no matter how hard it is. DH: "Profound."</P>
<P>She sings.<BR>Okay, she sounds good.</P>
<P>We get montages of the contestants during the music. It's all very emotional. There's a particularly wonderful little clip of Ashley and Sherry from probably about Day One with Ashley turning to her mom and saying, "What happens if I go in there and I can't do it?" Sherry pauses, then turns to Ashley and says, "But what if you go in there and you CAN?" Koli looks like he's thinking really hard and I have to wonder what's going through his head. Maybe he's contemplating the deeper meaning of his life and how maybe he is worth a damn. Or maybe he's trying to peer further up Ashanti's skirt. Who knows.</P>
<P>DH: "Challenge time. And it looks wet."</P>
<P>"It's the Jacob's Ladder to hell!" exclaims Ashley. This is a pretty straightforward challenge - everybody has a Jacob's Ladder suspended over the pool. If they stop climbing, they're in the drink. Last person climbing wins a 1lb advantage at the weigh-in. Sam muses that that means more to him than to anyeone else because he has less to lose. And the first person in the water gets a 1lb disadvantage. Michael rolls his eyes and looks at Daris knowingly. </P>
<P>The problems begin immediately. First, Sunshine tells us, it's faster than she's used to. Secondly, it's all wobbly. Ashley tries to focus on a single point and ignore Ali mentioning that she's behind everybody else. She looks across at her competitors and loses focus really quickly. Good-bye, Ashley. She slaps the water in frustration. She's disgusted that she's out at less than three and a half minutes. But this is good news for Michael, who doesn't have to worry about a 1lb disadvantage this week. He is, however, next to go at about the five minute mark. Susnhine starts getting intimidated being up there with a bunch of boys. Oh, suck it up, sweetie, don't get hung up on chromosomes. Remember Tara pulling the car?</P>
<P>Everybody else lasts way longer than five minutes, and I bet Michael and Ashley are feeling pretty stupid watching them go on and on. Over 40 minutes later, Ashley can't believe it, she doesn't understand how they're doing it. DH points out that Ashley and Michael have the highest BMIs, so it makes sense that they would have had the most trouble with this challenge. Daris points out that a bit of a wrong move on the Jacob's Ladder can hurl you off. Everyone remarks in interviews about how really hard this is. Sunshine gets to the bottom of her ladder but pulls herself up...and then falls off at about 45 minutes. Sam's prety happy about this because it brings him closer to the weigh-in advantage. He believes that Koli would jump off the ladder if it's just the two of them left (I'm sure he's right), so really the two of them just have to beat Daris. For his part, Daris is tired of Grey winning challenges all the time, and is determined to stay on.</P>
<P>Koli gives Sam a pep talk to try and keep him on the ladder. But Sam is genuinely struggling and falls in at 55 minutes. Koli claims not to be tired at all (which I believe, because he looks really strong, but I am amazed at it). At one hour, Daris isn't particularly struggling, either, and predicts this could take a while. He tells Koli he won't judge him if he jumps off. :) They exchange remarks to feel each other out. Koli doesn't really want the prize, but he's feeling good and does want to win. Daris slips down a bit, chides himself for daydreaming and climbs back up near the top. He's visualising his dad and sister's reactions at the makeover and his mom's reaction when he returned home, and it keeps him going. At about two hours they're both starting to struggle. "Would it be considered peeing in the pool if I did it from up here?" asks Daris jokingly. Like, ew, man.</P>
<P>Hey, y'know, if nothing else, they're burning a lot of calories.</P>
<P>Sam sees each rung Koli climbs as him climbing to success. He loves the new Koli. DH: "Maybe a Koli that doesn't need to drive girlfriends away from Sam." Finally, Daris hits the wall, and jumps into the water at two and a half hours. Koli's pretty stoked. He reflects that he doesn't win stuff in his life, this is new, and he did it on his own strength. He's really confident now. Yay!</P>
<P>So later, Bob and Jillian are waiting for the results of the makeovers and they love what they see. "We got Lyle Lovett in the house! You've got a pompadour!" exclaims Bob. "I hope you feel as great as you look," says Jillian. She reflects on the emotional changes, too. Then we get down to business. Ashley explains how the challenge worked. Hey, she's pretty funny sometimes when she relaxes into her storytelling. Bob and Jillian are gobsmacked that the challenge last two and a half hours. They're very impressed. Daris admits that he quit and jumped off, and he's mad at himself for that. Koli pats him on the back as comfort. Bob says that there's a mental thing there that still needs to be worked on. DH believes this means Daris is going to be stuck with Jillian's psychoanalysis today.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-16-bobs-new-look/1224988/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Bob comes to hang out with Michael, who breaks out the pants he was wearing when he came to the ranch. Bob actually gets his whole self into ONE LEG of them. Bob thinks this is hilarious and waddles off to show this to Koli. Sam takes pictures, most likely destined for Facebook. Michael reflects on how far he's come. They compare pants then and now and there's a massive difference. Michael looks forward to the moment when he can laugh about the size of his current pants just as much.</P>
<P>Last chance workout begins with Sam getting taped up like he's going into battle. Because this. Is. War. They all do crazy things, like walking with their hands on the treadmill. Ashley stands on one foot on a half-medicine ball while lifting dumbells. Jillian doesn't want her going home without a fight. Ashley struggles on the treadmill, but takes a deep breath and soldiers on. Her speed is 9mph. "Are you going home?!?" Jillian roars as Ashley gets into the zone. </P>
<P>Surprisingly, Bob takes Daris. I guess that does make sense - Daris is one of his special people. They go outside. Bob begins the conversation with "I need to know where your head is right now." He's mad because Daris broke. He wants Daris to get into an "I'm gonna win this" mentality, and doesn't want him tripping up at the 1-yard line, which is where the competition is at the moment. Daris tears up. DH points out that maybe Daris feels that he feels that he's already at his goal, so there's not much left to do, that the fire is gone from his eyes. "I don't think the haircut is doing him any favours," DH reflects. Bob puts Daris through a whole bunch of paces, and day-um, Daris is looking good. Finally Bob gets Daris to do a low crouch for 20 seconds. This is the moment where Daris has to fight for it, but he gives up halfway through. Oh dear, giving up goes against the lesson of the day. So Daris has to try again. Bob starts telling him that he WILL NOT GIVE UP, and in response, Daris...gives up. Bob interviews, though, that he and Jillian couldn't do what they made Daris do today. Finally Daris does the crouch for 20 seconds. Yay. Later, he wipes out on the treadmill, but gets back up again. Ashley watches with amazement. Jillian later advises us that hanging onto the handrails onthe treadmill reduces your bodyfat burning by 20-30%.</P>
<P>Weigh-in. Nobody knows how it's going to go down. Koli's feeling confident, though. And well he should be, since he blows everyone else out of the water.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Koli drops under 250lbs
<LI>Ashley moves from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Daris and Sunshine move from obese to overweight
<LI>Ashley, Sunshine and Michael hit the 35% mark of total loss
<LI>Daris hits the 40% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>It's Sam and Michael below the yellow line, with Sam at the bottom. </P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-16-tough-decisions/1224993/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: This is a scene which took place just prior to the weigh-in. Daris and Ashley are discussing how tough this vote is going to be. Daris thinks Sam is awesome and a great friend, but this is the third time Sam's fallen below, and he's already gotten two extra weeks out of the experience. Enter Michael, who wants to see where their votes are at. Is their outsider alliance still in place? He feels like he let them down, which Ashley denies. He promises to look out for them if they keep him around. Ashley says that she knows neither Grey nor Yellow has her back, and knows that she and Daris would be gone if either of them fell below. She acknowledges that Michael will be big competition at the finale, but she needs him to stick around if she wants to actually make it there herself. She points out that staying together this week will give them the advantage next week.</P>
<P>And indeed, since the votes are split evenly between the Grey/Yellow alliance and the outsiders, it's Sam who gets the boot. He's really happy to be home. And damn, he looks like a rock star. :) His sister Sheri's breath is taken away at the sight of him. He feels love walking into the house. He tells people that he is living up to the potential that he was throwing into the toilet over the last few years. He feels he can do anything he wants. </P>
<P>Some time later, he's at 236lbs, which is just 2lbs less than when he left the ranch. This doesn't bother him, though, because he had already hit his goal weight on the ranch - the only contestant in Biggest Loser history to do so, apparently. So he's done losing weight, he's just maintaining it now. And what a life he's maintaining it for - he now has a new roommate in Los Angeles, which, as anyone who's been following story knows, is Stephanie. They started their relationship in Week 3 on the ranch. They've gone through the transformation together, which means they've been through the worst, and are now coming into their best. That's a nice way to look at it. Steph believes she was chosen to go on the show to save her life, save her mom Patti's life, and meet Sam. For his part, Sam feels that even though he's not going to win any of the money prizes on the show, he already has his prize, every day. Awwww. They work out together. "I have a case of the Sams," Stephanie tells us. For his part, Sam is happy as a pig in shit. They run romantically on the beach together and everything. His new goal is to help Stephanie reach her goal weight. </P>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Look for these potential milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Daris could drop under 200lbs
<LI>Sunshine could drop under 175lbs
<LI>Sunshine could hit the 100lb mark of total loss
<LI>Michael could hit the 200lb mark of total loss
<LI>Koli could hit the 40% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/next-on-the-biggest-loser/1225271/" TARGET=_blank>Preview video</A>: Michael is still bitter about being large despite his massive weight drop, and he goes on a bit of a rampage in the gym as he lets out his feelings about that. Bob vows to not let Michael forget about how far he's come. Another downer comes in the form of Erik, Season Three winner, who's gained a whole lot of his weight back. We also find out that this week's elimination will be automatic - lowest percentage of weight loss automatically sends you home.</P>
<P>TV Guide: <I>Quarterback Tony Romo takes the contestants on a hike; past winners Helen Phillips and Erik Chopin discuss the challenges of keeping weight off away from the ranch. Also: Dr. Huizenga offers health updates; the players race over hills of sand while carrying the amount of weight they've lost; Bob and Jillian review videos of the contestants' weight-loss journeys; and the final four are determined at the weigh-in.</I></P>
<P>Week after next: <I>The players train for a marathon at home and must work to stay on track while away from the ranch. During the race, the contestants receive support from former players and family members. Later, Bob and Jillian hold last-chance workouts before the weigh-in, which determines who's moving on to the final round.</I></P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (5.79)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (40.75)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (192)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (28.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (4.81)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (39.45)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (159)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (29.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (4.21)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (36.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=3>Daris, Michael, Sunshine (9)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Ashley, Daris (141)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (29.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (4.03)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (36.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (32.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (2.62)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (36.02)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (134)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (39.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (0.83)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (35.27)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (2)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (97)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (41.7)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-84081330482760375762010-05-01T00:13:00.002-04:002010-05-01T00:17:37.565-04:00Go big or go home<P>Recap: Last week, Koli had the only vote and Victoria is gone. After she leaves, Ali calls all the rest of the players in because she has an announcement. Before we can hear it, though, of course we see O'Neal really happy about seeing Sunshine still sitting at the table, and they hug. He talks about the "special relationship" that he and Sunshine have with the Grey team. Ashley's eyes go really, REALLY wide as Ali says the upcoming week will be tough. She hearkens them back to however many weeks ago when they all went to the Olympic Training Centre in Colorado Springs to train with the athletic elite. This week, by contrast, they're training the UNfit. They're about to mess with Texas, which is home to five of the ten fattest cities in America. They will have to help fat Texans get fit while maintaining their own weight loss goals. And they're not alone - Bob will be training random people at a Texas gym, and Jillian will be helping some Texan high school students.</P>
<P>"I've always wanted to go to Texas!" exclaims Koli gleefully, jumping around all sprite-like as they head off to go pack.</P>
<P>Stereotypical twanging music greets us as we arrive in Pioneer Park in Texas. Ali reminds us that "everything is bigger in Texas", although that's not a good thing when you're talking about people. This week's challenge is for the contestants to go around Texas via radio stations to get people to come out and run a 5K with them near the end of the week. </P>
<P>Naturally, the contestants aren't completely alone with this challenge. (Can you imagine? A bunch of people going without introduction to radio stations and asking to be let on the air? Right.) No, the Biggest Loser producers and the NBC machine have greased the wheels for them and the radio stations and whatnot all seem to be expecting our heroes. A bunch of radio stations welcome various contestants, thus getting free publicity on national television - a pretty good deal. The contestants bring the Biggest Loser Message to the airwaves and grab people for the 5K.</P>
<P>Walgreens promo. Jillian, Ashley and Sunshine hold hands and skip inside. Jillian plugs all the supplements, healthy snacks, and "overall health products" too, y'know, for us girls. Ahem. (sotto voce: YEAST INFECTIONS!)</P>
<P>And we're at the Cotton Bowl. Cheering crowds of random 5K-running people decked out in colour-coded Biggest Loser shirts adorned with the shape of Texas. The contestants come out and the crowd goes wild. Michael and Sam lap it up. Ashley marvels at the turnout. </P>
<P>For the gazillionth time, we hear the stat about Texas having five of the ten fattest cities in the country. But here's something new: apparently, Texas spends ten billion dollars annually on obesity-related health issues. Today, everyone here will help turn things around for Texas. 100 people will be getting a 90-day pass to 24-Hour Fitness.</P>
<P>Since each person who showed up was assigned a colour-coded shirt, the contestants each have their own "people" that they will be in charge of in terms of prepping for the run and inspiring them to finish. Daris just wants everyone to push themselves. Ashley is here to inspire her people. Sam preaches the Bible of Bob, and Koli advises one woman with bad knees to just walk at her own pace.</P>
<P>And...they're...off! Michael grins as he leads the pack out of the stadium. Koli tells the bad knees woman to not worry about what anybody else is doing. Daris is determined to beat his best time, and will then go back and get his team across the line. Michael's motto here is "No loser left behind". Because he says he knows that feeling, it's been there his whole life. He encourages his people to ask questions, like how to stay motivated.</P>
<P>Koli is HILARIOUS with his sassy catwalk-esque power walking. His people (mostly women, I notice ;), scream like fangirls. He keeps going back and forth looking for his grey people, but then eventually talks to anybody he meets up with, including a yellow shirt named Jeff, who is enormous, but has lost about 65 lbs in the last 9mos. He was most inspired by Mike Morelli. He likes how the people who go home and come back can do so well. What's interesting is that Koli looks like he's sauntering along all slowly, but Jeff's just as clearly really working at it. (Which is fine, whatever raises Jeff's heartrate.) Ashley inspires others, too. She wishes she had met someone like herself years ago, and wants to inspire other women. </P>
<P>Daris, meanwhile, is giving this his all. He recalls that he liked to run when he was a kid and he's glad he can again. He really is looking good. The insane hair is actually a pretty good look for him. He comes first, and beats his previous best time to boot! Then, as promised, he heads back for his orange folks.</P>
<P>O'Neal meets Deborah, who's here to break the cycle of obesity and diabetes in her family. She's massive, and feels she has a target for all these health problems on her. Her mom died at 56 of a massive stroke: complications from diabetes. She's 35 and feels that she's waiting to die. This tears O'Neal up and he agrees that it isn't right to be so unhealthy. He's very glad he caught his bad health in time. He talks to her about really wanting it, that's what makes it happen. They hold hands. She's really excited by the opportunity to be here, it's becoming real for her. It's a nice moment. DH and I are totally vorklempt by all the niceness. O'Neal is amazed that he's now an ambassador and feels really lucky and thankful.</P>
