Ways To Get Paid For Weight Loss
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Key Takeaways
- There are apps, websites, and other online services that offer betting platforms that will pay you real money when you achieve your weight loss goals.
- Some of these are more reliable than others, so it’s essential to read reviews and ask for recommendations before committing to one of these programs.
- You can also participate in challenges with people you know that also want to lose weight. This includes family, friends, or work colleagues.
- Many health insurance or life insurance providers offer benefits for weight loss. Sometimes these benefits are actual cash reimbursements, but more often, they come in the form of lower premiums, additional benefits, or other incentives like point systems or travel vouchers.
Losing weight is a challenge at the best of times. Many of us have been in that position where we’re used to a particular lifestyle while we are young and have a fast metabolism. Then, suddenly, we get older, and the metabolism comes crashing down, taking our fit bodies with it. Losing weight takes motivation, and one of the best motivators is getting paid. So how can you get paid for weight loss?
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- Key Takeaways
- Get Paid For Losing Weight Using An App Or Website
- Weight Loss Challenges With Family & Friends
- Medical Insurance Benefits For Losing Weight
- Frequently Asked Questions
Get Paid For Losing Weight Using An App Or Website
Some online platforms like apps and websites were developed with one purpose in mind: to pay you to lose weight. Well, two objectives, to be honest, the other being to pay the platform’s creator. Remember this as you work through this list. Yes, you gain from losing, but so does the app’s creator, which is fair when you think about it. So let’s compare a few of these options.
Evidation
Evidation (previously known as Achievemint) is one of the highest-ranking apps on this list. You can download the app on both iPhone and Android through their respective app stores. Evidation has a rating of 4.6 stars on the iPhone App Store and four stars on the Google Play Store. This proves that it’s reliable and an excellent platform to use to get paid for losing weight.
After you’ve installed the app and activated your account, you can link Evidation with other health apps that you have on your phone. This includes the phone’s native health app to track things like your steps, heart rate, blood pressure, etc. There are more than twenty health and fitness apps that you can link with it, including the Garmin and Fitbit apps.
Evidation tracks many different health and fitness aspects like steps, food, meditation, sleep, and the number of miles you ride when cycling. The app also asks you to complete medical surveys and participate in health programs. This is how Evidation gets paid.
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You are rewarded in points for every health and fitness goal that you achieve. These points can be paid out in cash, either to you using Paypal or to a charity of your choice. Every 10,000 points are equal to $10.
You can download the Evidation app through iOS or download it on Android.
DietBet
DietBet is another popular platform that’s rated very highly on both the iOS and Android app stores. The difference with DietBet is that you participate in a betting community, either with friends and family or with complete strangers.
The app allows you to set your health or fitness goals for a specific time period. Once your goals are set, you are matched with others who must do similar workouts and achieve similar results in the same period of time. Everyone bets on their chances of achieving their results, which motivates everyone to put in as much work as possible to achieve their goals and win the bet.
DietBet works with fitness experts and trainers to create games for everyone to participate in. You simply install the app (or sign up on the website, if you prefer), choose your game, and place your bets. There is a seven-day money-back guarantee if you find that it’s not for you. But if you persevere and work on the program, you could win your bet and more back.
DietBet has a 4.6-star rating on Google Play and 4.8 stars on the iPhone App Store. It is even more highly rated than Evidation, which is excellent, and your earning potential is even higher since it is bet-based. However, so are your chances of losing money, so keep it within safe and responsible limits, and work hard to achieve your goals.
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DietBet has two sister apps, called RunBet and StepBet, that focus on goals for running or steps if that’s more to your liking.
You can download the DietBet app through iOS or download it on Android.
HealthyWage
HealthyWage has more than a decade’s worth of experience in paying people for reaching their weight loss goals. As such, it has an excellent reputation, and its 4.6-star rating on Google Play Store and 4.8 on Apple App Store further confirms this. HealthyWage also works on a betting system, but a bit differently from DietBet.
The first platform you can use in HealthyWage is the so-called “HealthyWager,” where you use a calculator to determine your bet amount and how much you can win by reaching a particular goal. You then commit to the point where you are satisfied and get to work.
You can also participate in challenges with groups of five people. Prize money is split between the five participants, with the winner of 1st place getting $10,000! You may also choose to compete in jackpot challenges and step challenges, where the jackpot amount is divided between the participants based on their performance and achievements.
HealthyWage has an active community that motivates, encourages, and guides each participant. The community itself consists of participants like yourself who have experienced the system first-hand.
According to HealthyWage’s website, the average amount they payout as a single prize is about $1,138. That is a pretty good amount of money by any standard. Remember that, with this being an average, half of their payouts are less than that. But equally valid is that the other half is higher. According to that statistic, HealthyWage is an excellent way to earn some money for losing weight!
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You can find out more and use the calculator here.
