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Blog
Join My DietBet Game (March Edition)
My new DietBet game starts in 5 days (February 25th).
The first game was a wild success with 273 players and a total of nearly 1,500 pounds lost… almost as many pounds as I’ve gained since November.
For those who don’t remember from the first time around, DietBet is a unique kind of weight loss competition. You pay an entry fee ($25) and you have 28 days to lose 4% of your weight. Naturally, some people fail to lose weight (usually because they quit) and whoever is left after 4 weeks and has lost 4% of their weight splits the pot.
Here’s a short video with more details:
You’re not going to get rich if you win, in fact, you’ll probably only win a few bucks. But that’s a good thing — that means most people are actually losing weight. The community that’s formed, plus the friendly competition and accountability, is the biggest selling point of joining a DietBet game. The money won is just gravy.
Join my game today and let’s lose some weight.
Posted by Shawn Tyler Weeks on February 20th, 2013
I’ve Lost My Way
There’s no shame in admitting defeat. Over the past few months, essentially since the birth of my baby boy in November, I’ve lost my way.
I weigh somewhere in the 230s today.
Everything I’ve preached over the past four years when it comes to moderation, counting calories, having fun while burning calories etc., still stands true today — and always will. I just haven’t been to church lately.
Over this weekend, I realized that many of the demons I buried 100+ pounds ago have come back. I’ve been eating without actually being hungry. And when I was hungry, I ate too much. That’s fine every once in a while (you know, in moderation), but it’s not acceptable every day. It’s how I ended up 344.2 pounds to begin with.
Much like how I started this blog with a confession some four years ago, I’m starting anew today with another confession: I’ve fallen hard since November. A 20+ pound weight gain in three months is ridiculous. How can I help people save themselves from being overweight/obese if I can’t even save myself?
I’ve been caught up in the birth of my son, the holidays, the release of my book, and newly found attention from the media and first-time blog readers. I have let many other things (media interviews, answering e-mails, hosting giveaways on Facebook, etc.) sidetrack me from focusing on myself and actually losing weight.
Let’s get back to the basics.
Posted by Shawn Tyler Weeks on February 18th, 2013
Joe Lost 160 Pounds by Counting Calories
Joe lost 160 pounds by counting calories.
He initially utilized pre-packaged meals in addition to counting calories, but eventually ditched the meals and just counted calories and exercised.
Joe writes:
At around 2nd or 3rd grade, I started gaining weight. Being known as the fat kid was never that bad because of my grades. Still, I never really felt good about myself. I knew that I could do well in certain things, but my self perception was rubbish.
High school, college, and grad school continued this trend. At the start of my PhD program, I was we’ll above 350 pounds. Academically, I was still doing well. My health and wellness took a back seat to everything. I decided to no longer let this be the case. I left my PhD program to push the reset button on my life. The end result had me leaving my home on Virginia to move to Arizona. A brand new place with brand new people. A 360 pound Joe in 115+ degree weather was not pretty.
The first week, I put myself on a huge diet. At first, it was the Slim Fast plan with Lean Cuisines for dinner (which is no longer the case). I counted calories. My calorie count hovered at around 1000 a day. I even started taking vitamins as a supplement. Slowly, but surely, the pounds came off.
This process was not without struggles. There were weeks and even months where I just gave up. But, I picked myself up and kept going. Eventually, I added exercise into the mix. It started with The Biggest Loser video game. After a few months, it became boring so I looked for something new. I decided to take some tips from another blog (yours and BenDoesLife made the difference for me) and wanted to start running. I downloaded a couch to 5k app and stuck with it.
Soon, I was completing a few 5ks last summer. During this time, I even created my own blog to track my experiences. After a few more ups and downs, I decided to set my sights on a half marathon. While training for that, I also started the Insanity workout program. These two combined just about made me want to throw in the towel, but I kept with it. Two weeks ago, I completed the half marathon. As of today, I’ve completed 7 weeks of Insanity (2 more left).
Today was a big milestone for me. I weighed myself today and the scale read 198.5 (199.5 with ipad). I finally broke 200.
I still have a bit longer to go, but this was huge for me.
Good job on the weight loss, Joe!