<P>Sunshine is excited to finish but then runs back so she can finish with her dad. Awwww. She's wonderful motivating to everyone she meets on her way back. All the yellows are really thrilled to see her appear. "That's my girl, she always does this!" exclaims O'Neal happily. He reflects about how sad she was at the beginning of this journey, and how happy she is now. He loves it.</P>
<P>Dammit, it's only 8:30 and I can already feel myself puddle-ifying.</P>
<P>We hear from Lisa, a white shirt, who recently came to the conclusion that it was time to change, and is really vorklempt that she finished the 5K. Daris is also spreading the love. Koli cheers Jeff on as he enters the stadium. Everybody's cheering for him. Oh, dammit, more puddles. </P>
<P>Ashley screams her team in. "Let's go Pink!" She's ecstatic about how far she's come; she couldn't even do the treadmill properly the first week. Ali helps O'Neal walk the Yellow team in, leading them in a chant of "O'Neal! O'Neal!" He feels like he made a difference. Deborah thanks him for changing her life. She's motivated and rejuvenated. She starts today. </P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-15-michaels-inspiration/1223067/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Michael chats with Jeff after the race. Jeff's pretty happy. He just wanted to show himself that he could finish. He's feeling stronger and better every day since he started losing weight. We hear that last May he was hospitalized with vena stasis, which means that the blood vessels in his legs were too weak to keep the blood pumping. (Funny, I always thought it was the HEART that pumped blood, but anyway...) He gets infections down there very easily, but was told that the problem would go away if he lost weight. That and the show were his main impetuses (impeti?) for getting serious about starting a program of fitness. He started walking, just a half mile at first. Then some weightlifting, and now he's doing a mile every day and building up muscle with the weightlifting. He's also hoping that his ten-year-old daughter's weight issues (she's sitting there on the bench looking mightly bored having to listen to the adult conversation, poor thing) will be improved by his example. He's looking forward to the summer, when he will probably be able to ride rollercoasters again. Michael confesses how embarrassing it is to have to leave a ride because you can't be buckled in safely enough. Jeff reflects that eventually you get numb to that kind of embarrassment and just stop trying. By the end of the conversation, it sounds like Jeff will be one of the lucky guys who gets a free 24-Hour Fitness membership. Awesome.</P>
<P>But wait...we're not done...Koli can't see CJ, the lady with the knees. She hasn't come in yet, and Koli made her a promise that he would see her in. She's having a really tough time, so Koli grabs Sam and they go get her. She's not even at 4K yet, but she's still determined to finish. She's really happy to see Koli and Sam. She's slow, labouring, but is really upbeat and confident. She holds onto their shoulders for support, but eventually makes it to the stadium. (I have no idea how. She rocks.) There aren't many people left hanging around; mostly grey shirts. She tears up as she crosses the line. It took her about two hours. "I can't even walk through WALMART, I have to take a cart! And I just walked FIVE-K!!!" she marvels. Awesome.</P>
<P>Sam says this has given him an entirely new perspective on what the Biggest Loser is all about. We get to see at-home updates; both CJ and Jeff have lost 10lbs, and Deborah has lost 20lbs. Hooray!</P>
<P>As promised, Bob appears at a 24-Hour Fitness and the crowds of treadmillers go wild. "We're gonna have a little fun," he announces. Not just fun for his victims, either - fun for Bob, because he gets his little headpiece microphone, which he always loves. "I love when they say 'yes, sir'," he gloats in an interview. When the workout is finished, he opens himself up to a free-for-all Q&A. The last question he takes is so obviously a plant - a woman wants to take him home, and from the screaming of the women in the room, she isn't alone. In response, Bob pulls out the Biggest Loser app for the Blackberry, which is JUST LIKE HAVING BOB at your beck and call! (Except, y'know, for the part about not actually having Bob at your beck and call.)</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-15-tempting-restaurant/1223043/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Daris bemoans the loss of their wonderful stocked kitchen at the ranch. Now they have to find healthy food at restaurants. Ashley and Michael go into a sushi place and custom order so it'll be as healthy as possible. "Well, thank you for modifying our order and helping us out," Michael delivers with that I'm-reading-from-the-teleprompter lack of genuine feeling. Meanwhile, Daris, O'Neal and Sunshine discover that the menu at the restaurant they've chosen to go to is pretty much crap. Even the special "organic" menu is not so organic. Daris declares that 98% of stuff on a menu is not worth eating. All of it has to be modified, even salads, so that you don't get them smothered in dressing. So everybody ends up ordering like Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally and they all go away happy. (Well, except for the cook staff in the kitchens, who may or may not have resisted the urge to sneeze on the Losers' orders.)</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-15-ashleys-confidence/1223039/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Ashley has new-found confidence, and she and Michael take their customized sushi and go talk about strategy and trust. She really wants to be in the final four, but she feels like the two of them and Daris are the outsiders now. She used to trust Koli completely, but now, she just can't because of the Yellow/Grey thing. Michael agrees.</P>
<P>Since Daris, Ashley and Mike are partnerless, they end up sticking together. They grab each other for a jog up the hotel stairs. Mike says Grey and Yellow shouldn't find out about this so that they'll get "comfortable" and fall below the yellow line. Daris leads the way, taking it two at a time. They do over thirty floors and MAN, that's impressive.</P>
<P>DH: So there's two voting blocks now.</P>
<P>Rodeo time! We are in a barn with colour-coded, nametagged horse stalls. Everyone has been forced to wear cowboy hats and say 'howdy'. "Welcome to the Texas Fair," Ali greets them. She says that if you want to succeed, you have to grab the bull by the horns. Ha ha. Enter a bull. It has a massive rack. The reactions of the contestants are amusing:</P>
<P>Daris - "Good god, I hope we don't have to do anything with that."<BR>
Ashley - "Death horns."<BR>
Mike - "Aw, HAY-ull no."</P>
<P>Fear not, though, they don't have to wrangle that. Enter a cute little calf. Awww. But don't get complacent, Ali warns, these calves have attitude. The deal with today's challenge is that everybody has their own calf pen. To win, they have to herd more cattle into their pen than anyone else. The prize is immunity. Annoyingly, Ali keeps throwing in the Texas-isms, like, "We're fixin' to start this challenge!" </P>
<P>Flash forward to the start of the challenge. There is now a herd of calves in the barn, and the contestants have to do a lot of chasing them around. Daris finally nabs one. Ashley is trying hard, but they keep getting away from her. Michael almost gets one. In desperation, he assumes a cutesy falsetto voice and tries to ENTICE one. (It doesn't work.) O'Neal wipes out and Sunshine shrieks in panic. Sam a calf and puts it in...Koli's pen! This is gratitude for Koli's sacrifice last week. Okay, that's awesome. A few more calves are penned. Sunshine keeps FREAKING OUT every time O'Neal falls done. She really needs to lighten up. She is also, by the way, dumping calves in her partner's pen. Daris grumbles about this. But eventually Michael decides to help Daris, and then Ashley does, too. This leads to pretty much a three-way tie. The winner, however, is Koli. Daris is bummed, but he knows he did all he could. Koli's really grateful to Sam for adding all the calves to his pen. O'Neal is glad Koli has immunity because that's helpful for Yellow, so now all they need to do is make sure Yellow and Grey don't fall below the yellow line together.</P>
<P>Jillian heads to a high school that wonderful Abby from last season wants her to do a talk at. Hello, Abby! You look great! Apparently there's a big obesity problem at this school, so Jillian being inspirational could help. However, it doesn't give her very much credibility or inspiration mojo that she keeps looking at Abby through her talk like, "Is this okay? Did I say that right?" Eventually, Jillian goes to the floor for questions. One large girl says she has a big family and has always been told that she will never been skinny, that she will never be who she wants to be. Jillian naturally thinks this is total crap. Jillian tells her that when we grow up with people, those people put their issues on us and we internalize it. Jillian tells this girl that anything is possible for her. This story lights Jillian on fire and she finally stops looking at Abby for permission and dials up the intensity. "Don't let ANYBODY tell you what you can't do!" she tells everyone. </P>
<P>After the show, Jillian seeks this girl out to chat with her, who of course has been made fun of throughout her life. Jillian tells her this doesn't have to be her destiny. She says that when people put us down, it's because there's a hole in their heart, and they're NEVER going to change...but you can. (Really, Jill? Never going to change? Isn't that kind of against the entire message of the show? Could you be any more bitter about the kids who made fun of you in school when you were big?) Jillian tells this girl she has everything inside her that she needs to make her life happen for her. The teen reflects that Jillian is unique in that she didn't push her away but talked to her like a real person. Clearly this has been a good moment, and I hope she finds success. Jillian hopes she's shown her what can be possible.</P>
<P>Last chance workout! In the hotel, looks like. Yellow is not there because they had to ship out for brother/uncle Arthur's funeral. :( They'll be back just in time for the weigh-in. This bums out Bob and Jllian because this spells a big disadvantage for Yellow, what with the missed workout and all the water gains one can expect from air travel.</P>
<P>Daris feels this workout is really important because the schedule this week has been crazy what with all the radio appearances and whatnot, so he needs to get back into it. Ashley is not willing to do badly this week because she never thought she'd get this close and is not willing to let it go. Bob decides to push Koli like crazy despite the immunity. "We do it BIG up in Texas!" He makes Koli and Sam run really fast for a really long time on the treadmill. Then they have to do handstand pushups while leaning on a concrete pillar for balance. We get some nice shots of rippling biceps, kudos to the show for that.</P>
<P>Michael still has a lot of weight to lose, so he HAS to be able to stay here. He has problems getting up for the handstand pushups. Daris is also having a hard time - Jillian's having him do something weird involving strength-pushing himself up into a sitting position reclining against a medicine ball while holding weights. (???) Jillian asks him what's going on and he reveals he's a little stressed about the weigh-in since he didn't win immunity. "Is it fair?" asks Jillian? No. And, she points out, it's not the last time life is going to be unfair to him. Don't let the little stupid stuff bog you down, she tells him. </P>
<P>Michael is struggling on the treadmill and almost falls off. Bob tells him not to hold back from hanging onto the bars if it means avoiding a broken ankle. Michael's so out of breath that he tells Bob to leave him alone. This incenses Bob. He goes all mama-bear on Michael's ass, telling him he is NEVER planning to leave Michael alone, and never wants to hear that out of him again. </P>
<P>As with all things in Texas, this week's weigh in is massive. It's at the American Airlines Centre, with the numbers displaying on the jumbotron. But first, we get to watch flashbacks of the contestants. "It's pretty epic," Jillian tells us. It's a good progress illuminator for the contestants. Speaking of the contestants, I feel excruciatingly sorry for them, because it is pretty cold outside. Specifically, it's 34F, which is a little more than 1C. Not exactly the sort of temperature you'd want to stand around in clad in only a tank top and spandex shorts. Yeesh. So we need to run through everyone quickly so they can get back into their hats, scarves, and snazzy parkas.</P>
<P>Ali reflects upon the week. She goes on for a while and Koli's mouth gapes open like a fish. We hear that Sam liked running the 5K and inspiring people. He was inspired by the people he met. Also, he's first up on the scale. "What else can he do to his arms at this point? He's DONE!" Sunshine whispers to Ashley as Sam steps up. "He looks good!" replies Ashley. For your eyes only, ladies, unless you want Stephanie coming back and whaling on your asses. ;)</P>
<P>There are some great funny moments during the weigh-in. Michael interviews that he has lost a whole adult man, and goes on to say, "I still have an whole adult WOMAN left to lose, but..." Also, Daris assumes a falsetto after learning that he's down to 214lbs: "I was still talkin' like this when I was 214!" :D</P>
<P>Milestones achieved this week:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Michael drops under 350lbs
<LI>Ashley drops under 250lbs
<LI>Ashley hits the 125lb mark of total loss
<LI>Michael hits the 175lb mark of total loss
<LI>Sam hits the 35% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>I totally think Koli waterloaded. I'm not knocking the strategy, I'm just saying, I totally think he did. And I wish people wouldn't try to pretend that that isn't what they're doing when they're up there with immunity staring a bad number in the face.</P>
<P>It is, however, the worst case scenario for the Yellow team as they both fall below the yellow line. (Thank you, air travel.) The "outsiders" are back to being equal to the Yellow/Grey alliance in terms of voting power, no matter how this goes down.</P>
<P>O'Neal asks everyone to vote him out and he would appreciate, as a sign of respect for him, if everyone abided by his wishes. Sure enough, in the voting room, absolutely no one wants to diss him. Ashley says that she's really glad that Sunshine has such a good dad and it makes her miss her father a lot. Aw. :( Sam votes for O'Neal because he loves him. Koli wants to be a dad like O'Neal, and he votes for him out of love and respect. We don't see the rest of the votes because that's the end of the road for O'Neal. "I'll make you proud dad," says Sunshine. This makes O'Neal lose it. Sunshine thanks him. He in turn thanks everybody for their votes and kind words. He calls Sam and Koli 'men amongst men', and says that they, Michael and Daris should keep doing what they're doing. Daris assures O'Neal that Sunshine isn't alone. She may not have biological family on the ranch anymore, but she still has family. (Yeah, like you won't vote her off if she falls below with Michaelor Ashley. But I understand the sentiment. There's more to a week on the ranch than just the vote.)</P>
<P>DH and I agree that Sunshine being independent at the ranch will probably be really good for her.</P>
<P>O'Neal drives home, planning to be just as victorious there as the last time he was sent home. There is a HUGE party waiting for him, and they're all thrilled at the transformation. Sarah says she's reminded of when she met him 31 years ago. His son Arece even had to do a doubletake. "You can't borrow my jeans!" another of his sons tells him. O'Neal loves all the love and support. He's ready for his journey!</P>
<P>At the next profile, he's down to 250lbs. We are treated to a montage of all the things which were impossible before but which are delightfully possible now. For instance, he can now put on his own shoes! His wife certainly likes that. :) She also likes that he's the happiest she's seen him in 20 years. He goes up and down the stairs like buddah. He can fit easily into his car without having to move the steering wheel in weird spots. Now, walking with the postal carriers he manages is noooo problem! He has no problem getting on his motorcycle. And his wife can wrap her arms around him when she sits behind him! They love this, and show their newfound respect for the health of their bodies by motorcycling around without helmets. (I am not even a little kidding.)</P>
<H4>Next week: (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Look for the following milestones</P>
<UL>
<LI>Koli could hit the 150lb mark of total loss
<LI>Daris and Sunshine could move from obese to overweight
<LI>Ashley and Michael could hit the 35% mark of total loss
<LI>Daris could hit the 40% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/all-new-biggest-loser/1223125/" TARGET=_blank>Video preview</A>: Iiiiit's...MAKEOVER WEEK! Squee! EVERYONE is excited; actually, the guys seem even more excited than the ladies! Michael in particular is champing at the bit to get a good haircut. (As well he should.) We see tantalizing, fast little shots of Sunshine looking pretty amazing in a little yellow dress and relaxed, wavy hair. Looks like they're doing the 360-degree mirror thing again, with surprise family members hidden behind it. Indeed, we see joyous hugs with Sunshine and a few of her brothers, which is great. Ashley appears to be wearing black spandex pants with high heels, which promises to be a serious QFM. (Quelle Fashion Mistake, if you were wondering.) Sam's in a suit and is greeted by his parents. Michael, greeted by female relatives, seems to be wearing some kind of grey hoodie under a black jacket and has been given a buzz cut. (Thank GAWD.)</P>
<P>TV Guide: <I>The final six contestants receive makeovers, which include a $1000 shopping spree and a salon visit with stylist Jonathan Antin. After the transformations, the players reveal their new looks to family and friends and attend a concert by Ashanti. Later, the contestants are suspended over a pool while working out on cardio machines.</I></P>
<P>CAN'T WAIT! Except for the Ashley-in-spandex thing. Eurgh. WHAT were they THINKING? She's lost so much weight, it's not exactly hard to find something that would actually be FLATTERING! Argh.</P>
