Homecoming: Seeing their families after weeks away from home was quite an experience for the players. The progress they made during their time at the Ranch was reflected in their families' shocked faces. But the families weren't the only ones surprised, as the contestants soon learned they had an at-home challenge to complete. On each of their doorsteps was a tin with a DVD and 13 sugar cookies in it. On the DVD, Alison explained that the challenge was to run a half marathon, and whoever ran it the fastest would win $10,000! But there was also, of course, a twist: The players could add time to someone else's result by eating the cookies in the tin. For every cookie someone ate, an extra five minutes would get tacked on. Some choosing to run inside while others ran outside, the players set off to complete the 13.1 miles, all with the support of their families and friends cheering them on (or in some cases, even running with them). Tara finished first with a time of 2:24:19, and Sione finished second at 2:25:57. Helen came in third with a time of 2:49:19. That's an awesome result at any age, but when you consider that she was running that distance for the first time at the age of 48, it's truly awe-inspiring!

Facing Distractions: Even though the players were at home, the game was still very much on, and they didn't have the luxury of slacking off or succumbing to temptations. Aubrey had trouble mothering her five kids while still finding time for a good workout. When Ron and Mike went to their favorite restaurant, they were enticed by the free pizza, cookies, and beer offered to them, but they didn't give in. Helen's love of Polish food distracted her while she shopped for groceries, but she got ingredients to make a healthy dinner and didn't let temptation get the best of her when she passed by the pastries. Good choices all around. Aubrey had an important confrontation with her dad, who weighs over 500 pounds. She spoke with him about the importance of losing weight before he slowly kills himself. He cracked jokes, which was heartbreaking because he wasn't yet ready to face the reality of his situation or to make changes in his lifestyle.

Who Ate the Cookies? After saying tearful goodbyes to their families, the players returned to the Ranch. Once there, Alison revealed that Sione and Tara had finished with the two best times in the half marathon. Nobody ate a cookie to alter Sione's time, so his result stood. Alison then let it drop that Tara had finished with the faster time, but since Helen ate a cookie at home for her, Sione took the lead — and got $10,000 richer. With the challenge behind them, it was time for all the players to get serious during the last-chance work out...and since it was my only chance all week to give them a good beating, I went all out.

Time to Weigh In: As the players took turns stepping on the scale, some reached milestones...and others faced disappointment. Five players — Tara, Kristin, Sione, Filipe, and Ron — were on the verge of breaking the 100-pound barrier. Plus, if Kristin or Tara did it, they would be the first women ever to accomplish the feat while on the Ranch. Mike lost 8 pounds at home — to his own surprise — for a total weight loss of 118 pounds since he's been on the Ranch. Laura lost 6 pounds on her own in a week — much better than the 7 pounds she lost when she was at home for a month at the beginning of the season. Tara had a tough week; she lost the $10,000 challenge by a nose, and by the weigh-in she'd only lost 2 pounds — 4 pounds shy of her 100-pound weight loss goal. I had to point out that she was clearly overtraining. Sione needed to lose 5 pounds to reach the 100-pound mark, but came up a pound short. Filipe needed to lose 10 pounds to reach the goal, but came up a bit short, having lost 7 pounds while at home. Ron did meet the milestone by losing 10 pounds, bringing his total loss to 103 pounds. Helen had a great week, losing 7 pounds, and Aubrey lost 5 pounds at home, which took her out of the 200s and down to 195. Kristin sadly gained a pound, so she didn't reach her 100-pound weight loss goal either. Finally, it was up to Cathy to lose 10 pounds to keep the Blue Team safe, but she only lost 1 pound, so the Blue Team headed to the elimination room. Ron had immunity since he had the highest percentage of weight loss. Of course, nobody wanted to leave, but Cathy decided that she should be the one to go home. She was ultimately eliminated and sent on her way back to Wisconsin to do her remaining work there.

Now at 215 pounds, Cathy works out in the morning so she doesn't have any excuses and is addicted to spin classes. And while her daughter Kristin remains at the Ranch, she has inspired her other daughters to lose weight at home with her.

Next Week: Tara and Kristin were too short on pounds lost this week to reach the goal, but next week one of them could become the first woman in Biggest Loser history to lose 100 pounds on the Ranch! Tune in to NBC next Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET to find out who's gonna be the first to reach that MAJOR accomplishment!