DietBet Week 4 Recap (I Made It!)

Hi there!

Hope that everyone who has off from work for Memorial Day today is enjoying it. My weekend has been very low-key just as I wanted it to be, and has included a tennis session with my hubby, some shopping and cleaning, and renting a movie. If the cloudy skies clear out here, I’m going to head to the beach today, but before I hopefully become a beach bum for the afternoon, I wanted to share a recap of my last week participating in Jen Widerstrom’s Summer Shake Down DietBet!

In case you missed my past DietBet recaps:

• DietBet Week 3 Recap + 5 Ways to Drink More H20
• DietBet Week 2 Recap | Persevering When the Scale Won’t Budge
• DietBet Week 1 Recap + Letting Go of the All-or-Nothing Healthy Living Mentality

Since I knew that I’d be in Palm Springs the weekend before the end of the DietBet, my original plan was to lose 4% of my body weight – what I needed to win the game – in the first 3 weeks, then be able to just relax and indulge while I was away. However, as it sometimes goes, those pounds melted off very slowly and I went into the weekend still needing to lose a pound to win.

Because I hate to lose a game, and usually when I go away on a getaway, the scale weighs me in around 2 pounds higher for a few days, I was a little stressed thinking about it. But in the end, I decided to enjoy myself in Palm Springs in a balanced way, then work hard to make my goal weight once I got back….

….which does not mean that I ate a 1-pound box of Sugar Babies! I’m going to do a Palm Springs eats recap soon, but an example of my indulging in moderation included: eating pasta one night at an Italian restaurant, but choosing a veggie-filled primavera dish, then only eating 1/2 of the entree and bringing the rest home as leftovers.

I also couldn’t resist trying an ice cream shake from the pictured above dessert place that I had heard great things about, but I split it with my hubby. The above pictured oreo caramel shake was ridiculously good and totally worth it!

Other favorite eats of the week included:

• Salad Pizza

• This vegan mint protein smoothie bowl with blueberries at Choice Juicery as an awesome post-workout meal

• Banana Almond Butter Muffins (gluten free and vegan)

Workout-wise, I was super active again in week 4. I did at-home HIIT and kickboxing sessions, hiked at Joshua Tree Park, went to my friend’s Pilates class (and was very sore for a few days after!) and practiced a bit of yoga.

Along with all of the activity came some calf and foot tightness on my left side – the injury-prone, weaker side. I got a Thai sports massage to help alleviate some of that inflammation and achiness, which was funny because the woman had me twisted up like a pretzel and did the craziest stretches with me, then proclaimed at the end, “You strong woman!!” It was all kind of hilarious and slightly awkward, but it was much needed and I felt better afterwards.

To put it simply, when I got back to San Diego I worked my ass off for the last couple of days of the DietBet, and I’m happy to say that I made weight for the game’s end! I would have liked to lose a couple of more pounds total for the summer, but I’ll get there in a couple of weeks. Since the pot was $65,000+ I was kind of surprised to only win $15 and wind up taking home $45 after a $30 bet, but that means that most people reached their goal, so I certainly can’t be mad about that. I read in one of the DietBet messages that participants (around 2,100 of us) lost a combined total of over 19,000 pounds, which is kind of amazing!

Overall, I would say that DietBet is a fun idea for anyone to try who knows that they want to lose at least 4% of their body weight, and could use some extra motivation to do so. Throughout the game, participants and the game’s host, The Biggest Loser trainer Jen Widerstrom, posted messages in the game’s thread. It would be anything from a motivational quote to people venting about how the scale wouldn’t budge, and this aspect of DietBet definitely creates an online community and support system for participants.

I don’t think I’d do a DietBet again at this point only because another 4% weight loss would be pushing it for my ideal weight range, but if it’s a healthy goal of yours to lose 4% of your body weight, you might want to check out DietBet for yourself!

Any questions about DietBet? What’s the best dessert you’ve had lately (mine has to be that ice cream shake!!)?

PS – This post is not at all sponsored by DietBet. I simply wanted to share my experience with DietBet and thoughts on participating in a game!