The stress of getting into shape always begins with a New Years resolution and ends with unrealistic plans to achieve that “bikini bod” before spring break.

By changing your routine too drastically, or setting your goals too high, you’re more susceptible to failure. Starvation, juice cleanses, cutting out carbs and endless hours at the gym will do nothing more than derail your entire system. But there are simpler ways to naturally cleanse your body on a daily basis to look and feel your best.

CrossFit instructor Chantelle Russell is the Assistant Director of Fitness for PE & Recreation at the University of Oregon. Her suggestions for healthier, but effective alternatives to cleanses was: “The number one thing that I always focus on with students who are looking to eat healthier is to plan and prepare. Healthy eating doesn’t just happen by luck or willpower. It’s important to plan meals and snacks in advance and then prepare by getting groceries, making food and snacks in advance, and knowing your healthy options at your go-to food establishments (for when you’re in a hurry). Also, getting your roommates and friends on board with healthy eating will increase your likelihood of success and making the choices you want; as we are strongly influenced by those around us!”

Chantelle also advised making sure there’s a lot of color on your plate by loading on the fruits and veggies (plus more fiber makes you fuller, longer). Never skip meals, skip out on empty calories (soda, fancy coffee drinks, sweets) instead and ensure that all meals stay balanced with adequate portions of protein, carbohydrates (fruit, veggies, whole grains) and fats.

For all of us who are guilty of skipping breakfast once in a while, Chantelle shared her favorite and most efficient morning meal. Making oatmeal or “overnight oats” can keep you full and focused all morning. The Oatmeal Artist has a recipe for everyone’s liking.

Another bookmark recommendation comes from My Whole Food Life, your new favorite food blog for planning your meals. Reading insightful advice and even a few juice recipes (optimal from a full juice cleanse) are thrown in for good measure too.

Here are a few more favorite recipes you can use to plan your meals ahead:

Simple Spa Water: I always love having water with big slices of fruit waiting for me in the fridge. My current combination of choice? Water, lemon, lime, cucumber and mint.

Afternoon Pick Me Up Juice: Try this as a mid afternoon boost instead of a white mocha from Starbucks or my guilty pleasure, Diet Coke.

Zucchini Chips: Yes, there is still such a thing as chips outside of the Lays brand. Just add a little salt and oil!

Chia Seed Fruit Salad: Not your usual chia seed pudding, as it is combined with a varietal fruit salad for a delicious breakfast or dessert treat.

Healthy Burrito Bowl: Talk about getting all of your colors into one bowl that contains far less salt than something you’d pick up at Chipotle.

1 day 6 juices results: motivated, hungry, tired, air-filled, hungry, never full, proud. Join me next time aka never pic.twitter.com/OTUMcDZ24l

— Hannah Gunter (@hgunt19) March 9, 2015

The post Enough with the juice cleanses — there are healthier options to help you look your best appeared first on Emerald Media.

Into The Woods, Maleficent and Alice In Wonderland are just a few of the classic fairy tales that Disney has made into highly grossing films over the past few years.

Up next is the anticipated and overly marketed Cinderella, starring an actress fairly new to Hollywood, Lily James. The cast also includes notable actors like Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett, Game Of Thrones actor Richard Madden and Oscar nominated actress Helena Bonham Carter. Cinderella hits theaters this Friday and has received positive reviews so far.

With past films, critics around the Internet have duly noted that the exaggerated darkness of Into The Woods, Maleficent and Alice In Wonderland has turned off viewers, no matter how popular the cast was. Still, the box office says otherwise as each of these films continue to rake in millions — because how can you not see everything Disney?

Because these films are under the classic and most nostalgic Disney umbrella, they are automatically put in the alpha category — welcomed to Hollywood with the highest of expectations, despite our recently increasing disappointment.

Proof of this shows, as other studios attempted to remake fairytales into live action films, including Mirror Mirror, a rendition of Snow White from Relativity Media, or the next release, Pan, based on Peter Pan from Warner Brothers.