<P>Week after next: <I>Quarterback Tony Romo takes the contestants on a hike; past winners Helen Phillips and Erik Chopin discuss the challenges of keeping weight off away from the ranch. Also: Dr. Huizenga offers health updates; the players race over hills of sand while carrying the amount of weight they've lost; Bob and Jillian review videos of the contestants' weight-loss journeys; and the final four are determined at the weigh-in.</I></P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (4.19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (38.15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (15)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (183)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (29.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (2.44)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (35.73)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Ashley, Sam (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (144)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (30.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (2.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (35.48)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Daris, Sam (132)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (30.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (2.28)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (34.79)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Daris, O'Neal (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (34.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (2.09)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (33.69)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (126)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (37.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (1.85)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (32.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (4)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (124)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (41.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (0.38)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (31.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (1)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN-top>Michael (42.9)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-53425297074237419982010-04-21T17:21:00.000-04:002010-04-21T17:22:13.072-04:00Don't hold back<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-14-sams-gratitude/1220138/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Sam expresses gratitude for not being voted off, and vows to keep other people working. He's kind of glad that Drea is gone, though, since she has more weight to lose and thus represents a threat to him. Koli knows Sam doesn't have too much more weight to lose but still wants both of them together in the final four. Ashley, however, is just starting to realise how much she relied on Drea and now feels totally on her own.</P>
<P>Sunrise on the ranch. (It's crazy how they try to make this all poetic and meaningful and stuff.)</P>
<P>The "beautiful Ali Sweeney", according to Sam (Steph's gonna kill him), shows up at the ranch with a new surprise. It's a day-long temptation. There's a room upstairs which is stacked with food - some healthy, some unhealthy. This is the only source of food for the day, because the kitchen is closed. This freaks Michael out. After all, he's hungry! And was also not listening when Ali told him there's an entire room full of food for him to choose from! At the end of the day, the person who has scarfed back the most amount of calories gets the only vote at this week's elimination. If, however, the temptation winner falls below the yellow line, it's everyone-votes elimination as usual.</P>
<P>Diabolical.</P>
<P>O'Neal points out how powerful it is to have just one person making the big decision.</P>
<P>So just how tempting is this room of food? VERY tempting. The room is absolutely crammed with goodies, which apparently smell fantastic; or, as O'Neal describes it, "It hit me like a overhand right!" We're talking fried foods, cookies, cakes, fries, donuts, chocolate, etc. But there's also fruit, veggies, string cheese, rice cakes, egg white omelettes, that kind of thing. Victoria calls hte temptation a reflection of what they're going back into when they leave the house. O'Neal starts off with a healthy cereal breakfast. Sunshine also decides to eat what she normally eats.</P>
<P>Sam apparently has the biggest calorie budget of anybody in the house: 1,800 a day. So if everyone eats the way they should, he'll win by default. But later he and Koli start talking about strategy. Sam, who's been under the yellow line twice recently, is really nervous. He thinks that if he's under again this week, he's toast, unless the person with the voting power is Koli. He actually talks Koli into stuffing his face so that they can stay on the ranch together. "I'm about to eat today, whoo!" Koli cries out. He decides not to play it safe at ALL. So he really goes for it. Really, really, REALLY goes for it. Like, I want to throw up watching him gorge himself.</P>
<P>Lunchtime! Daris reflects that his relationship with food is totally different now. He's not eating to get full anymore, he has a calorie count he has to stick to. Michael looks verrry speculative as he enters the room for lunch and looks around. Like, mad scientist speculative. Like, the combination of the expression and the hair is giving him a striking resemblance to Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown. He is figuring, since he's been a huge temptation player in the past, that everyone will think he's going to go for it today. But...psyche! He isn't. He might've, if the prize had been good, but he doesn't want the responsibility of ending someone's time at the ranch. So he contents himself with some lovely looking asparagus and other assorted healthy foods. Well done, Michael. He does some bad acting, though, trying to convey the impression that he's gorged himself.</P>
<P>Victoria has struggled with a food addiction in the past. but she's trying to change her ways. So it's asparagus for her, too. Good girl. </P>
<P>Koli is really enthusiastic about lunch. We get a closeup of him eating all the meat off a chicken wing in one bite. (Apparently this is his big talent.) Why are they grossing us out like this?</P>
<P>What I think is really cool is that we see the contestants guessing at their calorie counts for these meals, and then we see the actual numbers, and they're all REALLY spot-on! Which means hooray for everyone, even Koli, because they clearly are very well-educated about the nutritional content of food.</P>
<P>At dinner, Ashley is getting really tired of resisting all the awesomeness of the food. She's battling with herself and uses the tongs to fiddle with the fries platter a whole lot while she ruminates on whether to cave. Finally she succumbs and eats one taquito...and it tastes like crap. "Damn taquito!" she cries. O'Neal, however, manages to resist the enticing lure of fries and, even tougher to resist, cookies. He even takes the buns off the two burgers he goes for. ("I didn't want those fries, I just wanted them to make the burger look good," he quips. :)</P>
<P>Koli's dinner, naturally, is a very different story. ("Smells like fffat!" he announces as he enters the room.) He is here at the ranch for himself. Oh, and maybe also Sam. For his part, Sam says he would fall on the sword for Koli, so that apparently makes it okay for him to get Koli to pack on the calories for Sam's benefit. (DH just gets really sad watching all this and knowing that there's a rift coming between the cousins due to Koli's machinations a few weeks ago getting Steph booted off the ranch.) More Koli gorging footage. Gag. Once done, Koli confesses that he feels awful after all this and can tell that he's hurting his body.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-14-michaels-strategy/1220159/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Lots of footage of Michael making 'hmmm' noises whilst looking at the temptation food. He eats healthy food, but also tries to be extremely sneaky to make others think that he's gorging. He drinks lots of water to make him feel full and give off really good belches once he's back outside the room, and also empties the buffet tables of majorly unhealthy stuff like fries and chocolate cake to make people think that he's taking this stuff. He doesn't eat this food, of course, but he has to get rid of it somehow, so he HIDES IT IN THE CABINETS AROUND THE ROOM. OMG. He meets Victoria when he gets out of the room and does his big 'Groan, I'm so full' act. She kind of buys it, and then notices the big slice of chocolate cake missing from the whole when it's her turn to go in. She is not the only one, either - Sunshine, Daris, and O'Neal all take note of the missing chunk of chocolate cake. Later, Michael proves himself to be oh such a snake by asking Sunshine whether the cake was "intact" when she got there. Of course it wasn't, so he says it must have been Victoria who ate it! DAWG! This snowballs - Sunshine starts quesitoning where vicky's head is at, and then she talks to Ashley, and they told two friends, and so-on, and so-on, and...and... Finally, Michael's totally busted when Ali announces the temptation results. She tells everyone that he stole a piece of cake. He admits to hiding it to try and get other people to eat the cake (since they might be more inclined to have some if they saw that someone else had been eating it first). This pisses Ashley off, and she makes a mental note to never trust Michael again.</P>
<P>As the sun sets, Ali shows up again to tell people how the temptation went. We see that people did pretty darn well, managing to resist nicely. But of course there is only one winner. Everyone's eyes start bugging out as she goes over the list of what Koli ate. He and Sam are really happy. However, as Michael points out, anyone who falls below the yellow line with Sam is doomed.</P>
<P>Koli is worried - as he damn well should be - about his potential weight gain this week with all those calories sitting on him. So he straps on the boxing gloves and works out, with Sam encouraging him, calling out things like "Hash browns!" and "Bacon!" :)</P>
<P>Regardless of how hard Koli works out, though, he is dead meat, because here come the trainers. Jillian feels a weird vibe as soon as she walks in the door. Michael starts off the temptation explanation, and of course Bob and Jillian are immediately pissed off. Jillian makes an excellent point in an interview that this just indicates how condependent and attached Koli is to Sam. I happen to agree with her. After all, she points out, Sam doesn't even need to be here anymore - he looks fantastic, is seriously committed to a healthy lifestyle, and is just a few pounds away from not even being obese anymore. I'm hoping at some point we see Jillian confronting Koli about this codependency. On the upside, though, she's tremendously proud of everyone else for resisting temptation and making good food choices. Koli doesn't care what she thinks, though. In fact, he's kind of glad to have been the temptation winner, because it ensures that the trainers will kick his ass this week to try and make up for it. Bob hilariously calls him "Chicken Wings" as he yells at him. During his ass-kicking, though, Koli does notice that Victoria is slacking off. We get some shots of her complaining, looking dreamily at the ceiling, and then taking a break while everyone else is hustling on the treadmill.</P>
<P>O'Neal spends a fair bit of his workout looking longingly at how fit Koli and Sam are. We get some photo flashbacks of Young Hot O'Neal. In the present, he is determined to reclaim his glory days. Then ALL GYM ACTIVITY STOPS and everyone's jaws drop, because O'Neal is doing some serious pushups on stools. Cue the Ron-finishing-the-marathon inspirational music. It's pretty freakin' impressive; awesome and uplifting to watch. O'Neal's delighted at how strong he is. </P>
<P>Ashley's having a really bad day, so Bob takes her outside to chat. She's lost without Drea. Bob tells her that she got this far in the competition on her own merits, because of the strength that's in her, and now she has the luxury of no distractions. Make it all about you, Ashley! is his message to her. Ashley reflects that if she can watch her dad die, she can do this. She decides to look at the glass as half full, so we hug it out.</P>
<P>Dr. H is back, this time with some good news! Specifically, we're focusing on how great Michael and Ashley - the two people with the biggest BMIs in the house - are coming along. Michael is 31 and his risk of heart attack/stroke should be 1%, but when he arrived at the ranch, his physical age was 54 and his risk was 84% and his age was 54. He reflects that he never really knew how far off the deep end he was. But now, his physical age is 42 and his risk has been reduced to 31%. So, great strides. But that's still bad. Don't stop now, Mike. Meanwhile, Ashley was diabetic when she started. Now, though, her blood sugar is better than normal, and she has good insulin levels. Farewell, diabetes! Ashley's pretty stoked that she's managed to cure herself like this. Dr. H tells her not to stop. She intends to keep going and is amazingly proud of herself. (As well she should be.)</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-14-workout-weapon/1220139/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Everybody's walking around the ranch to exercise. They all seem to be walking in twos, except for Victoria. Nobody ever asks her to join them on a walk, which means she's on her own out there. Which, in her head, means that a mountain lion is going to attack her. Yes, you read that right. To help keep herself safe when she's out in the wilderness that is the paved and well-kept path of the Biggest Loser grounds, she carries a flashlight. Oh, and also, a BIG HONKIN' KITCHEN KNIFE! OMG, this girl has lost all sense of proportion.</P>
<P>Challenge! There's some sort of bizarre setup with...okay, I have no idea how to describe this. There's some sort of metal frame running horizontally really, really high up in the air, and other metal frames running down vertically from it at regular intervals. The vertical frames stop way, way short of touching the ground. There are also coloured wooden blocks piled up on the ground. Ali makes a whole bunch of "laying a foundation" metaphors and then explains the challenge: the contestants have to use the blocks to build some sort of tower that they can climb to reach the vertical frames. Once there, they have to use the frames as ladders, climb up them to the top horizontal piece, and grab their colour-coded banners. The person who comes in first gets a 1lb advantage at the weigh-in. The person who comes in last gets a 1lb disadvantage.</P>
<P>Michael believes he has a secret weapon: he worked in construction for a couple of years. So making a tower out of blocks is totally his thing. He decides to give Ashley tips so that she doesn't come in last. ("She doesn't necessarily have to beat MOI...but, right now I just wanna help her so that she doesn't get that disadvantage.") But either he can't explain things for crap, or she is not the swiftest bunny in the forest (or possibly both), because she totally doesn't understand anything he's saying. Never mind that, though, the challenge is beginning! Having managed to confuse the snot out of Ashley, Michael gets going on his construction with delight. He has big plans for his edifice - he says he wants railings! An escalator! Lights! A chandelier! I would have found all that a lot more funny if it weren't obvious that he was not entirely kidding. Or if Ashley hadn't gotten totally lost trying to copy him. Even Ali, watching him, has no freakin' clue what the hell he's doing. And indeed, he's so into getting a good "interlocking mechanism" with these blocks that he lets everyone get ahead of him. (Now THAT is funny.)</P>
<P>(DH wants to see them all using carriage bolts.)</P>
<P>Daris is first to his ladder, followed closely by Sam. But both of them have problems getting themselves all the way on their ladders, and slip. They both struggle mightily, but no dice. Back they go for more blocks. Daris comes back first for another try, and he gets onto the ladder! ("Good job, D!" shouts one of the cousins, which is nice to hear.) He scrambles up to the top quickly and the 1lb advantage is his. It's his first challenge win - good for him! His confidence grows. Koli's next to grab his flag. Once Daris gets back down, he has a chance to check out what other people are doing, and apparently there are some really scary structures out there. Just as he says this, Victoria's topples right over. She's holding on to the ladder as it goes, but can't get her whole self up on it. She sobs a bit, terrified that she's going to die. (Don't worry, they've all got harnesses, none of them are going to fall to their deaths.) But eventually she manages to get back down onto her (much-reduced) tower and is safe.</P>
<P>Ashley is scared of heights, but refuses to let that stop her. Sunshine is third to get her flag, followed by Sam. (Which makes me wonder what on earth took Sam so long, since he was neck-and-neck with Daris not too long ago.) Unfortunately, as O'Neal is stepping back to the ground for one last block-gathering expedition, he stumbles and lands on his knee. His bad knee. Y'know, the one without cartilege? Oh man, that's gotta hurt. Sunshine, who is clearly not good at emergency situations, goes completely to pieces. The medic folks get O'Neal on a gurney and off he goes, Sunshine riding in the ambulance with him. Naturally, this means O'Neal is stuck with the 1lb disadvantage. Koli reflects that this sucks, but points out that if Sam doesn't fall below the yellow line and O'Neal does, he can vote to save O'Neal. So it's not as bleak as it looks.</P>
<P>Product placement music! I wonder what we're plugging today. Well, Ashley is frustrated that she isn't good at challenges, but knows that what she can do to for herself is lose weight, i.e. do well on her nutrition. Totally on board with this commitment, Bob goes into the Magical Fridge Of Snacks and pulls out something NEW to eat! It's Yoplait "Greek Yogurt". (Greek yogurt?!? I'm betting that means just regular, plain, lip-smacking yogurt, not that sissy flavoured stuff.) Apparently it has a whopping 14g of protein, which makes it awesome. Ashley makes yummy noises. (I really hope these guys get paid well to do this stuff.)</P>
<P>O'Neal returns from the hospital. There's good news and bad news. The good news is that there's no fracturing or tearing. The bad news is that the bone-on-bone crunch damaged a nerve. Accordingly, his knee wrapped up in a cumbersome-looking brace. Michael speaks on behalf of everyone when he says he's glad O'Neal's okay and that they were all worried about him.</P>
<P>For the next workout, Bob and Jillian are sending the contestants to the beach, where a "surprise" awaits them. Bob and Jillian, however, are taking the day off. The surprise is Gabrielle Reece, beach volleyball champion. She is tall and blonde and ripped and gorgeous and the guys are all very enthusiastic about this. :) But we hear that she's a mom, so oh well, I guess. She takes the opportunity to plug her line of fitness apparel. Did you know that simply putting on a 'zippy jacket' can give you all the motivation you need to do a good workout? Like, wow! She then takes them on a series of exercises that can be done anywhere. Everybody's pretty enthused. They end out the day by playing in the water and having fun.</P>