Posted by Shawn Tyler Weeks on February 12th, 2013
Blog
Join My DietBet Game (March Edition)
My new DietBet game starts in 5 days (February 25th).
The first game was a wild success with 273 players and a total of nearly 1,500 pounds lost… almost as many pounds as I’ve gained since November.
For those who don’t remember from the first time around, DietBet is a unique kind of weight loss competition. You pay an entry fee ($25) and you have 28 days to lose 4% of your weight. Naturally, some people fail to lose weight (usually because they quit) and whoever is left after 4 weeks and has lost 4% of their weight splits the pot.
Here’s a short video with more details:
You’re not going to get rich if you win, in fact, you’ll probably only win a few bucks. But that’s a good thing — that means most people are actually losing weight. The community that’s formed, plus the friendly competition and accountability, is the biggest selling point of joining a DietBet game. The money won is just gravy.
Join my game today and let’s lose some weight.
Posted by Shawn Tyler Weeks on February 20th, 2013
I’ve Lost My Way
There’s no shame in admitting defeat. Over the past few months, essentially since the birth of my baby boy in November, I’ve lost my way.
I weigh somewhere in the 230s today.
Everything I’ve preached over the past four years when it comes to moderation, counting calories, having fun while burning calories etc., still stands true today — and always will. I just haven’t been to church lately.
Over this weekend, I realized that many of the demons I buried 100+ pounds ago have come back. I’ve been eating without actually being hungry. And when I was hungry, I ate too much. That’s fine every once in a while (you know, in moderation), but it’s not acceptable every day. It’s how I ended up 344.2 pounds to begin with.
Much like how I started this blog with a confession some four years ago, I’m starting anew today with another confession: I’ve fallen hard since November. A 20+ pound weight gain in three months is ridiculous. How can I help people save themselves from being overweight/obese if I can’t even save myself?
I’ve been caught up in the birth of my son, the holidays, the release of my book, and newly found attention from the media and first-time blog readers. I have let many other things (media interviews, answering e-mails, hosting giveaways on Facebook, etc.) sidetrack me from focusing on myself and actually losing weight.
Let’s get back to the basics.
Posted by Shawn Tyler Weeks on February 18th, 2013
Joe Lost 160 Pounds by Counting Calories
Joe lost 160 pounds by counting calories.
He initially utilized pre-packaged meals in addition to counting calories, but eventually ditched the meals and just counted calories and exercised.
Joe writes:
At around 2nd or 3rd grade, I started gaining weight. Being known as the fat kid was never that bad because of my grades. Still, I never really felt good about myself. I knew that I could do well in certain things, but my self perception was rubbish.
High school, college, and grad school continued this trend. At the start of my PhD program, I was we’ll above 350 pounds. Academically, I was still doing well. My health and wellness took a back seat to everything. I decided to no longer let this be the case. I left my PhD program to push the reset button on my life. The end result had me leaving my home on Virginia to move to Arizona. A brand new place with brand new people. A 360 pound Joe in 115+ degree weather was not pretty.
The first week, I put myself on a huge diet. At first, it was the Slim Fast plan with Lean Cuisines for dinner (which is no longer the case). I counted calories. My calorie count hovered at around 1000 a day. I even started taking vitamins as a supplement. Slowly, but surely, the pounds came off.
This process was not without struggles. There were weeks and even months where I just gave up. But, I picked myself up and kept going. Eventually, I added exercise into the mix. It started with The Biggest Loser video game. After a few months, it became boring so I looked for something new. I decided to take some tips from another blog (yours and BenDoesLife made the difference for me) and wanted to start running. I downloaded a couch to 5k app and stuck with it.
Soon, I was completing a few 5ks last summer. During this time, I even created my own blog to track my experiences. After a few more ups and downs, I decided to set my sights on a half marathon. While training for that, I also started the Insanity workout program. These two combined just about made me want to throw in the towel, but I kept with it. Two weeks ago, I completed the half marathon. As of today, I’ve completed 7 weeks of Insanity (2 more left).
Today was a big milestone for me. I weighed myself today and the scale read 198.5 (199.5 with ipad). I finally broke 200.
I still have a bit longer to go, but this was huge for me.
Good job on the weight loss, Joe!
Posted by Shawn Tyler Weeks on February 12th, 2013