The Biggest Loser Australia: Couples

The Biggest Loser Australia: Couples
Genre	Reality television, Game show
Created by	NBC and Network Ten
Developed by	FremantleMedia Australia
Presented by	Ajay Rochester
Starring	Michelle Bridges Shannan Ponton Steve Willis (Commando) Emma Hutton ("Emazon")
Opening theme	"Lift" by Shannon Noll
Country of origin	Australia
Original language	English
No. of episodes	18+ (still screening) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer	Paul Franklin
Producer	Judy Smart
Production locations	Fitzroy Island, Queensland Australia "Camp Biggest Loser", Manly, New South Wales, Australia
Original release
Network	Network Ten
Release	February 1, 2009 – still screening
Related
The Biggest Loser (US)

The Biggest Loser Australia (season 4) (also known as The Biggest Loser: Couples) is the fourth season of the Australian version of the original NBC American reality television series The Biggest Loser. The fourth season premiered on February 1, 2009.

Host Ajay Rochester and trainers of the previous seasons, Shannan Ponton, Michelle Bridges and Steve Willis returned with a brand new one. Applications opened mid 2008.

Season Overview

List of episodes

Main article: List of The Biggest Loser Australia episodes

Game variations

• Couples: The main change to this season compared to previous seasons is the introduction of a team-based competition between couples, and partners. There will be 10 for this season.
• Double or nothing bracelets: The main twist for this season is the existence of two game changing bracelets. One bracelet is inscribed with "double", and the other is inscribed with "nothing". Two contestants will be issued with one bracelet, and will keep it until they are voted out. If a bracelet-holding contestant is voted out, they will hand the bracelet over to another player to keep until they are voted out. If the eventual winner has the "double" bracelet they will win double the cash prize for the show ($400,000), however, if they have the nothing bracelet, they will win nothing. The purpose of this twist is to make it exciting near the end when players may try to be nice to the "double" player, and vote them out, in hope of them giving the bracelet to them. Also if someone hates the person with "nothing" they will want to keep them in the game, otherwise "nothing" will be passed on to them.

Cast and personalities

• Host: Ajay Rochester has returned for a fourth season.
• Trainers: Trainers Michelle Bridges and Shannan Ponton have also returned.

Contestants

There are 20 contestants in this season, ten teams of two.

Members	State	Relationship	Couples Team	Status	Total Votes
Ramses & Tania Diana	VIC	Newlyweds	Brown Team	Eliminated Week 1	4
Jodi Nolte & Jeda Symonds-Poynton	NSW	Friends	Pink Team	Eliminated Week 2	5 *
Stewart & Amanda Brock	Whitebridge, NSW	Husband & Wife	Purple Team	Eliminated Week 3	3
Julie & Meaghan Trattles	QLD	Mother/Daughter	Blue Team		2
Holly & Melanie "Mel" Scouler	WA	Sisters	Yellow Team		4
Cameron & Samantha "Sammy" Fisher	QLD	Father/Daughter	Red Team
Sean Doudle & Ben Terry	NSW	Team Mates	Green Team
Teresa Hamilton & Sharif Deen	Annerley, QLD	Work Mates	Orange Team
Andrew & Nathan Miles**	QLD	Brothers	Sky Blue Team
Bob & Tiffany Herdsman	WA	Daughter/Father in Law	Gray Team

Note: * Holly and Melanie were given a "double vote" as a result of Nathen and Andrew's second walk. As a result Holly and Melanie's vote was definitive in voting Jodi and Jeda off the show.

Note: ** In week three a second elimination was performed with incredibly short notice after the normal elimination, resulting in Nathan & Abdrew getting four nominations. In another twist Ajay revealed that they had a lifeline, in which they would compete against the average weight loss percentage of the other six couples and if they won they would have the one and only vote at the next elimination.

Game elements

The episodes and elements of the show are screened on a weekly rotation in the following set up:

• Sunday: Weigh-In
• Monday: Elimination
• Tuesday: Warehouse or Challenge
• Wednesday: Temptation
• Thursday: "The Walk"
• Friday: Major Challenge

Weigh-ins

Weigh-ins occur every week. They show the contestant's weight, previous weight and difference. Only their starting weight weigh-ins up to Week 3 weigh-ins have occurred thus far, and can be seen below. Contestants are listed in chronological order of elimination.