<P>Time to get serious. O'Neal is having possibly the worst week of his life. Not only did he re-hurt his knee, but he just got a phonecall telling him that his oldest brother Arthur died of cancer. The thing that's killing O'Neal, of course, is that he didn't get to say goodbye. He hangs on to the belief that Arthur is in a better place. Oh, poor man. It's the not being able to say goodbye which is really doing a number on O'Neal - he and Bob talk it out a bit. Bob highlights how strong a person O'Neal is, and that he's here for all the right reasons. And today, they're going to work out for Arthur. (I think O'Neal is just loving Bob more and more all the time.) Specifically, they're going to box - this is great because it lets O'Neal hit stuff. He spars with Jillian, who is impressed, because O'Neal is no longer turning to food as a way of dealing with stuff.</P>
<P>People are confident and working out hard. Daris looks damn good running on the treadmill and reflects on how far he's come. Michael has newfound confidence in the gym and his t-shirt is absolutely drenched. Ashley is determined NOT to fall below the yellow line this week.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, recent events have changed the strategy of the Grey cousins. The original plan was to let Sam fall below the yellow line so they could pick someone off, but now that O'Neal has a 1lb disadvantage, they're focused on saving O'Neal. So they're both working hard to stay above the line.</P>
<P>Speaking of O'Neal, he is heartbroken. In the workout, Jillian whips him up so much that he starts beating up one of the exercise machines. :( Jillian looks torn between hugging him and calling security. She attempts, verrry awkwardly, to hug him. However, since Jillian is not Bob, Master Of Hugs, this doesn't work very well, so they go for a walk. O'Neal lets out a lot of grief and Jillian is suddenly faced with the challenge of holding up his weight (approximately 275lbs) as he literally leans on her. </P>
<P>Y'know, I'm thinking here that we really have no right to intrude on this private grief. Shame on you, Biggest Loser producers.</P>
<P>Weigh-in. Michael reflects on how badly this is going to suck for anyone who isn't Daris, Koli, Sam or O'Neal. Daris, for his part, didn't even need the 1lb advantage. He's thrilled with his weight now and tells a story about when he was a junior in high school and discovered to his shame that there was a senior who was the same weight as him. Sam, whose weight is also down to where it was when he was a kid, tells a high school-related weight story.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>O'Neal drops below 275lbs
<LI>Sam drops below 250lbs
<LI>Daris drops below 225lbs
<LI>Daris and Sam hit the 125lb mark of total loss
<LI>Koli moves from clinically obese to obese
<LI>Sam moves from obese to overweight
<LI>O'Neal hits the 30% mark of total loss
<LI>Daris and Koli hit the 35% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>The end result is that we get some very low weight loss percentages for about half the players, and it's Sunshine and Victoria below the yellow line, with Koli holding the axe. At first, I am absolutely positive that Victoria is toast. Firstly, Koli does not like slackers. And secondly, he adores O'Neal and will do just about anything short of getting rid of Sam to keep him around. So it's kind of like Grey and Yellow make a voting block of four people, which is huge. Also, sending Sunshine home would make O'Neal sad, which I don't think Koli wants to do. Oh, and extra bonus, Sunshine is pretty - I'm sure that hasn't escaped Koli's notice. :)</P>
<P>However, as we go into the elimination, Koli interviews that he has decided to do what's best for him, so suddenly I'm not sure. "Best for him" presumably means getting rid of the bigger threat? Sunshine works hard and has shown herself capable of putting up massive percentages, whereas Vicky hasn't "clicked" yet and can probably be counted on to keep falling below the yellow line until she does, which of course is good for Koli. On the other hand, maybe "best for him" means getting rid of the person who has the most weight to lose, i.e. Victoria? Or "best for him" could mean keeping someone around who's less likely to vote him off if he falls below the yellow line, i.e. Sunshine?</P>
<P>Turns out my original guess was right - Victoria's going home. As Koli votes for her, he tries to encourage her to step up her game. He tries not to be mean about it, but it is hard to tell someone they've been slacking off without sounding mean. For her part, Victoria is shocked that he would say something like that. Which means either Koli's expectations of people are way too high, or Victoria is in denial about her capacity for hard work. (Or both.) Personally, I'm inclined to believe Koli's version of things - he's been on the ranch longer, isn't complaining about anybody else, and Victoria is very new to the ranch and only just discovering how hard she can be pushed.</P>
<P>At any rate, Victoria tries to be nice about it and says that she will take Koli's advice to heart and do her best to step it up at home. She arrives to an incredibly anticlimactic party of just three people (her mom Cherita, her trainer, and her pastor). Geez, what's wrong with her friends and family, doesn't anyone like this girl? The three people who are there, though, are all thrilled to see her, so that's nice. Cherita's looking good, that's awesome. Vicky tells us her plans for her immediate future are gym and home, gym and home. :) Also, she's totally not over how Koli said she wasn't working hard and goes on about that for a while. Then in the gym, she works out with a punching bag, saying stuff like, "This is for you Koli, for voting me off!". We also see her telling the camera, "Koli, you will be SHOWN how hard I work!"</P>
<P>Holy crap sweetie, you are letting Koli live rent-free in your head.</P>
<P>Flash forward to her after-ranch profile, and she's down to 240lbs! She is looking just as beautiful as I thought she was going to. She plugs some sort of 24-Hour Fitness special that they're having on now for Biggest Loser fans or something. She and Cherita then get on stationary bikes. The first day in the house they were kicked out because they came last in the stationary bike marathon challenge, so now they're proving that they can finish the challenge together. Of course, they do, looking strong. Turns out this is also an at-home profile for Cherita, who's doing really well despite her ridiculous hairstyle during the biking - she's lost 77lbs and plans to keep going. Good for both of them!</P>
<H4>Next week (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Look for the following potential milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Michael could drop below 350lbs
<LI>Ashley could drop below 250lbs
<LI>Ashley and O'Neal could hit 125lbs of total loss
<LI>Koli could hit 150lbs of total loss
<LI>Michael could hit 175lbs of total loss
<LI>Sam could hit the 35% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>TV Guide: <I>The players go to Dallas to run a 5K at the Cotton Bowl and recruit locals to join them for the race. Later, a contestant wins immunity by wrangling calves in a rodeo challenge; and Season 8 contestant Abby Rike asks Jillian to speak at her high school.</I></P>
<P>(Squee! Abby!)</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/the-biggest-loser-next-on/1220928/" TARGET=_blank>Video preview</A>: The contestants realise that they really are inspiring people out there. One woman tells O'Neal that watching him come so far makes her think she can do it, too. Meanwhile, Abby shows up and gets Jillian to speak at a local high school. One enormous girl gets to talk with Jillian afterwards. Jillian encourages her and the girl is astonished that Jillian really listened to her and didn't push her away like everyone else does. Oh, poor thing.</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (3.70)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (36.71)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (168)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (29.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (3.10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (35.48)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (8)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (143)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (30.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (2.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (33.87)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (127)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (31.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (2.38)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (32.09)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (126)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (34.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (1.55)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (31.94)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (120)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (37.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (1.38)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (30.59)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (4)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (119)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (39.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (0.52)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (30.55)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Sunshine, Victoria (1)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Vicky (92)</TD>
<TD VALIGN-top>Ashley (42.3)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (0.37)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (25.70)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (84)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (44.7)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-23363332540900811882010-04-14T12:37:00.000-04:002010-04-14T15:04:29.386-04:00Cha-ching<P>So brilliant me over here started taping on the wrong channel before zipping upstairs to continue putting the kids to bed. Captured about 10 minutes of NCIS before DH alerted me to the fact that he thought I wasn't taping the right thing. Curses! At least I'm able to start near the beginning of the week with a...</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-13-andreas-welcoming/1218602/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>:
Andrea is delighted to have been chosen to stay in the house. Koli says it's because Drea needs to be here and she had a bad week, evn though Drea is the bigger threat. We also get a clip from last week's elimination that was not aired where Melissa turns to Andrea and says that she doesn't think Drea an dAshley did their best that week. She also slams Drea for eating breakfast in front of the TV, saying that doing so is just "setting yourself up for failure". Without changing one's lifestyle, she admonishes everyone, returning to the outside world means that you're just going to be fat again. But back into the post-elimination moment, O'Neal says that's ridiculous. Koli goes on to say that the players in the house represent an awesome group and he loves all of them. (Oh sure, he can say that now that he's gotten rid of Stepanie and Melissa.) He loves being around people who want him to succeed, and getting rid of the negativity that is Melissa just makes everything better because now people don't have to worry about watching their backs. I agree with him. Koli also goes on to say that he doesn't like manipulation and deceit, and wants to win honestly. (I wonder what he thinks what he did to Steph was?)</P>
<P>My tape starts in the middle of some kind of pop challenge where people are holding up trays with one hand. The trays are hinged on one side to a post, and they have coins on them. Quarters, apparently. DH fills me in on a bit of what's going on - apparently each contestant got to pick how many quarters to put on their tray, and each quarter on your tray will translate into $10 dollars won if you're the last person holding up your tray. As my tape cuts in, only Drea, Sunshine and Michael are left, and Drea drops out. Sunshine is playing for $650, and Michael is playing for $1,000. Sunshine struggles really, really hard. Her hand is seriously shaking, she's drenched with sweat and tears are rolling down her face. Also, O'Neal seems to be putting a lot of pressure on her here to win. As she pushes quarters back into the centre of the tray(at O'Neal's urging), she loses her hold and the quarters crash to the ground. Michael has won his $1K, although as he hears Sunshine's feeble whimpers, he doesn't look too thrilled. He then gives Sunshine a really beautiful and tender embrace, wiping away her tears and saying, "Don't cry, you were strong, okay? Beautiful, I love you. You put up a big fight," plus some other murmured stuff I couldn't catch but which sounded like it was really sweet. The way he looked at, spoke to and held her is verrrry interesting! Makes me wonder if there's something-something happening there? </P>
<P>(Yes, I'm seeing potential relationships everywhere. So shoot me.)</P>
<P>But the good news is not over yet for Michael - because he gave 100% by putting 100 quarters on his tray, Total (the provider of the prize) is doubling his winnings to give him $2,000. Awesome! And it gets better - Total feels Sunshine did so well, too, that she is going to get the $650 she was playing for! That's great!</P>
<P>Speaking of money, though, there's a surprise - Suze Orman is visiting the house. I find her super-irritating, so this is not going to be a pleasant segment for me. Michael is nervous. Suze, with her oversized coat, too-dark tan, over-enunciated words, and usual self-glorification, interviews that she's on the show today because health and wealth are connected. She talks to the contestants about how heavy debt can feel. Winning the competition means taking responsibility for the financial debt they've all created. (Actually, no, winning the competition means not having to WORRY about all the financial debt you've created, since the prize is a quarter million dollars.) Apparently, last season, she looked at the financial situations of the contestants and predicted that Danny would be the winner because his FICO credit score was the highest. I have no idea what a good credit rating has to do with your ability to exercise hard and count calories, but in Suze's mind, clearly the two things are connected.</P>
<P>As we go to commercial, Bob encourages people to start their own office Biggest Loser competition going.</P>
<P>Suze then brings out Danny, last season's Biggest Loser! Everyone's very excited, and I'm very glad to see him, too. He still looks fantastic. Danny talks to the contestants about how he was $40,000 in debt with credit cards before coming on the show, and compares putting off his debt problem to the way he put off his weight problems. I think he's wearing eyeliner, it's very distracting.</P>
<P>However, Suze is not ready to leave the spotlight, and keeps talking. She wants the players to take full responsibility for their lives. Taking responsibility = winning. She advises anyone with debt already in collections who wants to settle to call their debtors. She is "sure" that if they offer about 40-50% of what they owe, the debtors will settle it with them. She offers no advice, however, on what to do if you don't have that 40-50% to offer. We also find out that Michael has so much debt he can't even count it, and doesn't know what to do to get out of the spiral he's in. Suze doesn't give him any advice about that, although she does say it can't possibly be as bad a burden as being 300lbs overweight, which he's now fixing. Danny follows this up by saying that the debt is something he has to deal with, just like he's dealing with the weight. (I'm not sure how one "deals" with debt when one doesn't have any money, but whatever.) Suze also avoids giving Michael advice by asking who in the house counts their calories. Sunshine and Michael do, sure, but not Koli, who looks embarrassed about admitting it. Busted! Suze originally thought the winner of the competition would be Koli, but hearing that he doesn't count calories has made her drop him like a hot potato. Instead, she taps Sunshine, who's pretty jazzed about that. Koli, who wants to be like Danny, is just going to have to start counting calories if he wants that confetti that he's obsessed with.</P>
<P>Suze then, mercifully, leaves, so Danny takes everybody to work out!</P>
<P>Bob and Jillian are really happy to see Danny. Jillian's particularly proud. "Hi, Skinny!" she exclaims. </P>
<P>"Oklahoma is in the HOUSE!" Bob pronounces as we see Danny and Daris working out together. Danny calls Daris a machine, and confesses that he forgot how hard the ranch is. There's then a pretty intense moment between Daris and Bob. Bob is very concerned and doesn't want Daris to have any stress. This kind of comes out of nowhere with no background or explanation, so...moving on...</P>
<P>Koli and Sunshine work out together. Bob tells us that these two are the most competitive in the house. It's indeed a pretty powerful sight. Koli is still obsessing about confetti. Sunshine: "I didn't know they do that for the at-home winner." Oh, SNAP, girl!!! :D</P>
<P>We then have a Danny-and-Drea moment. She says that she didn't think she deserved to be in the final four until just recently. Danny knows where she's coming from. He came to the show for his kids, but eventually started wanting to do it for himself, and that's when he took off. This resonates for Drea.</P>
<P>There's lots of running on treadmills, and Michael REALLY looks like he's working, good for him. Victoria grabs the handlebars and incurs Jillian's wrath. Thus we begin a series of profiles on how Victoria is struggling emotionally in the house. Jillian says she's so far behind psychologically, which is really hurting her in the gym - the other contestants had their 'aha' moments in week three, and Vicky is still aha-less in week thirteen. So Jillian's focus is on giving Vicky some breakthroughs. You know what that means - insults! Accusations! Yelling! Beatings! Jillian accuses Vicky of having an "everything's perfect" facade. What's stopping her, Jillian asks. Vicky has no answer, so...she gets to run while she comes up with a good one. Vicky interviews that she just doesn't know why she gained so much weight, but is looking forward to figuring it out.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-13-dannys-observation/1218603/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Danny concentrates on Victoria, who seems lost and confused. He advises her to take advantage of things and change herself, instead of simply losing the weight. He says that what got him to his win was realising things about imself. He advises her that it may not actually be just one single answer. "Does it get any easier?" she asks him. "Yeah," he replies, "it does." He loves running now, which is way easier now that the weight is off. Vicky looks really happy to hear about how it truly is going to get better. "Win this game by winning yourself back. That's the way you win it," Danny says.</P>
