Sara Lugger lost 104 pounds after she joined DietBet, a website that hosts private and public games where people can bet on their own weight loss.
Lugger, 34, had struggled with weight loss since the ninth grade when she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and doctors prescribed her prednisone. The steroid made it difficult for her to maintain her weight, but the medication was not to blame once she had her condition fixed with surgery in 2004.
"From there on out, I couldn't blame anything but my poor habits," told CNN.
Lugger had reached 350 pounds and a BMI of 50, which she deemed "unacceptable," when in 2013 she vowed to make some serious changes. Lugger signed up for DietBet with some encouragement from her friends who were successful with the site, and placed her first $5 bet.
Each game sets a goal, such as losing 4 percent of your body weight, and users who reach that goal split the winnings. And, to keep members accountable, photos are required of each weigh in.
Once Lugger got rid of all the junk food in her house, started using her elliptical machine for 30 minutes every morning, and strength trained with the physical therapy equipment at her office, the pounds came flying off.
"I'm kind of an all-or-nothing person," she said. "I can't (just) lean into things, or it doesn't happen."
After her first stint on the weight-loss site, she upped her bets to $10 and then $50 as she gained confidence - and lost 140 pounds.
"I have never seen her so driven and persistent on a goal," said her friend Travis Summerville, who lost 60 pounds using DietBet. "I don't know where that came from, but she chose a simple exercise regimen and diet style that worked well for her, and she just kept at it consistently."
Lugger went from a size 28 to a size 12, and is now maintaining her new healthy lifestyle with a 1,200-calorie diet.