Contestant	Age	Starting Weight	Starting BMI	Ending BMI	Week													Kilos Lost	Percentage Lost
					1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Finale
Julie	52	123.4	45.3		117	112.6	110.2
Meaghan	26	109.6	37.9		103.3	100.3	98.4
Holly	20	108.2	34.1		101.9	98.7	97.5
Mel	18	102	34.1		98.5	95.8	93.4
Cameron	52	164.1	51.8		154.4	150.7	147.3
Sammy	20	118.6	45.2		112.8	109.3	106.5
Sean	38	132.5	40.4		125	120.1	115.7
Ben	29	153.1	43.8		146	140.9	138.2
Teresa	28	115	41.2		107.3	103.1	101.1
Sharif	32	178.3	48.4		168.3	164.3	161.2
Andrew	23	144.2	39.9		136	132	129.5
Nathan	31	145.2	46.9		135.4	130.5	127.1
Bob	56	167.8	59.5		155	147.4	140.9
Tiffany	22	113.6	42.8		106.9	103.9	99.5
Amanda	34	170.4	59.0		161.7	155.9	155.2
Stewart	44	136.4	41.6		128.7	123.5	121
Jodi	26	121.5	45.7		114	112.5
Jeda	23	106.3	39.0		101.4	99.3
Ramses	28	137.9	47.7		129.8
Tania	28	135.7	47.5		131.5

Legend

Winners

•   $200,000 Winner (among the finalists){DoN: $400,000}
•   $30,000 Winner (among the eliminated contestants)

Standings

•   Week's Biggest Loser
•   Immunity (Challenge or Weigh-In)
•   Last person eliminated before the finale by public vote
•   Results from Eliminated Player's Weigh In
•   Contestant left before the Weigh In
•   Weight gained

BMIs

•   Healthy Body Mass Index (18.5 - 25.0 BMI)
•   Overweight Body Mass Index (25.1 - 30 BMI)
•   Obese Body Mass Index (30.1 - 35 BMI)
•   Clinically Obese Body Mass Index (35.1 - 40 BMI)
•   Morbidly Obese Body Mass Index (40.1 - 50 BMI)
•   Super Obese Body Mass Index (50.1 - 60 BMI)
•   Hyper Obese Body Index (greater than 60.0 BMI)

Warehouses or Challenges

Every week, at the warehouse the contestants are given two options that will be their staple food for the rest of the week as in 2008. Some weeks, a challenge will take place instead, as happened in 2006 and 2007.

Week 1 - Chickens vs. Eggs: The choices were between barbecued chicken or uncooked eggs. All ten couples decided to choose the eggs because it can cooked in any way and the chicken option was higher in fat.

Week 2 - Race to Sydney Challenge: Teams had to travel from Fitzroy Island to Camp Biggest Loser in Manly. The first team to arrive won immunity and the last team to finish suffered a two kilogram weight penalty at the next weigh in.

Week 3 - Commando: Each couple had to decide between them which would go to an unknown destination. What they didn't know is that it was a Commando training session. Although Julie had a very difficult time during the session, everyone managed to get through the training session. After the session, the Commando kept Sharif and Mel, as the contestants who had lost the smallest amounts of weight that week with him until further notice.

Week 4 - Fast Food vs. $5 A Day: The two options were either ordering take out food everyday for a week or five dollars per person per day for the week. Since Nathan & Andrew were up against the rest of the couples, they had the right to choose first. They decided to go for the $5 a day option knowing if they were to take the other option, the other team would have $60 a day. After selection, Sean really took it hard as he stated that he would not go for fast food ever again.

Temptations

Every week, temptation was tasks the involved contestants having to eat or not eat the food to win immunity and must face the walk. If a temptation wasn't won by any contestant, the contestant who currently hold immunity will retain the immunity and face another walk.