<P>Rain.</P>
<P>We continue the Vicky focus by seeing her telling Sam she doesn't know why she got so big. Sam says he can relate, that's how he was when he got to the ranch. He advises her that if she doesn't get anything out of the ranch experience emotionally, she's missed the point. Weight is fluid - it goes away and comes back, unless you figure out what's going on mentally.</P>
<P>Lightning.</P>
<P>Ali shows up in rain gear, looking - as Drea notes - very cute. She announces today's challenge, after which, two people are going to own brand-new cars. This of course is the American dream, so everyone loses their minds. Mazda is our automotive sponsor today, and two 2010 Mazda-3s are up for garbs. "TWO cars!" flips out Michael. Ali sells us on the vehicles by expounding their features. After she's done shilling, we hear how the challenge will actually work: on the hill outside are seven giant floating balloons, tethered by rope to the ground. Along the rope of each balloon are 20 keys, for a total of 140 keys. Two of them start one of the cars. Keys can only be brought back one at a time. And did we mention it's pouring rain? And didn't Benjamin Franklin do this with kites?</P>
<P>Sam tells us that it was so wet and muddy during the challenge that he wished he had an ark. He and Drea are the first ones back with their keys. They try them in the ignitions...and now the car seats are all wet! Man, I hope interior detailing comes with these free cars, because you know that as the challenge continues there will end up being mud on the seats, too. Oh, and then the wind picks up. This does not make grabbing the keys easy.</P>
<P>Continually running up a hill to grab a key that doesn't make a car start begins to grate on the contestants. Sunshine gets to the point where she believes she can "feel the energy" of the keys. (She can't.) O'Neal reveals that if he wins, he's giving the car to Sunshine. Drea tells us that she's desperate to win a car because what she owns now is more like a go-cart than an actual car, which doesn't work well as she also owns a 90lb dog. Incredibly, she then manages to start a car! Much screaming ensues. She and Michael jump-hug together in triumph. (That's pretty unselfish of Michael to be so happy for her.) DH mentions that he would've been happy simply to not have to venture back out in the rain anymore.</P>
<P>Everyone keeps trying to find the key that starts the other car, but it just isn't showing up. It takes a ton more tries, with very few keys remaining on the balloon strings, before O'Neal finally hits the jackpot. Sunshine, hearing the engine and seeing her dad at the wheel, runs back to the garage full-tilt, screaming her head off. "This is your car! This is YOUR car!" O'Neal yells back gleefully. She run-hugs into him so hard I think he's going to go down - but he's a rock. Good times!</P>
<P>For the next workout, Bob and Jillian divvy everyone up. Jillian's plan is to run Victoria through the exact same thing she did the previous day. But first she shills Body Buggs for a bit. Vicky is very unimpressed when Jillian announces she has to do five sprints with every single person on the treadmills, for a total of thirty sprints. Off she goes.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, Bob talks to Drea about the breakthrough moment she had last week. Drea tells him that she didn't want to touch people when she was fat, because she didn't want others touching her and going all, "Ew!" Bob asks how come, if she hated being fat so much, it took coming on the Biggest Loser to make a change? Drea tells him it's because she's really good at putting things off, but it's huge that she can hug people now. All this Drea focus is making me think she's going to be the one who's toast this week.</P>
<P>By this point, Victoria is wiped. Jillian compounds the problem by announcing that she has to do five more sprints than originally stipulated. But Vicky pushes through and does it, looking pretty strong, too! After which, Jillian says they have to box. But first, time for a chin wag. Jillian tells Victoria how far she's come from yesterday, to do 35 sprints so quickly. However, Vicky is still acting like the victim of a Greek tragedy, like she's being punished. Also, Jillian still doesn't know why Vicky got so heavy in the first place. Finally we get a few answers. Victoria says she sometimes feels like she's not worth being the best, that she isn't worth good things in general. When Jillian asks where else she's felt "not good enough", Vicky says in friendships and in being a daughter. Why? Because she felt like her parents should have a more beautiful child. This stuns me, because fat or thin, Vicky is a very pretty person. So I have to wonder where this all came from? We don't find out. But Jillian does tell Victoria that she is as deserving and special and beautiful as anyone else on the planet. She then tells us that on the show, you have to figure out the root of your self-destructive behaviour. Vicky appears to be starting to do this. They hug it out.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, in order for Vicky and Jillian to have all this precious private time together, Bob has taken everyone else to work out in the mud. Doing pushups in this is of course bound to get messy, and eventually the contestants all drag each other and Bob through the muck. "There is so much payback in this bitch right now!" exclaims Bob as he pulls mud out of his undies. The best is yet to come, however. When Vicky and Jillian are done with their 'moment', Jillian opens the gym doors to discover all the mud-sloshing, and Bob tells her that she's next. At first, Jillian doesn't take this seriously, but then realises that she is indeed in for a soaking and gets the most HILARIOUS 'oh shit' look on her face before turning and fleeing. We are talking SERIOUS fleeing, y'all. Ripping off her jacket as she goes because it probably cost her a pretty penny and she doesn't want it to get ruined. </P>
<P>DH: "Jillian Michaels! How fast can you run! You have made them strong, and you have made them fit...and now that's gonna put your ass in a sling!"</P>
<P>Needless to say, she is chased down and given a right royal muddification. They even smush a bunch of mud in her hair. "My extensions!" quips DH. :D Jillian swears that there will be revenge at the last chance workout. "I'll have you know that I hold a grudge!" she vows as she limps away from the mudfield.</P>
<P>And speaking of the last-chance workout, here it is. Bob warns everyone that five of the nine people left are NOT going to be in the final four, so they all have to push themselves accordingly. Jillian, however, doesn't care about any of that game crap, she just wants sweet revenge. It's not just a generic butt-kicking today, boy howdy. Sunshine's attitude is "bring it on", she just wants to get the most out of the workout. (Good for her.) Jillian says, "I beat them and beat them until the pain of the mud went away." It's pretty hilarious stuff. And everyone looks good and strong. Michael runs for 5K, to general applause, but that's not good enough for Bob, who makes him go on to do a full five miles. And Michael DOES IT! Bob is impressed. So am I. </P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-13-oneals-realization/1218601/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: O'Neal has been listening to Bob, and realises that his odds of being in the final four are worse than fifty-fifty. So he and Sunshine talk about how they can both get in there. They both really believe they can do it. O'Neal announces, "I'm here for one purpose - that's to get healthy, lose weight, and US go to the final four." O'Neal honey, I love ya, but that's THREE purposes. Sunshine is glad to see her dad getting the same kind of tunnel vision that she found last week.</P>
<P>We then go to weigh-in. Drea is feeling confident. Koli is also expecting a good number because he was much better with his food this week. (I guess he started counting calories.) Michael has so much confidence that he runs up the steps to the scale. Alas, he has a ridiculous ponytail that ruins the moment for me. Amazingly, I think I prefer the 'fro for him.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Koli drops below 275lbs
<LI>Andrea drops below 225lbs
<LI>Andrea hits the 75lb mark of total loss
<LI>Victoria goes from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Andrea moves from clinically obese to obese
<LI>Andrea and Victoria hit the 25% mark of total loss
<LI>Ashley, Sunshine and Michael hit the 30% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>When it's all over, it's Sam and Drea below the yellow line, Sam having lost no weight at all, and Drea having her second bad week in a row, about which she is, understandably, totally pissed (although I wasn't too pleased to hear her saying that Bob and Jillian could "contest" to the fact that she'd worked hard...sweetie, it's "ATtest"). Back in the house, Sam is hilarious. He refers to the strategy of badmouthing his fellow yellow liner as "going the Melissa route". I heart him. The house ends up voting out Drea. Personally, I think this is a poor choice. Drea needs to be in the house more, and Sam is a bigger threat in challenges. I know everyone loves Sam and everything, but come on. Still, we say goodbye to Drea. Off she goes, driving her new car. :) Her dad Darrell is excited to see her, and DH is excited to see that Darrell now has a neck. We both notice that there are a lot of obese people in that group of family and friends. They all go crazy when they hear about the car win.</P>
<P>Some time later, we find that walking her dog is no longer a chore for Andrea. Also, she gets a DVD from Bob which shows herself on day one talking to herself in the future. She knows she's come a long way, but she's not finished. I agree, it's clear she still has a lot more weight to lose, although her face looks thinner. She's also now a spin instructor, and we watch her do her stuff. Darrell, who takes her class, thinks she has a real knack for it. She plans on becoming a certified personal trainer focusing on children with special needs.</P>
<H4>Next week (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Look for the following potential milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>O'Neal could drop below 275lbs
<LI>Sam could drop below 250lbs
<LI>Daris could drop below 225lbs
<LI>Daris and Sam could hit the 125lb mark of total loss
<LI>Koli could move from clinically obese to obese
<LI>Sam could move from obese to overweight
<LI>O'Neal could hit the 30% mark of total loss
<LI>Daris and Koli could hit the 35% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P><I>The contestants eat at a buffet featuring a variety of foods. The player who consumes the most calories wins the sole vote at elimination. Elsewhere, Gabrielle Reece works out on the beach with the players; a building-block challenge tests the gang's climbing skills; Dr. Huizenga reveals updated health scores; and a player receives bad news before the weigh-in</I></P>
<P>(Remember that the bad news is going to be that one of the male contestants loses a brother, as tweeted in early February by Jillian. The remaining male contestants are Daris, Koli, Michael, O'Neal, and Sam. I don't want any of them to go through this, but if anyone has to, I'm hoping it's O'Neal, because he's 51, so his brother would be old enough to have lived a fair bit of life instead of dying tragically young. The other guys, however, are all young so their brothers probably are too: Daris is 25, Koli is 29, Michael is 30, and Sam is 24. But no matter what, it's going to suck large.)</P>
<P>Week after next: <I>The remaining seven contestants head to Dallas to inspire Texans to live healthier lives; a wild challenge involves wrangling calves; the elimination leaves one player feeling lonely.</I></P>
<P>(TEXAS?!? Lordy, I hope this doesn't mean we'll be seeing Melissa again.)</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (3.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (34.68)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (9)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (163)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (30.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (2.42)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (33.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (133)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (31.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (2.27)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (32.26)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Ashley, Koli (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Daris, Sam (120)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (32.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (2.17)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (31.02)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (34.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (1.84)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (30.99)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>O'Neal, Victoria (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (116)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (35.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (1.77)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (30.18)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (111)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (38.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (1.54)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (28.53)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Andrea, Sunshine (3)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Vicky (91)</TD>
<TD VALIGN-top>Vicky (39.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (1.33)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (25.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (83)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (42.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (0.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (25.42)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (0)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (76)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (45.4)</TD>
</TR>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-83925569921823844982010-04-07T16:52:00.003-04:002010-04-07T17:01:12.376-04:00Button, button, who's got the button?<P>Back we come from elimination. As you'll recall, the house almost unanimously sent Steph home last week. Victoria remarks that her first elimination was not what she expected. She feels that Stephanie still needs to be here and it was not in the least bit fun. She assures us that it is very different being on the ranch vs. watching at home.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, Melissa is <I>still</I> wondering why people are <I>still</I> not in gameplay mode, and is <I>still</I> calling her competitors "these people" in interviews. To everyone, Sam says he's grateful for the compliment of being kept around. He then says that the house has been really close so far, and not to be surprised if "things" happen this week to make people think otherwise. This would appear to be a preemptive strike against whatever ideas Melissa might have of persuading people to start gameplaying.</P>
<P>Everyone joins Ali and a big red button in the gym. She announces that someone could win immunity by pushing the button. She demonstrates, causing an air raid siren noise to echo around the ranch and red warning lights to start flashing around. Also, the doors to the scale opens up. (This also clearly wipes out all my theories from last week about which contestant was going to try the button. The preview for this week's show gave us a shot of some white woman's arm slamming the button down, but now it's clear that this shot was Ali's demo. Dammit! So now I have no idea what's going to happen with this immunity challenge. Diabolical.)</P>
<P>Every person gets an access card to hang around their neck. The card allows you to access the scale, if you want to use it by pushing the button. The cards have numbers on them, indicating how much weight each person has to total a loss of more than 2% for the week. The first person to push the button and post a 2% loss has immunity. But if you try and fail, you don't get to try again. Melissa is hopping with glee and anticipation, because of course she loves getting immunity. Ashley accurately points out that weight loss this week has become a race. </P>
<P>Michael watches the wheels turning in everybody's head as they consider the implications of this little twist. He also points out that a person who wins the immunity early in the week has the added advantage of having the whole rest of the week's loss AND the following week's loss to count for the subsequent weigh-in, which of course is a huge deal. Ashley later follows up on this line of thinking by saying that it's like being given immunity for two weeks. However, instead of working out and getting started, everyone starts circling the box with the button on it.</P>
<P>The trainers arrive in the middle of all this and are caught up on what's going on. So they start working out the contestants right away. Michael does some great treadmill running. Jillian concentrates on Sunshine and tries to bring out her potential and spark. She tries to get Sunshine to look inside herself and get really focused. For her part, Sunshine's pretty jazzed that Jillian believes in her like that.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, Bob sits Melissa down for a chat, but all she wants to do is talk about gameplay. But Bob wants to help her discover who she is. He warns her not to lose sight of what the house is really about. He's worried that the game will bite her in the ass. But all she's thinking about is having her immunity prizes snowball week after week so she can get into the final four. (I don't know why she wants to be in the final four if she's so sure she has no chance of beating anyone once she gets there, but whatever.)</P>
<P>In order to prevent the show from being sued by the families of Americans who die whilst trying to lose 2% of their bodyweight in a few days, Dr. H shows up to talk to them about the 2% challenge. Is it really safe to do that in such a short period of time? Well, yes, as long as the weight lost is fat, as opposed to muscle, water, electrolytes...y'know, important stuff. He talks about the "sweet spot" of exercise vs. calories.</P>
<P>Disclaimer taken care of? Great! Let's move on.</P>
