Ali Vincent's Blog

Just packing up my hotel room to head to the airport to fly to Spokane, WA. to start my Mind, Body, Sole Tour with Famous Footwear.  I can't tell you how excited I am to hit the road running.  I remember what it felt like to want so much more than I was creating in my life but being so SCARED to just get started.  To start you have to 1st admit it :) and 2nd do something about it :)  I know easier said than done, that's why I teamed up with Famous Footwear.  They are giving me the opportunity to travel to meet all of you and just start moving.  So as much as you can PLEASE spread the word to look for me in a town or city near you only by us taking advantage of the opportunities will they continue to be available.  We all deserve to live the life we love, share yours with me and I will share mine with you.  I hope to meet every single one of you someday.... it's a big goal however I know I will accomplish it someday!

Everything’s bigger in Texas.  For years I know I as many other Americans and probably those who don’t even know where Texas is around the world have even heard that being spouted at least once or twice in their lifetime.  I can only imagine whoever came up with that campaign slogan for our largest state is kicking themselves right about now.  Yes Texas is all about being proud to be from our largest state and I can understand that.  I also know and believe that our subconscious mind HEAR’s EXACTLY what we say.  So it does not surprise me that Texas is one of the states in America that has one of the highest obesity rates.  I mean think about it we as American have issues, it’s almost confusing we just want to have something that we can attach ourselves to whether it’s part of being a member of a winning team, from a state that have a team in the Superbowl, coming from a state that has the most Olympic athletes, most brave Americans serving our country, from a state the has the most eco friendly programs, I don’t know what makes you feel proud all I know is that is almost a requirement of being American, or at least human. 

We also have the issue of always getting ‘more’ I remember the first time I went to this restaurant from Texas that served a whole apple as the garnish on my plate for my dinner.  At the time I thought it was great so much food for so little money.  The problem was that after going time and time again, I ate more and more of what was on my plate, until the time came where I know longer took home left over’s.  Sure at first it was fun and the food was great but over time my subconscious thought process from when I was younger to ‘finish everything on my plate’ found a way to do what it had always been told.

My wish is that we all start thinking about what we are telling ourselves subconsciously to create for ourselves or what we just let sneak into our thought processes by hearing it over and over again.

The Biggest Loser has realized the impact it has on us the American people and also has begun to understand that if they don’t take action who will.  Strength is going for something even if the odds are stacked against you.  I am proud of being a part of the Biggest Loser family and I love watching along with you the difference they are creating.  It would be easy to just sit back and continually create the amazing results for just those on the show at the Biggest Loser campus but that is not what it’s about.  It’s about getting out there hitting the streets and advocating you too can do it!

It takes a lot of courage to come out to participate and tell the truth in front of the world to see, from the young girl who mustered the strength to stand in front of her whole school and say she never thought she was worth feeling good about herself.  You and I know kids are not nice but you get to the point in your life that the possibility of ridicule is worth the possibility for change.  As she stood and started to share with Jillian tears started forming in my eyes because we got to witness a moment in her life where she stood up for herself and refused to not be seen anymore.  Abby continue to do what you are doing you have made a huge difference and will continue to. 

And to see all those that responded to the radio call out what amazing experience.  I have to tell you I use to be so scared to run.  I wanted to do a 5k so badly but didn’t think I could so I never even found out what it would take.  I am so proud of all the people that came out to do the Biggest Loser 5k.  I loved how all the contestants put themselves out there to be in the moment with all these people.  From Daris letting his group know that he had a personal goal for the 5k but would be back to finish with them, to O’Neal showing and being there communicating the real feeling behind being scared, to Koli running back and forth just sharing and talking with everyone, the was an amazing opportunity for everyone involved especially the people of Texas to just get started and now they have memberships at 24 Hour Fitness (my gymJ).  Keep your eyes open and your twitter on because this summer I am going on the Mind, Body, Sole tour with Famous Footwear doing exactly what we just saw this week on the Biggest Loser.  Come get started with me you never know when I’ll be in your neighborhood!

What an amazing week and with each weeks end we say goodbye to another contestant we have fallen in love with.  There was no question this week who was going home after both O’Neal and Sunshine fell below the yellow line.  O’Neal has made such a difference in so many of the contestants lives and ours as well, you will be missed Unc!