Week 1 - Race to the Platters: six covered plates were placed in front of the couples. One of them contained immunity and the rest contained high calorie foods. The possibilities included some lolly-pops, a chocolate eclair, cheesecake, chocolate cake, and a burger "with the lot" and chips (2019 calories). The first to grab the covered plate with immunity would win it. If the contestant chose one of the food plates, both teammates would have to eat the food. Every couple of minutes, the highest calorie food was removed, increasing the chances of immunity. Eventually, when there were two options, many considered going for the immunity, and in the end Nathan and Andrew took both the final plates to win immunity as a couple. The rest of the contestants then knew that Nathen and Andrew were "playing the game". This, Andrew and Nathen felt, would make them targets for elimination.

Week 2 - No Temptation was offered due to the Race to Sydney challenge. As a result, the winner of the Race To Sydney won Immunity. Nathan and Andrew won the race and claimed immunity and Julie and Meaghan came in last and received a 2kg penalty at the next weigh in.

Week 3 - Wooden Spoon: Similar to last year's golden fork temptation, the couples had to grab the wooden spoon in order to be in the running for immunity. The kitchen had been decked out in foods from the bakery, but the temptation foods were doughnuts. The foods ranged from a small cinnamon doughnut at 70 calories to the chocolate jam and cream-filled doughnut with hundreds and thousands at 1275 calories. As Nathan and Andrew were the current holders of immunity, they were the first to play. AJ asked them who they wanted to play against, and they chose the green team. Immediately, the green team Mates took the wooden spoon and won. The light blue team withdrew and the green team were then asked who they wanted to play against next. For the rest of the rounds, despite some players — such as Cameron — wanting the food and a chance for immunity, everyone else refused to take the spoon, and as a result, Ben & Sean won immunity having eaten just 70 calories. The other couples had all expressed a desire to go for immunity in order to take it from Nathan & Andrew. But, as they discovered that Nathen & Andrew no longer had it, and so as not to take in unnecessary calories, they stood firm and didn't give in to temptation. After the challenge, Bob & Tiffany got to see their family for one day because Bob had been the biggest loser for two weeks running and had the greatest percentage weight loss in week two.

Week 4 - Single: This week each person in the couple must face immunity alone.

"The Walk"

Week 1 - Nathan and Andrew - Nathan and Andrew picked the double and nothing bracelets. They gave the Nothing bracelet to Meaghan and the Double bracelet to Holly.

Week 2 - Nathan and Andrew - Nathan and Andrew had to pick one of the four stones, each containing two couples (Nathan and Andrew isn't one of them). They picked up a stone that said Jodi & Jeda and Holly & Melanie. As a result, they had to decide which of the two teams will receive a double vote at the next elimination. They decided on Holly & Melanie in hopes that they will vote with them. Holly & Melanie initially didn't want it, but played along knowing that they weren't trustworthy.

Week 3 - Ben and Sean - Ben and Sean had to pick one of two discs, one was to move the double bracelet to another contestant, the other was to move the nothing bracelet to another contestant. Ben and Sean chose the disc that require to move the double bracelet to another contestant. As a result, Holly had to give up the bracelet to Tiffany.

Week 4 - Teresa and Sharif - Sharif picked a disk out of two basins of water, which was revealed to be a disk that said Give a couple pleasure. Then in a surprise twist Teresa was told that it was now her turn, and she took the other disk that said Give a couple pain. Sharif and Teresa gave the pleasure disk to Julie & Meaghan which resulted in them being pampered and the pain disk was given to Hollie & Melanie which made them take Emazon's challenge.

