They may not have taken the $250,000 jackpot, but these “Biggest Losers” are winners.
Brooklyn lovebirds Nicole Brewer and Damien Gurganious, recent contestants on “The Biggest Loser: Couples,” are tying the knot in Long Island City Sunday after losing a combined 264 pounds!
“I’m finding a good rhythm of balancing life with exercise,” says Brewer, 38, who was almost 300 pounds in 2006 when she met Gurganious, 32, then pushing almost 400 pounds himself, in a senior water aerobics class at the Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA.
They began to date after hitting it off in the gym, but food still played an important part in their relationship as a source of joy and comfort, especially after Brewer lost her mother in 2007.
Wanting to be radiant for their wedding after getting engaged that same year, however, the pair camped out at Rockefeller Center for a shot at the “Biggest Loser,” landing on the seventh cycle of the show.
Brewer weighed in at 269 pounds, and Gurganious was 381. Six months later, the 5-foot-7 bride is a svelte 145 pounds, and her handsome hubby, 5-foot-11, just 241.
Brewer had chosen a wedding dress last year before going on the show, and admits it was a size 24. Today, she’s sashaying down that aisle in a stunning size 8 gown. “I really feel like a princess,” she beams. “Damien is going to flip out.”
When Gurganious was getting fitted for his tux at Men’s Wearhouse three weeks ago, he was also shocked to slip into a size 42 suit – a sharp drop from his original size 60.
“I can finally wear the clothes I always wanted to wear,” he says. “A jacket couldn’t close on me like this before!”
In fact, this week his Calvin Klein tux had to be taken in yet again.
“This just feels so good. And that’s thanks to my G.I. Bride,” he laughs.
“The key is to control calories and prepare your own food, and it’s all about gaining knowledge,” says Brewer, who takes advantage of everything the city has to offer – from local greenmarkets for fresh produce to the endless exercising opportunities along Hudson River Park – to create a slim-down regimen that really works.
COUNTING CALORIES: “On ‘The Biggest Loser,’ we learned it’s as simple as calories in versus calories out,” Brewer says. “It took time, but now I know, for instance, that a small apple is 80 calories. And that is empowering to know.” If you’re aware of how many calories you’re eating, you know how long to work out to best burn that excess off.
BUY LOCAL PRODUCE: The health-concious couple scores serious bargains at the Prospect Park and Union Square greenmarkets. “You see how expensive fruits and vegetables are in the grocery store,” says Brewer, “but you can save money and get better quality at a farmers’ market. I can get a big head of lettuce here for just $1, and I get home and make yummy salads.”
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