(MyFoxOrlando) If you need a jumpstart on your new year's resolution to lose weight, why not put a little cash on the line?
Danyell Gray says she found lots of excuses to skip her workouts last year.
"Time, energy, life just gets in the way," she says.
But this year, she's set a goal -- and a friendly wager, thanks to the website DietBet.com.
"I'm trying to get healthy, lose five or 10 pounds," Gray says.
Thousands of people online want the same thing. So to motivate themselves, they're putting money on it.
"DietBet is a social weight-loss platform that was developed to connect people with a common goal: to lose weight," said Erica House, who is organizing a DietBet group to start their challenge. "They might just need the little bit of extra motivation of having a social support as well as a financial support to lose 4 percent of their body weight."
DietBet participants can join a group that fits into their wager level and time period.
"Everybody pays into the pot a certain amount, and whoever loses that 4 percent body weight within four weeks can split the pot at the end of the diet bet," House said.
Bets range from $5 all the way to $300. House's group is wagering $20.
The more people who join, the bigger the pot.
"It's a great accountability system," says personal trainer Tony Pino, who work at Platinum Gym in Sanford.
Now that he knows about DietBet, he says he's going to encourage his clients to use it.
"When you have something to shoot for and then you have a group of other people shooting for the same goal or heading in the same direction, that gets momentum," Pino said.
House's group challenge may not have started yet, but the momentum has.
"There's a little bit of trash talking going on anytime someone new signs up, which is fantastic," House said.
"I've noticed that a lot of people keep the credit going and will sign up for another bet after bet after bet," House said. "It's kind of addicting. It's a really fun way to get to know people and encourage people."
DietBet just one of several websites that allow you to wager on weight loss.
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