The Android App can be downloaded here. For the iOS App, go here.
stickK
This app is strange, and not just because you can’t type the name without your autocorrect function freaking out. stickK is very different from any of the other options we’ve looked at so far.
First, stickK is not a weight loss app. Its focus is on goal setting and motivation for achieving those goals. As such, weight loss can be one of those goals, so it is still effective. On the other hand, it does not really pay you to lose weight, though there is a monetary value attached, so we include it in this list.
stickK guides you through specific steps:
- Set your goal. The goal must be clearly defined and with a specific achievement date attached to it. Goals can be anything from health and fitness to career or study goals. Even family, money, or hobby goals can be set.
- Get a Referee. This is someone that you nominate to confirm that your progress reports are accurate and that you are indeed achieving the goals you’ve set. They are an accountability partner, and stickK will take their word as the final verdict.
- Increase the stakes by betting money on your achievement of the goal. This must be an amount of money that you will miss. You have to feel the impact of the money you invest for it to make a difference and be an effective motivator. At this point, you also choose where the money should go if you don’t achieve your goal.
- When the due date arrives, both you and the Referee must report on your achievement. If you achieved your goal, you get your money back. If you don’t achieve it, the money goes to the person or organization you chose in step three.
The choice of the recipient can be any of the following:
- A person or charity of your choice (there are more than 15 charities to choose from). If you select a person, it can be any one person that you prefer.
- You can donate the money to stickK. As they say, it will help them keep the lights on.
- Or, the option that stickK strongly recommends: an Anti-Charity. They suggest that you choose a person or organization you despise and whose views you passionately oppose. This adds another layer of motivation to the process, making quite a considerable difference in your chances of achieving your goal!
So even though stickK does not truly pay you for weight loss, monetary value and potential loss are involved, which is a very effective motivator. Add to that the possibility that your money could be going to someone you can’t stand, and it will be hard to find a better way to stay motivated!
You can download the stickK app through iOS or download it on Android.
myWalgreens
Walgreens has a Balance Rewards system, called simply “myWalgreens.” It is a platform that pays you in points for everything that you spend at Walgreens, including medication and when you get your prescriptions filled. You simply swipe your rewards card and get rewarded with points for whatever you do or buy at Walgreens.
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You can convert these points to cash that you can spend at Walgreens at very much the same rate as Evidation, which is $1 for every 1,000 points. This may not appear to be a lot, but the points add up rapidly, and before you know it, you will have some extra money to spend.
So what does this have to do with weight loss? Nothing directly. But Walgreens rewards their customers for healthy, balanced living. You get more points when purchasing certain healthy-living products than you would on other products. This way, if you are buying products that will assist you in living healthy (which could include weight loss), you will get more rewards.
The crucial thing is to keep your eye on Walgreens’ catalogs and in-store advertisements. They will often indicate that a specific product counts for double points because it is a healthy living product. Go for those offers because they are usually specially selected for the health and potential weight-loss benefits they offer.
Though myWalgreens is not an all-in-one weight loss solution like some of the other options on this list, it works exceptionally well as an add-on to the other ones. Buying healthy living products from Walgreens will pay you in extra Walgreens rewards points, while correctly using the product could help you achieve your goal with one of the other apps, leading to a bigger payout.
You can find out more about myWalgreens and its benefits by going to this website.
Weight Loss Challenges With Family & Friends
There’s not a huge chance of you being the only person in your immediate circle of influence who wants to lose some weight. A family member, work colleague, or friend may also be looking for a sound system and some added motivation to shake off the excess weight. This could be perfect for both (or all) of you to “invest” some money into your weight loss venture.
Finding Someone To Partner With
The first challenge is identifying who could partner up with you in this mission. This may be more difficult than it should be since many people will be offended if you simply approach them with a question like, “Would you like to lose some weight with me?” The insinuation that they are “fat” or “overweight” may just add to their already fragile self-image, and you could lose a friend.
A much easier and safer way is during casual conversation. A barbecue is an excellent time to raise the topic by saying something along the lines of “I really need to lose this extra weight.” If they respond with a comment suggesting that they also want to lose weight, you’re in the clear, and you can now safely bring up your idea.
How The Weight Loss Plan Works
You need a group of people that are easily managed. Two or more are perfect, but don’t go too much over five people in your team for easy management. If you have more than ten names of people who want to participate, split them into two separate groups instead. But whatever works for you is fine.
Decide on an amount of money that must be paid beforehand. Everyone contributes this amount of money. It must be enough to motivate everyone to put in the effort into their exercise routine, but not so high that it will bankrupt those who don’t win the challenge. Then take everyone’s individual weight and make a note of it while everyone is present for accountability purposes.
Next, it’s essential to determine your goals individually and as a team. It helps if you sort those with similar goals into their own groups. Either way, the amount of weight that each person needs to lose must be converted into a realistically achievable percentage within the goal time period. This is to keep it fair for all involved.