Mirror Mirror was more successful than originally planned, grossing over $180 million, but it was not something remembered several years after, like a Disney film. Studios who have recreated a new story gained attention for being original and taking a risk. Studios also would only dip its toes into the fantasy waters once or twice.

In recent news, it was also announced that Emma Watson was casted to play Belle in Disney’s next rendition of another childhood classic, Beauty and the Beast. According to iMDB, Beauty and the Beast will stay faithful to the original Disney animated feature, including the exact same songs and characters.

Since Maleficent and Cinderella were based off of the classic Brothers Grimm fairytale books, both had room to stretch its legs and focus more on whichever part of the tale the screenwriters chose.

Another Disney classic, The Little Mermaid, has been in development for over a year, according to The Escapist, which calls this cash cow a trend of the “Princess” franchise, something that the other studios can’t get enough hands on.

Still, with Disney constantly releasing these live-action films inspired by the animated versions we saw as children, it may give them the leeway to focus on the development of another original project on the side, since these studio branches crunch to release two to three notable films a year, focusing on quality over quantity.

There is no doubt that Cinderella will be highly successful on its upcoming opening weekend, as it has already received an 87 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes — although users have commented on the page to express the same feelings about Disney’s lack of originality.

And if that wasn’t enough, there’s even a Tumblr page called (I kid you not), “Disney Get Your Shit Together”, with hundreds of posts pointing out Disney’s recycled film ideas, even down to the animated characters whose features have also been recycled. Take Rapunzel’s face for example— it’s suspiciously similar to another character in Big Hero 6.

Simplified or not — by cranking out fairy tale after fairy tale as its biggest hits, is Disney continuing to play it safe or just running out of ideas? At this point, time will tell us soon enough.

The post Cinderella, Belle and Ariel to join the gang of recycled Disney princesses — Is Hollywood getting lazy? appeared first on Emerald Media.

Our treacherous, 10-week journey of The Bachelor just wouldn’t be complete without the anticlimactic, three-hour long season finale.

Our bachelor brought the two final ladies, Whitney and Becca, back to Arlington to meet his family for the first time — the final step in deciding who would be the future Mrs. Chris Soules.

Saying everything his family wanted to hear during a lunch toast that left the entire table in tears, Whitney collected hearts faster than a game of Bejeweled.

Becca’s afternoon in Arlington, however, was different. The gaping holes in her conversations with Chris, his mom and his sisters, were obvious. Emotionally, she wasn’t there. But who can blame her? She hardly knew the man, let alone spent time with him away from the cameras and producers.

This show is notorious for cranking out new couples that break up months later because they truly don’t know one another. After the cameras turn off and the Bali dinner dates are over, reality steps in, shining unforgiving light on their differences.

Becca was respected by fans because she wanted to be with Chris, but not necessarily rush into marriage, move to Arlington or have babies immediately, as Whitney was blatantly prepared to do.

The proposal took place in a barn that looked more like a decked-out Anthropologie store, as Chris said, “This is the same barn I raised my first pig in.” Lovely.

Chris let Becca go, as if it was a surprise, and she didn’t even shed a tear.

In the words of Jimmy Kimmel on After The Rose, “She obviously wasn’t into you, dude.”

Chris proposed to Whitney with a cushion cut Neil Lane diamond ring (the real “final rose”), as we all wondered how she would maintain those highlights in her new hometown — Arlington doesn’t even have a coffee shop.

Ending the canoodling and sappy dialogue just in time (another second and we were all going to lose it), the camera panned out on the newly engaged couple, sitting on the windowsill of the rustic barn, gazing off into the Midwest sunset, of course.

After The Rose immediately followed, which is usually the time viewers wash their wine glasses and take a pee break.

But in a shocking twist, the last five minutes of this segment were used to announce that there would be two bachelorettes next season, and one will be sent home after the first night.

The audience reacted angrily to having both Britt and Kaitlyn be the bachelorette — it was embarrassing for the show’s producers (and generally for everyone involved).