I hope that this week has inspired all of you out there who want something more to have the courage to stand up and start.  It is so important to check in and make sure our thoughts and thought processes are aligned with our goal, what are you letting yourselves believe based on the your affirmations/mantras?  Are they benefiting you or just something you are use to?

Until next week,

Ali xo

I can't believe it is the start of another season.  The Biggest Loser just seems to be getting bigger and better every season, but is that really a good thing?  I love the stories that each of the contestants have the courage to share, mostly because I get to hear from you the reader or fan of the show how you relate to one contestant or another on some level.  Most of us have someone in our life that reminds us Ashley or Stephanie, the girl who has such a beautiful face, or Daris or Michael, the funny guy or friend that everyone always wants to have around, or Sam or Koli, the jock that was always encouraged to just put on the weight to hold the line and win the game.  When though was the last time each of us stopped to talk to them and ask them what they really want in life, or tell the truth ourselves about what we want in our life. 

This season as we watch another cast of the Biggest Loser contestants make the impossible possible, let's do the same!  Set a huge goal that scares you silly, for me I have committed to do the Boston Marathon.  I don't know if your goal will be a weight loss goal, a relationship goal, a career goal or a fitness goal but it MUST scare you even to actually just voice it.  Once you have committed and voiced your goal, set a plan of action and tell everyone you know.  The more people you tell the more people you have looking out for you and ways to help you create your goals.  As we watch this week on the Biggest Loser the contestants for the first time ever weighed in, in front of their family, friends, and neighbors, talk about scary!  You may not stand in front of everyone you know in your sports bra and biker shorts( which I doubt even Kim Kardashian would look good in) but check-in to where you are at and tell the truth as to where you want to go.  You must know where point A is before you can ever get to point B.  Be committed to your goal, NOT what it"s "suppose" to look like. 

Once you have figured that out, like the contestants on the show, what are you going to do when life throws you a curve ball?  We all know it's bound to happen, it's just a matter of when.  I doubt that this season any of the contestants had any idea that two teams would be eliminated before they even saw inside the ranch.  I mean come on I would have been right their with the yellow team O'Neal & Sunshine and the blue team Cherita & Victoria.  My mother and I were in last place for our first challenge, I about died when Alison Sweeney said " ... the last two teams to finish the challenge of cycling 26.2 miles would be eliminated and asked leave the Biggest Loser campus immediately."  I know for a fact NO NONE saw that coming, talk about a set back.  I have faith that each of them will do amazing @ home and get back for their chance on campus.  The Yellow team was my mom & partner's favorite was the yellow team.

The dreaded part of each week is the elimination, I have to tell you guys it is HORRIBLE to be forced to pick a person you barely know from another so it makes it easier when someone steps up to go home.  Although I often wonder if that is part of their "stuff" to step up and be the one sacrificing the opportunity.  Good Luck James, I know that John will miss you as well as America looks forward to seeing you as the cuter twin :)

Until next week and if you do nothing else this week, just start writing everything you eat and do down,

xo Ali

Some couples are definitely starting to stand out!

I know that this week was a hard one for John being the first and only person on campus without a partner. Especially after Jillian took him on to make sure he was ok and we found out that he has always or at least for a good part of his life felt cursed by loss. First his father, then his grandmother and then his older sister all dying 3 months after one another. I can only imagine when he walked back into the house after the elimination that those thoughts and thoughts of being cursed must have been weighing heavy on his mind.

It's important that when we are dealing with such major issues that we acknowledge and try to understand who we are in the moments that deplete us so that we move through them and forward. We have to be willing to take a look at how we process and digest the feelings of helplessness so that we can take the steps to work through them. Even if it comes down to taking a mallet to a tractor tire!

One of the most dumbfounding and hard things to look at when being on the Biggest Loser ranch is the point that we have allowed ourselves to get to, not only appearance wise, but also medically. The Biggest Loser literally saves our lives!

Like Michael, often we gain weight gradually and don't realize how much weight we are carrying around. Until we find ourselves declining party invitations where we might have to wear a swimsuit or costume. Or we lose relationships that we care about or never even give ourselves a chance to experience. Then there comes a day, whether you are on the biggest loser ranch or not, where you experience a situation that is right in your face and someone that never has never experienced your pain is carrying around your weight. It is in that moment that your realize that you can no longer exist as you have. Or maybe it takes Dr. H going to your house and telling your loved ones that you are on your way to sudden death if your day to day doesn't change, either way it is a huge wake up call and you are no longer the same.

