Obstacles To Get Over
The start of this week saw the coloured pairings abolished and the mergence of the black and blue teams.

As they set off, for the first time in their new groups, they were expecting to go to the gym for a training
session.  Instead they were greeted with,"This way to the jungle"signs. It didn`t take long for the penny to drop;
the dreaded assault course was to be the training for today. Yipee! The cry rang out. Ok, I`m only joking.

The idea was for the teqams to attack the course from opposite directions, incurring time penalties for any infringements. One tiny little detail - They had to carry a cannon, up, over, round and through the obstacles, disassembling it first and reassembling it at the finish. Nothing too strenuous then!

Dave was the first to put his team at a disadvantage when he fell at the end of the scrabble net. Meanwhile
Carol was proving to be a real gymnast on tne balance poles, while Katey kept her cool on the wires.- Mother and
daughter you see; obviously in the genes.

As both teams reached the mid-point wall, from opposite directions, there was a mad dash, as the first to arrive
had priority. The other group had to stand aside in frustration until each member had scaled the obstacle. The
black team were in pole position. Eventually after a hard fought battle the black team crossed the line first.
They reassembled their cannon - 123 BANG!!  (That was the cannon going off).

Black teams time:- 23mins 40 secs
Blue  teams time:- 25mins 55 secs
However, time penalties needed to be added.
18 penalties for black and 14 for blue.
The positions didn`t change so the black team were triumphant. Their prize?  A hearty breakfast in the morning
prepared by the blues. The poor blues had to rise in the morning at 5 a.m. for a training session then cook for all
the biggest losers.

Going Up In Flames
On returning to the house,a surprise task awaited everyone. After a quick wash and brush up and a bite to eat, they
were set to work clearing the grounds of their temporary home. All wood had to be collected and loaded onto trailers
to make everywhere safe for training, or so they were told. It transpired that the real reason was quite different.
Afterwards they were asked to collect an article of clothing, or a photograph, which best represented them as they
used to be before entering the Biggest Loser house. Still puzzled, they returned to the grounds where the gathered
wood was ablaze. Now they understood. - The articles they had brought were going to be burned in a symbollic
ritual - getting rid of the past forever.  Powerful stuff eh!

Burned items
Kevin    - photograph - never wants to go back to this size
Carol    - granny knickers and size 26 blouse - wants to be feminine
Dave     - tracksuit bottoms - he lived his life in them
Maria    - black trousers - they fall to the ground now
Sadie    - belt - it was the only one she ever found to fit her
Mark     - camouflage pants - wants to be proud of himself
Jamie    - photo - wants to look good for his girlfriend
Micaela  - tracksuit - overweight all her life - likes how she looks now
Katey    - jeans - never went out, sometimes didn`t leave her bedroom
Angie says they all feel liberated now!

Early To Rise
True to their word, the blues rose at 5.00 a.m. the following morning to get an early start in the gym. In no time
at all, a cry emitted from Jamie as, once again, he managed to injure himself. He went down like a ton of bricks
as his ankle gave way. The paramedics confirmed a bad sprain. He wasn`t the only one suffering as Katey was unable to
move her head due to sleeping awkwardly. To top it all, Mark was still in pain from the bruised ribs he sustained
during an altercation, playing football, with Jamie the previous week. Only Michaela was fit. Its not looking good for
the blue team as the next challenge looms.

Beangate
After the training session, breakfast was prepared for the black team without too much fuss. However suspicions were
raised when Carol thought that the beans tasted rather sweet. Had they bean sabotaged? Mark, who had served up the
little delicacy, was confronted and accused of adding something calorific. In his defence, Mark said he had eaten
them too. The two of them argued for some time until eventually the culprit admitted adding tomato sauce. Carol was
not happy.

Great Train Robber Challenge
The challenge today was a take on the great train robbery. I rather fancied having a go myself.
Each team had a length of track with 3 check points holding 2 money bags. They boarded handcarts which had handles
that needed to be pumped in order to travel along the tracks, either forward or in reverse.
All members of the teams took part but unfortunately for the blues only Michaela was fit. Because Jamie couldn`t
walk properly, he decided to work the handcart for all 3 legs of the challenge and so Mark joined him. With the
girls removing the money bags at the end of each run they proved to be a force to be reckoned with. Although the
black team gave it their all, the blues won through.
This defeat was a tremendous blow for team black. At the weigh in they would have to forfeit 4 lbs of their total
weight loss.

As the final weeks get closer the freindly rivalry, between the two teams, seems to be turning into something a
little more personal. Dave says Michaela is decrepid while he describes Katey as lazy. Thats`s not very nice Dave!
At the end of a gruelling day the Losers were treated to a visit from the sports therapist. Boy did they need
that!