In front of a live studio audience, Alison introduces the season's theme, childhood obesity through the Challenge America program, with three young people being the faces of the challenge to reduce childhood obesity by having them go through a weight loss regime at home. Each will have one of the three trainers to work with, those three which includes the return of Jillian Michaels. Alison then calls out the names of the fifteen people who will be this season's contestants and who have no idea they have been chosen until their name is called. Each contestant gives a little background of him/herself. Once at the ranch the next day, five adult contestants apiece are assigned to one of the three trainers, Bob, Dolvett and Jillian, but realistically any contestant can call upon any one of the trainers for any advice or assistance. The fifteen plus the three youth are thrown into the fire with their first workout. Jillian in particular has issue with three of her team members, and tries to... Written by Huggo

With Nikki voluntarily leaving the ranch and the competition, and TC falling below the red line at the first weigh-in meaning that he was automatically eliminated, the white team, led by Jillian, is already down two members after week one. Their problems continue as Jillian seems unable to get through to her team members. All thirteen remaining contestants learn that at this week's weigh-in, there once again will only be a red line, meaning that the person with the lowest percentage of weight loss on the losing team is automatically eliminated. For their first workout of the week, they will be doing it in an outdoor workout space specially designed by their trainer. Dr. Huizenga provides a medical assessment of all contestants, and the news he provides is generally not good. The three childhood obesity ambassadors return to the ranch to have their own physical assessment done with their trainer. They join their adult counterparts for the week's team challenge, which is modeled on ... Written by Huggo

The white team is reeling as Nathan is eliminated at the latest weigh-in, he the third member who the team has lost in only two weeks, with theirs being the only team that is no longer at the full complement of five. Alison gives the teams a trivia test on childhood obesity, the losing team which is given what they consider the worst punishment: having to spend four and a half hours every day this week locked in a typical childhood obesity room filled with junk food, televisions and video games. As that time takes away from their workout time, the trainer of the eventual losing team is determined to make the best out of this bad situation. Two contestants on two different teams have a bad week mentally, while another decides at least temporarily to switch trainers to get a different perspective both on workouts and the emotional cause behind her weight gain. The three childhood obesity participants, at home this week, are visited by Dr. Joanna who gives them and their families ... Written by Huggo

The contestants learn that Cate, who was eliminated after the latest weigh-in, is not the only person leaving the ranch this week. Bob, Dolvett and Jillian will all leave for the week to visit Biingo, Lindsay and Sunny respectively, they who don't know their trainer is coming. The trainers will return to the ranch in time for the last chance workout. The three trainers want to inspire their child ambassador by choosing an activity that they will deem fun, to check to see if they are following the nutrition rules told to them by Dr. Joanna, and to uncover the emotional source of their weight gain, specifically to see what role their families play in that and how they can fix those problems. Back at the ranch, the contestants were provided training instruction for the week by their trainer before they left. The dynamics on each of the three teams is vastly different from the other two in how they cope without their trainer. Their reward challenge is a 5km run - about 4km longer than any... Written by Huggo

Pam's elimination at the latest weigh-in raises issues for all three teams for this upcoming week. If the white team loses the next weigh-in, not only will their one and only remaining team member, Danni, leave the ranch, but her trainer, Jillian, will as well. The red team, who has won three of four weigh-ins thus far, feels like a target is on their backs. And the blue team, the only one with a still full complement of five members, believes the percentages are not in their favor this week. Never having faced an elimination yet, that fear of losing the weigh-in brings out game playing amongst the individual members, one who feels like giving up based on poor results to date. A challenge for the week is to prove that one can eat healthily on a budget. Each person is given $10 a day and one 15 minute shopping trip for all their food for the upcoming week. The team reward challenge literally is coins in a fountain, not three but rather ten, each weighing five pound apiece, the fountain... Written by Huggo