The 25 male contestants will choose the next bachelorette on May 18, when the next season of this so-bad-it’s-good show returns to ABC.

Until then, let the bets on Chris’ and Whitney’s relationship shelf life commence, though the drama may be hard to follow in Arlington, where only the farm animals know what goes on behind closed doors.

I think Chris should have just taken his chances on “Farmers Only” #TheBachelor

— Julie Alexandria (@JulieAlexandria) March 10, 2015

“Imma let you finish but Sean and Catherine had the best proposal of all time” #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/qVKk2rduTe

— Mal Marrs (@marrzbarrz) March 10, 2015

I think we all know who Chris should really pick tonight..

The post ‘The Bachelor’ finale recap: Kiss those highlights goodbye, Whitney — you’re moving to Arlington appeared first on Emerald Media.

We put our bodies through a lot each winter and yet, immediately after the season ends, we are expected to look as prim and perfect as the tulips that emerge from the ground in the spring. News flash: We all need some time and tips to reboot our natural glow. DIY or ‘do it yourself’ has become a popular and affordable option to making products right at home that usually cost much less than buying store brand anything. The latest trend has been using items right from your kitchen to treat the wellness of your skin. Try using these ‘recipes’ as a guide to keeping your skin light and your wallet heavy.

Incorporating these nine foods into your diet makes for healthier looking skin (and body too!)

Water, dark leafy greens, orange vegetables, avocado, fish, eggs, fruit

Specialty face masks and scrubs:

Honey almond body scrub: The perfect shower treat that will leave your skin soft and sweet.

Brown sugar: 1c
Almond oil: 1/2c
Honey: 2tsp
Vanilla extract: 1tsp

Mix together and use scrub in shower after washing your skin with soap. Rinse with warm water.

Avocado face mask: This two-part recipe couldn’t be easier to get smoother skin.

One avocado
Extra-virgin olive oil: 2tsp

Mash avocado and mix with olive oil and spread on face, the results will banish that winter dryness.

Dark chocolate face mask: Dark chocolate is full of compounds that can highly benefit the skin.

Cocoa powder: 1/3c
Honey: 1/4c
Plain yogurt: 2tbsp
Oats: 3tbsp

After blending the ingredients, you should leave mask on your face for 15-20 min.

Other useful household items:

– Use a small amount of sparkling wine (yes, wine!) on a cotton ball on your face to help reduce oil and detoxify

– Cut a lemon in half and rub it all over your face once a day to help fight blackheads

– Use lemon juice anywhere on the body to brighten and soften the skin

– Combine honey, lemon juice and olive oil and add to dry skin areas, let set for 10 min, rise

– Combine coconut water and lemon juice as an in-shower moisturizer, both hydrates and brightens your skin

– Combine 1/2c of strawberries, 1c of milk and 1c of corn starch into a smooth paste. This mask (2x per week) will help repair skin as well as act as an anti-aging agent

– Mash carrots with honey into a mask to help moisturize, repair, protect and tone your skin

The post Wipe away your winter skin with these DIY tips appeared first on Emerald Media.

I live for the “Women Tell All” episode.

It’s by far the most awkward night of the season — mostly due to the fact that they’re served zero alcohol (*cough* why Tara repeated “0.00” the whole night).

Down to just the two final contestants, the bachelor and the previously eliminated women gathered in front of a live audience to take turns in the hot seat.

This is also the night that our bachelor, Chris Soules, has likely been dreading. He sat in front of every woman he dumped and braved the emotionally-charged question of, “Why?”

Leave it to Britt to begin the tidal wave of tears at promptly 8:16 p.m. (I checked), reminding us all that this was going to be one hell of a night.

As if our blood pressure wasn’t high enough, the first hour of “Women Tell All” consisted mostly of 28 women yelling over each other, ringing their spray-tanned hands and being unnecessarily passive-aggressive. Bickering rivals from the past battled it out and used the audience’s cheers as the real referees of the night.

