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September 13, 2007

Marblehead man is one happy loser on this TV show

Alan Burke

MARBLEHEAD -- Will going on national TV's "The Biggest Loser" make Neil Tejwani any less of a man?

He certainly hopes so.

The thing is, Tejwani, 25, has weighed as much as 460 pounds -- which even at 6-foot-3 is a lot. Moreover, he's gotten to the point where making less of himself, pound-wise, could be a matter of life or death.

For a long time, the weight didn't much bother Tejwani. He went from a kid who played all sorts of sports at St. John's Prep in Danvers to a guy who never seemed to spring back from a broken leg. A chemical engineer, the talkative Northeastern graduate won a good job at Cabot Corp. in Billerica. But in his spare time he found himself ordering Chinese food in the middle of the night, never considering the consequences.

"I lived a lazy lifestyle. I was that guy sitting on the couch, eating potato chips and watching football. ... It's easy to get caught up in bad habits."

The alarm bells that should have rung over his growing bulk never did because, "I was one of those people who was never self-conscious about my weight. It never affected me when meeting women or getting a job."

Even so, he couldn't completely shut out a weight-conscious world.

Especially not in Marblehead.

"It's a beach town," he said. "You see all these young buffs."

Health finally brought it home. "When you're 25 years old and diagnosed with all these problems, a lot of health problems that a 25-year-old shouldn't have. ... The doctor made it clear there's a good chance I won't see past age 30."

Tejwani no longer wanted to be huffing and puffing climbing the stairs. His attic was off-limits because the ladder wouldn't hold his weight. Something drastic needed to be done.

For a while, he seriously considered gastric bypass surgery. Then his girlfriend, Stefanie Nigro of West Babylon, N.Y., noticed that the NBC television reality program "The Biggest Loser" was looking for contestants. She urged Tejwani to give it a try, suggesting that his equally outsized personality might just catch the eye of the producers.

Stefanie's interest in Tejwani's weight also revolved around health.

"She loved me at over 400 pounds," he said. "She still loves me." She will appear on the program. "I can't stress how much motivation she gave me to do this."

In fact, she was the reason it suddenly seemed so important to imagine a life that extended beyond age 30.

"I'm ready to settle down, with the dog and the backyard," he said.

A video and interview process won Tejwani a place on the show.

"We like people who have great personalities," NBC spokeswoman Jill Carmen said.

He's been called the heaviest contestant ever for a show that awards a $250,000 prize to the winner -- who is not necessarily the person who loses the most weight.

A first-generation American, Tejwani lives with his Indian-born parents on exclusive Marblehead Neck. They might have been a little puzzled by all this.

"I guess they were blown away," he said.

Friends and his employer offered enthusiastic support -- Cabot gave him a leave of absence.

"It was tough leaving my life behind," Tejwani said. "But for me, it was all or nothing."

At the initial weigh-in, he hit the scales at 421 pounds.

The first episode of the show's fourth season was broadcast this week, though the entire program is already completed, including Tejwani's part. Although he won't spoil the ending by saying exactly how he did -- (the show airs Tuesday nights on Channel 7) -- he is clearly delighted with the results.

"It's a positive experience even if you're going to lose 1 pound," he said. "It's a positive experience because it changed my life forever."

This was about more than overeating -- it was a complete change of attitude. For one thing, he actually enjoys exercising now.

While some have criticized "The Biggest Loser" as exploiting its contestants, Tejwani has nothing but praise for it.

"I hold the show in the highest regard," he said. "They change people's lives. They inspire."



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