#ExcessBaggage recap (Thu 23/02/12)

Excess Baggage – Mon-Thu 6:30pm, GO!.
http://channelnine.ninemsn.com.au/excessbaggage/

What a week it’s been in the Hunter Valley – breakthroughs, balloons and bastardry. But enough reminiscing, it’s time to size up for their weekly fitness test and weigh in.

Trainer Christian can tell all the contestants are gearing up, fearing elimination next week. Darryn’s come down with a chest infection that he fears will affect his result, but then he hasn’t made his daily ritual sacrifice to his satanic master to ensure it clears. Christian challenges Lisa to put in her best as Darryn won’t be able to carry the Red team today.

In the 1.6km run Darryn is coughing up “not one but two lungs” midway through the run, there’s a lot of encouragement for Lisa (and Sarah) to put in and keep running. Dipper notes that Lana tends to get anxious about it and slow to a walk but he’s there to encourage her. Lisa improved to third last from second last, with John and Ajay bringing up the rear. A big effort from all concerned. Apparently planking has been included in the fitness test, and Lisa makes it all the way to end with a very special Darryn lecture at the end. During the sit up test Gabby forces out a fart which cracks all the contestants up.

In the 40m sprint, Lisa has managed to shave two seconds off her time in four weeks. Darryn decides to wear a red tight running cap, offering him the all the difference to crack six seconds in his run. It’s a stunning look, kind of like a very angry Papa Smurf.

In the space of a commercial break, it’s Check-In time. Ajay is nervous as it’s not been a great week for her, and Darryn’s happy they’re going in with points this week – “that’s huge,” he says, “but Lisa’s huge too!” Ladies, form an orderly line. Dr Joanna reminds the teams that this is the last free pass week… from next week, the bottom two teams after the accumulated scores from each week will be up for elimination. The Red team’s Darryn & Lisa are up first.

Darryn’s super complimentary of Lisa’s effort this week and he thinks they’re gonna smash it this week. Darryn’s numbers are good but he doesn’t think they’re great (even with his chest infection he still improves his fitness score by 0.2). Big numbers from Lisa – dropping 5cm from her waist alone. The Red team post an impressive score of 25.1, which when coupled wit their points from the week puts them on a sizeable 30.1. Christian asks Lisa what was different and she’s direct: “Darryn was on my arse like a haemorrhoid and the only way to get him off was to dig in and work hard for myself.”

The Yellow team’s Christine and Nathan check in and Christine delivers great numbers and Christian says this is evidence of the effort she’s put in. Nathan’s numbers are OK but not great. Dr Tim notes that Nathan could do more than he thinks he can, and that hits a raw nerve. “The weight has been an excuse to hide myself from everyone,” shares Nathan. Their overall score of 26.1 places the Yellow team in second place as the second team checked-in.

Ajay & Matt step up for a Purple team check-in. Ajay’s not confident, but she delivers strong numbers (including a 3cm reduction in her waist). With Matt’s numbers they slide up into second place – the Red team still in first. The Green team present for check-in and Gabby & Ben are quietly confident. Ben’s disappointed as he feels he’s put in hard and not seeing the results. Christian suggests that big-hearted Ben needs to put himself first a little more, and he feels selfish doing that but understands that it’s necessary. Gabby’s near neutral week doesn’t help the Green team overall.

Never backwards in coming forwards, Brant & John’s Grey team do OK but John’s smaller numbers don’t help their overall campaign. Kate and Sarah (Pink) find that all their effort this week wasn’t wasted, but didn’t deliver the numbers they needed to get move up the leaderboard. K-Fed & Renae’s check-in is buoyed by the fact they start with 8 points from the week’s challenges. Renae’s numbers are solid, but K-Fed’s big increase in fitness score helps the Blue team move into second position.

Dipper and Lana are pumped to check-in, hoping they’ve done enough to win. The Orange team are disappointed that the numbers from Dipper and Lana were good but not enough to bump the Red team from the top. Darryn’s stoked and Lisa can’t believe it. Dipper’s happy it was the Red team and not the Purple team (but shhhh!). The victory has brought an increased self-confidence to Lisa, and she acknowledges that were it not for Darryn “giving her shit” she wouldn’t be there. $10,000 for Darryn’s charity in Geelong will be a massive shot in the arm.

The accumulated scores after week four have the teams line up like this:
Ajay & Matt (Purple): 90.9
Dipper & Lana (Orange): 88.9
Brant & John (Grey): 83.0
Kevin & Renae (Blue): 82.0
Christine & Nathan (Yellow): 81.7
Kate & Sarah (Pink): 80.6
Gabby & Ben (Green): 75.8
Darryn & Lisa (Red): 75.5

Next week’s scores are going to make a massive difference as to which teams are up for elimination next week. Christian reminds all the teams that if the leaderboard looks like this next week, it’ll be between the Green & Red teams as to who gets booted.

In some good news for everyone, next week has them on the Gold Coast. Christian lays it down – he really needs them to give it all as next week, one team goes home.