Things finally simmered down when the comedic Ashley S. was brought to the stage to talk with the host. After replaying some of her most bizarre clips, Chris Harrison asked Ashley S. if she would join The Bachelor in the Paradise spin-off show this summer, which is ABC’s version of The Real World. Her response? “We’re like…on TV.”

After what felt like over an hour and a half, the infamous Prince Farming, whose name is now said with no more than a forced grin, entered the stage — shaking like hell in his cowboy boots.

Britt was crying, again, before she even finished the round of applause.

A few of the recently eliminated girls got their chance to speak to Chris one-on-one, in front of a studio audience.

Britt repeated herself, claiming that she was not fake, and that Carly started the rumors and she really did want to move to Iowa — because everyone totally wants to move to Iowa now.

Jade (poor, poor Jade), looked for the answer she wanted to hear, but Chris continued to deny that he dumped her because she posed for Playboy.

Lastly, Kaitlyn, calm as could be and all in white, could not have been more straight-forward about why her elimination was purely out of the blue. Chris babbled on about his confusion of being in love with three women at the same time, and her continuous stare was almost like a figurative *mic drop.* (#KaitlynForBachelorette)

Yet, instead of announcing whom our next Bachelorette would be, Chris Harrison decided to take the last two minutes of the show to promote his new book.

Will it be Whitney or Becca? The drama continues, next Monday for the three-hour season finale on ABC.

Some Tweets for your enjoyment:

Chris asks Ashley S if she’ll be on #BachelorinParadise. Kelsey jumps up screaming, “but my story is amazing!” #theBachelor

— Dana Weiss (@Possessionista) March 3, 2015

If Ashley S isn’t in #Paradise I may not show #TheWomenTellAll

— Chris Harrison (@chrisbharrison) March 3, 2015

Welcome to the hot seat @C_Soules

The post ‘The Bachelor’ recap: Women Tell All as “Prince Farming” Chris shakes in his cowboy boots appeared first on Emerald Media.

Warner Brothers released its latest flick on Friday, titled Focus, starring Will Smith and Margot Robbie. The film told the story some of us have all seen almost one too many times — the classic tale of a con man that falls for the apprentice, only to see his mastery crumble before him because he caught a bad case of love.

But this purely cheap entertainment was what enticed me to see this film.

Chemistry between characters, catchy con scenes and sexy banter made this film undeniably fun to watch. Yet, its sporadic tangents and overwhelming twists and turns somehow made my viewing experience ‘unfocused’.

Focus caught my attention from not only the storyline but also the ludicrous couple playing its romantic leads.

I had seen Robbie’s previous work in The Wolf of Wall Street, knowing that her role of Jess would be a perfect fit for the 24 year-old Australian actress. On the other hand, Smith is an actor who has been around the block quite a few times, but has sort of gone off the grid for a while before appearing in Focus.

However, both the age difference and the look of the couple together somewhat turned me off.

According to iMDB, the film had been re-casted multiple times, with the roles originally being offered to actors like Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Brad Pitt and Ben Affleck. At multiple points throughout the film, I could understand why these big stars turned down the opportunity.

Just how the voices in songs weigh heavily in our opinion of them, casting can make or break a film. In this song, the voices did not harmonize well.

I enjoyed the performances from both actors separately — but together, their love story bored me. The underlying message I gathered from it was that loyalty between con artists and liars does not substitute for a healthy relationship. But that wasn’t exactly news to me.

The film had a handful of wildly entertaining scenes that kept the audience on the edge of their seats, but I left the theater only remembering the bad ones, or how sappy some the twists were.

Stories of con artists tend to be popular in film and TV — we love the tricks of not knowing how the con artist can practically get away with murder. This story had potential, but the conning, the lying and the stealing pushed the writing into a tight corner, leading to a sub-par ending and leaving us to wonder if the writer had simply run out of ways to con the audience into enjoying the story.

Overall, it was okay. But would I suggest paying to see it in theaters? Probably not. You might want to wait for Redbox or Netflix on this one.