The elimination of Lisa at the latest weigh-in marks the half way point for this season's competition. In this week's theme of leading by example, the remaining contestants learn that only one person's weight from each team will count at this week's weigh-in, with those three literally chosen by a roll of the dice immediately preceding the weigh-in. This news leads to a clearing of the air between some of the trainers and their team members who are scared to be one of the chosen. The trainers want their team members to embrace being chosen. The contestants soon learn that one person will have to lead their team sooner as only one person per team competes in this week's team challenge, the winning team to receive letters from home. That challenge entails a combination of balance, speed, strength, agility and a knowledge of food calories. Meanwhile, the trainers challenge their respective childhood obesity ambassadors to lead a process that shows what they've learned. And the trainers... Written by Huggo

After David is eliminated at the latest weigh-in, Alison tells the remaining contestants that the teams are being disbanded and they are now playing as individuals. It's Valentine's week, and their temptation challenge is something they may face on Valentine's: cupcakes and other such baked goods. Without being able to see what the others are doing, the person who consumes the most calories in ten minutes wins a two pound advantage at this week's weigh-in, with the winner also giving a two pound advantage to another contestant. Jillian in particular chastises those who consumed any food for playing the game. The week's reward challenge is a multi-round race, with the losing contestant in each round eliminated until one contestant remains standing. The winner receives a one-day visit from a loved one at the ranch. The outcome of the challenge takes an unexpected turn. At the workouts, the trainers have breakthroughs with some of the contestants. At the post weigh-in vote, the ... Written by Huggo

Michael's elimination at the latest weigh-in has put some people on the defensive in how the vote went down. The remaining contestants learn that they will will have to work together as one cohesive unit this week as Alison tells them that if they as a collective can lose 70 pounds this week, they will all be provided immunity from elimination at that weigh-in. They are provided two opportunities to lower that 70 pound amount. The first, which potentially could drop that number by up to 10 pounds, is through a pop challenge on nutrition knowledge and surpassing physical challenges already taken, however it will be completed by the child ambassadors, which in some respects frightens the contestants if only because the fate of those 10 pounds is out of their hands. The second, which could be another 10 pound deduction, is through this week's team reward challenge, where the contestants are required to dig through five to ten large sand piles to find clues to complete the entire ... Written by Huggo

In Face Your Fears week, Francelina, the latest eliminated contestant, is not the only person leaving the ranch. The loser of the latest pop challenge, success in which is dependent upon help from the other contestants, will also face one of his/her biggest fears: leaving the ranch, if only for the week, to live life without the gym, the trainers and a properly stocked kitchen. That pop challenge loser will also bring with him/her one other contestant of his/her choice. Conversely, the pop challenge winner receives a one pound advantage at the weigh-in. This challenge has an unexpected outcome. For the week, the trainers challenge not only the remaining contestants but also the child obesity ambassadors to face a major fear in their life of the trainers' choice. Those choices mainly relate to their weight loss journey, but may deal more specifically with helping them with their emotional well being. The reward challenge makes many of the contestants face a major fear, namely of ... Written by Huggo

There are five contestants remaining after the elimination of Alex, those five who are going into makeover week. Fashion stylist Tim Gunn and hair stylist Ken Paves are not only making over the five, but also the three childhood obesity ambassadors. All eight get to share the experience with their family and friends at home, where they will spend the next two weeks. There, they are given two challenges. The first is to pay it forward by leading a group fitness session. The second is a personal mission to lose at least five percent of their body weight within that two weeks, which would guarantee immunity at that next weigh-in, with each person not meeting that goal potentially being voted off the ranch. Meeting that goal will not be easy as they are faced with temptation after temptation as this visit home is their first glimpse of real life, and all the pressures that goes along with it. Written by Huggo

The joy the final five feel at the latest weigh-in by all making it past that weigh-in is slightly deflated by the news that at the next weigh-in, the penultimate, there will be a red line, the contestant falling below that being automatically eliminated, and a yellow line, the two contestants falling below that being possibly eliminated from the competition based on a public vote leading to the finale. That means that the top two for the week automatically make it into the final three, with the winner of the public vote being the third finalist. The childhood obesity ambassadors join the contestants on the ranch for this, their final week on the ranch. All are provided a video diary of their eleven week journey to this point. Dr. Joanna provides the childhood obesity ambassadors updates on their health status, while Dr. H provides good news to the one contestant who may be the poster child not only for this season but for the entire series in how that person's health has improved to ... Written by Huggo