Fine Print and Official Weigh In

I've received some questions about some fine print issues. There is no limit to the amount you can "contribute". Also, you can contribute up until the new year. That will give you an idea of how far I am along and see if you want in on a piece of the action.

Official Weigh In

I went to my first Weight Watchers meeting this past weekend. I weighed in at 423.3 pounds. That means that on April 28, 2008 I have to be 323.3 pounds or I am going to be owing some people some money. I am on my way.

How to Contribute

If you would like to contribute to the cause, here are step by step directions on how to submit money.

Click the Paypal link at the right, it will direct you to the Paypal website. Enter in an amount that you are comfortable with contributing in the amount box. If you have a paypal account, you can put in your username and password to complete the transaction. If you are paying with a credit card or debit card, scroll down to the section that shows the credit cards and click continue.

Fill in the information that you would normally fill in for making a credit card transaction (name, address, email and telephone). Make sure you fill out the security check properly and click Continue Checkout.

Review that all the information is correct and click Pay. It's as easy as that. If you would like to keep your contribution anonymous, please send me an email with directions as such (dvader20(at) yahoo (dot) com).

First Post - Background

If you are reading this, let me first tell you, thank you. You heard about what I am trying to do, and I thank you for at least being interested enough to take a look.

History -
I just turned 29 this month and I don't think there was a day of my life that my weight hasn't been an issue or bothered me. I have always been a large guy, but in the past 5-8 years, it has been steadily getting worse. It seems that since I have been holding down a steady, high maintenance job, I haven't had a chance to really work on getting my weight down like I should. Also, I really haven't had a lot of health issues because of it.

The Plan -
The end result is to lose 100 pounds in a year. That comes out to about 8.33 pounds per month. In order to do this, I will be engaging in different programs and routines. One of these programs will be Weight Watchers. This will allow me to see progression of my weight loss because their scale will be big enough to register my current weight. This has been an issue in the past. If I haven't been able to measure how much success or failure I have had with the current plans, I wasn't able to see if what I was doing was good or bad and I am the type of person that likes to keep on top of progress. I am also going to look into joining a gym and going regularly. Basically, this will always be at the forefront of my mind and every decision I make every day will be with getting healthier in mind. This blog will also serve as a news service. I will keep my progression public so that everyone will be able to see what I am seeing and make comments where they see that improvements can be made.

Your Role -
If you'll notice, the title of the blog is "help Get Mike Fit". Here is where you can help. In the past, I felt that some of the breakdown in the plans have been due to motivation. I know that being healthier will make my life longer, but it doesn't provide any immediate motivation and sadly, sometimes that is what helps the most. If you are reading this, you know that I like gamble a little bit here and there. Well, this time will be no different. To add additional motivation for this weight loss, I'm giving you the opportunity to make a wager that I will not hit my goal. If you notice the Paypal link at the right, that is a link to where you can place a bet that I won't hit my 100 pound loss mark in a year. Here is where it gets interesting. If by the deadline of this bet, I have not met the 100 pound mark, I will pay back each person, DOUBLE what they put in. If you put in $5, it comes to 4/22/08 and I am not 100 pounds lighter, I will pay you back $10. You put in $20? If I didn't make it, you get $40 in return. If that's not motivation, I don't know what is.

Summary -
The bet is that I will lose 100 pounds by April 22, 2008. If you want to take that bet, click Paypal link on the right side of the page. Put in an amount that you feel comfortable with. If by April 22, 2008, I am not 100 pounds lighter than I am from my first weigh-in, I will pay you back double what you put in. It's a simple bet and it will do nothing but help me become thinner and healthier. I will keep a public list of each person that has put in money as well. I will publish that list on the right hand side, with the amount that they submitted. If you put money in and wish to be anonymous, please leave a note that you'd like that and it will be added to the anonymous total.

So there you have it. I am looking to be thinner and healthier. I am going this route because I feel that additional motivation is the key. It's a simple bet. If I was talking to you, it would just be a conversation that went something like "I bet you can't lose 100 pounds in a year" and I would say "oh yea? I'll take that bet".