Biggest Loser: 'Waist and Money'

Do you use budget or time as your excuse to not shop healthy. Well that is what The Biggest Loser talked about last night. Don't miss this!

Last night’s episode of 'The Biggest Loser' started with bare kitchen cabinets and empty refrigerators. They did get a note to meet Alison saying she emptied their kitchen and to meet at the grocery store. To which Jackson replied, "How did that little woman take all that food?"

Once at the store Ally explained that most people have limited budgets and little time to shop. This is a common excuse for not eating healthy. Well for this week they were going to have to shop for the week on $10 a day per person. They were also given only fifteen minutes to shop. I would agree 1,000 percent that a family's budget is always a MAJOR concern for eating healthy.

Let’s compare what you can get for $10 as an example from the Stop and Shop flyer:
You can get 10 boxes of pasta for $10 or you can get 1.5 pounds of chicken breasts ($5), a bag of salad for ($3), and a container of cherub tomatoes ($2).

If your family is like mine and struggling to make ends meet, you can certainly stretch ten boxes of pasta a lot further. We currently spend $80 a week on groceries and we have found if we shop for our meat at 90 Meat Outlet and get our produce at Falls Fruit we only have a few items left to get at the grocery store and we are able to hit our budget and eat well-balanced meals.

I believe Massachusetts has begun to see the correlation between poverty and obesity. There is a program called Healthy Incentives Pilot (HIP) which assists families receiving food benefits and enables them to buy healthier alternatives through an incentive. Although this press release is from 2010, I personally know some people are still benefiting from the program. This is what the release said: “The Healthy Incentives Pilot will enroll 7,500 randomly selected SNAP households to receive incentives. For every dollar participants spend on fruits and vegetables using their SNAP Electronic Benefit Transfer cards, 30 cents will be added to their benefit balance -- thus cutting the cost of fruits and vegetables by almost one-third.”

During the shopping trip on The Biggest Loser we learned that Alex and I are sisters from a different mother -- okay that’s a bit of a stretch, but we do have very similar habits. She explained that she did not shop because fast food was easier and more convenient. I do not enjoy cooking and before my fiancée, Jen, moved in I was the FourSquare mayor of check-ins at McDonald's, Nadim’s Mediterranean, Friendly’s and Subway.

One very important thing Gina pointed out was it was not even really necessary to come away from the outside aisles. This is something I had always heard, but thought was RIDICULOUS! Down aisle two is my chocolate pudding, down aisle six is the crackers I loved, and not to mention the frozen pizzas in aisle twelve. There was not possibly enough choices around the perimeter of the store. How shocked was I when I went sugar-free found myself shopping the edge of the store? There I can find meat, chicken, fresh fruits and vegetables, assorted cheese, fresh pickles, yogurt, milk, eggs and more. All I head down an aisle for anymore is laundry soap and TP. The most exciting part is how much quicker my shopping trip has become.

Here is your “less fat” (aka “lean”) summary of the episode tonight:

• Lots of chatter about alliances

• 'Nice Bob' has become 'Drill Sergeant Bob'

• Alex had a breakdown

• Jillian had Danni run backwards on the treadmill

• Trainers checked in with the kids

• Kids goals: Playing baseball, cheering, and fitting into the perfect prom dress

• Concern over eating healthy having no flavor

• Chef Devin Alexander came on and gave a recipe for Southwest Loaded Sweet Potato. I was not able to get the recipe – no that’s a lie – I zoned out when they talk recipes and leave that to Jen – and it is not yet available on NBC website.

• Challenge: Drop five pound weights in a fountain on other side of pond. Winner gets 10 one-year memberships to Planet Fitness and a 2 pound advantage or calls home. Danni won and took the two pound weigh-in advantage.

• David sees Dr H. His knee is still really bad, but he has an emotional awakening.

Check out the Challenge:

SPOILER ALERT! Weigh-in Time

Red Team

• Joe -11 (hit the 200's at 299)


• Francelina -7


• Jackson -8


• Lisa -5


• Total of 31 pounds (2.97%)

Blue Team: Need more than 41 pounds

• Gina -9 (went below 200, at 197)


• Michael -13


• Jeff -13


• David -10


• Alex -10


• Total of 55 pounds (3.9%)

White Team: Danni needs 4 pounds

• Danni -9

Danni rocked it and she is safe.

Alex from Blue is the Biggest Loser of the Week.

The Red Team is on the bottom.

Joe had the highest percentage so he is safe.

After the vote Lisa went home.