The Biggest Loser: Challenges Make it Difficult for Those in the Worst Shape to Stay

In the first four episodes of season 7 of the NBC TV reality show, The Biggest Loser Couples, the challenges have made it hard for the Biggest Loser contestants in the worst shape to stay on the reality show. Looking at those episodes of Season 7 of the Biggest Loser, the immunities from the Biggest Loser challenge went to healthier or younger contestants, making it difficult for contestants such as Dan or Jerry to stay on the Biggest Loser ranch.

The challenge in episode one of the Biggest Loser had the contestants climb a dirt pile, bring a flag back over the pile, and cross the finish line. The top five contestants raced again, with the final two racing for immunity. Cousins Dane and Blaine, in their upper twenties, beat out sisters Aubrey and Mandi, ages 28 and 30, respectively. Mike and Ron won first place in the weigh-in, while the other teams had to send a teammate home.

In the second episode of the NBC TV show, the Biggest Loser contestants paddled kayaks to shore, then climbed a mountain. The first prize was immunity, followed by four phone calls. Last place was a one-pound penalty. The 63-year-old Jerry struggled to finish ahead of the 450-pound Dan, who needed his teammates to reach the top.

At the weigh-in, Tara, the 23-year old with immunity only lost a pound. Jerry also lost a pound, but was subject to elimination. Joelle slacked off all week and lost two pounds, but stayed safe above the yellow line because Dan's one-pound penalty put him under Joelle. Ali said this was the worst possible scenario. The scenario was clearly created by the challenge! Had the challenge been different, the contestants would have not had to choose between Dan and Jerry.

The challenge in episode three of the Biggest Loser had the reality show contestants do some jumping. The contestants stood underneath a spinning rectangle, needing to jump over the Styrofoam beam like doing jump rope. Ron and Dan were among the first out. Kristin managed to survive a couple hours before succumbing to Tara, despite being the heaviest girl in the reality show.

The episode four challenge Helen won. She was astonished to won a football challenge at 47. The challenge had the contestants run across the field, grab a football, and run it back, choosing whose box to place it in. Because the contestants targeted the best players, Dane, Tara, and Mandi's boxes quickly filled. Without the fastest contestants, the prize was open for grabs. At the weigh-in, the immunity saved Helen from otherwise falling below the yellow line. Mike who finished third in the challenge and Dan, eliminated halfway through when Bob Harper's team eliminated Jillian Michaels' team, both fell below the yellow line, meaning one would leave the Biggest Loser ranch. The overall sentiment on the show was that Dan, Jerry, and the brown team of Ron and Mike really needed to remain on the Biggest Loser ranch. Between those four contestants, only Mike came close to winning a challenge, once.

Week Four also had a cooking challenge, with the contestants guessing the number of calories in specific super bowl snacks. The three winners witnessed a special cooking demonstration with celebrity chef Curtis Stone. Dan, Kristin, and Helen won, and watched Curtis Stone cook a healthy treat. When asked to guess the calories, Dan won his teammate David a cooking demonstration with Curtis Stone at his house.

So in episode one, the challenge made a big difference for the winner. In episode two, it made a big difference and an unfit contestant was eliminated from the Biggest Loser. In episode three, the unfit contestants did their part in staying above the line, while in week four, Mike was two footballs away from winning the entire challenge, but he and Ron ended up being subject to elimination with Dan's team.

So although the Biggest Loser challenges don't guarantee those most unfit or older won't win the Biggest Loser, the challenges make it difficult. The results of the challenges go against what Ali keeps saying at the weigh-in; that the worst situation is when Biggest Loser contestants such as Jerry or Ron join Dan below the yellow line. If the Biggest Loser wants to keep the most unfit contestants on the reality TV show, the Biggest Loser should have challenges that everyone has an equal chance winning.

Sources:
My Television
NBC www.nbc.com/biggestloser