Schools

'Biggest Loser' Sought Among High School Faculty

The staff is participating in a weight-loss competition.

For camaraderie and health—and a little bit of competition—Bridgewater-Raritan High School is preparing to find out who is the “Biggest Loser.”

Members of the staff and administration at the school are taking part in the newest Biggest Loser challenge, the first time it has ever been done among the staff.

“It is a BRHS staff healthy weight loss competition,” BRHS principal Brett Charleston said.

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In total, Charleston said, there are 16 teams of four and one team of five, for a total of 69 staff members participating in the challenge.

This challenge, which was organized by the school’s administration, is going for a goal of promoting health among the staff, as well as possibly raising some funds for the school store.

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The initial weigh-in for the competition, Charleston said, was held Jan. 2, and subsequent weigh-ins are scheduled for every Monday morning between Jan. 7 and April 8.

“Weight loss is based on percentage lost as a team, not total pounds,” he said. “Awards will be given out for highest team weight loss percentage, individual male weight loss percentage and individual female weight loss percentage.”

There is an overall goal, Charleston said, of losing 1,500 pounds among the 69 participants.

“The total [starting] weight for the 69 participants is 14,358 pounds,” he said.

Charleston said teams were charged an amount to participate, namely $10 per person. Some of that money, he said, will be used to buy prizes for the winners, and the rest will go to the school store.

In addition, Charleston said, participants are fined for not weighing in or for gaining weight.

“It would be great to raise $750, but the less money in fines the better,” he said. “The staff here is pretty competitive in a very appropriate way, so bragging rights seems to be a big motivator.”

Charleston said the overall goal is to promote health and well-being. He said staff members have been organizing after-school workouts to do together, like Zumba classes.

“Let’s see how this year goes before committing to another competition,” he said of whether the staff will do this again in the future. “The goal is to promote a healthier lifestyle with the hope that we would not need to do this going forward.”


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