So this morning I was listening to the Today Show and they introduced this new concept of Dieting for Dollars that allows you to win money to lose weight. This is a great incentive for those who are motivated by Money and come on who isn’t?
Now let me start by saying I am bummed because I cannot take part in placing bets on my weight loss and get into the game because I have had Gastric Bypass Surgery and that would not be fair and of course is a no no in the rules. BUT if this was available prior to my weight loss surgery there is no doubt I would have taken part in this and that is why I had to share it here for those who may not have had surgery yet.
I cannot tell you how many times I have taken part with family, friends and co workers in a money weight loss pool at one time or another. We would put money in a jar for every pound lost and at the end of the time set the person who lost the most would win the pot. This is a similar concept, but all done online.
There are many sites online that have started this, but DietBet is one I will talk about for now. Basically it works like this; You join a game that has already been started online with others or you can start your own private game with friends, family or co workers. You all start by placing a starting wager of what ever amount you set, the minimum is $25 and you can go as high as you want. The more people who join your game the bigger the pot you have to win. The game lasts for 4 weeks and you must lose a total of 4% of your body weight over that time. If you achieve that goal and others in your game achieve it as well you all split the pot. I think that is AWESOME.
Let me tell you there are some games going on the site right now with pots that are over $11,000 right now and growing with about 200+ players, can you imagine? Not everyone will meet the goal and that could turn out to be a great payout in the end for sure.
So how do you weigh in and know no one is cheating? Well there are strict rules for that part of the game and they are laid out on their site. There is a lot of honesty that goes along with this, but I think with all the rules they have in place there should be no issues.
And a big question asked often:
Is this illegal Gambling?
And the answer: No, at least not in the US, because the outcome of your dietbet is based on skill, not luck. Unless your refrigerator has been retrofitted to work like a slot machine, your weight is under your control.
So what do you think? I think this is a great idea and again if I did not have the surgery I would be so be in on the game. It is a great way to keep you on track and no one tells you what diet to do to lose the weight – you choose that. Genius I tell you, just Genius!!
