'The Biggest Loser' sends Roy Pickler back to Santa's workshop

The Biggest Loser's thirteenth season eliminated Roy Pickler during Tuesday night's broadcast of the NBC reality weight-loss competition's seventh episode.


Roy, a 63-year-old self-employed Santa Claus from Middlebury, IN, became the eighth contestant ousted from the competition's thirteenth season after his Red team lost the seventh week's weigh-in, which featured the 13 remaining contestants weighing-in as two teams although only one person's weight counted for each team, which then forced the Red team's members to vote off one of their own players.

"Let's face it, the old Santa might not have been around all that long. I am pleased with what I was able to do. I've proven that I'm tougher than some of the people one-third my age. I'm happy for that opportunity. It was a real gift and a real blessing for me, and I'm ready to prove that I can go the distance," Roy said following his ouster. 

The Biggest Loser's seventh thirteenth-season episode began following the elimination of Adrian Dortch, a 34-year-old music producer and community activist from Evanston, IL, after the competition's Week 6 weigh-in.

When Adrian's sister Daphne Dortch -- who, with her brother, got eliminated during the premiere episode but were able to return to the ranch and rejoin the competition after accomplishing their goal of losing a combined total of 50 pounds in one month while at home -- discovered Adrian had been voted off the ranch already, she was extremely frustrated and disappointed because she believed he was only ousted due to the fact people didn't like him on his team.


Conda Britt, a 24-year-old nutrition health services technician from Rockford, MI, then spoke up on behalf of her Red team and insisted that wasn't the case. She said Adrian had posted one of the lowest weight-loss percentages on their team although he had lost nine pounds.

Daphe disagreed with what she was hearing and said no one really gave her brother a chance, and as a result, she and Conda went at it verbally.

The next day, the Black team, who worked under the guidance of veteran trainer Bob Harper, and the Red team -- who trained with previously new trainer Dolvett Quince, who returned to the show for his second season -- and their trainers met with The Biggest Loser host Alison Sweeney.

Alison explained that Bob and Dolvett must each choose one contestant from his own team to send home for the entire week in celebration of Valentines' Week. The trainers would be accompanying the player of their choice throughout his or her short journey away from the ranch.   

After many of the contestants got excited about the potential opportunity to see their families and friends and hoped they would be selected, they learned of a twist which deflated their spirits.


The two contestants to spend the week at home would be the only weights that would count for each of their teams at the weigh-in at the end of the week. If one of the players did not hold up over the course of the week and lose enough weight to surpass the total weight-loss percentage of the other contestant, then that player's team would have to vote off one of their own members.

Dolvett ended up choosing Conda -- whom he often butt heads with because she constantly gave him and the people around her attitude -- to represent the Red team because he admitted he liked a challenge, while Bob opted to go home and spend the week with Daphne because he believed she had a point to prove to her Black team.

In addition, Alison told the contestants that the team to lose the most weight at the weigh-in would win a one-pound advantage for their teammate who got sent home, meaning no one necessarily had the week off.

Once Daphne and Bob and Conda and Dolvett arrived in the players' hometowns, they all got a very warm welcome.

Dolvett attempted to get to know Conda a little bit better through her loved ones, and Conda's mother and sister revealed her father had struggled with drug problems which eventually led to her parents' split. They told Dolvett that Conda always pushed people away and put up walls because she was dealing with a lot of pain she didn't want to outwardly express to others, and as a result, Dolvett assumed that was the reason why Conda always seemed to be on the defense. 


The teams on the ranch then worked out and tried to help each other, while Daphne and Conda trained with Bob and Dolvett at home.

Afterward, Bob had dinner with Daphne, her mother and her three daughters. Daphne revealed she had a disease in which her heart raced and was at risk of experiencing cardiac arrest at any moment. She told Bob she had been to the emergency room over 100 times before she appeared on The Biggest Loser, and Bob attempted to make her believe that she wasn't a burden on her family.

Meanwhile, Conda got letters from her Red team expressing their support and Dolvett babysat for her daughter Brooklyn while she got to enjoy a dinner with her friends.

On The Biggest Loser ranch, the Red and Black teams met with Alison again and learned they'd be competing in the week's challenge. The team to win the challenge would receive Valentine's Day letters from home along with a one-pound advantage on the scale for either Daphne or Conda -- depending on which team won.