With that in mind you do everything you can to stay on the Biggest loser ranch as long as you can, only to come to a challenge where everything that scares you is also right in your face. Talk about a difficult week! Maria had it all come up and let her fears get the best of her. YES it was scary for her, with her fear of water, to cross a pool on a balance beam with the possibility of falling in, only to psyche herself out. Not only did she have to be rushed to the hospital but also Michael went with her, only to be confronted with his own issues by Bob and Jill. Often we find ourselves being the biggest enablers to the ones that we love.

Probably one of my most favorite Biggest Loser moments was with Jillian's next move. Yes she went, as we all know her to, and brought up the issues that we all see but often the contestants don't and put Maria in the pool. Not only was she in the water that caused her and Michael to receive a 2 pound disadvantage at the weigh in but also a fear that has represented so many areas of her life that she has allowed herself to be held back by. It was just an example of so many ways that she has let her fears hold her back from her true self.

With that disadvantage I think we all thought that the white team would fall below the yellow line, only to find out that the red team, or Melissa in particular, gained a pound! I know and I get it, it's the second week but I'm sorry, I have been on ranch and you can not tell me that there was not some game play with anyone who has immunity and gains weight.. it is IMPOSSIBLE unless you "fix" it!

I was sorry to see the purple team fall below the yellow line but was proud and glad that Patti stepped up and let her daughter Stephanie stay on the campus so that she has the opportunity to experience her greatness on her own.

So is it game play that works? Well it did this week for Melissa. Or is it facing your fears that makes a difference for a lifetime?

Until next week, Ali XO

I remember when I was on the Biggest Loser campus and eliminated my 4th week, boy did I feel completely lost!  I remember sitting on the airplane early the next morning still in a fog of sleep deprivation and shock, thinking to myself "What in the hell am I going to do?  Will I be able to figure this out?  Did I learn enough?"  I know as much as I'm sure the contestants were overwhelmed with fear of communicating the "right" stuff from Bob and Jillian to their team mates aka students this week.  I mean come on Bob and Jill are the best at what they do!  Not only have they both been doing this for years in their lives as trainers but the have been the masterminds behind the success of the Biggest Loser and taking massive amounts of weight off of typically sedentary people in the matter of months.  They have to know something we don't right?  WRONG!

There are no new truths, period end of story.  There are simply different moments in time that we allow ourselves to hear them.  In regards to diet and exercise you simply have to burn more the then you intake.  In Laments terms or as Denzel Washington says in Philadelphia "explain it to me like I'm a two year old" you need to be active/exercise more than you eat in regards to calories.  The easiest way for me to understand it is thinking of calories as a fuel source and when I was on the Biggest Loser I had lots of extra fuel I was caring around I just needed to find ways to use it up :)

I thought the teachers and students did an amazing job this week especially because we are dealing with family members and as Jillian has continuously said the contestants often bring their enablers to campus with them.  Is that something we like to hear?  Absolutely not!  But it doesn't change it from being true.  I think that the green team Miggy and Migdalia came up against that the most this week.  It's hard to feel like you are always taking care of your mom, trust me I know.  I also know that it's even harder to let go of that role that Migdalia has lived with for the majority of her life and then be willing to admit and take a look at her issues and why she is so unhappy.  I think that the hardest part of admitting that you are unhappy is also acknowledging that you have no idea how to change that and becoming happy.  I mean really, how do you just decide to be happy?  You don't.  But what you can do is start celebrating the positive changes in your life and eventually it shifts your entire being into true happiness, this I too know!  Magdalia your mom is right you have done the hardest part now let people love you as you learn to love yourself.

I about fell out of my chair when I saw the expressions on the contestants faces particularly the white team Micheal and Maria when Alison said that they would not be picking another teams colored ribbon to unravel blindfolded in the playground but their own.  It was seconds after Micheal walked back to where everyone was standing saying "I feel sorry for whoever has the white ribbon".  I think that is one of the reasons I love Micheal, he just makes me smile and laugh.  Unfortunately I think that care free sort of attitude has unfortunately led to some unwanted judgement from some of the other players on campus.

As Koli and Sam, the grey team, won the challenge given the the coveted immunity it also gave them the power to switch up the game at the weigh in and turn the tables on one teams teacher and student roles causing everyone to be on their toes and ready for weigh-in even if their weight doesn't not count for the yellow line.  After all that's what it's all about not the yellow line so of course you know that I loved that Sam and Koli still gave it everything they had to lose weight even though the could have played the game like the red team seems to be doing week after week.  Melissa didn't sit back and take it from Bob and Jill when they called her game play out but honestly, I've been there and it does seem like the only obvious explanation.  Had Koli and Sam not wanted to call Micheal out based on their judgement of his work ethic they could have actually caught a game player.  Or maybe they used Micheal as a way out, knowing that the red team was going to throw the weigh-in, is there a deal in the works?  Only time will tell and thank GOD Micheal is still on campus and I think it's good for him to figure out who he is as a man with out the comfort of his mom. 

Did Maria pay the ultimate price for an alliance between grey and red?

Until next week- xo

ali

It seems as if Melissa is stacking all of the cards against her. Immunity is what feels priceless on the Biggest Loser campus, however this week I’m not sure it’s worth it especially with the reaction of Miggy and Migdalia! Two pounds against anyone seems like a death sentence but particularly with the green team and man are they ticked. I think that the stress I would have after giving them that penalty would be enough stress for me to personally create enough Cortizol in my body to prevent me from losing any weight. If there was one week that I honestly think Melissa’s body might hold on to weight, this would be it J

What a Challenge, the grey team kicked some serious butt! I love when the contestants give it their all not receive immunity or cash prize but to hear there voices of their loved ones. At this point on campus none of the contestants have heard from their families since they left them after that original weigh in their home towns and trust me when I say it makes a difference. Although the red team seems to have been causing some problems on campus, mostly for themselves I might add, I was glad that Koli and Sam gave them a phone call home so that they might get to talk to their kids for the children’s sake. Can you imagine how season after season there is always at least 1 family who both parents go to the Biggest Loser and the children stay home. I think the kids are the heroes in that equation. I was glad the Miggy and Migdalia got to call home too particularly for Migdalia. We have seen her struggle with her own walls and demons opf self-worth in these few short weeks on campus. I think that the fact that her partner and lover, her husband will not be home but sent off to serve our country during her time on campus is weigh particularly heavy on her heart and he thoughts and her shoulders. I imagine that she is feeling the worry of her kids feeling left by her and than before she gets to come home and show them that she did not leave them but just went to take care of herself, their dad will be sent away with neither of them left to hold and console them. For me it’s different then Lance and Melissa leaving their kids because they know for sure both of them will be returning and as much as we might pray for all our soldier return home safely the reality is that not all do. So my heart sank for Migdalia as she talked to her family and actually voiced the words that she wants to go home, because I believe her. I know she is scared of her own issues but that is not why I believe she wants to go home, it’s a tough feeling that I’m sure she struggles with daily since she decided to try out for the show.

All I can say and say it loud and clear, after watching the last chance workout, I would not want to be walking into that weigh in, actually from the moment the penalties were handed out from the pop challenge I think I’ve been a little on edge I must admit.

Don’t you just love how Ali has to put different things so that tensions rise? I mean come one calling Lance and Melissa out “….. Because of you John didn’t have access to the gym this week, because of you Michael won’t have a vote at tonight’s elimination and because of you Miggy and Migdalaia will have a 2 pound disadvantage this week” Hold on to your hats ladies and gentlemen it’s almost like the fight you heard about at lunch time in Junior High school that was going to happen after school by the baseball field, remember that feeling?

And then she did it Melissa opened her mouth and had to be “right” about her choices and then she goes walking up to the scale to be “right” again. For crying out loud does she not get it, she even said it as she walked up to the scale “there will be no yelling tonight“

WHAT PART DOES MELISSA NOT UNDERSTAND THAT SUDDENLY LOSING WEIGHT THE WEEK THAT THE PEER PRESSURE IS ON, EVEN IF SHE HAD IMMUNITY, DOES NOT PROVE THAT THIS WEEK HER BODY FINALLY GOT IT? INSTEAD IT VARRIFIES THAT HER SUDDEN WEIGHT LOSS SHOWSTHAT SHE HAS BEEN THROWING THE PREVIOUS WEIGH-INS AND LYING ABOUT IT!!!!!

What an awkward energy in the weigh-in tonight. Can I just say all that aside, I love Michael J Alright it comes down to it the pink team or the green team and it doesn’t even matter that the green team would have fallen below on their own because the focus was not on them doing the best this week but to prove something. Anytime we attempt to something to for someone else and not for ourselves, it just doesn’t work! I know this because have lived both sides of the coin.

I must say I’m not surprised on one level of Migdalia wanting to go home, I was a little taken back by the abrupt way she went about her sharing with the group. I must also say I wish she hadn’t done it and I hope that she will find her way at home and will find solace in the few days she might have with her husband. Give him lots of hugs and kisses from all us for sharing you with us and thank him for serving our country!

Until next week- Ali xo

Do you think you would be on the Biggest Loser campus if you had it all figured out? How to play the game …. Of life?

The definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over again and expect a different result. I think maybe they should put a sign that reads that on the door of the red teams room so they can see it everyday.

Immunity is priceless on the Biggest Loser campus because it is an automatic guarantee to be on campus one additional week. Often when contestants on the campus receive immunity they will try to slow down the weight loss process so that the following week when they do not have immunity and have to weigh in they will be able to post a large number on the scale that will hopefully keep them above the yellow line. It is virtually impossible to be on campus working out the number of hours contestants are given to work out and not lose an extraordinary amount of weight. Yes there are weeks that maybe your body resist and holds on a few days longer but if you are doing the work it will drop that following week. So when Bob and Jill see contestants who have immunity consistently and consistently have a low number of loss on the scale a red flag pops up and talk starts occurring about “throwing the weigh in”.

What does that mean exactly?

Well the rules of the Biggest Loser are if a contestant or team receive immunity they will not be eligible for elimination even if they have the lowest percentage of weight loss for that week as long as they DO NOT gain weight. If the contestant or team gains weight their immunity will be taken away and they are eligible for elimination. We must remember as much as the Biggest Loser has changed my life and so many of us who have been on the show or watched the show it is still a game show with distinct rules. And in any game with rules that are stated competitors try to strategize as to give themselves the best opportunity of success while still follow the rules, we see it all over the place so why is it so surprising when we see it on the Biggest Loser campus? It’s NOT! What is surprising is when a contestant or a team thinks they know best and do not share with their coach aka trainer their game plan so that everybody can be on board and to top things off LIE about it.

Melissa was so offended that Bob and Jillian called her out while she was on the scale that she refused to budge or possibly look at what we all saw. Her immediate defensiveness to the situation also led us all to question the situation and plant seeds did she or didn’t she throw the weigh-in? Some of you out there who are reading this might be thinking to yourself ‘well I got the immunity rules but how does that mean she threw the weigh in?” A contestant who knows they will not be eligible for elimination can throw a weigh-in a couple different ways.

One option would be they can just give their body a break a little, with less pressure on them to actually lose weight. Maybe they still work out and perform for Bob and Jill when they are being trained but since they know the minimum they have to do is just stay the same weight as the previous week, they might not do all their homework. Or they might not count all their calories or go over their budgets a little. Or maybe they stay up late as if they are on vacation.

Or another option the one that a true game player does is stay in more control then the first option and tracks everything to a T. This contestant has done their homework and knows that 3500 calories equals a pound. So as long as the track the amount they are eating and write down how many they are burning based on their BodyBugg they should know with in a pound or two what their anticipated weight loss would be. This contestant is so in the game that they risk everything by manipulating the situation versus just working their butts off every given chance and see where the cards fall, they bet everything. And with their strategy in play and their math right they drink water right before they get on the scale! Knowing that the water will register as weight and not show their real weight loss till the following week when they have to stay above the yellow line. Why is this risky? Because if your calculations are off you could drink too much and show a gain on the scale then your immunity will be stripped away and you are eligible for elimination.

I anticipate this week although the Red team Melissa and Lance received immunity in the pop challenge, Melissa after having so much confrontation in regards to her weight loss will register a significant number on the scale. Unfortunately this will only confirm Bob and Jillian’s suspicions that she has been manipulating the weigh-in’s.

I’m anxious to see the out come this week with the penalties in play from the pop challenge. I imagine that the Biggest Loser household is not a fun place to be with tensions running high and the pressure to stay on campus builds. I think that Miggy and Migdalia should try and put their anger from the 2 pound penalty behind them this week and just focus on what they can control and take advantage of every single minute on campus. They are going to have to pull out all the stops to stay above the yellow line this week.

Even though the Red team will be on campus another week because of their immunity did they really win this week? If you are lying and staying on campus are you more of a winner then the fighter that goes home?

Until next week,

Ali xo

I love The Biggest Loser, I mean talk about opportunities of a life time. I would have loved to have gone to the Olympic Training facility. My mom started crying when she watched this weeks episode. To be amongst those who dedicate their entire lives to a dream is an amazing experience. I was a nationally, internationally ranked synchronized swimmer but I quit before ever making it to the Olympics and it was definitely always something I regretted and wasn’t sure I would have ever made it past. It wasn’t until I stepped foot on the Biggest Loser campus that I felt like I did when I was an athlete, it was then that I truly realized that my sport didn’t make me an athlete who I was, was an athlete! So minute by minute I found my way back to the mindset that allows us to create and perform amazing tasks that feel impossible to many.

The success of an athlete is not measured by the amount of times the athlete wins but by the ability to overcome amazing odds. The beauty of the Biggest Loser is that now many Americans who maybe would have never heard some of the amazing stories of these Olympians can see that no matter what the obstacles you may face in your life you too can create greatness.

It is amazing to see and think as food as something other than pleasure. The Olympian is always focused on one goal and that is being the best that they can be and ALL things are done for that purpose. Nutrition is essential for those who train with such intensity but also for those with any physical goals no matter how small or big you might think of them as. When you are changing your lifestyle to a healthy one from a sedentary one it is equally as important to start thinking as food as fuel for a greater purpose and start filling are needs of gratification in other ways. Jillian is the first to say that it is just as important to make sure you are getting enough of the right calories in your body as it is to limit them, you must EAT to lose weight!

What a challenging week for the contestants to not only wrap their heads around competing as individuals but also to worry about a yellow and RED line. I think that this is the week if ever to have a red line, often you only get that one chance to perform or not, get the results or don’t. The Olympians train their entire lives for that one chance on the ice or slopes, they don’t have the opportunity to plea their case. It doesn’t seem fair but often that is the way it works so this week the contestants have to do everything they can and then some.

The advantages won from the pop challenge didn’t end up being such an advantage after all. These types of challenges are my least favorite. I hate it when the contestants have to take people out to win, it seems so wrong to me and often it is those that just fly under the radar that end up winning, which is not all that bad J I just prefer challenges that can be won by doing your best, not that it really matters. I must say you go O’neal and Darrell. Talk about impressive, I really thought that Darrell just might pull it off, He was a full lap behind O’neal and to have caught up and lining up their guns at the same time definitely had me on the edge of my seat.

Eliminations are always stressful but this one was definitely hard to watch knowing that one contestant would be going home no matter what. I think that everyone did an amazing job and really pulled the numbers this week. I really am proud of Sunshine and O’neal for really just jumping in and taking advantage of the Biggest Loser.

Although Melissa was the one to fall below the red line with immediate elimination, I think she had a lot of good to say and is right she is closer to her goal than most and has all the fire she needs to go home and be successful. Now between Darrell and Cheryl your guess is as good as mine. I mean Cheryl looked more stable in mind but her torch seemed to be less centered than Darrell’s, I guess we will all find out Tuesday.

Until next week,

Ali xo

Wow what a week!  I love how Alison starts the week out getting the challenge out of the way, it made me chuckle to myself because this is the first week that everyone will face real challenges on a daily basis. 

The heart that the Black team continues to inspire me.  Talk about feeling like the impossible is a head of you when thinking of pulling a semi truck.  Just to get off the line and find the strength within that it takes to move the impossible is a challenge in and of itself.  I think that the smart move was to have a contestant that has built quite a bit of endurance and stamina to be the runner if you will.  Often strength is not what it’s cracked up to be.  I was extremely impressed by the efforts of both teams they fought all the way to the end.

I was eliminated in the fourth week of my season before winning my way back to campus.  So I know what it’s like to live in the real world facing the daily challenges of work, family, and friends yet still do what you know you need to do to stay on track with your goals.  The hardest part I believe is communicating to everyone in your life how they can support you and be very clear and specific.  This allows from the policing feeling to come into play and I know we have all felt that before regardless of what your goals are.

One of the things that really showed this week is leaders stepping up to the plate.  O’Neil in the beginning after last week’s elimination and this week when Koli got his team together in the training room for a pep talk.  When working as a team it is imperative for leaders to step up and guide the team.

I loved this week because the reality is that the fans of the Biggest Loser watch the show to see what is possible and often when TV is an element the day to day how to is not necessarily the most entertaining stuff to watch so having fun is necessary.  I know when most of us think of work the word fun is not the first thought that comes to mind J  Cheryl and Sherri were a blast to witness this week and see how their friendship has blossomed.  The truth is whether not your having fun at work, working all day and taking care of your family is exhausting.  So to think of working out on top of all that seems dreadful.  So whether or not you are getting up super early to work out before work or finding ways to be active after the gym is closed it is worth if you constantly remind yourself why you are doing what you are doing.

Did you know that you can be a part of making a difference by pledging with the Pound for Pound challenge?  Go online to find out how!

Elimination happens every week and I think this week we witnessed that sometimes being the strongest part of the team is being the leader and motivator of the team.  I will miss watching the Cheryl and Sherri show but have faith that she will have continued support.

I look forward to next week and seeing what story reveals itself, what do you think will being the leader prove to be the valuable asset or will it start to feel demanding?

Until next week,

Ali xo

This week on the Biggest Loser I as a viewer was all over the map.  You know when you watch a show and think it's going to one way and then it goes another?  I must have felt that several times.  This show never ceases to amaze me.

I as many of you I'm sure, are somewhat routing and pulling for the Black team only because they seem like underdogs, in regards to how you play the 'game' part of the Biggest Loser.  So when the pop challenge came up when they walked into the gym with Alison and the prize of winning was spa treatments at a 5 star resort I wanted so badly for the Black team to win!  I mean come on, you gals know how it feels to work your butts off figuratively and literally day after day and sometimes all that's needed to get re-energized is some down time and letting someone else pamper you for a change.  Now I'm not saying that men don't enjoy spa treatment but they seem to be essential for us woman to realize that all our efforts are really worth it!  And for the penalty of not winning the challenge to be CLEANING the disgusting Biggest Loser kitchen and gym I mean really!  I have been there on that ranch and although I am not there this season, experience tells me that the women clean up after themselves and to a point that is almost unbearable REFUSE to clean up after the guys who typically just leave everything out and dirty after they are done using it.  My experience was the majority of the guys on campus only clean a dish when they need to use it and talk about wiping down a counter of crumbs or spices..... it doesn't happen.

I so BADLY wanted to see the Black team get the spa day :(  I just feel like most women have to do all the domestic clean up in the REAL world shouldn't the 'reality' experience on some level be a little less REALITY.

I guess that which does not kill us only makes us stronger.... and often set a fire under us to do more.

So here it is a second chance with Curtis Stone, ok you want to put the women in their typical roles what better way than to have a challenge in the kitchen, with a greater prize than a spa treatment in the Biggest Loser world a 5 POUND advantage at the weigh in..... that is as Master Card says, PRICELESS.

With Michael gone from campus with a family emergency, our prayers are with you my friend, the team appointed foodie of the Blue team, Black may be back.  With a close race on accurate calorie counting and the palate of a world renowned chef the Black team pull off a win by the skin of their chinny chin chins.  As Bob said "thanks a lot Curtis Stone"

Now that spirits are up a little on campus for some this week, it seems to ensure a lot of BLOOD, SWEAT, and TEARS to be left on the Biggest Loser campus now that all feel as if they have a fighting chance to stay out of the dreaded elimination room. 

This weigh in led to a couple of really big moments and some disappointment as always seems to be the case.

I was right there with all of you I'm sure with tears in my eyes as Koli stepped up to that scale and just let it out, you have to make the emotional connection in this process in order for it to last.  Talk about an endearing moment when Sam walked up to that scale and held Koli tight celebrating together such a huge moment in Koli's life.  The biggest Loser the TV show is in fact equivalent to 2.2 seconds of the contestants entire lives but it is moments like this that will last a lifetime.

Life altering moments were also experienced and realized by Michael this week as he sat at the bed of his sick grandmother and realized how he could really be there for her was to show her and honor her by taking care of himself and making the time to go to the gym.  Often we let life and our feelings allow us to put our lives on hold, I think the key is to find that balance as we witnessed Michael do this week as he experienced probably one of the hardest weeks of his life. 

So in the end I guess whether it's the high of a winning a challenge or facing challenges in our lives that we have no control of, it's who we believe we are and what we are worth that allows us to push forward against the greatest of odds.  This week got me thinking about the challenges in my life and how I've processing them, life is such an amazing journey filled with ups and downs isn't it?

Until next week,

Ali xo