'Biggest Loser' Winner Rhode: 'I Want to Keep Weight Off''

America's biggest loser winner John Rhode said getting there was the easy part. Staying there, he said, will be the hard part.

John Rhode dropped 220 pounds in beating the competition, 14 other competitors on the popular NBC reality show program The Biggest Loser. He lost the weight and picked up a $250,000 prize, but now Rhode says the challenge will come in keeping the weight off in the future. A special education teacher and football coach, Rhode claimed the competition on national television's Tuesday night airing, and he stopped by the set of NBC's Today show the next morning to talk about the future.

I had a sincere desire to make this change, said Rhode, in a live interview with Today host Ann Curry. I want to see true change. I want to keep the weight off. Losing the weight wasn't so difficult. Keeping the weight off, that will be the true test.

The program is known for getting drastic results, but the challenge comes in adapting that to everyday life. Rhode said he's got an immediate plan.

It is very much a psychological, emotional battle, he explained. My plan right now? I'm focused on running the L.A. marathon. That's my focus right now. After that? Then I'm going to have to find a new focus.

Winning season 12 of The Biggest Loser wasn't easy, just as weight loss isn't easy for most. But he had a significant challenge, starting the competition at 445 pounds. Rhode dropped almost 50 percent of his body weight, a figure that's become nearly the norm for winning the stiff competition.