(Original Air Date 9/15/2009)

The Biggest Loser Season 8 Premiere did not disappoint last night.

Teasers leading up to it had hinted at some of the contestant’s stories and the theme of Season 8 being that of “Second Chances”.

Alison Sweeney continues to be the hostess for the show and is looking fabulous as usual!

The 15 contestants arrived by bus and met the surprise 16th person who was Daniel from Season 7.
They then proceeded to jump into the first challenge which was a 1 mile race. The was to be the final mile of the marathon that the Season 7 contestants had run at the end of last season…a hand-off of sorts.

Most of the contestants had quite a difficult time with the race and walked their way across the finish line. Two of them (Coach Mo and Tracey) had to be taken to the hospital and Tracey, in particular seemed to be in a very bad situation as they took her away in the ambulance.

Daniel came in first place at just over 14 minutes and as the winner he would begin the process of choosing teammates. (as well as immunity for both him and his partner)

Here is the breakdown of the teams and a bit about each of the contestants:

Team Orange:
Daniel – was on Biggest Loser Season 7 and had come back to finish his weight loss efforts – he won the competition and choose Shay as his partner (they had in common that they were both the heaviest to weight in for their season). Daniel’s starting weight was 312 lbs.
Shay – is the heaviest contestant in the history of The Biggest Loser weighing 476 lbs.  She had grown up in a rough home to a mother that was an addict. From the age of 5-6 until 18 she had lived in various foster homes.

“For me I don’t give up…that’s always been my motto…don’t give up, but the one thing I’ve never tried is to work on me.” ~ Shay

Team Green:
Allen – age 49, Firefighter/EMT; starting weight: 325 lbs
Abby – age 35, teacher, Abby had a very sad story to tell and I think most of America must have been weeping for her. In 2006 her husband and 2 children were killed in a car accident and her second chance is about figuring out how to live her life now. Abby’s starting weight is 247 lbs.

“It was by the grace of God that I wasn’t in the van and so I have to believe that I am here for something way bigger.” ~ Abby

Team Pink:
Amanda – age 19, Patient Care Technician; starting weight:  250 lbs
Rebecca – age 25, Nanny; starting weight: 279 lbs.

“I’m sick and tired of being the girl with the pretty face.” ~ Rebecca

Team Blue:
Rudy – age 31, Engineer; starting weight: 442 lbs
Dina – age 28, custodian; starting weight: 253 lbs.

Team Red:
Antoine – age 23, Health Insurance Agent; starting weight: 367 lbs.
Sean – age 29, Youth Pastor; starting weight 444 lbs.

Team Brown:
Liz – age 49, Salesperson; starting weight: 267 lbs.
Danny -age 39, Land Surveyor and Musician; starting weight: 430 lbs.

Team Black:
Alexandra – age 20, Student; starting weight: 309 lbs.
Julio -age 40, Mortgage Loan Officer; starting weight: 407 lbs.

Team Purple:
Coach Mo – age 56, Youth Mentor; starting weight: 355 lbs.
Tracey – age 37, Homemaker; starting weight: She was taken to the hospital and we don’t know her weight yet

Unlike past seasons, trainers Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels, will be working together to train all of the contestants as opposed to splitting them up into teams that compete against each other.  Wow! This means they are getting a double whammy from the training duo!

“We are having contestants that are bigger than we’ve ever had before, because that’s what’s going on in America right now.” ~ Bob Harper

Good quotes from the workout room:

“There are heroes in this room.” ~ Bob Harper

Jillian to Shay as she struggles on the ladder machine:
“This is a story in your head. None of it is real. All you have to do is change your mind.” ~ Jillian Michaels

Dr. Huizenga is back as the leading physician for the 8th season of Biggest Loser and the contestants head to the California Health and Longevity Institute for a second round of thorough medical testing. This season they are doing a lot of extra tests for the benefit of obesity research which I think is very cool.

One highlight of the testing worth mention was when contestant Sean was faced with the news that he had Type II diabetes. Sean did not know this and was completely surprised (and motivated) by this news.

Tips from the show:

1. Alison Sweeney (hostess): Alison cooks healthy meals at home for herself and family instead of eating out at restaurants.

2. Bob Harper (trainer): Bob runs to the gym instead of driving in his car. (good for health and environment)

3. Jillian Michaels (trainer): Jillian makes sure that she stays hydrated (with water) regardless of where she is or what she is doing.

Weigh-In Results: (pounds lost)

Daniel: 12 lbs
Shay: 17 lbs
Amanda: 6 lbs
Rebecca: 18 lbs
Rudy: 28 lbs
Dina: 8 lbs
Antoine: 18 lbs
Sean: 22 lbs
Liz: 10 lbs
Danny: 24 lbs
Allen: 19 lbs
Abby: 15 lbs
Alexandra: 13 lbs
Julio: 13 lbs
Coach Mo: 19 lbs
Tracey: in the hospital, did not weigh-in

Biggest Loser for the Week:
Allen & Abby (Team Green): 5.94% weight loss

Lowest Team for the Week:
Alexandra & Julio (Team Black): 3.63% weight loss

Eliminated Contestant:
Alexandra:

Alexandra’s Video After Elimination:

“I’m going to prove to you that success is not determined by the number of days you see on the ranch. Success is the determination that you have in your heart.” ~ Alexandra

Alexandra’s transformation since leaving the ranch:

She has lost 60 lbs since leaving the Biggest Loser Ranch and plans to reach her goal weight for the Biggest Loser finale. She gives us a teaser that she has a crush on one of the contestants from the show and leads us to believe that we will find out that info later. Go Alexandra!

Next Week on the Show:

The contestants will be faced with a group challenge. If together they lose a total of 150 lbs, no one will be eliminated. If they do not reach this goal, 2 contestants will go home.

Stay tuned!