Diet Bet

So there I was, putting the finishing touches on my current training plan and having that nagging feeling in the back of my head, which I get when I know I have to do something but don't want to really deal with it.

Weight loss during this running journey has been slow and that is a good thing. There has been steady progress, some places where I've gotten stuck and some places(especially post-marathon) where I gained some weight back. I'm quite OK with that. I have worked really hard to not make this journey about the scale, which is a mindset that has failed me many a time. So, I have been quite content with what has happened so far.

Recently I talked about My Fitness Pal and how that has helped tremendously in keeping track on what I eat and control my calories. Just another small step for a fat runner. 

Now, I'm faced with the very tough challenge (For me. I know many people run this like it's nothing) of running a Half-Marathon in less then 3 hours. 20 minutes less than my current PR. Training will be a very important part of getting there but I know that for that training to be truly effective I have to lose some weight. There really is no other way about it. Just as I was starting to spell that dreaded word, (D-I-E-T) in comes Mindy from Road Runner Girl to save the day.

On her Facebook page, Mindy sent out an open invitation for a Diet Bet she was setting up. What's a Diet Bet you ask? Well, allow me to enlighten you.

Diet Bet is a web page where you set up or join a Diet Bet challenge. In my case for example, I joined Mindy's. $25 gets you in and goes into a pot. The object of the challenge is to lose 4% of your current weight in a month. If you accomplish the task, you along those who also did it split the pot! 

A chance to win some cash... hmmmm... I don't know, I gotta think about this.

So, I do something I have to do anyway, except that I could potentially get paid, therefore helping me accomplish it anyway?!! 

Now, this was awesome in and of itself and when I decided to jump, the pot was a respectable $350 bucks. But now, as of this writing, it's $2,450.00 so yeah, I wouldn't mind a piece of that. So I'm counting my calories, bringing up my mileage and following my training plan. 4% of my weight means I got to lose around 11 pounds to share the pot. Can I do it? We will see. 

Mindy, I should mention has already lost around 25 pounds on her own and is looking great! 

From her Facebook page

So Mindy you can stop losing weight now. No need to continue. Stop! You are too skinny! LOL

I'm actually thinking of setting up one of these myself. Anybody interested? Let me know.