The post Review: ‘Focus’ kept the audience unfocused appeared first on Emerald Media.

For #BachelorNation fans, this point of the season is practically Christmas.

Last night, we encountered the one-on-one overnight date that end with the option for Chris and his lady to spend the rest of the evening in the much hyped #FantasySuite. The fantasy suite has always been an over-the-top deal to fans and the contestants alike. Even more so, this season we know we have one virgin in our deck of cards and last night, Chris dropped the “I love you” bomb more than once, scrambling our emotions even more than before. Yet at the end of the day, all of that was pushed aside in our “Bachelor drafts” as we still wonder who would actually move to Iowa.

These overnight dates took place in Bali, as the producers once again gave audiences unrealistic expectations of how a small vacation should look with someone you just started dating. Three separate days of dates, dinner and deep conversation took place, as everyone seemed to be simultaneously sweating their asses off and it was hinted to audiences from their high definition TV’s that it must be hot in Bali.

Although each date Chris spent with Kaitlyn, Whitney and Becca consisted of different activities from a monkey sanctuary to sailing the Indian Ocean, they all seemed to run by the same scripted emotional context. Ranging from “I missed you sooo much” to “this just feels so natural,” everything Chris wanted to hear was being spoon-fed to him. What really got our radars flying off the handle was the way Chris said he was falling in love with not only Kaitlyn, but Whitney and Becca too. These repetitive moments flabbergasted us so much a Twitter user suggested a Sister Wives-Bachelor crossover.

The word “vulnerable” was said about twice as much as “amazing” in this episode, as Kaitlyn cut the funny girl bit, finally letting her guard down and Whitney reminded Chris for the thirty-seventh time that she would drop everything, move to Iowa and have babies — simmer down, fertility nurse. Becca had us on the edge of our beanbag chairs in anticipation of when she would tell Chris she was a virgin, since she decided to merely dance around the subject at dinner. It did, of course, come up later in the suite. Although Chris’s initial reaction was awkward, he seemed to gain even more respect for her after she told him.

In the end, that made three for three, in and out of spending the night with Chris in the suite. Round and round the Bachelor goes, what happened in the Fantasy Suite, nobody knows.

The rose ceremony lasted about 45 minutes longer than it needed to, as our bachelor interrupted the ceremony (again) and took Becca aside to talk. Right when we all thought she was going home, we were slightly devastated when the two returned hand in hand and both the audience and poor Kaitlyn knew where this was going. Sent packing, Kaitlyn, the prettiest crier I’ve ever seen, said goodbye to Chris. This left us with Whitney and Becca as our final two, but the social media sphere is already blowing up over the next greatest thing: #KaitlynForBachelorette.

Cue the acoustic guitar… #TheBachelor

— Kate Hansen (@k8ertotz) February 24, 2015

Nothing says romance like a tub filled with stuff! #TheBachelor #watchwithUs pic.twitter.com/ATIkNZcU41

— Us Weekly (@usweekly) February 24, 2015

THERE ARE NO RULES THIS SEASON GUYS. IMMA TELL E’ERYONE IM FALLIN IN LOVE WITH THEM. #TheBachelor

— Chris (@TheFakeBachelor) February 24, 2015

Think Kailtyn, Becca, and Whitney are great girls, but this episode has me missing me some Ashley x2 #TheBachelor

— Nick Viall (@viallnicholas28) February 24, 2015

Chris needs to worry less about the intimacy, and more about how his future wife’s hair stands up to the humidity in Bali. #TheBachelor

— Dana Weiss (@Possessionista) February 24, 2015

I bought spray paint and 2 cartons of eggs @kaitlynbristowe. Just need his address. #teamkaitlyn

— Paul Bissonnette (@BizNasty2point0) February 24, 2015

The most anticipated evening of the year for filmmakers, actors and movie-goers has come and gone, leaving an interesting plethora of winners at the 87th annual Academy Awards. Although host Neil Patrick Harris did not supply the audience with pizza or take an epic selfie, social media was still blowing up over moments that could not go unnoticed; the good, the bad and the ugly are laid out here, bolder than the Oscar statue himself.

