Carla, the heaviest sister in Biggest Loser history, went home last week. Not because she was eliminated but because nine teams had to sacrifice a player in a new twist in the game. She left her less motiviated partner, Joelle, on the ranch to hold things down. Big mistake. Carla, you should have stayed girl! Joelle continued her all talk, little action act through most of the second week. Now, I am all for positive self-talk, but that was about all she was doing for much of the time. Making everyone, I mean everyone crazy. Joelle, you have got to know it is bad when you have even-keeled trainer Bob Harper cursing at your sorry ass. This is sad because it is obvious that this isn’t regular reality fare (when the sister is cast to be the unpleasant girl with attitude). Joelle is no Omarosa.Anyway, we did get a glimpse of the team members attempting to maintain their programs at home. But Nicole, what were you up to? Your personal appearance was definitely limited this episode. Anyway, your boo was trying to hold it down. Damien stayed in the middle ground most of this week. A pretty good strategy when folks are killing themselves vying for the top spot. If it works you can stay in the game long enough to make your move while steadily whittling away those pounds.
Bob’s blowup at Joelle didn’t come out of nowhere. She toyed with taking $25K to leave the competition in the first hour. And we watched her half-hearted attempts at push-ups and running intervals less those than amazing results at the weigh-in. But the good news is that her 2lb. drop (0.68% of her weight) was the exact reason Damien was safe this week.
But the heartbreaking moment was when Jerry, the oldest contestant, only lost one pound. And nineteen-year-old Dan, the biggest contestant, joined him in the bottom two. So the group had to choose between two deserving folks (who were giving it their all) while Joelle got to stay. No one was happy about that.
Thank goodness this reality of this wasn’t lost on Joelle who said, “I beat the oldest and the heaviest, there’s no glory in that.” True that, so girl get it together.
If you liked this post, we think you might like these too:
- Biggest Loser Recap: Heaviest Sister Ever, The Hospital & The Big Twist
- Biggest Loser Couples Recap: Detroit Drama, Damien versus Joelle
- The Biggest Loser Recap: It’s A New Day For Joelle
- The Biggest Loser Recap: The Joelle and Carla Saga Comes to an End
- Biggest Loser Finale: Nicole, Damien, Carla & Joelle Lost A Total Of 476 lbs
January 18th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
I watched the Biggest Loser episode with Joelle and I admit she is annoying. She talks too much and she doesn’t work hard enough. But, I think she was chosen to be on the show precisely because she is ambivalent, talks too much, and has yet to develop the discipline and attitude it takes to accomplish a difficult goal. She adds drama to the show and that is precisely what reality television is all about. She needs to look inward and realize that she is being used to fill the role of the contestant everyone loves to hate. And she needs to be much more honest about what her biggest problem is. Her weight, I think, is a symptom of her other more serious problems. She’s an adult who lives with her mother, is underemployed, and financially dependent. After watching her for two episodes, it’s obvious why her life is in disarray. She has yet to develop discipline and focus. She also has not learned how to take direction or follow advice. And she, unfortunately, is like many people who want success but aren’t willing to give their all to obtain it. She needs to mature and understand that talking is not the same as doing. Also, she needs to become more aware of how she irritates others with her “yes, sir” and “you want perfection, sir.” I don’t think she realizes that she simply comes across as a complainer with no real ability. I know this is harsh, but this woman is going to end up getting hate mail if she doesn’t seriously change her attitude and approach.
January 18th, 2009 at 7:27 pm
I totally agree with you. Unfortunately, Joelle is like soooo many of us who talk a good game and neglect to change our attitudes about food and go to the gym and wander around not asking for help because we really don’t want to know. Looking and listening to her I do believe that a small percentage of people will see themselves in her and feel deeply shamed and change. It won’t be a WHOLE lot of people, but there will be some. But really, for real? I don’t know many black people that are willing to work out so hard that they puke and or pass out. Although she got on my nerves, I was feeling her on that point.
January 21st, 2009 at 2:35 pm
You’re right Cande. I wouldn’t throw up either. But, I don’t think Bob and Jillian want that from the contestants either. I watched the show again last night and I think Crystal’s screaming at Joelle was another opportunity to add drama to the show. If only Crystal could have seen herself shouting and ranting and bullying. I was ashamed for both of them. I don’t usually pay a lot of attention to reality teleivision shows, but there is something about these two women that reminds me of a friendship I had several years ago. I was Crystal and my friend was Joelle. I admit it; I’ve acted like Crystal and am deeply ashamed of myself for that. I was younger than my friend, employed, living in my own home, and self sufficient, but my friend was still dependent on her family financially, uncertain about what direction to take in life, and completely deaf to any suggestions. I, on the other hand, was completely fed up with always having to be the one to take the lead, know what to do, have the answers, and make suggestions. My friend was also like Joelle–unable to focus and do what was needed to succeed. After months of frustration with my friend’s inability to find a job (despite several promising job interviews) and take charge of her own life, I ended the friendship lest I one day just busted my friend in her head! Crystal is, clearly, dominant and motivated and Joelle is passive and lazy, and this is not a good combination. This is not a good friendship, at least not when one grown woman talks to another (older) grown woman as though she is talking to a backward child that she can’t stand. I fault Crystal for this. Crystal has gained a lot of weight and knows she needs to lose it. She is dedicated to her weight loss and will do whatever it takes to lose the weight. I watched her train with Bob and despite the pain, she pushed herself. That’s all the trainers ask. She didn’t vomit, faint, or cry. In fact, at one point, she kissed Bob on the forehead when she thought she couldn’t bear the pain anymore. That was really cute and even Bob had to laugh. Why should I cry and complain? Didn’t I get myself into this body? Didn’t I want to be on this show? Isn’t Bob here to push me and help me is what Crystal seemed to be saying as she bore the pain of the workout? What is a woman like that doing hanging around with a woman like Joelle? I’m not saying Joelle doesn’t deserve a genuine friend, but Crystal has to realize that she and Joelle (at least so far) are not on the same level and that is the root of their conflict. Crystal should not be so dominant that she comes across as the angry mom or a bully. There is a lack of respect for Joelle on Crystal’s part and that needs to be addressed. There is an imbalance in this relationship that needs to be corrected. Also, I have to wonder…didn’t Crystal know that Joelle would waiver? If they’ve been friends for a long time, then Joelle’s behavior and attitude should come as no surprise to Crystal. While watching Crystal completely lose it, I thought she had been holding a lot of anger toward Joelle that has little to do with Joelle’s behavior at the ranch. I hope they work out their deeper issues. Sorry for the super long post. But, these women made me really think.