<P>Day two: Jillian works people out and is pretty pleased with what she sees. Everyone's working hard. But there's also a lot of strategy discussion. Sam fondles the button and freaks Koli out. Ashley and Drea talk about the correct timing of the button-push and laugh as they hear Melissa making the rounds trying to figure out when others are going to push it. "I think tomorrow's too early for ANYBODY," Melissa tells Daris, in what is clearly a ruse so that she can have a clear path to the button tomorrow. Meanwhile, Sunsine tells O'Neal that she doesn't want to participate in this at all, because she's close to dropping under the 200lb mark. She wants that milestone to come on the scale this week at the real weigh-in, and not miss it by going early this week.</P>
<P>Someone is ballsy (or dumb, take your pick) enough to try it, though: Victoria. This doesn't appear to be the smartest move in the world, because not only does it look like it's still just Day 2, but it also looks like it's night, which is a bad time to weigh in. People are generally lighter in the morning. "Victoria, you are a baaaad girl," O'Neal quips, as everyone joins her in the gym. Nevertheless, she is now committed. She scans her card and up she goes. I start thinking that maybe this is a good idea after all - what if Victoria waterloaded last week when she had immunity, and now she's peed it out and she really does have the 2%? Alas, no. She's only lost three pounds. Melissa is gleeful.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-12-victorias-big-risk/1216723/" TARGEt=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Sunshine gives Victoria props for being gutsy and tells her not to get discouraged at all, but to view the three pounds as an awesome start. Victoria says she's got a lot of things on her mind, like what to eat, when to eat, and when to work out. She feels like she's by herself in her house and isn't into the gameplay. Sunshine of course can relate because she went through the same thing when she came back into the house. But eventually she realised that she had to stop worrying about all that and just focus on herself. She advises Victoria to keep her head up and tells her she looks good. After all, she is keeping up with everybody in workouts. She also tells Vicky not to be afraid to ask questions, like if she sees Sunshine talking with Drea, not to assume that she shouldn't go over there, but to come on and hang out, take every moment. Gosh, Sunshine's a nice person.</P>
<P>Water challenge! There are 1,000 weights out in the middle of the pool, each weighing a pound. They're colour-coded, so each player has 100 of them. You have to go out to where the weights are, dive down, grab no more than two of your weights, and bring them back to the side of the pool, where you have to dump them into your colour-coded scale. First person to get all their weights in their scale wins a two-week trip for two to the Biggest Loser resort, Fitness Ridge. The last person to do so gets a 1lb disadvantage at the weigh-in. Such a disadvantage is not such a big deal for Michael, but is a massive deal for people like Sunshine or Melissa. Also, a little twist: when you're done with all your weights, you can choose to help other people. To start them off, Ali throws the demo weights she's been using out into the pool, and Koli and Sam approve of her throwing arm. :)</P>
<P>Everyone is waaaay better at swimming than I could ever hope to be. Sunshine looks strong and gets an immediate lead. But it's a bit dangerous, this challenge - there's some traffic congestion and people are getting kicked in the head. Melissa also complains about being caught in Michael's backwash. Sunshine admires how awesomely fit all the players must be to be doing this, and gives everyone kudos. Fifty weights in, Sunshine's leading and Sam's right behind her.</P>
<P>Suddenly, DH and I look at the leaderboard and realise that once people start finishing, they're probably going to start helping all the people who are under Melissa so that she gets the disadvantage. I'm thinking that'd be AWESOME.</P>
<P>Sunshine is very worried that O'Neal is last on the leaderboard, and is inspired to pull ahead of Sam because she wants to finish and help her dad. He's very touched. And indeed, she wins it! Yay! Sam is next to finish, and Koli insists that he go help O'Neal. They like O'Neal a lot, they call him "Unc". Mike starts reflecting that he does not want to lose this. And good on Victoria, she's third! This is followed by Koli, Drea, Ashley, Daris, and O'Neal. Mike and Melissa are left, with Mike losing. This worries me a lot, but at last, everyone comes to help him out, which he's totally stoked and grateful about. Sam tells us that this sends a clear message about what the house situation is. (Ya think?) Personally, I have no complaints, I happen to like that "clear message". As clear as it is, though, one person fails utterly to receive it: Melissa. She just interprets it as an indication that people are not here to win. Why else would you help the biggest person in the house, the biggest threat? Well, honey, newsflash: IT'S BECAUSE THEY ALL CAN'T STAND YOU. Wake up.</P>
<P>So Sunshine gets the prize and is pleased as punch. She's so pretty. Melissa comes last and gets the 1lb disadvantage. This makes her think that maybe she needs to hit that red button.</P>
<P>Night. People dozing on sofas. (Don't tell me THAT wasn't staged.) Koli and Sam deliberate about whether they should press the button, and are thinking, yeah, let's go. Sam's keen on doing it tomorrow morning. Meanwhile, Melissa is munching on something and drinking water while writing in her journal or something. So if she's ingesting stuff, there's no way she's planning to push the button now. Grey works out until really late at night. Turns out Melissa's intention is to wake up in the wee hours and work out. DH and I agree this is a stupid idea, because lack of sleep gives you a disadvantage. But sure enough, at 3:12am, Melissa gets out of bed and hits the gym.</P>
<P>Sunrise. Breakfast. The remaining sleepers are awoken by sirens. This makes Koli look worred, and everyone heads to the gym. Yep, there's Sam waiting for him. Melissa is kicking herself. She vows to go straight to that button if Sam doesn't get the six pounds he needs for immunity. All the ladies eye him as he walks up to the scale. DH: "Stop drooling."</P>
<P>The scale dials up reaaaaally slowly, dragging out the suspense. But finally, Sam hits his required six pounds, and has immunity! However, the losses keep piling up until we discover that he's lost TEN FREAKING POUNDS! What I think is especially hilarious is that he's so amazed and humble when he's learning about his success, but when it's all done, he feels he has to go all frat boy with the animalistic roaring triumph. :) Sam, you're not fooling anybody, you're just a big sweetie. :)</P>
<P>Melissa still cannot stop kicking herself for not getting to that button earlier: "Shoulda been me," she says. DH: "It's not all about you!" (AMEN.) </P>
<P>Bob and Jillian show up and notice that everyone's weight tags are gone from around their necks. They get the low-down on what happened, and are amazed by Sam's result. Then they hear about the water challenge, and are proud of Sunshine. Jillian is stunned that Melissa came last at the challenge, but then Melissa explained about the helping others thing working against her. Bob tells us that the game turned on Melissa. His subtext: Well, that's just her too bad. The sympathy is not exactly oozing out of him. (Go, Bob.)</P>
<P>Everyone goes to the gym to work out, but Bob holds Victoria back for a talk. This is ostensibly to talk about nutrition, but of course it's really a product placement for Fiber One breakfast cereal. Gawd, poor Vicky, this is two weeks in a row that she has to do the shilling.</P>
<P>Bob calls out Koli during the last chance workout, making him lift a big weight (165lb) while stepping onto a stool. This is a hard task, and Koli has self-doubt, while Bob tries to prevent more lawsuits by telling us not to try it at home. DH: "He better have a belt on." Koli winds himself up to meet this challenge by picturing confetti falling on him at the finale. DH, on the relationship between Sam and Koli: "It's awful to watch that bond and know what's coming." (Stephanie did an interview in a magazine last week where she revealed that the Koli situation has not been resolved yet. Sigh.)</P>
<P>Jillian concentrates on Daris because he's so nice and quiet, and she doesn't want him to get overlooked. He really is looking more and more like a '93 Phillie all the time. We get a flashback of Fat Daris and the difference really is awesome. Jillian gets him to run like a bat out of hell on the treadmill.</P>
<P>As Jillian calls out Melissa, Bob reflects that he loves tag teaming people with Jillian. Melissa tells us that the last chance workout is most important for her of all people because of the disadvantage. Again, lady, not all about you! Arg!</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-12-bobs-knowledge/1216740/" TARGEt=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Bob and Melissa have a private talk. Melissa thinks she's not part of an alliance because of her AGE. (No, the fact that you are not in your 20s is not the reason.) And she calls her competitors "foolish". (Yes, the fact that you are contemptuous of your fellow players and ignorant of how annoying you are? THAT is the reason. Okay, reason<B>s</B>.) She barely lets Bob get a word in edgewise, but when she does, he says that this season's roster is simply not full of gameplayers. He then drops a massive hint (which she fails to pick up on) by saying he finds this refreshing. So Melissa's only move here is to kill it in the gym and stay above the yellow line. Bob approves of Melissa's positive attitude and predicts that she won't go home this week.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-12-jillians-boxing-rules/1216725/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Jillian does boxing workouts with the contestants, but rarely can she truly allow them to spar. Koli and Sam, however, are exceptions. Jillian remarks on their "boy" aggression and brotherly relationship, and how boxing is a great way for them to get a bunch of stuff out of their system. Koli promptly breaks Sam's nose. (Well, she <I>says</I> it's fractured, but it looked okay, and I'm sure they would have brought a medic in and taken a hospital trip if it was truly broken.) "Is somebody BLEEDING out here?!?" calls Bob from inside the gym. Jillian puts on what is possibly the world's most annoying cutesy voice and blames Sam for getting himself hurt because he "dropped his hand" (i.e. let his guard down). She complains about the boys getting blood all over her nice clean ring and calls the fight, but not before admonishing Koli to keep his head up and Sam to not drop his hand.</P>
<P>Jillian attempts to do flamenco clapping to encourage everyone's pushup timing. (Epic fail on the flamenco stacatto, BTW.) She then takes some one-on-one time with Sunshine to talk to her about, y'know, stuff. Jillian brings up the idea that Sunshine became fat to have a bond with her dad. Jillian wants her to break away and lead parallel lives with her dad instead of their being so enmeshed as they are (although I believe Jillian calls it "ameshed"). Sunshine seems to be onside with this, and Jillian encourages her to step into the spotlight and her destiny. She anticipates that Sunshine and o'Neal will need a Conversation. At some point. Probably soon.</P>
<P>Very very soon, apparently, because instead of going to the weigh-in, we have Sunshine wiggling her foot around nervously in her bedroom as O'Neal comes up the stairs. She tells him she believes she's beautiful now and she really believes in herself, which sends him to pieces. She says she needs to stand by herself for the first time. O'Neal says he could never have let her go until he heard her say she could do it. So now he's letting her go. Everyone's really happy. Yay, Hampton family. :) DH on O'Neal: "He is the reincarnation of Michael Landon. Am I WRONG? My gawd, those tears could float a battleship!"</P>
<P>At the weigh-in, Ali's dress has great potential, but the execution is poor. For one thing, her right boob has been stuffed into it incorrectly, and for another, it's really not that flattering from the waist down. Other interesting moments at the weigh-in include Daris having a bad week. His frustrated yell in an interview FREAKED me out! Michael is HILARIOUS. He flexes his biceps and gets Ali to feel them, immediately thereafter admonishing her: "Didn't your mom ever tell you not to play with guns?" It's so obnoxious that it's really funny. :D As Sunshine goes up the steps to the scale, I notice that DAY-um, she's got great curves! Unfortunately, Andrea has a lousy week with a loss of just 2lbs. Jill and Bob give her a beautiful pep talk, and Melissa looks at Bob like, why the hell didn't I get this when I put up shit numbers all those weeks ago? But Andrea really shouldn't have worried - it was clear it would be either Melissa or Daris with her below the line, and either way, no one is going to send Andrea home under those circumstances.</P>
<P>Oh hey look, my ex is in a fiber 1 bars commercial.</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Victoria drops below 275lbs
<LI>Sunshine drops below 200lbs
<LI>Sunshine hits the 75lb mark of total loss
<LI>O'Neal hits the 100lb mark of total loss
<LI>Koli hits the 125lb mark of total loss
<LI>Michael hits the 150lb mark of total loss
<LI>O'Neal moves from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Sam hits the 30% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>At the end of the day, it's Andrea and Melissa below the line and me doing the ol' fist-pump at the prospect of Melissa going home. Andrea and Melissa end up making their appeals to the rest of the house privately, as per Andrea's request. Drea's appeal is personal and tearful. Melissa, naturally, gets lawyery on everyone. (Which I actually can't complain about, since it's the only legitimate move she has in this situation.) She calls herself everyone's "fairy godmother", and points out that she will continue to fall below the yellow line every week. This will enable people to pick off the strong competition, which is a very tempting scenario if you want to make the final four. It's not about people or relationships, she says, it's about getting to the final four and that confetti that Koli wants. I have to hand it to her, she presented that all really well, without any whining or overdramatization. And it looks like she made some people consider her words a bit seriously.</P>
<P>So, how effective was Melissa's closing argument? Turns out...not so effective. This season's house is not about the gameplay. Koli is tired of it all, and his vote is for Melissa. O'Neal thinks Drea still needs to be here, and his vote is for Melissa. So things are not looking so great for the lady in red. She tells everyone that she thinks the choices have been poor so far. (I suppose looking within yourself to evaluate the choices YOU made is out of the question here.) Daris responds: he doesn't WANT to go the easy route of picking people off, he wants competition that pushes him. His vote is for Melissa. Michael says that the players have gotten close, and gameplay has never really cropped up (when he chose the Black and Blue teams doesn't count, I guess) and he doesn't want it to start doing so, so he votes for Melissa. Vicky wants to repay Drea for voting her back into the house, so she votes for Melissa. Ergo, buy-bye. She talks about how really tough it was for her the first time she went home, but now she has Lance there, plus a gym and a trainer, so it's okay.</P>
<P>Unsurprisingly, no one hugs her goodbye or shakes her hand, or anything. She exits.</P>
<P>Thank.<BR>
Freakin'.<BR>
Gawd.</P>
<P>Melissa reflects on the original weight-in she did in front of family and friends. She says she was lost, angry and sad, but is not that girl anymore. The house is not what's important to her in life. What's truly important are her husband and children. DH: "What's important to you is control, and until you deal with that, you've got a problem."</P>
<P>Speaking of Lance and the children, they're waiting for her to arrive. Her son is proud of her being back, and her daughter finally gets some air time! Lance thinks she looks great. Melissa tells us she and Lance are solid, and their marriage is saved. Lance concurs - he says they're in a great place and so are their bodies. Well, I can't help but approve of happy families, and DH is also glad to hear they're doing well together.</P>
<P>6 weeks later, it's Mardi Gras in New Orleans, where Melissa is going to run a half marathon to celebrate her 40th birthday. Lance runs with her, and they're both in red Biggest Loser shirts. Running with Lance makes the run easier for her than she thought it would be. She uses the half-marathon as a metaphor for her marriage. They finish in 3:49:18. I think Melissa's time could've been way better than that, but I think Lance was slowing her down. However, nobody seems to care, so all is well. Melissa plans to run a full marathon this summer.</P>
<H4>Next week (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Potential milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Koli could drop below 275lbs
<LI>Sam could drop below 250lbs
<LI>Andrea could drop below 225lbs
<LI>Andrea could hit the 75lb mark of total loss
<LI>Sam could hit the 125lb mark of total loss
<LI>Victoria could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Andrea could move from clinically obese to obese
<LI>Sam could move from obese to overweight
<LI>Andrea and Victoria could hit the 25% mark of total loss
<LI>Ashley, Sunshine and Michael could hit the 30% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>Weight predictions</P>
<UL>
<LI>Andrea: 220lbs
<LI>Ashley: 256lbs
<LI>Daris: 225lbs
<LI>Koli: 267lbs
<LI>Michael: 361lbs
<LI>O'Neal: 276lbs
<LI>Sam: 244lbs
<LI>Sunshine: 190lbs
<LI>Victoria: 266lbs
</UL>
<P><A HREf="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/next-on-the-biggest-loser/1216753/" TARGET=_blank>Video preview</A>: Danny's back! He's there to inspire the contestants. Then apparently everyone drags Jillian through the mud. Good times.</P>
<P>From TV Guide: <I>Suze Orman assesses the players' financial health and predicts who will win this season. Also: The contestants balance quarters on a platter to win a cash prize; a challenge to find keys in the pouring rain yields the winners a huge prize; and Bob holds workouts in the mud.</I></P>
<P>Week after next: <I>The contestants eat at a buffet featuring a variety of foods. The player who consumes the most calories wins the sole vote at elimination. Elsewhere, Gabrielle Reece works out on the beach with the players; a building block challenge tests the gang's climbing skills; Dr. Huizenga reveals updated health scores; and a player receives bad news before the weigh-in.</I></P>
<P>In terms of timing, next week's show must have been filmed around January 20, because that's the day that Bob tweeted a picture of him absolutely covered in mud with the caption "this is me at work today"; and when Jillian tweeted "I am going to F#%*+#* KILL @mytrainerbob" with a link to a photo of both of them all muddy. As well, Ali tweeted around this time "Was insane challenge. Rain, sun, wind, rain again... Amazing prize... Incredible finish", which seems to match TV Guide's description of the April 20 show, especially since Ali followed it up with another tweet saying "Think it'll air mid-april".</P>
