by David McAlpine

Last week on the Biggest Loser, it was the home stretch as the final five contestants battled to stay above a different kind of mark: the red line. After a hike with Tony Romo and another visit from Dr. Huizenga, Sunshine lost astoundingly less than anyone else, leaving her to be automatically eliminated from the running for the grand prize.

Last night, the emotion and tension were still there as the final four watched their own introductory videos to this season. They got the chance to see just how overweight they were and get a peek at how bad their eating habits had gotten. Then came the twist, via Ali of course: everyone would be going home for 30 days to try and continue their journey at home. After the month was up, the final four would return to the ranch on last time to weigh in and see who gets an automatic spot in the finals and who faces America's vote.

The four contestants each head home to their own respective hometowns and start plugging away, quickly realizing how hard it might be to maintain such a lifestyle in a place where they never thought it possible otherwise. Mike took the reins in Chicago and showed his family new recipes that he had learned on the ranch and how they could be modified to replace his family's everyday staple foods.

After a couple days at home, the contestants were hit with their challenge for the month: they would be training for the (seemingly now season closing-favorite) Biggest Loser marathon. Daris is siked, especially since he loves running (remember when he ran a 5K in an above average time in Texas?), while Michael is scared he won't be able to finish. So, Michael and Ashley join forces to train together.

As if training for a marathon weren't enough pressure, the contestants also got visits from everyone's favorite personal trainers, Bob and Jillian. Jillian starts going after Daris and pushing him to his max, while Bob scolds Koli for being in Las Vegas instead of his home, Rohnert Park, California. Koli insists he needs to be away from all distraction so he can win (which makes him slightly crazy).

After 30 days, the contestants return for the Biggest Loser marathon, rainy day and all. Then there was an added incentive: if a contestant could finish the marathon, they could donate $10,000 to a charity of their choice. Daris didn't want to just finish, though, he wanted to beat Tara's record of 4 hours and 55 minutes.

While Michael and Ashley worked through it together, Daris kept forging ahead. Eventually, each contestant met up with a previous contestant along the race course (Daris with Matt Hoover, season 2, Koli with Sione, season 7, Ashley with Ali Vincent, season 5, and Michael with Mike Morelli, season 7) to keep them motivated. Matt's appearance gave Daris all the drive he needed to shatter Tara's record, finishing in 4 hours and 2 minutes. Koli, Ashley and Michael all finished shortly thereafter, each earning $10,000 for a charity of their choice.

Since the marathon was enough of a last-chance workout, the weigh-in was next, and the results were as follows:

Ashley: -18 (-7.79%)
Mike: -23 (-7.14%)
Koli: -13 (-5.63%)
Daris: +2 (+1.03%)

Silence filled the room as Daris weighed in gaining weight in the home stretch. Even though Bob and Jillian both seemed flabbergasted, it really did make sense. Daris is gaining muscle fast (you can see it), and so if he's running so much (because he said he loves to), he could be building muscle faster than he's losing weight, and that may have put him below the yellow line.

Tune in next week to the Biggest Loser season finale to see who survives America's vote, who wins the $100,000 at-home prize, and who is eventually crowned this season's "Biggest Loser"--only on Tuesday at 8/7c on NBC!

(Photo courtesy of NBC)

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