by the numbers

11.5 -- pounds I lost in six weeks (3.5 more than I needed to)

4 -- people who made their weight in The Bet

50 -- dollars I won in said Bet

62 -- approx. number of french fries I ate at lunch (mmmmm, french fries)

the cost of living skinny

So far, in my quest to win the bet and lose the weight I have bought:

A scale: $19.99
A Pilates video: $14.95 (but I'm going to return it)
Hand weights: $6.99
New sweatpants: $14.99
New Sneakers: $89.95

There is no way I'm going to even break even on this deal. I better lose the rest of my weight (2.5 pounds to go). I will be hellagrumpy if I have to pay $100 on top of what I've already spent.

unforseen consequences

So, The Bet is ruining my poker game.

I know that sounds crazy, but I have played like shit ever since I started with the diet and exercise. The best thing about my game used to be my patience and my ability to lay down a hand. I used to wait to bluff until I'd seen my opponents play for a good long while.

Now, I'm all over the place. I've got zero attention span and little patience. I'm pushing at pots against unknown opponents. I'm calling off huge chunks of my chips when I'm almost certainly the underdog and only maybe getting the correct odds to call.

I honestly think it's the lack of carbs.

halfway mark

So, I am three weeks into the weight loss bet and we had our halfway weigh-in this morning.

I'm happy to report that I have lost exactly half the weight.

I need to lose 4 more pounds in 3 weeks. I think I need to ramp things up for the remaining time because I'm worried that it might be harder to lose the remaining weight.

Here's what I did for the first 3 weeks:

1. Walk 5 mornings a week
2. Cut down to one carb (bread, pasta, potato) a day
3. Drink more water

I don't know if I can eliminate carbs completely. I like them SO MUCH. Eh, it's only 3 weeks. I can do anything for 3 weeks.

So, the plan for the next 3 weeks:

1. Walk every day
2. No carbs (maybe 2 a week? I've got to have something, people!)
3. Drink more water

And, in the final week, I think I'm going to try to cut out as much salt as possible to lose any water weight. My friend Christine said I should also cut out Diet Coke to lose more water weight, but who are we kidding?

This is going to be really tough. Does anybody have any other suggestions?

so hot...

...and not in a good way.

I spent the weekend trying not to move so that I wouldn't sweat.

I did "invent" a new cooling system. The instructions are as follows:

1. Wet and wring out a washcloth.
2. Put washcloth in freezer (probably on a plate or in a bowl to keep said washcloth from sticking to freezer).
3. Wait 7 to 10 minutes.
4. Remove washcloth.
5. Lie down.
6. Put very cold washcloth on tummy.
7. Repeat as necessary.

freeroll forever

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!

This Online Poker Tournament is a No Limit Texas Holdem event exclusive to Bloggers.

Registration code: 8994224

the bet

So, I'd stalled out on my diet and exercise plan. My morning workout schedule was a thing of the past and I was eating everything in sight.

That's when my boss at work suggested THE BET.

The goal is to lose 6% of your body weight in 6 weeks.

If you lose the weight, you owe nothing.

If you don't make your goal, you pay $100, to be split amongst the people who did lose the 6 percent.

There are six of us in this thing, so the best possible outcome is that I make the goal and nobody else does. That would make me 8 pounds lighter and $500 richer, but the truth is I'd be happy just to lose the weight.

We're at the end of week 2 and I think I'm doing well. I've cut way down on the carbs and I've walked 5 mornings each week. I feel a little thinner.

It would be much easier to tell if I owned a scale...