This week started off with a bang. At the end of the last elimination I warned them that this week things were going to change – and that only one person was going home, no more team eliminations. They had a ton of questions… which would be answered at the challenge.

I have to say, I was shocked by Jillian’s reaction to the news that we were going to black and blue teams. I’m not sure what I expected, but as Bob claimed Orange, Black and Grey teams as the new blue, the tears running down Jillian’s face said it all.

The Yellow Team

Wow. What a turn around. Last week they were below the yellow line, and in one week the Yellow team turned it around to win the weigh-in. And on the heels of that success, they get the majority of the votes from the other teams as the team they would most like to vote out right now.

Now, a word about that. Let’s all agree that BL isn’t the kind of show that would just send another team home for no reason. So each team had to go off by themselves for a couple minutes, and speculate about what we were going to do to the team they picked. I would have done the same thing, trying to outwit the game. But sometimes you can think to much. I mean, I sort of assumed the teams would vote for the Black Team. And, actually, I don’t know why they didn’t. Everyone likes Mark and Jay, they are great guys, but they’ve been the obvious threat from day 1.

Clearly, the teams of two are diving into the strategy of Biggest Loser early on. Jackie and Dan selected ‘Gameplay’ as their reward for being Biggest Loser Team of the Week with barely any hesitation. And then they asked me if I would reveal what their prize had been. I said it is their prize to share, or keep to themselves if they wish. But that, the other teams would definitely find out what they’d won at the next elimination. So, they must have re-thought their story, because I was working out in the 24 hour gym on campus when Dan and Jackie rejoined the group. And they announced that there were three envelopes, they explained what they’d won, but they chose to mislead everyone and claim that the envelopes were not marked. That it was a blind choice. It was definitely an interesting maneuver on their part. But I love how they work out as they scheme!

The challenge led to some interesting discussions and certainly was revealing of all the early alliances that have crept up. I was surprised by the reaction of the other teams to the interaction between Mark and Jay. I must admit, I was standing 15 feet from them and I didn’t find their argument to be so out of line. I guess I have brothers, and I’m extremely competitive as you can clearly see Mark is. So I guess it seemed like a moment of frustration to me, and it caught me off guard the way that it was interpreted by Brittany and some of the others. I did catch the by-play between Jackie and Jay. Again, I just think that challenge brought out a lot of strategy and emotion that people weren’t quite ready to admit to? And in the end Gray won. Who would have guessed that? They seem like such an obvious ‘threat’ to me in this game. While the black team is more in the ‘limelight’ the Gray team has a tremendous amount of weight to lose, and the numbers they’ve been putting up are impressive. I was surprised that no one thought of them as a threat to take out early if possible. How long they will succeed in staying below the radar.

The challenge this week looked like so much fun – obviously not for 100 ups and downs, but I really wanted to try the giant see-saws and see what it felt like to be 12 feet up in the air. I was so bummed not to get that chance. Next time!

Anyway, it was impressive to see Mark and Jay, again dominate the challenge. Their communication skills kept them going as they got tired, and again Blue team was making the Black team fight for victory, but in the end the outcome was clear. Black team wins again. But most of the teams wanted to keep going, to reach the 100 mark. Bette-Sue wasn’t as excited to keep it up as Ali, but Ali kept her going. Purple team were closest to me, so I got the chance to see how well Maggie and Jenn support each other. They were great at inspiring each other, when it was needed, or giving a verbal kick in the pants, when that was what’s called for. That’s what friends are for, right?!

Biggest Loser, Season 5 is here! It seems like just yesterday I was saying goodbye to Bill, Holly, Julie & Isabeau. (oh, right… the finale was only 2 weeks ago.lol) And here we are again. A new ranch again this season. With 20 new contestants. 20!!! I mean, that is a lot of people.

Right from when we first started discussing the possibility of doing teams of two, I loved the idea. To have a teammate with you, going through this experience, would add so many interesting dynamics to the show. First of all, you have a built in support system. Some one who will love you no matter what happens on campus. But, then in some ways maybe it’s harder too. And gotta love Jillian’s comment – they may be bringing their ‘enabler’ with them…What’s harder: getting on the scale in front everyone in America, or getting on the scale in front of your husband?