A new challenge for 2011?

December 29, 2010 2:14 PM

New Year, New fitness challenge?

It's almost 2011 and I haven't seen any threads about a weight loss/body fat challenge for the new year. I'd like to set one up, or if I'm stepping on anyone's toes, assist with any necessary organization.

Does anyone have any specific recommendations? I was thinking of using DailyBurn again since there are almost 250 mefites currently registered. Based on last year, I know there is interest in both a % body fat and a % weight loss challenge. I could offer a small prize, or we could have a pooled prize with a small "entrance" fee. Any takers?

posted by lizjohn to MetaFilter-Related at 2:14 PM (14 comments total)

I'd be interested in this...except I use another calorie tracking app. I wouldn't mind using DailyBurn if the barrier to entry is pretty small, though.
posted by Brainy at 3:14 PM on December 29, 2010

I was just thinking about posting one of these again. I'll go for it, although I'm not actively trying to lose weight for at least a month or so. I'll be on DailyBurn pretty regularly tracking other stuff!
posted by restless_nomad at 4:09 PM on December 29, 2010

Yes, please. I won one of them last year, and since then I have been to the gym maybe three times.

Good news: Now there's more of me to love!
posted by Admiral Haddock at 4:38 PM on December 29, 2010

Ooh, I would go for this. But I'd only want to enter weight because I don't know how I'd measure body fat easily.
posted by bluedaisy at 5:17 PM on December 29, 2010

Be nice to also have a consistency challenge of some sort. I'm not looking to lose weight -- I'm preggers -- but I am looking to be motivated to exercise consistently (if gently).
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 5:42 PM on December 29, 2010

i'll do the weight loss again... the challenge last year got me to lose 10 or so lb, and I kept it off, yay.
posted by gaspode at 7:01 PM on December 29, 2010

I would really, really, really like to do this again. I didn't get anywhere last year, and really, really, really don't want to still be carrying around these 25 extra pounds at the end of 2011!
posted by apricot at 9:00 PM on December 29, 2010

I'm not looking to lose eight -w- I'm preggers -- but I am looking to be motivated to exercise consistently (if gently).

I'm not sure if that's too rude or just rude enough to be an old-school Monty Python sketch.
posted by Uppity Pigeon #2 at 11:43 PM on December 29, 2010

I liked the mileage challenge, rather than weight lost or % body fat--it's sort of a level playing field, since weight is not a good metric for health, and % body fat is variable depending on who's doing it (I used the calipers when we did this last year, but I had no idea what I was doing).

I also like the consistency challenge--that would be great, if we can do it. I haven't logged into DailyBurn since a couple of days after the last challenge ended.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 6:35 AM on December 30, 2010

Anyone using Nike+? I've had a lot of fun challenging my friends on there, and it's sufficiently techygeeky to keep most of us amused, not to mention it tracks mileage automagically.
posted by bitter-girl.com at 7:37 AM on December 30, 2010

I opened two challenges on Daily Burn. They are:

% Weight lost Invite code is 765E34
This challenge is for two months. Winner gets anything on Amazon $15 or less eligible for Prime shipping.

% Body fat lost Invite code is D47A51
This challenge is for three months. Winner gets same prize.

There doesn't seem to be an easy way to have a contest on consistency, and the mileage challenges require a specific activity. If anyone would like to open challenges on other website that better suit their interest, please post links here!
posted by lizjohn at 8:15 AM on December 31, 2010

I just set another one up--200 Elliptical Miles. Invite is 7F3BE0.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 5:26 AM on January 1, 2011

Also, seeing as this is all so last minute, I changed the starting date to Jan 2nd. There is still time!
posted by lizjohn at 10:23 AM on January 1, 2011

Anyone using Nike+? I've had a lot of fun challenging my friends on there, and it's sufficiently techygeeky to keep most of us amused, not to mention it tracks mileage automagically.

I have Nike+ on my iPhone, but it doesn't work. It tells me it needs to "calibrate" and I should walk around. 3/4 of a mile later (and half a mile later, during several other attempts) and it's still trying to "calibrate".
posted by Karmakaze at 7:56 AM on January 4, 2011