Well, after thinking about it for a few days, I decided to sign up for HealthyWage, a website that pays you when you accomplish your weight loss goals. I did the research- it's been around for a while, so it's legit, and has a great rating on the BBB.
I still felt reluctant to sign up though, and I'm not completely sure why. It does feel a little sad that the money they are paying out is coming from people who do not actually accomplish their weight loss, but bookies will bet on anything, after all. I read that about a third of people who sign up reach their weight loss goals.
They caught my attention by offering a free to sign up $5000 Jackpot starting April 1, where you can sign up for free and as long as you lose 6% of your body weight by June 24, you share the prize pot with the other winners. No cost whatsoever. I was thinking, OK, I'd try that and see how it goes. So I created an account and downloaded the app, although I can't weigh in or do much of anything until the start date when you have to verify your weight.
That seems relatively straightforward- you can either have someone record a video of you weighing in, with a few caveats to reduce the risk of cheating, use their app, or you can have your doctor or a Weight Watchers meeting or a few different places verify your weight. You have to do that again at the end of the challenge, too. And if you succeed? They pay out with your choice of a cheque or Paypal.
As I said, my intention was only to sign up for the free challenge, but of course, you gotta love targeted advertising- they kept sending me various ads to try and get me to sign up for the challenge where you bet on yourself to lose weight. And they did manage to get my attention when they offered me a free six month subscription to the Jillian Michaels workout app.
If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll know I started out doing Jillian's program back in 2010. I used to watch the Biggest Loser, and while I still don't love the idea of commodifying and humiliating people who are trying to get healthy, nor do I think weight loss that rapid is a good idea, I have to admit that she got and still gets results. I have been mixing her exercise videos in along with my Leslie Sansone Walk at Home, and Jillian's are definitely intense!
So, I did ultimately decide to make a weight loss bet. I will have 8 months to lose 30lbs, and if I win, they will pay me $1101.42! That's less than a pound a week, so I think if I continue with my current exercise regimen and eat at a calorie deficit, that I should have no problem reaching that goal. I wish I'd signed up 18 weeks ago since I'm already down more than 35lbs! That would have been a shoo-in!
Losing weight can be expensive... why not get yourself a little reward so you can splurge on new clothes? If you sign up through my HealthyWage link, you'll get an extra $40 cash on your payout when you achieve your weight loss goal! Also, it would be great to have regular check-ins with people who are doing the same thing!
So let's do this together!
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