<P>As for the week-after-next show, that has to match up with Jillian's tweet the morning of Feb 2: "Today was rough on BL. One of my contestants had his brother pass away yesterday. He was wrecked - then i was wrecked for him. Ughhhh so sick with heartbreak for him tonight." The male contestants left are Daris, Koli, Michael, O'Neal, and Sam, so we're going to have to watch one of them get that horrible news. So brace yourselves.</P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (3.89)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (32.66)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (11)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (154)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (28.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (3.82)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (32.26)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (10)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (127)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (30.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (3.47)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (31.51)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (9)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (120)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (31.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (2.75)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (29.41)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (8)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (113)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (33.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (2.58)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (29.28)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Ashley, Sunshine (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (110)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (35.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (2.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (29.09)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (106)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (36.4)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (1.78)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (27.25)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Vicky (86)</TD>
<TD VALIGN-top>O'Neal (39.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Daris, Melissa (1.69)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (24.89)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (4)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (80)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (40.2)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (24.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (3)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (73)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (43.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (0.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (24.02)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (2)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (58)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (46.5)</TD>
</TR>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23692974.post-66876274216105441472010-03-31T12:21:00.003-04:002010-03-31T14:19:09.699-04:00The Biggest Loser Review, 2010/03/30: Things get weird (aka WTF?!?)<P>DH notes that we're now at the point of the season where you can REALLY see differences (and indeed, at this week's weigh-in, they start showing us comparison shots as people go up on the scale). We're both fairly pleased about this. We're also down to only nine players, which leads Ashley to start realising that not only does she have a real shot at winning this whole thing, but now she really WANTS to. She starts talking about how close she is to being in the final four, and we see a montage of all the past elimination moments. This, naturally, is a sure sign that all the eliminated players are going to come back this week to compete for a spot in the house, and that Ashley is not nearly as close to the end as she thinks she is. (The TV Guide's description for this week's show was also a huge clue.)</P>
<P>Sure enough, the contestants (Michael sporting a shadow which actually looks rather nice on him) meet Ali in the gym. She says things are shaping up to be "epic", and says they're going to singles. This thrills everyone to no end (despite the fact that this means the beginning of the dreaded Yellow Line), and they put their original duo colours back on. Stephanie really likes that she doesn't have to be concerned about anybody else anymore, and clearly has her game head on. Yes indeedy, Ali tells them, she can certain guarantee that the next Biggest Loser is right here in this gym...buuuut...it's not necessarily one of them. Right on cue, the screen around the scales opens to reveal all the eliminated players, who have clearly been told to look as mean as humanly possible. The on-ranch contestants don't immediately notice this, however, since they cheer crazily to see them, which is really nice. There is one person missing from the group, however - Migdalia's husband has been deployed (Ali says to Iraq, despite the fact that Migdalia kept saying Afghanistan when she was still on the show), and she understandably hasn't been able to make it here today.</P>
<P>Once the realisation hits that someone's coming back to the ranch, though, Stephanie gets annoyed. She's worked hard to get to this point, she doesn't want anyone getting an easy ticket back, etc. etc. CLASSIC on-ranch player defensive reaction to the bring-back week.</P>
<P>Ali tells us that there will be a vote among the on-ranch players as to which eliminated player will be brought back, prompting a completely overblown and embarrassingly fake-dramatic "Whuuuuuuuut?!?" out of Melissa. As each eliminated player gets weighed in, they will get an opportunity to plead their case. John's pretty stoked about this process, because he still has a lot of good friends still on the inside. And indeed, I think he's got an excellent shot. Vicky, on the other hand, is freaking out because she has absolutely zero relationships here (having been eliminated pretty much immediately after arriving), and that she has not, and I swear she actually said this, "conversated" with anyone. (I weep for the future.) </P>
<P>The eliminated players, from worst-to-first in terms of total weight loss percentage, are as follows:</P>
<UL>
<LI>James: 14.85%
<LI>Cherita: 16.97%
<LI>John: 17.56%
<LI>Patti: 18.93%
<LI>Maria: 20.28%
<LI>Victoria: 20.39%
<LI>Miggy: 20.42%
<LI>Melissa: 21.89%
<LI>Cheryl: 22.47%
<LI>Lance: 24.93%
<LI>Darrell: 25.18%
<LI>Sherry: 28.44%
</UL>
<P>To put things in perspective, the on-ranch contestants at this point have total weight loss percentages ranging from 22.15% to 29.48%, so the only eliminated players who are "running with the pack" are Cheryl, Lance Darrell and Sherry. However, the total percentage numbers are not the whole story. I think the more important thing to do is to see how well people have done since leaving the ranch. When you look at things that way, the leaderboard looks a bit different. Here I've taken the percentage of weight that people lost at home and divided it by the number of weeks they were at home, to get a weekly at-home average. Lance is not listed here, as he lost zero pounds since his last on-ranch weigh-in, which makes sense since that was only about 12 hours before this weigh-in...although I did notice he managed to get a haircut in the intervening time.</P>
<UL>
<LI>0.68%: Miggy (2.05% in about 3 weeks)
<LI>1.04%: John (5.22% in about 5 weeks)
<LI>1.10%: Patti (8.80% in about 8 weeks)
<LI>1.18%: James (10.61% in about 9 weeks)
<LI>1.52%: Cherita (9.09% in about 6 weeks)
<LI>1.65%: Cheryl (3.30% in about 2 weeks)
<LI>1.69%: Maria (11.81% in about 7 weeks)
<LI>1.78%: Victoria (10.66% in about 6 weeks)
<LI>2.14%: Melissa (8.54% in about 4 weeks)
<LI>2.15%: Darrell (8.58% in about 4 weeks)
<LI>4.29%: Sherry (4.29% in about a week, holy cow)
</UL>
<P>Milestones reached since we last saw people:</P>
<UL>
<LI>James has dropped below 450lbs
<LI>John has dropped below 400lbs
<LI>Vicky has dropped below 300lbs
<LI>Cherita has dropped below 250lbs
<LI>Maria has dropped below 225lbs
<LI>Patti has dropped below 200lbs
<LI>Cherita has hit the 25lb mark of total loss
<LI>Cheryl, Vicky, Melissa, Maria and James have hit the 50lb mark of total loss
<LI>John has hit the 75lb mark of total loss
<LI>Darrell has hit the 100lb mark of total loss
<LI>James has moved from super-obese to morbidly obese
<LI>Maria has moved from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Patti has moved from clinically obese to obese
<LI>Melissa and Sherry have moved from obese to overweight
<LI>James has hit the 10% mark of total loss
<LI>Cherita, Patti and John have hit the 15% mark of total loss
<LI>Cheryl, Vicky, Miggy, Melissa and Maria have hit the 20% mark of total loss
<LI>Darrell has hit the 25% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>As for the pleas to come back in the house, everybody has different angles. Darrell sells himself as a catalyst, saying that his drive helps make other people's drives stronger. He pulls out an "iron sharpens iron" metaphor. Sherry declares her love for the in-house players. Miggy has no idea how to ask for this, and just goes with saying that she's "from the heart". Vicky pulls heartstrings. She points out that she has packed her bags three times to come here and is still not on the ranch yet. She begs for a chance. I bet you anything O'Neal will vote for her.</P>
<P>In an interview, Melissa scoffs at the compassionate, lovey-dovey, nicey-nicey friends angle, and accuses the players of not looking at the big picture. It's not TIME to be friends, doncha know. (DH: "No Melissa, everyone IS looking at the big picture, they're looking at their LIFE." ) At the actual weigh-in, she puts on her dramatic voice and gestures to point out that she should come back in the house because she's not the tiniest bit of a threat. What she has forgotten to account for, though, is that no one wants someone super-annoying back in the house. My heavens, what a nightmare she must be in court. Indeed, Koli actually starts laughing at her during her spiel. </P>
<P>Lance gets a catch in his throat during his speech. He wants a chance to fulfill the purpose he's learned he has: paying it forward. (I have no idea what that means.) Cheryl would love to come back and finish her weight loss but refuses to clean the kitchen. (Oooh, kiss of death.) John makes no sense at all. He needs help to "inspire more" but admits he doesn't know what that means. Riiiight. Oh, and he misses everyone a lot. (Now THAT makes sense.) Patti has decided to stop putting other people first and asks for a chance for herself. Michael whoops as his mom starts talking. She's been having a rough time of it - working hard, but it's been tough with everything going on with her mom. She's been finding herself falling backwards, so she needs the focus of the ranch. (Don't sell yourself short, honey, you're in the top five of at-home performers!) James, like Patti, decides to put himself forward instead of other people. When he left, he fought to keep his brother on the ranch, but now he's asking for himself, which he never does. He says it's his turn. Cherita's priority is to bring Vicky back. (I wondered if she'd do that.) She blames herself for the first time she and Vicky had to go home. She makes a very powerful plea and there are wet eyes all over the place, including mine. Man.</P>
<P>We get a quick Brady Bunch-style montage of everyone blathering on about their thought processes when it comes to deciding how to vote. It's over quickly, thank heavens.</P>
<P>Ashley votes for John. (Take that, Sherry.) O'Neal, no surprise, votes for Victoria. Daris, who has way too much integrity to last much longer in this game, totally gets on board Darrell's metaphor train. Stephanie, noting that James has the worst total weight loss percentage of all the at-home contestants, votes to give him a chance. (If she'd had my spreadsheet, though, she'd have seen that the worst at-home performer was actually Miggy.) Sam and Koli adore John, so they both vote for him. Cherita freaks out, since John now has three votes. Sunshine makes her feel better, though, by voting for Victoria, and then so does Drea! So now it's John's turn to freak out because he's tied three-to-three with Vicky after being in the clear lead. So it all comes down to Mike.</P>
<P>Mike tells us that he vowed to always be grateful, because he feels it's his job to be thankful and pay it forward. He wants to give someone a chance who didn't have the chance that he got. And with those words, John's face goes very sadly glum. Because indeed, Vicky's in. Mike says everyone here is bound for great things and wants to be the first one to, tearfully, welcome Vicky to the house.</P>
<P>ZOMG THAT IS SO NICE.</P>
<P>Gratitude is just gushing all over the place - from Cherita and Vicky most of all. DH notes that the young players now have a helluva voting block. John is of course disappointed, which is sad, but he tries to convince himself that it'll all work out. (Yeah, it will, buddy, we've seen your at-home profile, you're going to keep losing, it's going to be fine.)</P>
<P>However, surprise! It's not over yet, there's actually another spot in the house up for grabs. Ali announces that there will be a challenge, the winner of which will get back in the house. Melissa says this is her DESTINY. (Gag.) Miggy thinks she has this and is planning to leave it all out there. Between the two of those, I'd put my money on Miggy anytime, but there are a few other people participating in this challenge that we have to account for, too.</P>
<P>The nature of this competition is an "up-down challenge", to symbolise the ups and downs of the overall competition. (Groan.) Each person gets a step and has to get up on to it and back down again. First person to do that 1,000 times earns the last remaining spot in the house. The twins are sad again because they know they have no chance here, especially James, who has no cartilege in one knee. Melissa, no surprise, is manic in anticipation. As we get started, Miggy takes the lead, but then drops behind Melissa. (Dammit.) There's no love lost between these two women, as we see from flashbacks. Sherry's also in a good position, but loses some time as her shoe comes untied. (Curses.) Trouper that she is, she takes it off, but then has to take the second one off too, as being one-shoed is too unbalancing. She tells Melissa she's coming after her, and Melissa gives some back. Miggy looks dead. Lance is also near the top of the leaderboard.</P>
<P>So the only people who really have a shot here are Melissa, Miggy, Sherry and Lance. Koli is not liking these options. (I don't blame him. I'd love to see Sherry back again, but she does represent a massive weight loss threat.)</P>
<P>Melissa slows while Miggy steps it back up and starts to find her kill zone, thank heavens. Mike cheers her on, but then Melissa picks her pace, shrieking that she wants back in. Someone shoot her, please. I don't know if I could stand it if she made her way back onto my television on a weekly basis. But to my great dismay, Miggy hits a wall. Her chest tightens up and she feels like she has no oxygen. Melissa, who's hurting at this point, tells us self-righteously that you have to work through the pain. Oh, be quiet, you are not all that. And yet, she cackles. And wins. Viewers all over North America keen in agony.</P>
<P>Lance cannot describe how much he loves his wife. Oi vey, poor man. Although I have to admit that I'm very glad they're back in sync with each other. His beloved wife, meanwhile, looks smug as all hell as the rest of the eliminated contestants prepare to say goodbye again. She fist-pumps as Ali announces that the two brought-back players have immunity this week; news which makes all the other on-ranch players look quite unhappy. Naturally, the eliminated players all get to go home and compete for the $100K prize, this time with a better awareness of what kind of competition they're up against.</P>
<P>Workout! Bob and Jillian return. They're delighted to see the singles colours sprinkled around the gym. Poor fools - they actually think that's today's big surprise. Jillian interviews about how now the alliances are all going to go haywire and it'll be all "game on", and cutthroat and so-forth. But I don't think even she knows just how prophetic these words turn out to be. More on that later, though. First, we have to reveal the brought-back contestants to the trainers. First in the door is Melissa. Bob predicts that everyone else will now have to be on their toes. DH reflects that we now have proof that Jillian is a good actress, given how happy she pretended to be to see Melissa. "She must've chewed through half her liver to do that," he remarks.</P>
<P>But of course we're not done. Melissa turns around and announces Vicky's arrival, who is just happy as all getout to be (literally) jumping in that door. :) Now THIS is something that the trainers can be TRULY happy about. Jillian is really pleased that Vicky has gotten her chance, and feels the world is right again. Bob gives a super-cute "awww" face when he hears how Vicky got back in. He gives big props to the people in the house, who could easily have stonewalled Vicky since she has so much weight to lose and is therefore a big potential threat.</P>
<P>As the workout begins, Vicky suddenly realises that now she has to really work. Well, duh! And the displeasure continues across the board. Stephanie is genuinely pissed off that two people have come back in the house. Koli is super-annoyed that Melissa is back. Sam, however, takes out any frustrations he might have by boxing. We get a freakin' FANTASTIC shot of steam coming off his head!</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-11-boxing-lessons/1214327/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: O'Neal is woken up by the sounds of Koli and "Cap'n Sam" doin' a little boxing. He asks if he can join, and they tell him absolutely. So Koli tells him the sequence, and off they go. O'Neal says Koli really worked him out, and there was no way he could have done that before. In fact, O'Neal was so in the moment that he forgot about his knee. Koli really gives him some excellent training, it's very cool to watch. O'Neal calls Koli a man's man. </P>
<P>Poor Vicky is pretty much instantly roped into product placement detail. The scene is that she's making a week's worth of healthy food. We see shots of the canned tomatoes she's using, but the product placement is <I>actually</I>...Ziploc bags! (These are what she's using to freeze her individual servings.) As Bob blathers on about the benefits of disposable plastic bags, DH, hilariously, makes the patented Bob "talk, talk, talk, words, words, words" hand signal at me. :D Vicky makes happy zipping noises as they seal the bags. Good gawd.</P>
