The Biggest Loser - 12 ª Season

Since the theme for the year is battle of the ages, the fifteen contestants, who are dropped in the middle of the California desert on their first meeting, are separated into three teams based on age: under thirty, over fifty, and those in-between. Each team will run a mile race across the desert as a team to be able to choose their team trainer: Anna's blue team, Bob's black team, and Dolvett's red team. At the end of the race, they learn that they will all be back to that spot just before the finale to run a marathon, the winner of that race to become an automatic finalist no matter if he/she has already been eliminated. The first workout is an eye opening experience for most, but especially for an ex-professional athlete who ended up being in worse shape than he ever imagined. In the middle of the week, one contestant receives some bad news from home, which ends up being a focusing experience. The first weigh-in yields mixed results, which in turn leads to the first eliminated contestant of the season.

There are fourteen contestants remaining after Debbie is voted off the campus after the first weigh-in. The fourteen return somewhat to the real world in that for the next week, they will only have access as a team to the gym and their trainer at one of three two-hour prescribed times per day: early morning, midday and late night. The winning team of a temptation challenge - eating the most donuts - will assign the gym times for all three teams. They find that training at a specific time not only affects them, but also their trainers, who have different energies at different times of the day. Beyond individual issues of training, one team faces an internal back stabbing issue. Each contestant with his/her trainer meets with Dr. Huizenga, who gives them the bad news about their health. One of the youngest, who has previously resisted visiting a doctor if only in the want not to know, has one of the worst results. The teams compete in a reward challenge - maneuvering a ball through a maze using only their body weight - with the winning team receiving a two pound advantage at the weigh-in, and the second place team receiving a one pound advantage. At each of the challenges and the weigh-in, the black team is the one which the others are gunning for as the black team has thus far established itself as the leading team.

With Johnny being voted off the campus after the latest weigh-in, the blue team is feeling desperate having lost the first two weigh-ins and thus the only team to have lost members. The remaining thirteen contestants enter into NFL week, where the challenges are football oriented - one which will be done in competition with pro players - the prizes are football oriented, and the last chance workout is assisted by pro players. The first individual challenge, with the winner to receive $5,000, tests both speed and football throwing accuracy. The team challenge, styled after a football game, is a workout consisting of four fifteen minute quarters, the winning team, who will receive a spa day, being that that burned the most calories per team member. The winning team ends up making a unique decision. And the contestants learn that the one person who wins the weigh-in for the week will receive two tickets to the Super Bowl, a prize coveted especially by the many ex-football players, Antone who is an ex-NFL player himself, and Mike who is a long time football coach. Jennifer faces a set-back with an injury which limits the use of one of her legs for the next three weeks. Antone expresses his insecurities being in an environment where he is no longer seen as being in the elite class with the visiting NFL players. And Vinnie opens up about the abusive reason which led to his weight gain.

The red team's emotional elimination vote after the last weigh-in resulted in Patrick being the third contestant eliminated. Each team starts the week with some inspirational words and assistance from a Big Loser alumnus, each chosen to fit the appropriate age category of the specific team and each who has maintained their weight loss after their time on the show. The reward challenge is a relay where only the "baton" can move from person to person, while the person at the back on the chain moves to the front and so on. The relay takes the teams through extreme weather conditions, from heat to wind to snow to monsoon rains. The "baton" for each team is actually a box filled with the winners' rewards: letters from home. Alison announces bonus rewards at the race's end. The last chance workout takes each team to a different part of the ranch and a different activity, which especially for Anna feels like home.

After the latest weigh-in when Coach Mike was voted off campus, the blue team is left with only two contestants. A game of Plinko - a game of total chance - provides the winning contestant a multitude of rewards. One, the contestant gets to go home for the week. Two, their trainer will go with them. And three, they receive immunity from elimination for this week. But these rewards come with much pressure as that winner will be the only person from his/her team whose weight will count for their team at this week's weigh-in. Many of the contestants voice their concern about possibly winning this reward, but the contestant who does ultimately win is excited, which is the exact opposite feeling of their trainer, who doesn't want that person to feel like this week will be a vacation, especially as their teammates are totally relying on them. The departure of that contestant and the trainer brings about a different vibe on the ranch. Cracks start to appear in all three teams, two based on relationships with the trainer, and the third based on not having the trainer around to be the team's glue. The team challenge - whose goal is to fill a glass cylinder with liquid the fastest - is one of speed, endurance and balance. Each winning team member gets to send one person of their choice for a two week stay at the Biggest Loser Resort. The weigh-in brings back the Plinko winning contestant and the trainer from their week away, with that contestant the last to step on the scale. There is much anticipation if that trip home was a boon or a burden.