I know that there are competitions that different people hold, either at gyms, on tv, etc... but I'm wondering what y'all's thoughts are?

I never think of myself as competitive. I'm just a very good loser I guess... and good when I win. So I never thought I was competitive... at all.

Well... I have started to realize more and more recently that I actually do have quite a big competitive streak in me. If my brother did something... I have to do it better. If I see someone walking on the treadmill at 3.5 mph... I go 3.8.

Not to prove anything to them... apart from my little brother... smack talk is just not something I do. I'm not competitive with them... more with myself. Mentally knowing I'm "beating" them. Or at least thinking I am.

So... I'm thinking of doing something with my little brother. Both of us have at least 50 lbs to lose. I probably have a bit more than him... since he's built big... I'm built thin... just... not actually thin.

We have a jar (or bank account, or whatever).

Say we have a goal date, or a goal weight. If it's a goal date, we put in $1 for every pound we lose. The person who loses the most after it all wins the full amount. But now I'm thinking that it might be better to have MULTIPLE goal dates... say one a month. It wouldn't be a lot of extra money... but it'd be something. And would up the ante for me.. knowing "hey... I want that money... I need to lose the weight".


So... thoughts? Anyone else do anything similar?

I’ve actually done something like that several times. The first time was at work, to raise money for a charity. Their idea was to do a weigh-in once a week, & for everyone to put in a dollar each week, plus an additional dollar from those who’d gained, instead of lost, weight. This was for a period of 6 weeks - the money put in to go to a charity. I took it a step farther, & got some friends & family members to pledge to donate a certain amount for each pound I lost (like a dime or a quarter a pound). At the end of the 6 weeks, I had lost a total of 33 pounds (& got $48 in donations). Everyone else had dropped out after 3 weeks, & had just paid $2 for each remaining week.

A couple of years later, at a different job, 2 of my female co-workers & I decided to have a friendly weight-loss competition. We decided we’d each put in $2 a week, & at the end of 6 weeks there’d be $36 to go to the one who’d lost the most (& of course we had a wkly weigh-in to check our progress). I warned them at the beginning that I would win, & I did. I seem to get quite competitive about this! I lost 30 lbs. that time, they only lost 9 lbs. & 6 lbs.

I did the same thing at another job, 3 yrs. after that, only this time it was with only one other woman, & she insisted we each put in $5 a week (& she knew me & knew how I'd done before). So, after 6 weeks, I had lost 31 lbs., & ended up with the $60. I think she lost about 12 lbs.

So, the competitive thing works for me for losing weight, but not for keeping it off. Each time, the 30-something pounds that I lost, were the same ones I’d lost before & gained back!

i have mixed feelings about competitive weight loss.

on one hand, it's excellent motivation for a competitive person to lose the weight. but on the other hand, it also promotes unhealthy weight loss and that kind of weight loss is generally difficult or impossible to maintain.

I think a little HEALTHY competition is good! I am not discouraging you in any way but men have a tendency to lose weight faster than women. Especially in the beginning with more weight to lose. Maybe because they have more muscle than women and burn more calories at a sedentary rate? But anyway…. I hope you kick his butt! Haha

I am in competition with my sister. The only difference is….she doesn’t know it! She has always been smaller than me and today she jumps between 140-143 pounds. She is my weight loss goal motivator. Recently I crossed over to wearing the same size pants she wears but her hips a smaller. I’ll be seeing her in 3 weeks and hope to be around 143-144 by then.

GAME ON!

I'm much like you...exactly really. I described myself at the gym the other day as "quietly competitive". I compete with everyone at the gym, only they don't know it. I'm particularly bad against my best friend. I have to do everything stronger and faster, only she doesn't know it. I caught myself checking out how much she was lifting this morning and made sure I was lifting heavier...and I was, by 10 pounds.

My spin instructor has started issuing challenges, and I really like them because they're behavior oriented. We all put in $5.00 to participate and the winner gets the pot. We earn points for every 15 minutes of cardio, strength and stretching that we do, and we have to do at least 2 of those. Additionally, those points only count if we also manage to get in whatever healthy habit she requires for the week. The first week it was drinking enough water. Last week it was eating 3 veggies and 2 fruits daily and we earned bonus points for trying something new. I had fun with that one. This week it's no "distraction eating", so no eating in front of the TV/computer.

I love these types of challenges because they are not about how many pounds are lost. It's about kicking it hard at the gym. These are things that are well within my control, where actual weight loss is not.