The Biggest Loser 3, Episode 6: Healthy Choice

Welcome to the sixth episode of The Biggest Loser 3! This series focuses on teams of overweight contestants and their competitive struggles to lose weight and, in the process, regain control of their lives. Challenges and temptations bar their way to a $250,000 cash prize.

Plus… survey results! More on that later.

As the episode begins, we learn that so far this season, our contestants have lost 550 pounds together. Well done, folks!

Action begins as both teams are herded outside to find a challenge. As series host Caroline Rhea is nowhere in sight, instructions are all on placards, and the players take turns performing her emcee functions. This just comes across as cheesy, Caroline ought to be there.

At any rate, it’s a reward challenge. The teams must guess the number of calories in a series of meals. The winning team is the first to make the better guess three times. The winners get to saddle the members of the losing team with tee-shirts that say either “No Trainer” or “Eat Out Only.” For 72 hours, the wearers must do what the shirts indicate.

Pam of the Red Team is worried, because the Blue Team members are all dedicated calorie counters. Perhaps, but as things progress Bobby reveals that they only know the numbers for healthy foods – which these are not! The following table shows how it played out, with the item description followed by the team’s guesses, the correct answer, and the winner of that round.

Ouch -- the Blue Team loses the third round by only ten calories! But the Red Team wins, and in the minimum number of rounds. The Blue Team looks appropriately dejected. The decision is that “No Trainer” shirts are to be given to Bobby and Erik because they are perceived as needing Bob the most. By default, Marty and Brian must eat out.

Bobby is concerned that Bob will be upset that his team doesn’t know their calories. As Bob comes upon his team, at least they are working out. After getting up to speed with what happened, he is most concerned about Erik, because Erik is still learning much about how he should be working out. Bob looks at Erik and, in a fine bit of reality-TV editing says, “Wow, you’re really screwed!”

Erik is chagrined; he feels he will have to be without a trainer in the real world, so here’s a good chance to practice and to test his determination. Meanwhile, Bobby sees it as a test of his self-motivation.

It’s time to check in on one of our “ghosts.” “Ghosts” is my term for the 36 contestants sent home from the ranch but who are still in the game. This time, we meet Evelyn in Nebraska. She tells us she got off to a fast start, but then stalled. So far she’s only down twenty pounds over six weeks. There’s still time ahead, so you go, Evelyn!

Meanwhile back at the ranch, trainer Kim has a chat with her squad. She’s trying to drag their emotional baggage out into the open because she feels her team is holding back on her. Kai admits to using anger as a defense, and Pam confesses hiding her true feelings around others. I guess it was therapeutic, for Heather says they are now geared up for a big week.

With only two charges, Bob is working them hard. The other two are also in the gym at the same time, but of course must work out without a trainer. Bobby says, “Nobody wants to get their butt kicked to the point where they feel they’re going to die, but I’d have rather been in Marty’s place than be working without a trainer.”

Marty likes eating out all week so he doesn’t have to do any dishes. Brian admits to some concern that food may not be prepared in the manner in which it was ordered. Bob instructs them that’s it’s just like in the real world and to send back any food not delivered as requested.

It’s time for another challenge, and this time Caroline Rhea is on site. This one’s a little complicated, so bear with me. Envision a long wire strung over a structure Erik compares to set of football goal posts without the uprights. At one end, three team members are tethered in pulling harnesses. At the other end the fourth member of the team is in a supportive harness. I’ll call the former three the “pullers” and the later person the “flyer.” As the pullers walk away from the flyer, the wires raise the flyer up into the air. As the pullers return to where they started, the flyer is lowered to the ground.

The process is as follows – the pullers retrieve a flag, bring the flag to the flyer, then hoist the flyer so they can affix the flag to the “crossbar” of the structure. This is repeated until four flags are raised.

Each team has their smallest member as the flyer - Brian for the Blue Team and Heather for the Reds.

In a delusional interview, Heather feels the girls are as strong as the guys and they can win. No, the basis of this challenge is really just raw horsepower, and the other team has more of it. What IS an equalizer, though, is the 62-pound difference in the weight of the two flyers. So, all in all, it seems about fair.

The prize is choice of two activities in a posh Hollywood hotel… either a healthy gourmet meal or a workout in their pool. The winner also decides who on the Red Team will sit out the next weigh-in. Injured Wylie (who twisted his ankle while jogging the night before) sits out for the Red Team, so teams are even at four players apiece.

The challenge begins, and as the second flags are being posted it’s still neck and neck. However, Red Team’s Heather isn’t raised far enough for her to reach the crossbar and they must take the time to raise her back up again to do it right. Then on the last flag, Ken of the Red Team drops it on the ground while passing it to an invisible partner and no one notices until it’s far too late.

So the Blue Team wins fairly easily. Since trainer Bob is nowhere in sight they quickly choose the meal as their reward, meaning the lucky Red Team gets the pool workout.

Pam says, “I hate that the Blue Team has the power to sit someone out of our weigh-in. It really stings because it could make or break our weigh-in this week.” I seem to recollect it was OK when the shoe was on the other foot in weeks two and four.

At the hotel, the Blue Team finds their meal is set up poolside where they can watch the Red Team work out. Nice touch. Marty explains to us that they chose the meal because they had been working out hard and felt they deserved the reward. I have to admit that I’d have made the exact same choice.

The next day, trainer Bob happily announces the 72-hours is up and the limitations on his team from the first challenge are over. Marty mildly regrets the end of eating out; he rather enjoyed it. More importantly, Bob can also resume training sessions with Bobby and Erik again.