The staffs of Ripley Elementary, Middle, and High Schools are getting a little lighter as they compete in a Biggest Loser competition.

Kristin Stover, school nurse at Ripley High, said faculty and staff formed teams and competed against each other at the high school last year.

This year, they challenged their peers at the other two Ripley schools to see who could lose the most weight.

The high school team has 18 members as does the elementary school team; the middle school team has 11 members.

The eight-week competition has participants meeting weekly for weigh-ins.

Each week, both the individual and the team that lose the biggest percentage of weight are rewarded. Those who lose the least are penalized.

Stover said she has secured prizes from the community to give each week, including gifts from the Community Fitness Center and Taco Bell. 

And the challenge is being met. Stover said last week, two people lost 11 pounds over the course of the last week and another lost 7 pounds.

Stover said the Biggest Loser challenge was such a success last year, the staff of the high school wanted to extend the opportunity to compete to their peers.

She said the event is fun for those who participate, but that it’s also about getting healthy, losing weight, and developing good lifestyle choices that benefit them in all areas of their lives.