Major Challenges

Week #	Challenge Name	Description
1	Bucket Loads of Trouble	One partner had to stand on a block while balancing a log on their shoulders with two completely empty 30 litre buckets attached to each end. The other partner had to run into the sea to gather water and pour it into any of the other contestants’ buckets. The winner of this challenge would gain a 3kg advantage at the next weigh-in. It came down to Jeda and Jodi, and Andrew and Nathan. Nathan and Andrew won, but since they already had immunity, they had to choose which couple would receive the advantage- Jeda and Jodi!
2	Brain Strain	Ajay asked multiple choice questions about nutrition. One half of each couple was to answer the question; and, if their answer was incorrect, the speed of the treadmill their partner was on would be raised by 1 km/ph. The last person remaining on their treadmill and their partner would be given letters from their loved ones at home. It came down to Orange verses Green, and although when Sean started running Sharif was walking, Ben and Sean won. They were then told they could choose who would also get their letters, and they decided that everyone would read their letters.
3	Struggle in the Sand Dunes	The winner of this challenge would have a 1kg advantage at the next weigh-in. Holly and Amanda couldn’t compete because of injury. Only one half of each couple would be taking part in the challenge and Sammy was amazed when Cameron volunteered to compete on their behalf. It came down to Tiffany and Nathan. They had to carry 40kg up the dune. Nathan won, but later came back down to help Tiffany, who was lagging behind
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12

Emazon's Challenge

Hollie and Melanie were given the disk of pain in week four and this resulted in the first interaction between Emazon and any contestants. Hollie and Melanie were blindfolded and led to a cage, where Melanie was locked outside and Hollie locked inside with Emazon. Hollie had to follow Emazon's training directions, high demand boxing training, while Melanie was forced to move large numbers of items, including tractor tyres and barrels to be able to claim the key and end Hollie's pain. Afterwards they were told by Emazon that if they said anything about her to anyone else "all of the work you have done here will be lost".

Eliminations

Teams have to participate in the elimination if they have the lowest percentage of weight loss at the previous weigh-in. Contestants must vote strategically to stay in the game and eliminate another contestant by a majority vote. If the vote is tied it's a hung vote, the couple with the lowest percentage of weight loss will be eliminated.

Contestant	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3		Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12
Eliminated	Ramses & Tania	Jodi & Jeda	Stewart & Amanda	N/A1
Julie	?	X	Holly & Mel	Nathan & Andrew
Meaghan	?	X	Holly & Mel	Nathan & Andrew
Holly	X	Jodi & Jeda	X	Teresa & Sharif
Mel	X	Jodi & Jeda	X	Teresa & Sharif
Cameron	Holly & Mel	Jodi & Jeda	Stewart & Amanda	Sean & Ben
Sammy	Holly & Mel	Jodi & Jeda	Stewart & Amanda	Sean & Ben
Sean	?	Jodi & Jeda	Holly & Mel	Nathan & Andrew
Ben	?	Jodi & Jeda	Holly & Mel	Nathan & Andrew
Teresa	Ramses & Tania	Jodi & Jeda	Holly & Mel	Nathan & Andrew
Sharif	Ramses & Tania	Jodi & Jeda	Holly & Mel	Nathan & Andrew
Andrew	Ramses & Tania	Julie & Meaghan	Stewart & Amanda	Sean & Ben
Nathan	Ramses & Tania	Julie & Meaghan	Stewart & Amanda	Sean & Ben
Bob	?	?	Stewart & Amanda	Nathan & Andrew
Tiffany	?	?	Stewart & Amanda	Nathan & Andrew
Amanda	Ramses & Tania	Julie & Meaghan	X	Eliminated Wk 3
Stewart	Ramses & Tania	Julie & Meaghan	X	Eliminated Wk 3
Jodi	Ramses & Tania	X	Eliminated Wk 2
Jeda	Ramses & Tania	X	Eliminated Wk 2
Ramses	X	Eliminated Wk 1
Tania	X	Eliminated Wk 1

•      Immunity
•  X  Below yellow line, not allowed to vote
•  ?  Vote not revealed (Hidden vote)
•      Valid vote cast
•      Double vote cast
•      Eliminated or not in house
•  X  Eliminated via penalty or quit before an official elimination (excluding money offers)
•      Last person eliminated before the finale

