The motivation behind weight loss bets
Extreme weight loss bets like the one Shaun Deeb is undertaking are flawed, but much better than doing nothing, says Barry Carter.
Poker is full of extreme weight loss bets, but if Shaun Deeb can get down to 17% bodyfat, or close to it, it will be the most impressive of all of them. He has a seven-figure bet with Bill Perkins to do just that.
Deeb has just over a year to get down to 17% bodyfat, which is by any measure 'skinny' for most men. He specified over a year because, with the WSOP around the corner, he didn't want a diet to massively distract him from the series. If Deeb wins he turns his $100,000 into $1 million.
— shaun deeb (@shaundeeb) March 29, 2023
As outlandish as it sounds, I wouldn't bet against Deeb. He is no athlete but what he is a fierce competitor and gambler. The motivation to win money, but perhaps even more the motivation not to lose $100,000, will be an extremely powerful carrot and stick in this bet.
The motivation for motivation
We have seen that something like this is possible, most notably when Jaime Staples pulled off his epic bet against, yet again, Bill Perkins. Staples lost 116lbs in a year to win $150,000 with his Brother Matt (who put on weight for the challenge).
There was a time when if a poker player made a prop bet, they did so because they thought (or knew) that they had an edge. But in the last 15 or so years prop bets are often made with the participant knowing they are an underdog, but using the potential hurt from losing money as the driver to self improve.
Jared Tendler calls this 'waiting for a crisis' and it is also why some players can only recapture motivation after a slump if they go on a downswing. I've spoke at length with Tendler about these sorts of bets, where the motivation to do them ironically is the motivation itself. These bets create focus and motivation that were lacking in the first place.
Treating the symptom not the cause?
Jared thinks this is a bad way to set a goal and instead we should strive for intrinsic motivation where it comes from within. This sort of bet, to Tendler, treats a symptom not a cause of an issue.
Anyone who has lost weight knows how easily it goes back on again. In most cases the contestants on the show The Biggest Loser put all their weight back on again. They embarked on an extreme and highly controlled way of losing weight which wasn't there when the show ended. By the same token when the bet is over, what is to stop the winner from going back to their old ways?
This is the reality for Deeb or anyone who wants to book a weight loss bet, however it's not a reason to do it. Deeb is a very professional poker player and a family man. If he even comes close to winning he might see the benefits to his career and his family if he is healthier. That's a gamble worth taking in my book.
Can Deeb do it? Let us know in the comments:
