The discussion on punitive measures and motivation for unmet/met goals is interesting, but just to comment quickly on the economics of stickk, slowrunner have you read Nudge? Named as a book of the year by The Economist last year or the year before, it discusses the importance of economic incentives and choice architecture in public policy to help people make the decisions they want to make but have difficulty doing. They mention stickk.com a lot as a useful resource for people attempting to quit smoking, lose weight, etc. A great book, I highly recommend it whether or not economics is your forte :)

CocoLoco, I was wondering that (about getting behind on the goal). That's why want to stick with a nonfinancial weight loss goal for now until I know how to "play the game," so to speak. I might still set a goal with financial stakes for mileage-per-week once I get the hang of it, though, since mileage is something I can control. But first I want to think more about which financial incentive I want to use.

indiblue, Thanks for the book recommendation! I've just ordered the Kindle version and will delve into it once I've gotten through "The 4-Hour Body". Reading through the Amazon synopsis, it sounds like a great book even beyond the financial incentive bit. The concept of choice architecture is quite fascinating (store already use it for evil, so why shouldn't we use it for good?), and I'm really interested in seeing how it's being implemented in the US with the calories on restaurant menus. I haven't been back to the US since the calorie requirement came into effect, but I followed the debate on it in the news, so I'm curious about how that extra bit of information in my face will affect my food choices when I visit. I remember some friends complaining about it when the law was first passed - "We all know a Big Mac is unhealthy - this is just more government babysitting!" - but I thought it was brilliant. What's the harm in having the calories there? You can still get whatever you want! The one time I'd been to a place that had the calories on the menu (before the law went into effect - this was in Berkeley, CA), it certainly did make me think twice about ordering that mocha drink. Anyway, thanks again - I can't wait to read it!

Kind of sounds like what I did to quit smoking but there was a difference.

I wanted to rescue a boxer dog, my husband agreed that we should rescue him. So we did, my husband tells me that in order to afford the extra expenses of owning a 4th dog that we'd both have to quit smoking. I agreed that I would quit because I desperately wanted to help this dog.

So we rescued the dog and I started to quit smoking, after 18+yrs of smoking I traded it in for dog food basically LOL

I just wanted to mention that I believe they updated how the site works in regards to weight loss since I last "fail fail failed" ... because this week I was not successful, BUT it gave me a reasonable goal for next week.. not a you need to catch up, or you fail again type of goal. My end goal is still the same, but my weekly goal is achievable.

I joined up. :) my start date is Friday though. My goals are: take 15k steps a day or 100k a week. And to lose 50 lbs in 37 weeks... By my 19th birthday. :)

Good luck, Serbrider! I know your post was a good while ago, but it looks from your signature that things are going well!

Motivation to exercise, looking for a referee for stickk.com
 

Hi everyone!

I'm new here although I've been reading here for a while.

I was searching for stickk.com posts, but they all seem pretty old. I've used it before and it was amazing motivation for me to keep up a regular exercise routine.

Would anyone be interested in using stickk.com for any of their goals and being each others referees? I know it isn't for everyone, but in my experience it has been a great help, so let me know if you'd like to give it a try! :)

Ell x

Stickk -- anyone a member?
 

I've never heard of this. I will have to look into it!

I just joined! Wanna add me? PageLynn

I had to check that out, so I joined...you can add me too:D CocoEm is my screen name

I just signed up-what an interesting concept! I opted to not use money since I don't have ccs or a debit card. But, it will be fun to track my progress :)