<P>Melissa walks around the ranch for exercise, while Ashley and Drea take a break from their construction jobs and wolf whistle at her...er...I mean...they lament how skinny Melissa is. Yes.</P>
<P>We then go on to hear how freaked out Ashley is about her status here on the ranch. She is so freaked out, in fact, that she has lost her ever-luvin' mind: she has decided that Stephanie, one of her best friends here, is out to get her. She is basing this decision on baseless speculation made by Koli, who has been Ashley's freakin' RIVAL for the past several weeks. THE HELL?!? Not only is this pretty stupid of Ashley, but WTF is up with Koli? Seriously, he starts talking about how it's possible that Stephanie threw the weigh-in the week Sherry left, purely for the purpose of getting Sherry off the ranch. He admits he has no evidence for this, but HE SAYS IT ANYWAY, adding that he "wouldn't put it past her".</P>
<P>What?<BR>
The?<BR>
Frak?</P>
<P>This is even more incomprehensible when you remember that Stephanie is the girlfriend of Koli's cousin Sam. What happened to "family first", Koli? Shouldn't you and Stephanie be ALLIES? Wouldn't that be the logical thing to do, since it would give you a solid three-person voting block, a rather valuable commodity in the singles game? Or maybe Koli is jealous of all the time Sam is spending with Stephanie? Or maybe Koli wanted to date Stephanie and is now all bitter and hateful? I have no idea. But it is supremely weird. Also, I predict that Sam is going to be really angry at Koli when he sees this episode. Indeed, here are Sam's latest tweets from last night:</P>
<P>In response to someone's blog calling out Koli for what he did: "I agree. It hurts."</P>
<P>and...</P>
<P>"Holding her. Comforting her. The lies. They hurt."</P>
<P>Geez, poor Sam. What a shitty position to be caught in. And I was really loving me some Koli, too. I just don't understand what could be going on in his head. That was a deliberate and malicious manipulation if ever I've seen one. (Ironic, since he was the one accusing Stephanie of malicious manipulation.)</P>
<P>However, we go on to the last chance workout. Poundings ensue. Bob makes Koli, Sam and Daris do some serious strength training. Jillian is delighted with O'Neal's performance, telling him, "It's almost boring to see you keep defeating this." :) Vicky is hoping to see good results on the scale and Jillian is riding her ass like...like...well, like's it the Biggest Loser last chance workout, for heaven's sake! Suck it up, cupcake! The big accomplishment today, though, is that Bob takes O'Neal outside to teach him how to climb stairs. O'Neal hates stairs and walks up them worse than a tired toddler. Bob explains that O'Neal has to use his core muscles to pull himself up when he climbs stairs so that it will be easier. o'Neal looks eager to try, and hey...there he goes! Walking up steps like a normal person! O'Neal loves the Bob-man.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-11-visting-venice/1214298/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: For one of the trainer-led workouts, everybody goes to Venice. That's the beach, not the Italian city. They do laps around the court, as throngs of spectators watch and take photos for their Facebook pages. This is all to emphasize that you don't have to go to a gym to get exercise. More gymless beatings. The throngs clap. Koli loves the fame of having fans and being asked for his autograph. (Gag.)</P>
<P>Jillian takes Stephanie for some one-on-one time, and Stephanie proceeds to fall apart, crying things like, "No, SERIOUSLY, Jill!" (like, omiGAWD), before leaving the gym sobbing. Jillian follows her out and refuses to take crap answers for why all this drama is happening. Stephanie feels scared that she won't go home on her terms. Jillian tells her she's a control freak and that she's alienating herself from her fellow players by trying to manage everything. Does Stephanie not see a pattern with this in her life? "Sure," says Steph unconvincingly. And that's the end of that scene. Okayyyy...</P>
<P>But things are about to get worse for Stephanie. Ashley is sick of playing an act that nothing is wrong, so she confronts her friend. To rub lemon juice into the paper cut, she eats in front of Steph while telling her that she can't trust her right now. Stephanie looks genuinely confused and asks why. Ashley says it's been brought to her attention that Stephanie may have thrown the weigh-in. This shocks the snot out of Stephanie and she denies it, having trouble believing that this conversation is even happening. She gets upset. This bothers Ashley, who didn't want to upset her. (Really, Ashley? Really? You tell your friend that you've been believing nasty rumours about her and are bummed because this upsets her?) Stephanie says her heart is broken by this news, and she doesn't know who told Ashley this, or why, but...but...but...they hug it out. Okayyyy...</P>
<P>Being the sort of person with the need to get to the bottom of things and try to manage situations as much as possible (QED), Stephanie tries to get to the bottom of this rumour. (I don't blame her.) She asks Drea if she seeded it. Drea tells her no, but she has certainly heard the rumour, and it sounded plausible because she's been noticing Stephanie being very game-focused recently. She brings up Stephanie's vote for James at the bring-back weigh-in as a quintessential example of a gameplay move. This appalls Stephanie, because all she was trying to do there was help the person who needed the most help. Ashley and Drea are happy that Stephanie told her this because they had no idea. (I call bullshit, since Stephanie SAID THAT WAS HER REASON during the damn vote!) They encourage Stephanie to open up to them because unless she does, they have no idea what she's thinking and will just assume malicious gameplay is going on. Stephanie opening up, however, "changes everything". (The hell it does. With friends like these, who needs enemies?) So apparently, they're all good now. Okayyyy...</P>
<P>We go to the weigh-in. Stephanie is freaking out because she's had such a hard week emotionally, which could well affect her results on the scale. Vicky and Melissa, since they have immunity, weigh in first, and the results are not too good...although Melissa's numbers are much better than Vicky's (DH: "Well, if she waterloaded, it was subtle.") We also get the big stair-climbing moment from O'Neal. We get buildup music to a commercial, and when we come back, it's time for the Ron-finishing-the-marathon symphony for maximum emotional impact. Yay! Bob is thrilled. O'Neal is proud that Sunshine is proud, and happy that Sunshine is happy. (Codependence, anyone?)</P>
<P>Milestones achieved:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Ashley drops below 275lbs
<LI>Victoria hits the 75lb mark of total loss
<LI>Ashley hits the 100lb mark of total loss
<LI>Daris moves from clinically obese to obese
<LI>O'Neal, Sunshine and Stephanie hit the 25% mark of total loss
<LI>Daris and Koli hit the 30% mark of total loss
</UL>
<P>But generally speaking, the losses this week kinda suck. Everyone except Sunshine gets less than their weekly average, and the biggest loser of the week (again, Sunshine) does so with less than 3%. So quite disappointing. Sam, however, is positively chipper as he talks about his meagre 2lb loss. He's very inspirational. But at the end of the day, it's the lovers (Sam and Stephanie) below the yellow line. That blows. DH is absolutely convinced that Sam will ask the others to send himself home so his lady can be saved, and that Koli's jaw will hit the floor when this happens.</P>
<P>However, Sam disappoints my husband no end by putting forward a case for himself. He vows to push others and says he's not ready to go. Stephanie's plea is much more lame, and in fact counterproductive, because she points out that she doesn't push people to do their best. (Not a great start, kid. You got anything else?) She cries unintelligibly and finishes off by saying she wants to be here. (Oh well, I guess not.)</P>
<P>Koli brings out his bitchy side again and tells us that he is completely unaffected by Stephanie's display of emotion. He sees her as a gameplayer and her tears are all meaningless. It sounds like he believes her crying is all staged. "I can't have people like that around me," he says. Wow. Is he ever in trouble if Sam and Stephanie get married.</P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/week-11-tough-decision/1214329/" TARGET=_blank>Bonus video</A>: Drea and Ashley deliberate about their voting decisions. They are down because this is a scenario they've never even thought about. But Drea thinks that what Sam said about pushing others to work is true, and then feels guilty. Ashley furrows her brow as she nods. Drea is struggling with the idea of sending Stephanie home. Ashley agrees, noting that it'd be especially bad to do that after all the crap Steph went through this week. Ashley points out that both Sam and Steph did awesome at home, so that's not a factor. Drea finds herself conflicted between guilt and selfishness: sending Stephanie home would make her feel guilty, sending Sam home would put hers at risk because he makes her work. Ashley cries some more (tissue companies must love this show) and talks about thinking about herself. Wow, it sounds like they both really depend on Sam. And possibly not in a healthy way. What are they going to do when they have to go back to Michigan and Tennessee and Sam's out in California? Learn to rely on yourselves, ladies!</P>
<P>Sam and Stephanie hold hands under the table of the elimination room as they wait for everyone to arrive with their platters. Koli, naturally, votes to keep his cousin on the ranch. (I would certainly expect him to do that even if he didn't have a hate-on for Stephanie.) Melissa is thinking strategy and wants Sam gone so she has a better shot of staying on the ranch as long as possible, since he's a threat to her. (Fair.) Daris is still enamoured with the 'iron sharpens iron' metaphor and wants Sam to stick around. None of these three votes are surprises. The big surprise comes, though, when Stephanie's supposed "friends" start revealing their votes. Sunshine, Drea and Ashley all vote for Stephanie. Stephanie is surprised, and notes that there are a lot of game players here. She's trying not to take her ousting personally, and will keep going. Ashley admits tearfully in an interview that she betrayed a good friend who's supported her during bad times, and hopes Steph understands. (Yeah, keep tearing up there, kiddo, it won't bring back your integrity.)</P>
<P>Seven weeks later, Steph is out shopping for an outfit for her thirtieth birthday party, which is tonight! This is extremely exciting, because she's down to a size 12 and can focus on elements like style and shape as criteria for buying clothing. This is a new and very welcome experience. She tries on a bunch of really nice outfits, does a little fashion show for all of her enthusiastic friends, and looks great. She doesn't choose any of my favourites, but still looks very nice on the big night. Everyone cheers her. She's lost 96 pounds, which is awesome, and we get the official announcement that she's fallen in love, although she doesn't reveal who it is. (That's okay, we all read the Internet.) She's really happy, and wants to be in a size 8 by the finale.</P>
<P>Despite this, there's really not that much to feel good about this week. DH is seriously disappointed in Sam's lack of chivalry, and we're both stunned badly with what Koli did this week. Don't get me wrong, I don't feel very connected to Stephanie as a personality, but I don't think there's any justification to think that she threw the weigh-in the week she lost 2lbs, and I think Koli deliberately set out to get rid of her, and I think her friends betrayed her, and that's just all nasty. Add onto that the fact that Melissa's back on the show, plus the weigh-in results this week were poor...and I have myself a pretty unsatisfying Tuesday night. The only bright spot is that Michael seems a lot more relaxed and genuinely happy lately. So perhaps things will get better.</P>
<H4>Next week (SPOILERS)</H4>
<P>Look for these potential milestones:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Koli could drop below 275lbs
<LI>Andrea could drop below 225lbs
<LI>Sunshine could drop below 200lbs
<LI>Melissa could drop below 175lbs
<LI>Andrea and Sunshine could hit 75lbs of total loss
<LI>O'Neal could hit 100lbs of total loss
<LI>Koli could hit 125lbs of total loss
<LI>Michael could hit 150lbs of total loss
<LI>O'Neal could move from morbidly obese to clinically obese
<LI>Andrea could move from clinically obese to obese
<LI>Andrea and Melissa could hit 25% of total loss
<LI>Sam could hit 30% of total loss
</UL>
<P>Weight predictions:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Andrea: 221
<LI>Ashley: 263
<LI>Daris: 229
<LI>Koli: 272
<LI>Melissa: 174
<LI>Michael: 370
<LI>O'Neal: 284
<LI>Sam: 254
<LI>Sunshine: 196
<LI>Victoria: 281
</UL>
<P><A HREF="http://www.nbc.com/the-biggest-loser/video/the-real-game/1214648/" TARGET=_blank>Video preview</A>: Melissa thinks her competitors are dumber than sand, because they are still not in gameplay mode. "Everybody wants to be friends? Are ya CRAZY?!?" There are many shots of her looking infuriatingly smug. Also, we get a few hints about the immunity challenge. There's something about losing 2% of your bodyweight and a big red button. It sounds like you have to be the first person to push the button and weigh in with at least a 2% loss for the week in order to win immunity. Naturally, Melissa is gunning for it. We then see clips of red lights flashing around and a siren going off throughout the house, indicating that the button has been pushed. "Someone hit the button!" a woman says. "ALREADY?" asks a man. From the clips, it looks like a woman's hand attached to a blue shirt pushes the button...but the hand is white, so there's no way it's Vicky. We also see a clip of Sam being treated by Sandy The Medic and sitting up in surprise as the alarm goes off. Drea is in the background of that shot, so it can't be Drea pushing the button. The hand looks too thin to be Ashley's, so it must therefore be Melissa's. (Surprise.) Whether or not she'd managed to lose 2% by the time she pushed that button, however, is anyone's guess.</P>
<P>TV Guide: <I>The players have a chance to win immunity by becoming the first competitor to lose 2 percent of his or her body weight. Each person only has one chance to weigh in, however, adding a critical element of timing to the challenge. Later, the contestants hit the water for a race involving weights. Those who finish may help others complete the challenge.</I></P>
<P>Week after next: <I>Suze Orman assesses the players' financial health and predicts who will win this season. Also: The contestants balance quarters on a platter to win a cash prize; a challenge to find keys in the pouring rain yields the winners a huge prize; and Bob holds workouts in the mud.</I></P>
<H4>Standings</H4>
<TABLE BORDER=1 CELLPADDING=2 CELLSPACING=0 STYLE="font-size:11px">
<THEAD>
<TR>
<TH VALIGN=top>#</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall %</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>This wk lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>Overall lbs</TH>
<TH VALIGN=top>BMI</TH>
</TR>
</THEAD>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>1</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (2.88)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (31.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (8)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (145)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (28.7)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>2</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (2.87)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (30.27)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (7)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (122)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Stephanie (30.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>3</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (2.20)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (29.57)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Koli, Sunshine (6)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (110)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (31.9)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>4</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (2.16)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (27.57)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (109)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (32.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>5</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Koli (2.09)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (27.54)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Andrea, Ashley (5)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (103)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Daris (34.0)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>6</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (2.06)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (26.55)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (98)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (35.5)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>7</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (1.81)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (25.19)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Melissa, O'Neal (4)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Vicky (75)</TD>
<TD VALIGN-top>Koli (37.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>8</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (1.36)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Stephanie (25.00)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sunshine (73)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>O'Neal (40.6)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>9</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Sam (0.76)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (23.83)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top ROWSPAN=2>Sam, Victoria (2)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Andrea (71)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (41.8)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>10</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (0.70)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (23.61)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Stephanie (66)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Ashley (45.1)</TD>
</TR>
<TR>
<TD VALIGN=top>11</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Stephanie (0.50)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Victoria (20.95)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Stephanie (1)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Melissa (55)</TD>
<TD VALIGN=top>Michael (47.6)</TD>
</TBODY>
</TABLE>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16399447301356626262noreply@blogger.com0