Design A Reward Plan: Gaining While Losing

I've seen a few blogs with reward lists--say, a cd for each five pound loss or a mini spa day for a 15 pound loss, etc.

I did one once. I don't even remember what I wrote.

And earlier this year, you probably saw this USA Today article (I remember reading it), which said:

If you're looking for a little extra motivation to lose weight this year, consider this: Would you be more inspired if your boss offered you cash for losing 10 pounds? What if your spouse or best friend promised to give you an iPod or 100 bucks if you drop 20 pounds in three months? Would this motivate you or not?

Money and other rewards can inspire people to trim down, says Eric Finkelstein, one of the nation's top experts on the economic impact of obesity.

The truth is, I have all the books, cds, lipsticks, clothes that I need.

I'm gonna reward myself with hard cash.

Yep. I'm gonna go to the bank within the next week and open a savings account for my fat loss deposits.

In order for it to work, I really need to cut back on things like EATING OUT or TREATS in order to have the money for the rewards.

I'm gonna give myself $40 per pound.

Yep. You read that right. Forty bucks.

I figure for it to really motivate me, it has to be substantial enough that I can buy total self-indulgent luxuries or, if my better angel takes over, use it to fund charities I really believe in. Either way, it'll be a juicy reward.

Now, I have 115 pounds to my goal weight. That's 4600 bucks.

Nice chunk o' change, I say! I could buy a fricken Reformer for that and have enough leftover for a vacation. :)

Or...

~I could go to a writing retreat with that and get back to my novel.
~I could pay off half of my 2-month-old car loan.
~I could go to a real spa! One of those super luxurious ones you read about in women's magazines.
~I could hire a stylist to organize a makeover--hair and outfit and make-up like they do on the TV show HOW DO I LOOK or WHAT NOT TO WEAR.
~I could spend time with a life coach and sets up larger goals.
~I could spend some time at a Benedictine cloister for a spiritual retreat.
~I could sponsor a poor family's groceries for months.
~I could sponsor a native missionary abroad for a year.
~I could open a college fund for my grandnieces and grandnephews.
~I could have a real website designed to my specs.
~I could spend a weekend or a week at the Stanhope and spend those days lost in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim, the MOMA, and the Hayden Planetarium in NYC. (Oh, how I have fantasized about THAT.)
~I could redesign my closet for "skinny" clothes. Or use it as a down payment towards a new house for those skinny clothes. :D

$4600 lets you think a bit, dream a scosh, don't it?


But dreams can come from smaller amounts. What could you do if you paid yourself two or five dollars per pound lost? If you have to lose 50 pounds, that's 100 to 250 to spend as you wish. If you have 200 pounds to lose, that would be 400 to 1000 bucks to splurge on fabulosities. Maybe you want to plant a fruit tree in your yard or get a wonderful rug to exercise on. Maybe there's a designer handbag that you've coveted--the way I covet the Prada fairies handbag, cause, well, it's FAIRIES!-- but couldn't bear to spend hundreds of dollars on.

Well, let that handbag motivate you towards a slimmer, healthier body.

Maybe you wanted the whole Buffy the Vampire DVD collection. Well, 200 bucks gets you that. (Less on eBay.)

Maybe you've wanted a romantic getaway with your soulmate, but all your money's being wasted at take-out eateries and dining out on fatty food: Save the calories, take the trip.

So, let me see: If I lose 4 pounds a month (roughly 1 a week), that's 160 bucks in my account. If I lose 10 pounds, I got 400 bucks in my account.

And if I regain weight, the money goes into the checking to pay bills or our joint savings for emergencies/home repairs/taxes, etc. I don't keep it off. I don't keep the moolah.

That's the downside, but it should be considered a motivator, too. I don't wanna lose my splurge kitty!!!

In order to have that money, I'll need to re-examine my food expenses and wasteful spending and improve my budget. Even less restaurant dining, fewer Starbucks visits, more homemade pita pizzas, more exercise out of doors and fewer dvd rentals for sedentary viewing. Fewer "spur of the moment" magazine purchases at the grocery store, which can easily be substituted by FREE web-surfing. It all adds up.

Okay, there we go. Another motivator into the pot.

How would you reward yourself in order to have an incentive for weight loss? It can't be something you'd do anyway (come on, you'd have that manicure anyway, right, or buy that lipstick, or that cd, or that book). What thing you normally wouldn't give yourself would you get as your pounds-loss reward?

$4600. Mmmmmmm.

I think I might wanna use some for a celebration day cruise with my hubby when I'm at the halfway point (ie, have lost 57.5 pounds, which would put me at 218 lbs).

Go on. Dream big. Lose big. Reward yourself along the journey.

~~Create a reward chart

~~Reward Yourself

~~WW Reward Suggestions from $5 to over $50.


~~How to Reward Yourself When You Lose Weight

~~Rewards for Weight Loss Milestones