Last week, the contestants were restricted to only two hours of trainer (and gym) time per day. Lines were drawn between John and certain other contestants (including Sunny, who is on his own team), but that didn’t stop John from being losing the highest percentage of anyone for the second straight week, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished this early in the season for many years. Numbers were down across the board, but it was the Blue Team’s Johnny, who actually produced a two-pound gain, that put his team back at elimination for the second straight week, and he was sent home.
This week’s challenges: Most of the men are stoked when they learn that this week is “NFL week” on TBL, especially Mike, who has been coaching football for nearly four decades. Each contestant is also represented by a cardboard cutout of him- or herself, with a hole in the middle of it. The object was to try to throw a football through the hole of another player’s cutout, thus eliminating them. But they’re not alone: some current NFL players are there to motivate them, including Clay Matthews, Tony Gonzalez and Saints QB Drew Brees.
Not just motivating, but competing against them too, though the athletes will have to throw the football from further back than the contestants (especially Drew). Alison then announces that the winner of the challenge gets $5,000, and the person with the highest percentage of weight lost wins two VIP passes to next year’s Super Bowl. Wow, that is awesome. Also awesome: seeing Antone wearing his old number on the throwback Eagles jersey they gave him. Interestingly enough, last five people standing were the Red Team, and Courtney ended up taking the challenge and the $5,000 home.
There was also an additional football-ish challenge, even more straightforward: whichever team burned the most calories at the end of four fifteen-minute “quarters” would win time at a day spa. Good thing Jillian’s not around any more, she hated prizes like that! I’m not sure I like it much myself, because again, the Blue Team is at a disadvantage, because they can’t move as fast. And once again, Bob’s Black Team continued their undefeated streak, winning the challenge. However, Bob pipes ups that getting a spa day is nice and all, but they collectively turned it down. Huh. Jillian would be proud!
This week’s breakthroughs/drama: after the hoopla from the NFL challenge died down, Antone confessed to Bob that he felt ashamed being amongst elite athletes and realizing just how far he’s let himself slip. But he’s convinced that he still has an athlete inside him, and Bob is determined to bring that out of him. Also, Jennifer, who has been hobbled by knee pain, got the news from Dr. H that she has a stress fracture and will have to lay off weight-bearing exercises for the next three weeks. Even so, she was determined to find way to exercise that didn’t involve putting strain on her knees.
The last-chance workouts kept the theme of NFL week: Shawne “Lights Out” Merriman to give him a hand with the Black Team’s last chance workout. Antone got a chance to push a tackling sled around for the first time in years, but he did a terrific job. Eric Dickerson gave the Blue Team some of his valuable insights as an older, retired pro, and current Broncos QB Tim Tebow assisted Dolvett in working out the Red Team. Pretty cool, all around.
Perhaps the most startling revelation came when Vinny revealed to Dolvett that his stepfather used to beat him on a regular basis, and his mother did nothing whatsoever to stop it. Thus began his addiction to food, and he’s been fighting it ever since. He was able to overcome a lot to become a successful country singer, but getting healthy is now the most important goal he has yet to achieve.
And now, this week’s numbers:
Black Team (Bob)
Joe - lost 17 pounds (-41 total), -5.25%, now stands at 307.
Jennifer - lost 16 pounds (-41 total), -5.25%, now stands at 289.
John - lost 18 pounds (-70 total), -4.58%, now stands at 375.
Antone - lost 16 pounds (-58 total), -3.95%, now stands at 389.
Sunny - lost 10 pounds (-32 total), -3.92%, now stands at 245.
Total - 77 pounds lost (-4.58%).
Blue Team (Anna)
Mike - lost 17 pounds (-36 total), -5.86%, now stands at 273.
Becky - lost 9 pounds (-24 total), -3.94%, now stands at 219.
Bonnie - lost 7 pounds (-14 total), -2.83%, now stands at 240.
Total - 33 pounds lost (-4.34%).
Red Team (Dolvett)
Jessica - lost 11 pounds (-33 total), -4.74%, now stands at 221.
Patrick - lost 11 pounds (-37 total), -3.04%, now stands at 350.
Vinny - lost 10 pounds (-36 total), -2.50%, now stands at 390.
Courtney - lost 7 pounds (-30 total), -2.83%, now stands at 247.
Ramon - lost 7 pounds (-33 total), -2.13%, now stands at 322.
Total - 46 pounds lost (-2.84%).
FINALLY the Blue Team is able to pull it together and avoid sending another person home. I am so happy for them, because it was looking bleak for a while. I have no illusions that they will continue to struggle, but for them to lose three straight weigh-ins would have been devastating.
Kudos. To Mike, for wresting “highest percentage” honors away from John, and winning his Super Bowl VIP passes to boot (and, coincidentally, it is being held in Mike’s home state of Indiana); to Vinny, for dropping below the 400-pound plateau, hopefully for good; to Jennifer, for having a monster week herself (on a bad knee) and dropping out of the 300’s; and to pretty much everyone, simply for doing a hell of a lot better this week than last week. Every member of the Black Team has now lost at least 11% of their original weight.
Elimination. In a truly amazing display of gallantry, Patrick offered himself up for elimination this week. Jessica had immunity for being the highest percentage lost on her team, and with Ramon, Vinnie and Courtney still clearly having some major issues to work through, Patrick decided to fall on his sword for the Red Team.
Update. In the months since leaving the Ranch, Patrick has continued to lose weight at a frantic pace. He has dropped another 54 pounds, putting him at 296 pounds overall. He has become a lot closer with his wife Katie, and hopes to soon achieve his dream of becoming a police officer, now that he’s that much closer to meeting the physical requirements.
Next week: will the domination of Bob and the Black Team finally come to an end? They’re certainly hinting at it…