February 4th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
I am a white girl and I want evryone to know that:
I WAS SO MAD LAST NIGHT when nobody was telling Joelle that they loved her. It was sickening! I hope those people gain something (some heart). I was so proud of Joelle for sticking up for herself. I did think it appeared she was being a bit laid back. But I was not there. Maybe she felt the HATE in the room, their not wanting her to suceed and she said F___ that! I am so glad she chose to not be friends with Crystal, she would have brought her down!
I LOVE YOU JOELLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
February 4th, 2009 at 6:26 pm
Hi Debbie,
I found a lot about what happened between Joelle and Carla sad. Particularly the disintegration of their friendship. No reality show is worth that.
February 4th, 2009 at 6:30 pm
I can understand what the previous person is saying because everyone on the show could not get beyond her irratating attitude(eventhough I got a laugh everyweek), but the whole reason for being on the show to win money and lose weight and Joelle did not do that. The stuff that she said was downright silly, like,”I see them busting it but I ain’t trying to kill myself because it ain’t worth it,” is exactly what annoyed everyone.
February 4th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
Joelle is an idiot! Carla was justified in her anger. Joelle knew what the Biggest Loser entailed which equaled working out hard even if you had to throw up. I hate excuses and I’m glad Carla cut that our of her life.
February 4th, 2009 at 7:30 pm
(I am another white woman commenting ..)
I don’t think the contestants demonstrated much maturity in their behavior towards Joelle. Joelle has problems, yes, but she seems overall like a nice person. Esp. the woman who came back from the yellow team; she had no place to mouth off to Joelle the way she did, that was not her job. In the elimination room, everyone wrote Joelle’s name in big letters and drew little notes and arrows to Carla’s name … STUPID ! They spoke to her like she was some sort of animal or puppy killer or for letting her teammate down, none of their criticism was one bit constructive. She’s a lazy person, not a horrible human being. Lighten up! I commend Joelle for keeping her own anger under control.
As a side comment I was disappointed to see that Joelle was being stubborn in reevaluating the situation with Carla after the months had passed. Carla gave her some time to think about what she’d done, and you could see she probably wanted to remain friends with her. Joelle was being hard-headed over the situation. Too bad.
February 7th, 2009 at 10:49 pm
I agree with an earlier post. Joelle is extremely immature. After the first episode I felt that Joelle might have been emotionally challenged in some way. She acted like a person in their late teens that had forgotten to taken their meds. Just like some teens she only performed after the ‘authority figure’ yelled, screamed and blew bubbles. I would guess that in her home life she is used to getting attention by behaving negatively. As a result with Ranch becoming her new home, she only knew how to act one way.
I also felt that Joelle was quite comfortable with her weight, hence no true motivation other than the money to dig deep.
I was saddened by her performance. Even from the edited out clips that have appeared on the internet you can tell that she thought she was beautiful. There was no concern about her health. Too bad she was Carla’s teammate. She cost Carla.
February 7th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
Thank God I am NOT that black girl. (Joelle)
She needs serious help.
December 29th, 2009 at 3:35 pm
Even after all these months, I still can’t bring myself to watch B.L. again. Phony. I’ve been a longtime fan of the show since the beginning and was glad to see more black women on the show. However, seeing how Joelle was treated has left a sour taste in my mouth. AFter training for 18 years, I’ve never seen a trainer lose their *(&) like that and I’ve seen plenty of lazy people in training sessions. When Bob lost his temper like that, that turned me off as a viewer for good. He crossed the line. He has favorites and they kissed his arse the entire season. Bob was wrong and Joelle didn’t feel the camaraderie from the other contestants. Then again, that season was full of whiny, codependent babies who “needed” Bob. After that season, I still haven’t watched the show. I will stick with National Body Challenge. I am still disgusted at how Joelle was treated by the contestants and Bob. Felipe talked garbage to Jillian and he didn’t get the same treatment. Double effing standard. I’m throwing away my workout dvd and book.