'The Biggest Loser' trainer Bob Harper uses "trainer's save" on Matt Hooper, no one goes home

The Biggest Loser eliminated no one during Tuesday night's sixth broadcast of the NBC reality weight-loss competition's fifteenth-season.


Matt Hooper, a 38-year-old retail manager from Georgetown, MA, was supposed to automatically be ousted after his Blue Team lost the season's sixth elimination weigh-in and he fell below the red line by posting the lowest weight-loss percentage of all the team's members.

However, his team's trainer Bob Harper chose to utilize his one "trainer's save" of the season to keep Matt in the competition.

"I wanted [Bob] to be able to keep [the save] for [Chelsea Arthurs], but I'm honored that he used it on me," Matt said once Bob revealed his decision. "This is not going to be wasted."

The Biggest Loser's fifteenth-season sixth episode began with an update on the weight-loss progress of previously-eliminated contestant Craig Arrington, a 30-year-old pharmaceutical company warehouse supervisor from Wilson, NC.


Craig started The Biggest Loser weighing 385 pounds and has since dropped to 274 pounds. He lost 74 pounds total and visited his Dad's grave to be able to heal and start over in his life.

Meanwhile, at the ranch, Ruben Studdard, the 35-year-old former second-season American Idol winner from Birmingham, AL, was thrilled to get a second chance and be welcomed back on the show after trainer Jillian Michaels had been penalized for giving her team members caffeine supplements against the rules.

Jillian apologized to her White Team for making a professional decision that backfired on them, and she insisted their health and well-being always comes first. Her team was not angry with her and noted they'd support her through everything.

The White Team, Blue Team and Red Team -- trained by Dolvett Quince -- then met The Biggest Loser host Alison Sweeney for the week's challenge.

For the challenge, each team had a pile of team-colored balls and they had to take those balls, race 250 feet and bounce them over a ravine 50 feet to a teammate waiting on the other side, who must then bounce them off a trampoline and into a basket worth either one, two or three points. The first team to earn 30 points would win the challenge, and each team member would be given $1,000 cash as a reward.


The Red Team ended up winning the challenge, and they were excited to finally break the Blue Team's winning streak.

After all the contestants worked out and watched videos featuring their former selves before coming to the ranch for inspiration, they met with Dannielle "Danni" Allen, the winner of The Biggest Loser's fourteenth season, who gave the players some healthy tips. Ruben also brought Dolvett to his music producer David Foster's house so Dolvett could listen in on a session and watch his client at work.

The three teams and their three trainers then arrived for the season's sixth elimination weigh-in. Alison announced to the group there would be a red line, and the person to fall below it on the losing team would automatically be ousted.

The Blue Team weighed-in first.

Hap Holmstead, a 26-year-old sales consultant and entrepreneur from Pleasant Grove, UT, lost eight pounds after going from 348 to 340 pounds. Holley Mangold, a 24-year-old Olympic weightlifter and caterer from Columbus, OH, dropped from 296 to 291 pounds, losing five pounds.


Matt dropped from 294 to 290 pounds and therefore lost four pounds. Chelsea, a 28-year-old clinical research professional and event planner from Raleigh, NC, shed five pounds and fell from 202 to 197 pounds. Bobby Saleem, a 28-year-old attorney from Chicago, IL, dropped from 298 to 293 pounds, losing five pounds.

The Blue Team collectively lost 27 pounds and posted a total weight-loss percentage of 1.88%.

The White Team was next to weigh-in.

Jay Sheets, a 38-year-old food company marketing associate from Farmington, MO, dropped from 231 to 226 pounds, losing five pounds. Marie Pearl, a 30-year-old senior staff accountant at a community college from Springfield, MO, fell from 213 to 207 pounds and shed six pounds. Tumi Oguntala, a 41-year-old brand strategist from Clifton Park, NY, lost 11 pounds after falling from 267 to 256 pounds.

The White Team lost a total of 22 pounds altogether and posted a 3.09% weight-loss percentage. As a result, the White Team was deemed safe.


Lastly, the Red Team weighed-in.

Ruben stepped on the scale first and dropped from 409 pounds to 401, losing eight pounds. Rachel Frederickson, a 24-year-old voice-over artist from Los Angeles, CA, went from 198 pounds to 195 pounds, losing only three pounds. However, she lost a whopping 18 pounds at the previous weigh-in.

Tanya Winfield, a 41-year-old restaurant franchise chief operating officer from Plainfield, IL, dropped from 224 to 220 pounds, losing four pounds. Jennifer Messer, a 42-year-old clerk and bookkeeper from Abingdon, VA, lost four pounds as well after falling from the same 224 to 220 pounds. 

David Brown, a 43-year-old construction company project manager and phone company social commerce leader from Edmond, OK, lost a surprising 17 pounds and dropped from 334 to 317 pounds.

The Red Team lost a total of 36 pounds and posted a 2.59% weight-loss percentage.


Therefore, Bob's Blue Team lost the weigh-in, and Matt was the person to fall below the red line with his 1.36% weight-loss percentage. Bobby was close with a 1.68% weight-loss percentage.

"Bob, you have a tough decision to make right now. You still have your 'trainer's save.' Tell me what you're thinking," Alison said.

"I definitely have reservations about using it for some people on the team, but I guess Matt's just kind of a blindside for me. So, I guess I just want to ask, Matt, do you want to go the distance?" Bob asked.

"I post a solid number every week, so going the distance, yeah! I wouldn't have gotten on a plane if I didn't want to go the distance. But if I don't go the distance, I am still going to be healthy. I am still going to finish what I [started]. So the decision is yours and I'm going to love you either way -- any decision you make," Matt replied.

"There's one person on the team I knew I kind of wanted to like save that for. Chelsea has just been someone that has been so deserving every single week... I wanted to like protect Chelsea when she needed protecting -- if she needs protecting. I guess what I want to do right now is have a level playing field," Bob explained.

"Looking at the numbers, Chelsea doesn't need protecting. So I'm absolutely going to use this on Matt. I don't want Matt to go home."


"Thank you!" Matt exclaimed. "I'm going to wake up tomorrow and do the same thing, brother."

"You deserve it Matt," Bob noted.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski