In the roughly sixteen years since high school, I’ve grown in many ways. I’ve grown older. I’ve grown wiser. I’ve grown much more mature. I’ve also grown fatter, and I don’t like it. I have, over the years, resolved to do something about it. I finally hit on a great idea last summer that was inspired by behavioral economics and websites like StickK. I would constrain myself to a fairly rigorous exercise routine by pledging to give money to the Barack Obama and Mitt Romney campaigns if I didn’t work out as planned. A friend on Twitter pledged to give money to a food charity if I made it all the way through my program. I pledged $10 to Obama and $10 to Romney for every time I made it through the week without exercising according to plan.
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