Back in July, I gave myself 99 days to do two things: win $500K in net profit at poker and get below 80 kg (176.4 lb). I joked that I wasn’t sure which goal was less realistic.
We now have a partial answer. The scales say 79.70 kg (175.7 lb). I haven’t seen a number like that since university. The weight part of the challenge is complete.
Poker currently says $103,256. So that’s one goal down, with only a casual $397K or so left on the other. Fortunately, there are still eight days 😂
I started by telling ChatGPT the plan
I gave it my current weight, target weight and timeframe. It helped estimate calories and macros. Then I explained what food we normally have at home, and we used that to put together a meal plan.
Very approximate. A bit like my button 3-bet range. But you can win a final table without playing 100% GTO. Apparently, I could win this part of the challenge without perfectly precise calorie calculations, too.
The useful part was having something I could apply to ordinary meals. I didn’t need a completely separate menu; I needed a workable plan built around food I already ate.
The biggest discovery was that I could actually eat enough
My biggest discovery was that I could eat enough normal food to feel satisfied, stay in a calorie deficit and still lose weight. That was what surprised me most. I didn’t need to starve. I needed to plan my meals properly.
Most meals were at home. I weighed the food, photographed it and sent it to ChatGPT to help estimate what I was eating across the day.
Rice, meat and fish were regulars. Restaurant steaks and croissants also made appearances. I tried to fit them into my calorie budget rather than put everything enjoyable on hold until the challenge ended.
And the gym? I barely went. Most of my exercise was resistance bands and movement at home. Spending hours on cardio while in a calorie deficit felt difficult, so that wasn’t what I built the plan around.
That’s how this challenge worked for me: ordinary food, approximate tracking and fairly infrequent gym visits. No secret training montage to reveal.
What the chart actually shows
The first displayed weight on my July–October chart is 85.8 kg (189.2 lb). The final point is 79.7 kg (175.7 lb): a drop of 6.1 kg (13.4 lb) over the period shown.
My favourite part is the seven at the front 🙂
Poker hasn’t agreed to the schedule yet
Roughly $100K over 90 days is a good result. Unfortunately, I wrote $500K in the challenge rules, and the rules haven’t quietly edited themselves.
The difference has been interesting. I found my weight progress much easier to plan and influence directly. In poker, better preparation and decisions improve my chances. They don’t guarantee a particular profit by a particular date.
Variance never signed my challenge agreement.
There are still eight days until 31 October, and GGMillion$ is ahead. The poker result isn’t final yet.
For now, the scales have delivered. Poker still has time to reply.