The challenge required each team to dig under three giant logs and get everyone on their team all the way across the finish line, including a dummy. The Black team had to sit out Emily Joy, a 29-year-old teacher from Huntersville, NC, to even up the numbers.


In the end, the Red team won the challenge, the one-pound advantage and the letters from their loved ones at home.

All the contestants then participated in their last chance workouts.

Later on, The Biggest Loser's thirteenth-season's seventh elimination weigh-in commenced.

Alison explained the team with the lowest weight-loss percentage would lose the weigh-in and be put up for elimination, reminding everyone that Conda and Daphne's weights would be the only weights to count on behalf of their entire teams. 

The host also said the person who achieved the highest weight-loss percentage on the losing team would receive immunity, but all the team's contestants must then vote off one of its other members.


Bob's Black team weighed-in first.

Christine Pickler, a 42-year-old who is self-employed and from Middlebury, IN, lost five pounds after dropping from 206 pounds to 201 pounds, while Jeremy Britt, a 22-year-old banker from Rockford, MI, fell from 326 pounds to 320 pounds, losing six pounds since the beginning of the week.

Emily shed five pounds after dropping from 223 pounds to 218 pounds, while Megan Stone, a 21-year-old student and support staffer for an organization that assists disabled adults from Dittmer, MO, fell from 223 pounds to 219 pounds after shedding four pounds.

Cassandra, a 25-year-old in-home senior caregiver from Fowlerville, MI, lost six pounds after she fell from 195 pounds to 189 pounds. Isaac "Chism" Cornelison, a 19-year-old student from Magnolia, TX, started off the week weighing 305 pounds and fell to 298 pounds after he lost seven pounds.

Daphne still had to weigh-in in order to determine the Black team's fate. However, without including Daphne's weight-loss percentage, Bob's team lost a total of 33 pounds and posted a 2.23% weight-loss percentage.

It was then time for Dolvett's Red team to weigh-in.


Kim "Kimmy" Stone, a 48-year-old registered nurse from Dittmer, MO, was the first member to step on the scale. She started off the week weighing 188 pounds and dropped to 184 pounds after she lost four pounds.

Allen "Buddy" Shuh, a 42-year-old pastor from Wayne, MI, fell from 336 pounds to 329 pounds after he shed seven pounds, while Roy lost nine pounds after dropping from 261 to 252 pounds.

Kim Nielsen, a 38-year-old former professional wrestler from Roswell, GA, then weighed-in on behalf of Dolvett's Red team and fell from 209 pounds to 200 pounds after she lost nine pounds. Mark Cornelison, a 43-year-old youth pastor from Magnolia, TX, lost a total of 10 pounds after he dropped from 244 pounds to 234 pounds.

Before weighing in Daphne and Conda, the Red team learned they had won an additional one-pound advantage because they had posted a higher total weight-loss percentage than the Black team. The Red team was going to be able to add a two-pound advantage to Conda's weight-loss since they had also won a pound from the week's challenge.

Daphne then weighed-in on behalf of the Black team and she dropped from 236 pounds to 224 pounds after she lost 12 pounds at home from training individually with Bob. Conda then stepped on the scale and knew her weight would represent the entire Red team. She lost 10 pounds over the course of the week, falling from 255 pounds to 245 pounds.

Daphne lost 12 pounds and posted a 5.08% weight-loss percentage, while Conda shed 12 pounds -- including the two-pound advantage her team had gained for her -- and only posted a 4.71% weight-loss percentage. As a result, the Black team won the weigh-in and Conda cried in disbelief and disappointment.


Alison then announced the Red team would face elimination but the contestants could not vote for Kim, who had received immunity for posting the highest weight-loss percentage on her team.

The contestants then took their seats in the voting room and revealed their votes. Kim and Mark said they voted for Roy because they felt he had been absent from workouts and had many distractions which were causing him to lose focus. Kimmy also voted to oust Roy from The Biggest Loser's thirteenth season, followed by Conda.

Roy voted for Kimmy, but four votes were enough to constitute for Roy's elimination, so Buddy did not have to reveal his vote.

In a post-elimination update, Roy, who started The Biggest Loser weighing 306 pounds, said he currently weighs 230 pounds. Roy explained that new doors opened for him once he got home. He began working out consistently and wanted to become a good fit role model for kids as a Santa Clause who wasn't overweight and unhealthy. Roy's goal is to open a fun adventure camp for kids.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski