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Mel Russell: ‘Kelly manipulated everyone’

Biggest Loser contestant Mel Russell talks to Woman’s Day about her time on the show.

**Starting weight: 108.4kg

Elimination weight: 88kg**

How do you feel now that you are out of the Biggest Loser competition?

Its mixed emotions. I’m so excited to be going home to my family. I said I didn’t want to go home until I was in the 80s and I hit that. I’m 88kg and I’m stoked with that. I feel so much healthier and stronger. You’re tired from training but I’m feeling a real buzz at the moment and know there’s no way I’m going to stop now that I’m out of the house.

Who didn’t you get along with?

It’s no secret I didn’t get along with Kelly. She was a real manipulator. She didn’t train very hard and that frustrated me. She started spreading stories that weren’t true and trying to hook in with the Red team. She was trying to get people to vote against me and telling people there are alliances with people that never happened. When she left, things rose up again and it was much more positive. Gerard was very negative. I found that hard to deal with. He would never celebrate his weight loss. The divorce definitely had an effect on him. He kept saying, “When I did Jenny Craig I lost this much weight and I’m not losing that much here.” It was hard for the trainers to deal with that.

Has this experience made you more confident to enter into your first real relationship like you hoped it would?

I’ve still got work to do and I’m looking forward to getting there and have no doubt I will before the reunion. I wouldn’t say I’m ready to put myself out there but I’m much more willing to do it. I’ll be confident enough to walk along the beach and not be covered up. I’ll need more toning but the only thing I joke about is I might need a boob job.

Who would you like to see win?

I’m crossing my fingers Damien will win. We gave up our space for him last night. He’s a fantastic person. He Jules and I have formed a great friendship. His journey is so much longer than everyone else’s. He needs to be there and have Shannon next to him.

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Headband headaches

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Superpets!

My 2-year-old Spoodle, Bailey! He loves to dress up and is always ready for a photo!

Jenelle

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Lucille (tan) is an Australian Terrier cross (3 years) and Millie (black) is her daughter. They came to us a year ago after being taken in by Monika’s Doggie

— Stefani

Typsy as a kitten rumaging through the shopping bag.

— Renee

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Sam the boxer. He loves to sleep on my coffee table.

— Dhonalda

Sumo, showing off her belly after weighing in at 6.1kgs (1kg lighter than 12 months ago).

— Sasha

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This is Tessa Davis, my 1-year-old staffy cross. She’s a Super Dog, with or without the costume!

— Gena Davis

This is our family pet Jack Russell ‘Russ’ who just loves digging holes. I am hoping he stops soon.

— Jess

Diego the Husky is a kleptomaniac. He steals everything and takes it out to the backyard. And Mikey the Maltese encourages his bad behaviour. They also love to steal the bed.

— Cougar

This is my dog Lucy and my cat Sammy. When people say that dogs and cats don’t get along, it’s a lie. Have a look at this…

— Emma

This is my cute ridgeback x greyhound called Pharoah. Oh so cute!!!

— Annika

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Kennel cough

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Oprah and Stedman — it’s over!

Oprah Winfrey has split from fiancé Stedman Graham after she discovered he is set to expose her life in a sensational tell-all book.

Oprah blasted Stedman over his cruel betrayal, telling him, “It’s over”, after learning he plans to reveal intimate and shocking details, including her real true love, her ongoing binge-eating battle and other explosive secrets.

“Oprah was heartbroken when she heard about Stedman’s plans,” says a source close to the star. “After the devastating setbacks she’s faced over recent months, she feels this is the worst betrayal by far and told Stedman in no uncertain terms to get out.”

“The one person in the world who knows what she’s really like is Stedman, and if he put it all down in writing, Oprah would be laid bare to the world,” says the source.

For the full story, see this week’s issue of Woman’s Day (on sale March 19).

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Kate’s tears — Owen’s other woman

Kate Hudson has been left heartbroken after boyfriend Owen Wilson was spotted with a mystery woman — just weeks after the couple went public with their relationship in Australia.

Kate seemed far from Owen’s thoughts as he frolicked on the beach in Hawaii with a sexy blonde. Dressed in a g-string bikini, Owen’s bronzed babe was unable to hide her enormous smile as she enjoyed the company of the notorious ladies’ man.

For the full story and pictures, see this week’s issue of Woman’s Day (on sale March 19).

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Zoe Sheridan: Healthy options

Alternative medicine should be considered before reaching for the pill packet, says Zoe Sheridan.

I think every physical disease has an emotional or a mental element to it. For example, cancer eats at your healthy blood cells and that also causes something to eat away at you — whether in the form of anger or resentment or getting irritated with someone in your life.

When it comes to things such as depression, antidepressants do not get to the root of the problem. I know some people need to take them on a short-term basis if they are really depressed or suicidal, but Prozac will only cover up your issues.

Don’t get me wrong, they have their place. I’m just saying look at the alternatives and consider combining alternative medicine with Western methods, whatever your illness.

I use alternative medicine in relation to my epilepsy. I see a kinesiologist for it and make every effort to de-stress for at least 10 minutes each day through walking or yoga. And it has done wonders. If I lose my voice, I gargle salt water and then I have two teaspoons of Manuka honey instead of taking antibiotics.

If my kids get a cold, they may need rest. Kids catch a lot of stuff as they’re building up their immune system and I don’t think antibiotics are good for that.

Practise preventative medicine. Go for a walk, buy organic, eat healthily, and go to the health-food store for natural remedies.

Do you agree with Zoe? Have your say on the Woman’s Day discussion board

Check out The Catch-Up’s website

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Garuda hero’s premonition: ‘I knew the plane was going to crash’

When RAAF Leading Aircraftsman Kyle Quinlan was handed his boarding ticket for Garuda flight GA-200 he had an eerie premonition the plane would never land safely. But rather than act on his hunch and “look foolish”, 23-year-old Kyle buckled into aisle seat 10D and prepared for take-off.

An hour later, the plane, carrying 133 passengers and seven crew, burst into flames after landing at the airport on the island of Java.

“I helped smash the exit door, which was on fire,” says Kyle. “Everyone was scrambling over smashed seats trying to get out. So many people were getting crushed in the stampede, so I held people back enough to get the exit free. Once it was moving smoothly I jumped onto the burning wing tip, before leaping into the rice paddy.

“I saw my boss on the ground. He was bleeding, his shoulder was badly dislocated, and he couldn’t see. I carried him about 80 metres to safety then went back to carry people away from the plane…”

To read the full story, see this week’s issue of Woman’s Day (on sale March 19).

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Cathy’s engagement joy: ‘I’m so in love’

Cathy Freeman’s wide grin outshines even the sparkle of the rings on her fingers. There’s a large diamond glinting on her left hand, and a sea-green emerald on the right — both of them gifts from her fiancé, James Murch.

It’s months since the Melbourne equities dealer popped the question, but 34-year-old Cathy is still glowing. “I’m very happy and very much in love,” she confides, but her joy is obvious before she even says a word.

The shy athlete who won Australia’s heart with a blistering win in the 400 metres at the Sydney Olympics — and then struggled with retirement — has become a self-assured woman of many interests.

Her children’s book, Born To Run (Puffin, $17.95), has just been released, and she’s launching the Catherine Freeman Foundation to “work together with individuals and communities to enable all those involved to fulfil their potential through greater opportunity”.

She’s also filming a second series of Going Bush for SBS-TV, which has given her a “mind-blowing” insight into her Aboriginal heritage.

Don’t miss this week’s issue of Woman’s Day (on sale March 19) — Cathy tells us all about James’ romantic proposal and her feelings about motherhood.

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In the mag — March 26, 2007