Now the work begins, and you all do your own thing to achieve your goals. It’s good to have some experts involved who can help guide and motivate all the team members. It’s also crucial to keep in mind that, though you are competing against one another, you are also a team working towards the same goal, so mutual encouragement and support are vital to the program’s success.
On the target date, everyone is to retake their weight, with all the other members present. Then the total amount of money that everyone paid is split based on the percentage of weight that each individual managed to lose. The biggest loser gets the most money, etc. The process can then be repeated if you so choose.
This system can be combined with one of the apps mentioned earlier, like DietBet, to make the admin easier for everyone involved.
Medical Insurance Benefits For Losing Weight
Medical insurance providers can only gain from you losing weight. Being overweight is generally indicative of an unhealthy lifestyle or an existing medical condition, both of which could lead to the insurance company having to pay out more money for any medical procedures you may have to undergo.
With this in mind, many medical insurance providers worldwide have started building incentives into their healthcare plans to motivate and encourage you to live a healthier lifestyle and lose weight in the process. These incentives usually come in three forms:
Higher Premiums For Unhealthy Living
When you apply for your medical insurance (and usually your life insurance as well), you are sent for a medical check-up. If they find that you are overweight or obese or have other unhealthy habits like smoking or excessive drinking, the insurance company may choose to adjust your premiums accordingly.
They do this both to cover additional costs that you may incur for them through your unhealthy lifestyle and motivate you to improve your lifestyle and live healthier.
Once you’ve lost weight, you can contact your medical insurance provider with evidence of your new healthier lifestyle (often followed by another check-up) and get a reduced premium, saving you money.
Medical Insurance Reimbursements
Some medical insurance providers, like Trinity Health, offer reimbursements for healthy living and following non-surgical weight loss programs. This includes doctor-prescribed medication or treatment programs, weight-loss counseling, and other proven and certified weight loss methods.
If you can prove that you’ve been using the system and that it’s had results, the medical insurance provider will refund the costs of the programs and medication. Some will even reward you with some more than what you paid as a reward for taking care of your health.
Health Benefit Point System
Many medical insurance providers offer a similar system to the myWalgreens system we looked at earlier. You get rewarded with some kind of points when you prove that you’re living a healthy lifestyle.
For example, some providers like Oscar have an app that you can install on your smartphone and link with your smartwatch or fitness watch to track your steps, heart rate, sleep patterns, and other factors that indicate when you’re exercising. You can set goals on those apps, and once you’ve achieved the goals, you are rewarded in points.
The points can often be used to reward yourself in different ways, like free movie tickets, paying for your Netflix subscription, paying for plane tickets and travel, or even giving you a free iPhone each year when you’ve reached your goals. Oscar specifically gives you Amazon gift cards as a reward.
It’s worth contacting your medical insurance provider and asking them if they offer any benefits for weight loss and what they can do for you. If they don’t, maybe it’s time to move to someone who will.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. All of the methods have been proven and used by many people to lose weight and to get paid (in some form) by using them. The effectiveness ranges from one method to the next, though. Generally speaking, the apps and the friends and family challenges work best since they have the most active motivation and accountability systems in place.
Some of the apps claim a 51% success rate or more. This means that almost 50% of the people who use them still don’t manage to lose weight, simply because they don’t use the system as they should. That’s the problem with motivation: your primary source of inspiration is yourself. If you don’t truly desire to lose weight, no system will really work for you with any lasting effect.
It differs from platform to platform. Medical insurance providers reward you because they won’t spend as much money paying for your medical bills, so they have some surplus that they give back to you as their customer to reward you for saving them money.
The challenges and betting apps use your own money to reward you. They will combine the money paid by everyone who’s part of your group into one combined sum that they then split up between the participants who achieved their goals or proved that they are actively working towards them.
Some of the apps, like Evidation, use medical and scientific research to pay you. As you submit medical and health data, combined with the occasional surveys they ask you to complete, this information is sold to medical and scientific institutions to analyze for research purposes (all anonymously). They then share this money with you as a reward.
Yes, every one of these apps and systems is run by a business that’s in it to make money. That’s what business is about, after all. So, it’s crucial to be mindful of this as it has led to a lot of mistrust, especially of betting apps.
When you bet an amount of money on your goals, that money is added to the total sum of money paid by everyone in your group. When all five of you achieve your goals, the money is split between all five of you, and the business loses out on the deal. So, in reality, while you’re all betting that you will lose weight, the company is betting that one or more of you won’t push through.
Unfortunately, that is a safe bet for them; there’s almost always someone who isn’t committed enough to complete the challenge. That person loses their share of the money, and the business benefits from that.
Keep this in mind when you sign up. Be 100% committed to your mission. Focus on the outcome. Do what you have to do to complete your challenge and lose that weight. That’s the only way to ensure that you’re the one that’s gaining the most from this and walking away as the victor.