1. Host Neil Patrick Harris opened with a Tony-worthy opening number, making us all feel like we were seeing a Broadway musical for free.

2. J.K. Simmon’s acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actor in Whiplash focused on appreciating your parents and calling them every day. “Don’t text them. Call them.”

How are u liking the Oscars?! That opening was a musical theater lovers dream! Gotta go now to call my mom & dad because JK Simmons said so.

— kerry washington (@kerrywashington) February 23, 2015

3. Neil Patrick Harris’ dragged out funny bit consisted of him locking away his Oscar predictions in a clear box on stage and selecting Octavia Spencer to watch over the box for the entire duration of the show.

Octavia Spencer totally sabotaged that box though.

— Ronan Farrow (@RonanFarrow) February 23, 2015

4. Tim McGraw sang Glen Campbell’s “I’m Not Going To Miss You”- a song in which Campbell wrote to his wife and children during his current struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease, and it touched us all.

Only Tim McGraw can do the tux/cowboy hat thing. Do not try at home.

— GQ Magazine (@GQMagazine) February 23, 2015

5. When the post-commercial break took audiences backstage to find Neil Patrick Harris locked out of his dressing room in “whitie tighties”, yet ‘the show must go on’ as he ran on to stage to announce the next presenter.

RT if seeing @ActuallyNPH in his undies has guilted you into doing crunches during commercial breaks. #Oscars pic.twitter.com/QSBIkLfPzq

— Regal Cinemas (@RegalMovies) February 23, 2015

6. Patricia Arquette’s winning speech for Best Supporting Actress in Boyhood, brought the audience to a hollering cheer as her message brought across wage equality to women and equality rights to all.

Patricia Arquette’s politically charged #Oscars speech? Meryl Streep & J-Lo are HERE for it! http://t.co/f3g4wxIa4W pic.twitter.com/H53XVZjtdF

— E! Online (@eonline) February 23, 2015

7. Jennifer Hudson proudly sang a song from Smash, as the memorial tribute slowly lit up the screen, yet the public seemed to be highly offended that the late Joan Rivers was not included in the tribute.

When Joan Rivers isn’t mentioned in the #InMemorium segment pic.twitter.com/MX9Os6VSsk

— Eli Braden (@EliBraden) February 23, 2015

8. John Legend and Common brought the audience to their feet and most to tears after their performance of the song “Glory” from Selma, which also won the award for Best Original Song.

John Legend: Chrissy Teigen has been crying since we won the Oscar, but didn’t want to get caught on camera & become a meme again #Oscars

— Natalie Abrams (@NatalieAbrams) February 23, 2015

9. Ironically, Idina Menzel and John Travolta presented together, as Travolta joked about last year’s mispronunciation of Menzel’s name, which turned out to be one of the funniest parts of the show. Later the Internet exploded with commentary towards Travolta caressing Menzel’s face as he correctly pronounced her name.

John Travolta felt so bad about mispronouncing @idinamenzel‘s name that he had to touch her face when he said it this time. #ETOscars

— EntertainmentTonight (@etnow) February 23, 2015

Also, this happened.

John Travolta and Scarlett Johansson take the most awkward #Oscars photo EVER: http://t.co/NOP3wYxm4J pic.twitter.com/PNh4JfcILL

— EntertainmentTonight (@etnow) February 23, 2015

10. Lady Gaga performed a tribute for the 50th anniversary of The Sound Of Music and we we’re all pleasantly surprised at how much we loved it. Julie Andrews made a speech following the performance that paired perfectly. On a side note, her ensemble on the red carpet was one of the most buzzed about outfits of the night.

