Let me start with saying, I don't look overweight, but my BMI was a little high, and I'd gained some 20 lbs. since college. These past couple of years got really bad as I experienced the dreaded relationship gut. After we broke up, I wanted to lose the weight, but couldn't seem to find the motivation.
Enter DietBet.
It's a website where people host games which involve people losing 4% of their body weight over a month or 10% over 6 months. At the end of the game, everyone who has met their weight loss goal splits the money in the pot (minus what DietBet takes to keep running). I just successfully weighed out of my first game, but with mixed feelings.
My favorite part was the motivation. Suddenly having money on the line made me want to move and make better food choices. I haven't touched fast food in about a month, and I don't even really miss it. Being able to join multiple games at once was even more motivating because I just had to lose the weight once and then I'd potentially get paid multiple times 
My biggest detractor happened in the last few days. Those who had slacked off or weren't making steady progress suddenly felt the pressure, and some went to (what I believe are) extreme measures. To me, this was about steady, measured progress and changing my attitudes towards food and exercise. I think juicing or fasting for a week before to get rid of 5 lbs. to make weight is cheating yourself (and me and others who lost it in a more healthy way). To me, there's little point in working so hard all month to regain it right after weigh-in and then have to join another dietbet...unless that's just some people's plan to continually 'win'.
Regardless, DietBet helped me successfully take off 7 lbs. (10 total from my heaviest weight), so I can't be that mad at it...
Social Dieting
April 29th, 2014 at 06:07 pm
April 29th, 2014 at 06:47 pm 1398797277
April 29th, 2014 at 07:15 pm 1398798929
The system's not cheat-proof, but the money is not great enough to warrant cheating. I don't know how much I made yet, but I'm guessing on my $30 bet, I'll probably get about $45.
April 29th, 2014 at 07:43 pm 1398800601
I'm already doubling up (and more) on my potential winnings, though, by doing a six-month, 10% wager at HealthyWage.com. At my weight, that pays out about double what the Diet Bet challenge will; if you've got less to lose, it doesn't pay out as much. You can only win the Healthy Wage six-month challenge once, I believe, but they have 12-week team challenges you can join and I'm pretty sure you can repeat those.
April 29th, 2014 at 09:00 pm 1398805214
For me it didn't help with learning slow and steady lifetime habits. I'm still trying to come to a balance, and I think I do all right. Working out comes in fits and starts, but I have enough walking in my everyday carless existence that I'm always exercising a bit daily. My family has done pretty well keeping our portion sizes down -- not eating out much really helps! And if I "must" snack, I usually try to dole out a portion of whatever treat it is and put the container back in the cupboard before I start eating, so I don't feel as tempted to go back for more.
It was kind of fun, though, and I won about $20 over my initial ante.
April 29th, 2014 at 09:25 pm 1398806738
April 29th, 2014 at 09:54 pm 1398808481
Ceejay, it certainly sounds like you've picked up some good habits...although maybe not from dietbet. And I admire your control. I certainly would not have been able to control myself at Thanksgiving!
CB, my goal allowed for about a pound a week. I went fast and lost it all in about 2 weeks, but I definitely think slow and steady is the way to go to instill habits.
April 30th, 2014 at 01:02 am 1398819745
April 30th, 2014 at 01:43 pm 1398865391
CB, if you're using MyFitnessPal already, you might look into joining Pact. You commit $5 (or more, whatever motivates you) to a certain goal (tracking your food x days per week, in this case) -- you don't pay unless you miss your goal. If you meet your goal, they pay you for it. Food logging is about $0.10-0.20 per day -- nothing major, but still $1 or so a week for something you're doing anyway.