Biggest Loser 14 - A Look Back and a Wild Ride to the Finals!

It's all come down to this.

Eleven weeks on the ranch; plenty of blood, sweat, puke, and tears; emotional roller coasters for both the contestants and the trainers.  (Not to mention those of us watching at home!)  During the last week on the ranch before the finale, we looked back at the beginning all the way to where they are now...and added some more pivotal moments to the mix.

I was very happy to see that our teen ambassadors got to join the Final Five adults for the last week on campus.  Our look back began with them, as Sunny, Biingo and Lindsay sat with the trainers and watched their journeys on film from where it all started through all of their ups and downs.  All three kids have done a tremendous job, and the trainers were right when they said these three have set the bar high for kids who participate on the show in the future.  I really hope they have a set of kids each season from now on...they inspire people of all ages and really motivate their peers.  Just look at ten-year-old Breanna, featured tonight as a girl who lost 72 pounds at home with the help of her mom.  Now that's inspiration!

The teens also visited again with Dr. Joanna, who was able to give them much better news than she did the first time she met with them.  Lindsay is no longer pre-diabetic and Sunny's cholesterol is now normal.  Biingo lost 25% of his body weight...and his mom has gone down five dress sizes while doing this along with him!  Dr. Joanna mentioned to me on Twitter how gratifying it was to work with the three, and how proud she is of them for all of their hard work.  She also said that it's amazing how well kids do without doing anything drastic (no drugs or deprivation) - and just by changing their eating and exercise habits, they are able to regain their health.  This is a good lesson for our kids...and for us as adults as well!

Dr. H got to give his own good news to Danni.  Over just 11 weeks she gained 19 pounds of muscle.  They sure played the right song for her segment, because Danni IS a girl on fire!  The adults also got their trip down memory lane with their trainers, and it still hits me every season when each player's "before" self is speaking to the "new" self.  You always have to remember where you started, in order to realize how far you've come and to keep yourself motivated to never go back.

The familiar "put the weight back on" challenge had a new twist.  Each contestant pulled a sled up a mountain, starting at their current weight and adding the pounds back on in reverse order to the sled so at the end they were at their starting weights to reach the finish line.  The prize was one pound advantage, which Joe and Danni fought for until the end.  Joe wound up just beating Danni for the prize.  He hoped he wouldn't actually need it on the scale, but was glad to have it just in case.

The kids said goodbye to the trainers and other adults before the weigh-in, and it was heartwarming to see not only how much the teens bonded with the adults, but how the adults all bonded with each other.  What a difference from last season, with all of the backstabbing, nasty remarks, and claws coming out.  This season, Biggest Loser came back around to what the show is all about.

This was proven at the last chance workout, when Jeff continued the conversation he had with Bob earlier in the week about Bob being a father figure to him since Jeff's own father isn't here anymore.  In the gym, Bob had to compose himself and took Jeff outside to tell him how much it means to him, and that he was happy to be that father figure.  He told Jeff that he loved him and how proud he was of him...and mentioned that he could relate to Jeff because he always wanted that fatherly approval himself.  There was a lot of crying, not only between them but here at my house as well.  I'll bet it was the same for you.  I'm so glad the show is back to being about inspiration amd motivation.

At last it was time to face the scale.  Joe and Jackson each lost 5 pounds, but with the advantage Joe was ahead.  Gina only lost two pounds, perhaps due to her foot injury even though she still worked out really hard all week.  It was beginning to look like everyone would pull low numbers...until Jeff weighed in and lost 11 pounds.  Then Danni stepped up and also lost 11 pounds!  Jillian was so happy and proud and we had another warm moment between trainer and student.  Danni and Jeff came in 1st and 2nd, guaranteeing themselves spots in the finals.  Joe and Jackson fell below the yellow line, so America must vote on which one will get the 3rd spot.  Gina fell below the red line and was automatically eliminated, but she took it graciously and has now lost 100 pounds since we checked in with her at home.

So Danni, Jeff, Joe, or Jackson will be this season's Biggest Loser, depending on America's vote and the numbers on the scale.  Make sure to cast your vote at the Biggest Loser website and tune in on Monday to see who wins the at-home prize and the grand prize.  I know I can't wait to find out who it is!!!