Weight Loss Motivation: The DietBet Game!

If you have a really good memory, you may remember me posting about a little game called DietBet back in January of this year. I had gotten the opportunity to try out the campaign as part of my ambassadorship through Fitfluential and thought it would be really good motivation to lose a few lbs. Unfortunately, through all of the chaos and stress during that time (with putting our house on the market and preparing to move across the country) I let life get in the way and didn’t really focus on losing weight. I think I ended up losing one lb. in the 4-week time period (and trust me, at that point I was grateful just for that!).

Lately, I’ve been working really hard on finally getting back on track with my weight loss and healthy eating (and drinking) habits. I’ve been doing a pretty good job for the last two weeks! Just yesterday curiosity got the best of me- I got on the scale for the first time since we moved. I know that whatever is reflected on the scale is just a number, but no matter how much I tell myself that (and believe it) it still doesn’t really feel that good when the number is much higher than what I’d like to see. I was convinced that I’ve gained at least 10-15 lbs. since moving here, because all of the hiking and exercise I’ve done definitely doesn’t override the vacation-like eating and drinking that’s gone on in my house for almost three months now. I was shocked to see that I’ve (only) gained 5 lbs. My clothes definitely feel a lot tighter, and my main goal is just to have them fit loosely (or at least comfortably). Knowing now where my starting point is makes the idea of losing some weigh not seem so daunting, and I’m excited to keep this healthy streak going!

So, that’s where DietBet comes in. I decided to start my own game (this is not affiliated with Fitfluential or any other organization) because I know the motivation of winning some money will help. Here’s a little bit about how it works (much of this is from my original post):

DietBet isn’t a diet or weightloss plan. You won’t be getting a food or exercise plan to follow, and you won’t be expected to attend any weekly meetings. DietBet is simply an incentive and means of accountability. And if you’re like me, that might be just what you need to shed a few of those unwanted lbs. Since I already know about eating well and exercising, what helps me is finding the motivation to commit to losing weight. As they say on the website, DietBet is a 4-week social dieting game.

The concept is simple: find a game and pay $25 to join in. The game is 28 days long (4 weeks) and the goal is to lose 4% of your body weight in that time. If, at the end of 4 weeks, you have lost 4% of your body weight, you will split the pot with any other participants that have also hit the goal.

When I first read that the goal was 4% of your body weight, I was a little nervous. That sounds like a lot…. But then I did the math, and it’s actually a pretty reasonable and healthy amount (about 7 lbs. for me). I don’t know about you, but having 7 less lbs. on my body would feel pretty fantastic.

You may be wondering: how do I weigh in?

As you can see from the photo above, you will be required to submit two different photos for your weigh-in. You must be completely honest with this process (DietBet will further investigate any weight loss patterns that seem “suspicious.”) And isn’t the point to actually lose weight here? Statistics have also shown that 90% of DietBet participants have lost weight! 90%!!

FYI- your weight will not be posted. That information and the photographs that you submit are kept private.

Signing up is easy- you can just log in with your Facebook account! (If you don’t have a Facebook account, you can create a unique user id and password.) Once you join in, you’ll be directed to your team page.

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At the top of team page you’ll be able to see the amount that’s currently in the pot, how many players are in that particular game, and the total lbs. lost. (It’s zero right now because the game hasn’t started.)

Scroll down a little further on the page and you’ll see a list of your fellow game players. You can also interact and leave messages on the “wall” (like Facebook).

There’s also an option to send a message to friends via Facebook or Email to get them to join in!

There’s also an iPhone app. 🙂

So….. are you ready to join in on the fun? Ready to have some incentive to start shedding those unwanted lbs.?

If so, please consider joining in my DietBet game, which starts next Monday (you will weigh-in this weekend). The more people that sign up, the bigger the pot grows, and the more money you can potentially win! And if you have a friend, spouse, co-worker, etc. that might be interested, they can sign up too! A little healthy competition can be fun. 😉

I don’t know about you, but I am pumped to get this party started and hit my 4% goal! Who’s with me?!

If you would like any further information, feel free to check out the DietBet website or leave a question below!

**ONE MORE THING! Don’t forget to enter to win 3 bags (1 of each flavor!) of FlapJacked Protein Pancake mix! Paige is also doing the giveaway on her blog today- so go over there and double up on your chances to win!!