Hi, and advice, please, for this fitness game!

[Laura5490]

I'm loving this site, especially the "Level up" tagline, and I finally decided to level up my life and get fit for the first time in nearly 25 years.  I gained a LOT of weight while I was pregnant, and in the years since put on a bit more every year until now, at 5'6", I weigh about 280 pounds.  I don't expect to ever be thin and svelte - my bikini days are long past :-) - but I'd be very happy to not wear plus-sized clothes and to be able to run a 10k.

 

My Strength, Constitution and Dexterity are pretty low, but I did a Sense Motives check and it turns out that I really am ready to make a change in my life!  Weapons check: 

• a running buddy, and a smart phone with the Zombies, Run! app on it
• nearby park that has fitness equipment including an elliptical, stair stepper, and chest press!
• a husband who doesn't care what kind of food I cook as long as he gets to eat something, and who kinda-sorta wants to take a few pounds off, too.

So I think this is it, and I really can make a change this time.  I'm putting together a little game to help keep me going, and I'm hoping you all will have good ideas to develop it a bit further.  I've got a big whiteboard (actually a white bathroom tileboard which is the same thing only it costs about $15 at the home improvement store), and I'm going to put these status bars on it:

 

Working each bar from left to right -

Points - Fill in each for pound that is lost. I'm going to set goals in 10% increments of my current weight, so my first goal will be 28 pounds.  This bar stays until I meet that goal and level up.

Health  - Okay, I'm thinking of things to give myself points for, to increase health, and when I get enough health points, I get a bonus of some kind.  I have some colored dry erase markers, so I'm going to fill it in and erase a slot each time I get a point, so that I'm starting with poor health, in the red, and moving toward green, good health.  I will reset the Health bar each week.  I'll get a point for -

• a day where I ate each meal or snack ONLY when I was stomach-growling hungry

• eating a salad before the meal for lunch and dinner or otherwise mostly filling up on veggies

• drinking 8 glasses of water a day

• Increasing time, number of reps, adding another activity (like a bike ride or dvd at home)

• Subbing out healthy options when eating out or at a friend's house

• Meeting calorie goal for the day (not going over or under)

• Refusing dessert or an unhealthy snack when it is offered

Combat - New Me beating the Old Me to death, one workout at a time. I'm not sure if it’s better to do it as 6 daily workouts or 10 minute fitness increments, where a week has slots for a certain number of 10 minute fitness blocks.  I'll reset the Combat bar each week.

 

Bonuses - Accumulate X points and get a bonus; some small, inexpensive, non-caloric treat like a new DVD or something. 

 

Level up - meeting that particular pounds-lost goal will get me a much bigger bonus.  Maybe a night out on the town or something.

 

So... any thoughts, any suggestions to improve this?

[deepdarkgreen]

That looks like a lot of fun! I might add sleep to the health bar. Getting enough rest definitely affects how easy it is to make good choices.

[Laura5490]

Good idea, I will add that. Thanks! Also - now that I'm reading up on how the challenges work, I will incorporate that too.

[Meant2Move]

This looks terrific - great idea, and so motivating to see it in glowing color. I bet hubby will want to play soon!