From LOSING IT! With Jillian Michaels
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Season 9, Episode 2
It was the dreaded Week Two — known for being notoriously difficult, even "cursed," so all bets were off on what would happen. This week contestants faced their fears and their futures when confronted with the shocking results of their medical tests. And no one could predict what would happen next after last week's insane weight losses (one player lost 34 pounds in one week!). Bob and I decided to keep the intensity as high as Week One and just ride out the Week Two curse yet again — rebounding weights, plateaus, and all! It turned out to be a bumpy ride, complete with a trip to the emergency room, a shocking revelation about our entire cast, and a contestant who is in "game play" mode already! Find out all the drama that went down this week.
Dr. H's House Call: The week started out with Dr. Huizenga's health wake-up calls. This season, he paid a visit to the Ranch and delivered some sobering news to the contestants. He had analyzed their medical tests and the results were jaw-dropping! Turns out, not only do we have the biggest cast in Biggest Loser history this season, we also have the unhealthiest contestants ever! They have a lot of work ahead of them if they want to cope with the staggering number of health conditions they face. Dr. H laid out future scenarios for each team to show them the medical issues that lay ahead and to break through the denial and complacency that landed them in this position. Some teams saw the effect that obesity has on their own health as well as on their family or learned the financial costs they'll pay for the remainder of their lives — $3 million! — by staying obese. All the contestants realized that these challenges were due to their own poor choices, and they vowed to change at the Ranch to improve their futures.
Balancing Acts: The contestants met up with Alison Sweeney at a swimming pool for this week's challenge. She explained that each team had to cross from one side of the pool to the other on a balance beam that was three and a half inches wide and 40 feet long. They had to take 10 colored beach balls across the beam, place them in a tower, and get back safely. If they fell in the pool, they had to start at the beginning again. The team to fill their tower first would win immunity. The team that came in last would get a two-pound penalty at the weigh-in.
The challenge posed an immediate problem for the White Team's Maria, who is really frightened of water and can't swim. She felt out of control, had a panic attack, and froze. Her son, Michael, performed the difficult challenge without her. Meanwhile, Lance and Melissa of the Red Team took the lead even though Melissa struggled with making it across. Darrell and Andrea of the Black Team caught up with the Red Team and it looked as though they would win. Andrea had the last ball in her hands when she lost her balance and fell into the pool. The Red Team sealed the deal and won the challenge and immunity. Meanwhile Maria, who was still panicking and crying, finally pushed herself to take her first step, but she slipped off the beam and fell head first onto the concrete. She was rushed to the hospital by ambulance. Unfortunately, the accident caused the White Team to finish in last place and get a two-pound penalty. Maria returned to the house with a black eye, fractured ring finger, and a banged-up knee, but there was still work to be done if she and Michael, the biggest contestant in the show's history, were to stay on the Ranch for another week.
Treading Water: Back at the gym, I decided to zone in on Maria. She had let her fear take over, which brought about everything that she was afraid would happen to her at the pool. Instead of letting her continue, I decided to bring the things she is afraid of right to her doorstep. In the pouring rain, I took Maria to the swimming pool, and I held onto her as she floated around. I love this job when I'm able to help someone overcome a crippling obstacle.
Weigh-in Time: Following a grueling last-chance workout, the contestants headed to the weigh-in. Melissa decided that since the Red Team had immunity, she didn't want to lose too much weight. Instead, she wanted to keep her weight loss number low so she could save her big number for next week. However, she didn't expect to gain a pound!Luckily, Lance lost 7 pounds and offset her gain. Bob called her out about her new "game play" strategy. The Gray Team's Sam lost 9 pounds and Koli lost 8 pounds, for a combined 2.34 percent. The Pink Team's Ashley lost an impressive 8 pounds and Sherry lost 5 pounds, for a total of 13 pounds or 2.35 percent.
In order to stay above the yellow line, the Green team needed to lose more than 11 pounds. Miggy lost 8 and Migdalia lost 4 for a combined 12 pounds. Then, the Purple Team needed to lose more than 10 pounds. Patti, whose 23-pound loss last week set a record for the most lost by a woman in one week, was down 4 pounds this week; Stephanie, who lost 17 pounds in the first week, was down 3 pounds. The Orange Team's Cheryl lost 3 and Daris lost 7 for a total 10 pounds, which kept them safe for another week. As the single remaining member of the Brown Team, since James was eliminated last week, John needed to lose more than 6 pounds to stay on campus. He lost 10 pounds and secured his spot, which put the Purple Team's future on the Ranch in jeopardy. On the Black Team, Darrell and Andrea needed to lose more than 10 pounds; Andrea lost 5 and Darrell lost 10 pounds for a total 15 pounds, or 2.25 percent loss, securing their spot. It all came down to the White and Purple Teams. White had a 2-pound penalty for losing the balancing challenge, so Maria and Michael needed to lose more than 13 pounds to be safe from elimination. The scales showed they'd lost 21 pounds! With 45 pounds lost in two weeks, Michael put it out into the universe that he would break the 7-week record set just last season by Rudy and would lose 100 pounds in six weeks! The White Team's 2.5 percent loss sent the Purple Team to elimination.
Tough Decisions: Despite being on nine medications and having Type 2 diabetes, Patti decided to plead that she be sent home instead of her daughter, Stephanie. She said her support was strong back home, but Stephanie's wasn't. The other teams granted her wish when they unanimously voted to send Patti home.
Back at Home: Patti arrived at the Ranch weighing 243 pounds and lost an impressive 23 pounds in the first week, then another four pounds in Week Two. Today she weighs 200 pounds. She exercises with her other daughter, takes dancing lessons with her husband, and ran a 5K on Thanksgiving morning. Thanks to Dr. H's wakeup call she has shown major improvement in her health. Not only has she lowered her blood pressure, her cholesterol has improved, and her diabetes is more under control. She's down to two daily medications, from nine! Her goal for the finale: to be completely off all of her medications and to no longer be diabetic.