Frequently Asked Questions

It’s a free health and fitness accountability platform. You set a measurable goal, pledge a charity donation if you don’t hit it, and track your progress. We don’t tell you how to achieve your goal. We give you a reason to.

Not in the usual sense. You don’t bet against other people. You are betting on yourself. No money flows through the platform. We never handle any money. The charity pledge is a personal commitment between you and your chosen charity.

Yes. Starting a personal challenge is free, entering the founder free roll is free, and there is no cost to the participant at any point. We never handle any money.

Bet of Your Life was founded by Luke Paton. He spent three and a half years looking for someone to have a high-stakes weight loss bet with, proved the concept with two bets totalling £20,000 in stakes, and built BOYL so nobody else has to wait that long for accountability. The full story is on the website.

Three types. Weight Loss — set a target weight and a deadline. Physical Challenge — a specific physical goal like completing a number of press-ups in a day or running a distance in a target time. Activity Target — commit to a daily or weekly activity like 10,000 steps a day for three months.

You choose a charity and pledge an amount. If you miss the agreed target, you are expected to donate that pledge directly to the charity. The charity pledge is required for every challenge — it’s the meaningful incentive that makes this different from every other approach.

Pick an amount that will motivate you to achieve your goal. It should feel meaningful without being reckless. If the number doesn’t make you slightly uncomfortable, it’s probably not enough.

Any registered charity. UK or international. Pick one you genuinely care about — making it personal makes the pledge feel real. If you’re not sure, search justgiving.com for causes that matter to you. The charity must have a way to donate online so you can provide confirmation if your pledge is called.

Phase 1 is the target. Phase 2 proves you can maintain it. The structure removes the gap where old habits often return. When Phase 2 is complete, you start a new challenge. Always one ahead. That’s the Consistency pillar — the system doesn’t let you stop.

For weight loss, you set a further target. You don’t necessarily start again — you continue. Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3 with a new target, then Phase 4 and further targets. You could have ten targets within the same challenge over time. The point is there’s always a next phase. The gap between targets is where the weight comes back — the founder proved this himself every time a bet ended without the next one in place. Physical challenges and activity targets are standalone — you complete them and you’re done, though you can always create a new one if you want to keep going.

Yes. Weight loss challenges can use either weight or body fat percentage. Body fat targets show the implied weekly rate without the 1kg/week advisory.

No. There is no weighing in early. The weigh-ins will take place within the agreed timeframes.

No. The target is set at sign-up and locked when approved. That’s the point. If you could move the goalposts whenever things got hard, the commitment wouldn’t mean anything.

Yes. The founder is doing three simultaneously — weight loss, press-ups, and steps. You can run as many challenges as you want at the same time. Each one has its own check-in link, its own progress tracker, and its own charity pledge. They all appear on your profile.

Your challenge is reviewed before it goes live. We check the details are sensible and verify your starting information. You’ll receive an email when your challenge is approved and published, along with your unique check-in link. Please check your junk and spam folders — the approval email contains the link to your own unique page and it’s the only way to submit your check-ins.

Typically within 48 hours. If there’s an issue with your submission, we’ll email you to discuss.

You choose your check-in frequency when you set up your challenge — weekly or fortnightly. Missing a check-in doesn’t automatically fail your challenge, but regular check-ins keep you accountable and make your progress graph more useful. If you stop checking in entirely, it’s a sign the accountability isn’t working — which is exactly the problem BOYL is designed to solve.

Bet Of Your Life uses check-ins, evidence links, admin review, and public accountability. Weight loss challenges require video weigh-ins. Physical challenges require video evidence. Activity targets require screenshots from your fitness app or wearable. Ultimately, if people are not being honest they are only cheating themselves.

The founder reviews every challenge personally. The evidence you submit (video weigh-ins, screenshots, photos) is assessed against the target you set at sign-up. It’s straightforward — you either hit the number or you didn’t. There’s no subjectivity.

Your challenge is marked as missed, the outcome appears on the archive, and your pledged donation should be made to your chosen charity.

Phase 2 does not activate. Your Phase 1 charity pledge applies. You can start a new challenge immediately — your profile carries forward.

Your Phase 2 charity pledge applies. The weight loss achievement in Phase 1 still stands. But the maintenance didn’t hold, which is exactly why Phase 2 exists. Start again.

I cannot force you to make the payment but it would very much be against the spirit of what the site is trying to achieve. I come from an industry where the majority of individuals are upstanding and trustworthy. I would hope the same here. You will not be allowed to partake in future challenges if you don’t honour the charity pledge.

I expect people to record on video the making of the payment (excluding any card details). I also expect to see a confirmation or receipt of the paid amount.

If you want to quit within a challenge you will be expected to honour the pledge you have made. You can signal your intention to stop when it comes to selecting a further challenge.

If something serious happens, you decide the approach you want to take. Ultimately you are only wagering with yourself. I cannot force anyone to pay the charity pledge — that’s one of the differences with a site where actual wagers are struck. But if it is too easy to walk away, you won’t get what you hoped from it. Life will always throw things at you. How you respond is part of the challenge.

Bet Of Your Life does not provide medical advice or judge your method. Speak to a qualified clinician before using medication or making health decisions.

We recommend a maximum of 1kg per week. The platform displays a warning if your target implies a faster rate. This is advisory — you can still submit the challenge — but a sustainable target is more likely to succeed than an aggressive one.

If you have pre-existing medical conditions, take medication, are pregnant, or have a history of eating disorders, yes. BOYL is not a healthcare provider and does not provide medical, dietary, or fitness advice.

Use the £25k Challenge page and follow the entry requirements. For support, email betofyourlife@gmail.com with the subject line “£25k free entry”.

A decision was made that the money would initially be better spent generating interest in the concept. The more people who discover BOYL through the £25k challenge, the more people who start their own challenges with charity pledges — which means more money raised for charities further down the line. The founder’s other two challenges (press-ups and steps) both use the charity pledge mechanic directly.

It will be all recorded and it will be a completely random draw. One winner receives the full £25,000 by bank transfer shortly afterwards. The winner must be subscribed to the Bet Of Your Life YouTube channel and following both @golfpunter1 and @betofyourlife on Twitter/X at the time of settlement (unless they entered via the free email alternative). The same process applies to the founder’s other challenges (press-ups and steps).

Nobody wins. The money stays with the founder and a new challenge begins. That’s the best outcome — it means the system worked.

No. Anyone anywhere in the world can start their own challenge on the platform. For the £25k draw, international entries are accepted — if the winner is outside the UK, the payment will be made by bank transfer and any currency conversion or transfer fees are the winner’s responsibility.

Approved public challenges can show your name, target, progress, pledge, charity, dates, and outcome. Your actual weight figures are never shown on the public challenges listing — only on your individual challenge page and profile. Progress photos only appear on your profile page.

Full details in our Privacy Policy. In short: your data is used only to operate the platform, we never sell or share it for marketing, weight figures are never shown publicly, and you can request deletion at any time by emailing betofyourlife@gmail.com.

No account is required. Your private check-in link is sent after admin approval, and your profile is linked automatically by email address.