I have been having a terrible time knocking off the 20 pounds I really need to shed. For the last year or so I’ve been creeping up on the scale and all my clothes are getting rather uncomfortable. Every time I drop a few pounds, the clothes start fitting better and I give up, only to put the weight back on quickly.
I had been contemplating joining Weight Watchers because I figured that would motivate me to lose the weight. Weighing in every week in front of people I don’t really know would probably be a pretty decent motivator. The cheapskate in me just can’t bring myself to spend the money. Basically I’d be giving away money because I lack the discipline to drop the weight on my own. My relatives have been doing the Weight Watchers thing for years and have been pretty successful with it. I’ve learned a lot from them and am able to calculate the point values for various foods which made it even tougher for me to justify paying just to weigh in once a week.
Just when I was about to join, I got another idea. My brother in law is also trying to drop a little weight and is actually on the Weight Watchers program. I called him up and asked him if he was interested in having a little competition. The plan was to weigh in once a week at his house (he only lives a couple blocks away) and track our progress. I built a spreadsheet and we enter the weight in weekly. We also agreed that the target would be to drop one pound a week for 17 weeks. If either of us weighs more than we did the previous week, we have to pay the other person $10. At the end of 17 weeks we each have to pay the other $10 for every pound that we miss our goal. So, I need to weigh 190 at the end and if I weigh 195, I have to pay my brother in law $50.
So far this competition has been working great. We intentionally set the weigh in date for Monday so that we would have to eat better on the weekend (which is when we both have the toughest time eating well). It’s been two weeks and I’m down almost 5 pounds. My brother in law is too. It’s funny how a little bit of money at stake can alter my behavior so much. If I was intelligent, I’d look at all the other benefits for losing weight, such as living longer, being healthier, being more comfortable and having higher self esteem. Instead all it takes is a measly $10 risk every week to keep me on track. Pathetic but it’s working!!
Don’t stop there — once your goal is achieved, commit to paying each other for every pound you regain!
pj
I say whatever works. Health, etc, is a reason to do it, but the money is a reason to do it right now, this week and not delay. Great. :)
PJ,
That’s a GREAT idea. I hadn’t thought of a motivation for maintaining the weight once we take it off. I’m going to bring up that idea with my brother in law to see if he is interested!
If you live close to one another it might also be a good idea to look into running or doing some sort of physical activity together. When I run it helps to have a partner to motivate you. I don’t want to let the other person down so when I feel like stopping I will just keep on. Just a thought :)
That’s a great idea! Here’s a little something my nutritionist clued me into that might be of ongoing help: www.myfitnesspal.com
Advantages:
– FREE
– helps you track all your food intake
– helps you track all your exercise
– helps you track your weight loss
On a side note, I lost 25 lbs since last Christmas…largely by switching from eating 2-3 large meals per day to 5 – 6 smaller meals/snacks per day and as much as possible sticking with whole foods. Don’t feel hungry, don’t crave sugar anymore for the most part. Saving money. Pretty cool!
And yes, I work full time at a pretty normal job. 5 – 6 small meals is pretty do-able when two of those meals are a handful of nuts, some triscuits, and a string cheese, for example.
Good luck!!
I tried something similar with my boss, but the goal is 50lbs in 15 weeks or about 3 1/2 lbs a week. Although money is a real motivator (when isn’t it?), I tend to rely on going to my WW meetings every week anyway. Reason being I find it comforting to gain tidbits of information that would help me on my quest to loosing weight. Although I have lost quite a few pounds since I have started (so far over 80lbs since my highest weight), I still need that weekly assurance that there are people and a mentor I am able to turn to in times that I am weak. Thank you for sharing this with us. Take care.