When the season premiere of "The Biggest Loser" airs at 7 p.m. tonight on NBC, viewers in St. Joseph might see a familiar face.

Former resident Sean Algaier will compete in the reality weight-loss contest in which 16 overweight contestants shed pounds and resist tasty temptations for a chance to win $250,000.

Mr. Algaier lived in St. Joseph from 1983 to 1997, when he graduated from Central High School and moved to attend York College of Nebraska. Mr. Algaier, 30, now resides in Tulsa, Okla., where he works as a youth pastor.

Mr. Algaier had been a fan of the show since its first season, and when he heard "The Biggest Loser" would hold a casting call in Oklahoma City, he jumped at the chance to be a competitor. Mr. Algaier had struggled with his weight since his junior year at Central and decided it was time for a lifestyle change.

"If you could sum this whole thing up for me in one word, it would be 'balance,'" Mr Algaier said. "I really wanted my mind, my body and my spirit to kind of work together."

NBC producers chose Mr. Algaier as a contestant because of his warm personality. Surprisingly, he kept his warmth through all of the trials and tribulations during three months of shooting at the Biggest Loser Ranch in Calabasas, Calif., this summer.

"It was about 10 billion times harder than I ever could have imagined it," Mr. Algaier said. "The physical becomes a part of your everyday routine, but the mental changes every second. Mentally, it is the toughest thing I've ever gone through."

One mental challenge included resisting his favorite food: cheeseburgers. It's a temptation he's still trying to kick a month after the show's conclusion.

"Being able to ward off those evil spirits is very, very difficult," Mr. Algaier said. "I dream about cheeseburgers at night. They come to me like Mayor McCheese. They talk to me. And I have to tell them to wait."

If the mental challenges are the hardest thing to overcome, the physical challenges come in at a close second. Since the end of filming, Mr. Algaier found four trainers to help keep him in shape for four to six hours a day: two gym trainers, a personal swimming instructor and a running coach.

The running coach has been especially helpful in Mr. Algaier trying to achieve his life goal.

"I want to run a marathon," he says. "I don't really care when that happens. I just want to do it."

Mr. Algaier's weight at the beginning of the show was 444 pounds. Because of contractual obligations, he couldn't reveal how much weight he has lost. But he admitted he feels very good.

"I am more happy at this very moment than I've ever been in my life ... For once, I'm just proud of myself. And I think it's been way too long (since) I've been proud of myself."

Shea Conner can be reached at sheaconner@npgco.com.