• Week 1 (Ramses & Tania) 4-1 : Couples voted to eliminate Ramses & Tania because of Ramses back injury and they believe it would benefit them. Also, they kept Holl & Melanie as they believed to be the weakest team and don't believe they will be the Biggest Losers and the fear of Holly giving her double bracelet to someone and possibly become a target of elimination. Despite being voted off, Tania told the whole room that at the finale, she'll be a force to be reckon with and become "a hot couple".
• Week 2 (Jodi & Jeda) 5-2 : Couples voted to eliminate Jodi & Jeda due to their attitude towards other teams and to weaken Nathan & Andrew's very first alliance. Nathan & Andrew believed that they had Holly & Melanie's double vote thinking they too would vote off Julie & Meaghan. However, Holly & Melanie decided to vote off Jodi & Jeda as they liked Meaghan & Julie more and that Jodi & Jeda commented that they were too immature to make decisions. Some couples feared that if they vote off Meaghan & Julie, the nothing bracelet would be given to them and believe they are a lesser threat than Jodi & Jeda. After the vote, Nathan & Andrew complained to Holly & Melanie that they had a deal and that their plans didn't work out. Holly & Mel countered saying that it's a game and they too were playing it as well. Jodi & Jeda were shocked at every couple who voted against them saying to Holly & Melanie that they didn't vote them last week and to Sharif & Teresa and Ben & Sean for voting them. Sharif countered saying that Julie deserved to stay and that she needed more help than them.

• Week 3 (Amanda & Stewart) 3-3 : Couples voted to eliminate Amanda & Stewart because some of them see them as a bigger threat than Holly & Melanie. Stewart pointed out to Ajay and the rest that this day was his and Amanda's anniversary. Nathan & Andrew had the deciding vote either to vote for revenge against Holly & Mel for messing up their plans from last week, or to vote out a threat in the game. They chose to vote Amanda & Stewart for being the bigger threat and to vote for loyalty between the training groups. Since the votes were tied, Amanda & Stewart were eliminated for having the lowest percentage weight loss of the week. After the votes, Amanda said to Sammy, “So much for never voting for me, Sammy.” Sammy replied with, “Don’t you dare say that to me.”
• Week 3 (Nathan & Andrew) 4-2-1 : Couples had to vote again in one hour of potentially eliminating another couple. Nathan & Andrew and Cameron & Sammy voted for Ben & Sean for seeing them as a threat and keeping with training group alliance. Holly & Melanie voted for Sharif & Teresa for avoiding any further backstabbing against Nathan & Andrew, being friends with Ben & Sean and voting their threat stating that they were voting for training groups. But it was Ben & Sean, Bob & Tiffany, Meaghan & Julie, and Sharif & Teresa who all voted for Nathan & Andrew for being the biggest threat of them all. Although Nathan & Andrew received the most votes, they weren't going home. Instead, it was "all versus one" week (exactly the same in the US series of Biggest Loser: Couples in week 4). Should Nathan & Andrew's percentage weight loss for next week be lower than the average weight loss of the other couples, they will be eliminated. Otherwise, Nathan & Andrew will have the right to vote off any couple they wish. Note, all couples swapped places sitting and standing, only Bob sat and Tiffany stood in both eliminations.

Template:Fnb Nathan and Andrew received the most votes, but were surprised to find out that they would not be going home.

Finale

No details have currently been released about the finale.

Production and release

Filming locations & dates

In all previous seasons filming was "The White House" in Sydney, New South Wales. Due to a large number of complaints, Warringah Council rejected Fremantle's request to use this property for season 4. The first week of the season was set at Hunt Resort on Fitzroy Island off the coast of Far North Queensland. The new Biggest Loser Sydney base is the former School of Artillery at the North Head Sanctuary near Manly.

Air dates and channels

The program is scheduled to begin screening on February 1, 2009 on Network TEN.

In the promos, Christina Aguilera's, Fighter was played as the theme for the commercials before the premier. In this song, the chorus is played but one line (Made my skin a little bit thicker) was removed as it was deemed inappropriate for the basis of the show.

Reception and public response

Television viewing and ratings

See also: List of The Biggest Loser Australia episodes

The fourth season started off with a successful peak of 1.7 million viewers and averaging 1.2 million over the premiere episode. This was up against sports programs expected to have high viewing audiences.

External links

• Official The Biggest Loser website
• Unofficial episode recaps and news