In Home of the Cheese Steak, a Citywide Diet

The City of Brotherly Love, which two years ago earned the distinction of being America’s fattest city, is trying to shed the lard.

Led by Mayor John F. Street, a fitness fanatic, and Pat Croce, owner of the NBA’s 76ers and a former fitness trainer, the city is trying to get residents to lose a combined 76 tons in 76 days.

In 1999, Men’s Fitness magazine named Philadelphia the least-fit city in the country after a survey showed nearly 30% of its residents were obese and only 16% exercised regularly.

Street, a now-trim 57-year-old who once weighed nearly 300 pounds, makes regular use of the gym he had installed in his City Hall suite after taking office last year. He even has a full-time fitness czar.

Paul Moore, a 43-year-old garbage truck driver who stands 5 feet, 8 inches and weighs 245 pounds, blames his bulk on his wife’s fried chicken and lasagna.

“That’s it. I have to tell her to stop cooking,” the former boxer said Thursday outside City Hall, where he weighed in for the city-sponsored “76 Tons of Fun” program.

Dropping a combined 76 tons in a city the size of Philadelphia is hardly an impossible task. To make its goal, the city hopes to coax 30,400 residents to lose an average of five pounds each.

Participants who sign up for the program are given a brochure with fitness tips and asked to report back on how much they lose in 76 days. Large employers including the Internal Revenue Service, PECO Energy Co. and the school district are promoting the event, some with special workout classes. Some private gyms are offering reduced fees.

As he enjoyed two hefty pizza slices at a local food court Thursday, Keith Higgins said he isn’t signing up for the city’s program, but he does hope to take off some holiday pounds.

“This time of year is really bad. I went home on vacation and put on 10 pounds,” said Higgins, 29, a native of Dublin, Ireland. “All that Guinness.”