In its 11th season on NBC, “The Biggest Loser” began anew this month, its contestants battling morbid obesity for a big-money prize and the re-claiming of their lives.
The stakes are not nearly as high for Boston’s Ultimate Loser, a weight-loss competition run by Fitcorp, but they share a common goal.
The eight-week program, scheduled for its 2011 debut in March, mixes workouts, weigh-ins and challenges to promote health and fitness for club members and local businesses that sign up to hold internal competitions.
“[Members] love engaging with the staff more and getting their goals out in the open and doing it with friends and co-workers, having to come in and weigh-in together and being held accountable,” said program coordinator Amanda Iacono.
There can even be a taste of game-play similar to The Biggest Loser. Dan McCormack, who works at a Boston-area law firm that competed in 2009, won the contest, but not without temptations.
“I would come in every morning and find a brownie in my inbox,” he said. “It was friendly competition. It accomplished many things. It brought fitness and health to the forefront for a lot of people. Several people hadn’t been to the gym in their lives. Making people aware of how beneficial exercise can be was very important.”
