Weight: 145.0
Hurrah! I did it! I defied my own body and actually lost weight two days in a row!
I woke up at 6:30AM this morning and went right up stairs to do my morning workout. When I came back downstairs, I stepped on to my scale with baited breath and sure enough…145.0, just under what I needed to win my DietBet!
I woke my husband up to take my picture – and took a picture with my scale and minutes later, my final weigh out was verified and I received an email saying “Congratulations!”
I let out a quick cheery “Yes” through my teeth and threw my arms up in celebration. My husband thought I was nuts, of course. Whatever, he didn’t have 35 dollars on the line.
I’m not sure how I would have felt if I lost. I probably would have felt completely deflated and defeated, and would have blamed my stupid inconsistent body for making me weigh in on a day when the scale just wasn’t on my side.
What did I learn from my one-month kick starter? For one thing, it is possible to be on point every day. Since joining dietbet, I’ve managed to consistently walk 10,000 steps every day, and begin each day with a work out. I’ve also logged nearly all of my food every day also. A little more than half way through the dietbet, I started adding 30 second to 1 minute cold showers to my regime in an effort to gain whatever slight effects this might have to my waistline, minimal as those may be. I’ve learned that if you want to hydrate yourself faster, cold water is your best friend. Finally, I learned that I am motivated by carrots and sticks. Also, that my body is a cruel mistress.
I was pretty close to my 145.3 about two weeks into this past month’s bet…but, I then kept fluctuating up and down. It was pretty frustrating. I was under my goal this past weekend by nearly a lb…and somehow I gained a pound over night from Sunday to Monday, even though my calorie intake vs. expenditure and carb count was exactly where it needed to be. Sure enough, that lb disappeared as quickly as it came – so it was probably due to salt/dehydration, but when you have money on the line to hit an absolute weight by a certain date, you tend to watch the scale just a little bit obsessively. To be honest, I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
One thing I was sure about was that I really loved being a part of the dietbet community. I couldn’t wait to join another dietbet. Knowing how close it was, I decided not to do another 4% kick starter—at least not right after the first. It just seems like too much weight to lose so quickly after the first bet.
I’ve decided to kick it up a notch and try the 6 month 10% Transformer bet. It would have been cool if this one were hosted by some celebrity, like Chris and Heidi Powell – But I think most celebs are a little afraid of doing something that comes with a six month commitment, which I guess makes sense. Still. I hope the 10% game is as positive an experience as Jen Widerstrom’s game.
Dietbet has made the 10% goal a lot more manageable if you ask me. I only need to lose 3% of my body weight in the first month and an additional 3% in the second month, which all together is about 6lbs. not even a pound a week. Of course, I have been losing weight for a while--- and usually the last 10lbs are much harder than the first.
In round 3 I have to lose a cumulative total of 8% of my body weight (so an additional 2%), which for me is only an additional 3lbs… still, not even a lb per week. Doable.
Round 4 is just 1 additional % or 9% of my body weight – just an additional 2lbs. Doable
Finally in round 5 I only have to lose about 1lb and some change to hit a cumulative 10% of weight loss– doable – but by this time I might have a hard time doing it since weight loss slows to a crawl when you’re close to your goal weight, which, by this time HOPEFULLY I will be.
And finally, Round 6 I just have to maintain that loss. Harder than it sounds with my inconsistent body.
When my first kick starter 4% dietbet ended, I was filled with a mixture of Joy (I WON!!!) and sadness. I really liked the group of people I was getting to know over the course of the bet, and it was a really positive group and the dietbet itself had a really positive influence over my weight loss. It motivated me to get up in the mornings and kept me disciplined enough to not eat crap.
I suppose this will be an experiment to see how effective the carrot and stick method over the long haul!
Cold shower Challenge update: I'm now up to 1 minute and 5 seconds. Its acually not so horrible after the first 30 seconds. My body seems to work hard and heat me up, even while i am under the water. the key is breathing, so far.