@ladygaga has a voice yo. Ps. Her hair grows fast

— David Spade (@DavidSpade) February 23, 2015

when you’re washing the dishes at 5:00 but you remember you gotta be at the oscars by 5:10 pic.twitter.com/qsQZdyxvEJ

— what (@chanelpuke) February 23, 2015

11. Both the Best Actor and Actress awards were given to actors who portrayed characters suffering from terminal illnesses. These were Eddie Redmayne in The Theory of Everything and Julianne Moore in Still Alice.

12. Birdman took home the Best Picture award closing the show on a highly positive note.

#BIRDMAN KILLED IT @TheAcademy pic.twitter.com/TvtKFiNqQw

— BossLogic (@Bosslogic) February 23, 2015

The producers of The Bachelor gave us an excuse to spend hours of both our Sunday and Monday nights glued to our TVs, as a two-day special, filled to the brim with drama, had all of us talking. Limits were pushed, secrets were dished and hearts were broken and I was filled with anxiety parallel to midterms.

Chris sent Megan home, leaving six women left, reaching the maximum capacity of names we can remember. With our final six, we actually began to see normal conversation between couples instead of bickering over who Chris spent more time with at the last cocktail party.

The whole gang traveled to Iowa and things escalated quickly as Chris took Jade on the first one-on-one to his hometown in Arlington. It was about time that the looming reality hits these girls like a tractor as they saw Iowa for the first time. It is a known fact that whoever Chris chooses to be his wife will ultimately move with him to Arlington, crank out a few kids and live on a farm for the rest of their lives, to put it frankly. Though Jade looked at Chris’s 400-person hometown with a smile on her face, she could not hide the fear in her eyes as the rest of us at home decoded her girl code thinking “Jade, you better catch the next covered wagon the hell out of there.”

Craving adventure, the other four omen decide to take a little road trip for a few hours to tiny Arlington to see it for themselves. When Kaitlyn described it as a two-hour drive for a two-minute lap around the entire town; she wasn’t kidding. Abandoned shops, markets, bars and not even one restaurant left these girls crying on the inside.

Later, when Chris picked Whitney for the second one-on-one, we began to notice Britt’s spoiled attitude, as she couldn’t fathom how Chris wouldn’t pick her to go on not one but two one-on-one dates. A painful confrontation during a group date, post-Kaitlyn receiving the rose showed Chris that this frontrunner knew her place all along and was not used to sharing. Carly added fuel to the fire, telling Chris that Britt was being fake about actually liking Arlington– because the rest of them could totally see themselves living in a ghost town.

At the rose ceremony, Chris pulled a wild card and ends up sending both Britt and Carly home, leaving us down to four women for hometown dates.

Hometown dates are usually boring but this round had us undeniably go through two bowls of popcorn. Becca: Could be headed to the #FantasySuite but is still a virgin having never partaken in a serious relationship. Kaitlyn: Basic hometown date, but ended with her telling Chris she loved him via a billboard #BoldFrontrunner. Whitney: Her sister did not give Chris an official blessing making these family ties a little lose. Jade: Confesses that she once posed for Playboy. Super casual.

And the homeward bound girl from the hometown dates went to…of course, Jade, as #FarmBoy was not about to get himself involved in that, which was sad for her but good for us as we are now finally down to three for the overnight dates. Jet setting off to Bali next week!

Just hoping Britt will finally shower after sitting in the dirt #TheBachelor #watchwithUs pic.twitter.com/1CQdAN4QyI

— Us Weekly (@usweekly) February 17, 2015

Hometown Date 101: Never believe anything the sister tells you. #TheBachelor

— Jenny Mollen (@jennyandteets) February 17, 2015

“I make corn. I can’t imagine what it would be like to make babies.” — @C_Soules #TheBachelor #watchwithUs

— Us Weekly (@usweekly) February 17, 2015

Things we didn’t say twenty years ago. #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/ejsZFXpakj

— The Bachelor (@BachelorABC) February 16, 2015

If they don’t go cow tipping, I will never watch this show ever again. #TheBachelor

