Mobile Junction

Teacher Randy Cooper shows off his thinner physique after losing more than 30 pounds in the seven-week weight loss challenge at Mt. Garfield Middle School. Photo by Richie Ann Ashcraft.

Teachers at Mt. Garfield Middle School want to be big losers and great role models.

The teachers organized a ‘Biggest Loser’ challenge and lost a total of 185.5 combined pounds in seven weeks.

The challenge was modeled loosely around the television show, “The Biggest Loser.”

Participants were split into teams with 5 or 6 members each, with each team weighing roughly the same.

To add extra incentive, the 34 teachers also pitched $10 into a pot for the winning team to split at the end of the challenge.

“People really started to do things to promote healthy activity among teachers in the school,” said Lori Holloway, assistant principal.

Teacher Lexi Taddeo taught line dancing classes in the gym after school. Other teams met to work out or walk together.

The teachers weighed in once a week, on a professional scale used to weigh wrestlers. The school’s health assistant gathered the data and oversaw the weigh-ins, while a math teacher laid out the results and percentages of weight loss on a spreadsheet.

The “Biggest Loser” was Randy Cooper, physical education teacher, with a total weight loss of more than 30 pounds. Cooper said he cut out refined sugar and limited his intake of carbs. He ate lean meat such as elk and venison. Plus, he added protein drinks and jogged nearly every day.

“The weight just melted off the guy,” Holloway said.

Cooper treated himself to a nice dinner out with his winnings because, he explained, he chose to change his lifestyle and not just lose weight for the challenge. “You have to reward yourself sometimes,” he said.

Holloway hopes other schools or businesses try a similar program for their employees. “Especially in education, we need as much energy as possible to keep up with the kids,” she explained. “Why not build staff cohesiveness and set a good example?”