— J.P. Rosenbaum (@JP_Rosenbaum) February 16, 2015

IM OUT OF WINE???!!!!!!! How am I going to get thru this?!!!!!! uuuuughhhhh #thebachelor

— Michelle Money (@MoneyMichelle) February 16, 2015

I’ve never heard anyone that excited to go to Iowa. Let alone six hot girls. #TheBachelor

— Catherine Lowe (@clmgiudici) February 16, 2015

We continued where we last left off at what originally seemed like quite the cliffhanger. After she regretted telling Chris about her late husband, Kelsey’s “panic attack” stunt emitted sympathetic attention, the elixir that seems to be keeping more than one of these ladies in the running for another week — yeah, I’m looking at you, Ashley I. Chris bit the bait, but had no idea what was coming for him on the other end of that line.

Mackenzie and Samantha were eliminated in the rose ceremony, as Kelsey stayed off the chopping block for another week and audiences at home were left with steam coming out of their ears.

The week 6 dating roundup took Chris and the final nine women to Deadwood, (after we all Googled it) South Dakota. Becca, who nobody was aware existed two weeks ago and who has also not yet shared a kiss with Chris, had the one-on-one date. A walk in Black Hills National Forest, horseback ride and a crackling fire could barely pull enough strings for this bachelor. Becca, who is our second virgin on the show, claimed she was nervous to kiss Chris…because she was a virgin? “I volunteer as tribute!” begged my roommate. Yet finally, the couple shared their first kiss as Becca stated that it felt right and my frontrunner senses were tingling.

A sing-off competition ensued on the group date with country stars Big & Rich, as the women were asked to write and perform an original love song in front of Chris and a concert-wide audience. Britt stole the limelight and a smooch-sesh from the bachelor on stage. The others sang their hearts out to Chris, desperately grasping his attention. Even Jade, pulled Chris aside, basically telling him how totally down she was to live in Iowa. Desperate times call for desperate measures? No luck there, as that forward comment made Chris run off with Britt to a sold out Big & Rich concert, leaving a let-down group of women in the dust.

If the tension couldn’t be thicker, Chris took crazy ladies Ashley I. and Kelsey on a two-on-one date because the producers clearly ran out of cage-fighting videos to watch. After a helicopter ride over Mt. Rushmore, they landed in the Badlands for allotted alone time with Chris. Each woman called the other fake, which the rest of America found ironic. After Kelsey heard what Ashley said about her, she came back and gave her a death stare saying, “I know what you did” and we all felt like we were in high school again.

A now, third round of Kardashian-esque tears from Ashley’s end hurt our brains as she pulled another stunt that left Kelsey deviously grinning, and now we know who was the runner-up for the role of Amy Dunne in Gone Girl.

Through some sort of crazy telepathy, it was like he read our minds as he sent both Ashley and Kelsey packing. The girls back at the mansion watched as Ashley and soon after, Kelsey’s bags were rolled away and the house celebrated with a round of drinks as the rest of us went back to our ‘Bachelor Fantasy Drafts’, placing bets on which woman would be the next one to churn drama like butter.

So is this no rose ceremony gonna keep being a thing?I need to know cause my bachelor fantasy league is REALLY hurting bc of it #TheBachelor

— Greer Grammer (@Greer_Grammer) February 10, 2015

Less excitement now since those two are gone #TheBachelor

— Marcus Grodd (@marcusgrodd) February 10, 2015

You have to give Chris a lot of credit for enduring all the tears.. #TheBachelor

— Nick Viall (@viallnicholas28) February 10, 2015

Scotch. I mean, how else do you get through this double date? #TheBachelor -CB pic.twitter.com/zcdkWJzIhI

— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 10, 2015

Always a bad move virgin. Always. a bad. move. I do like your turquoise tho. #TheBachelor

— Eric Stonestreet (@ericstonestreet) February 10, 2015

“@usweekly: OK it had to be done. #TheBachelor #watchwithUs. pic.twitter.com/zsiRn5X0RT” @marleylilly

— mattie antoinette (@missmatttttt) February 10, 2015