TBL's ALI VINCENT--How She's Keeping the Weight Off, Advice To Those Starting Weight Loss Journey

There's an interesting interview with THE BIGGEST LOSER'S female winner Ali Vincent over at That's Fit dot com that's worth visiting to read in its entirety.

Here are two Q/A snippets that I found of special interest.

The first tells us how Ali is keeping off her huge weight loss--and it's not easy, not for lazybones, shows focus and strength of will:

TF: What was your daily calories in/calories out goal on the road to winning Season 5 compared to today? (Ali was initially voted off, but did win a spot to return to the ranch.) In your book you share you still keep a food journal, but do you still strap on a bodybugg?

AV: I've got it on my arm right now. Yeah I do, I love it, love it, love it. People are like, "Do you still have to wear that?" I don't have to wear the bodybugg, but for me, it's the best tool I've found to track the calories I've burned every day. For me it's liberating. As long as I burned it, I can eat it. Now I'll stay on about 2,000 calories and I'll just make sure I burn 2,000 calories. It was hard for me to do before, but now I have an active lifestyle. I never go more than three days. On that third day, if I haven't done a workout, then I go.

When we first went to the ranch, my calories [in] were 1,200, but they didn't use the bodybugg [for the burn] like they do it now. On Biggest Loser we had one day of rest with higher calories, so I added 800 calories on my rest day for a 2,000 calorie day. [After being voted off the show] I stayed on a 1,200 calorie budget and I had to burn 3,750 a day to get me in a 50 percent [weight] loss range at the finale. When I returned to the ranch, Jillian asks me, "What in the hell are you doing?" I told her, "I go to bed when my bodybugg tells me to go." I relied on a mathematical equation. When you win the Biggest Loser, you live and die by the bodybugg. There's other tools out there, the bodybugg was the tool that I was given and that I use.

The second is advice for those starting a journey to lose fat and gain fitness:

TF: What do you tell people who are obese/overweight and don't know where to start?

AV: A, you gotta tell the truth of what you are. I didn't even know I weighed 234 lbs. You have to know where point A is before you can get to point B. Then think about what point B looks like. How much weight do you want to lose? Get clear on what your goal is going to be, then break it down in between. Start journaling everything that you do throughout the day. Go online, get support groups, get a trainer or a friend. If you want to be healthy, find the healthiest person you know and start hanging around them. Start watching them. You have to take action.

It never gets easy. Not the start, not the middle, and obviously not the finish--which is no such thing. It's just the ongoing....

Ali's Book, BELIEVE IT, BE IT releases tomorrow. Previous TBL winner Matt Hoover also published a book. I'd like to see Kai Hibbard write a tell-all, frankly, of the manipulations behind the scenes and how the pressure of TBL seems to lead some pretty close to eating disorders, exercise addiction, and dangerous diet behaviors for the moolah.Wonder if they invited her for the "Where Are They Now" type of show coming up soon?

Prolly not?

Ali, Matt and Suzy, and Eric Chopin (who has regained, btw) will be in it.

Anyway, the special airs November 25.

Encourage a Dieting Friend: An E-Card

Our Lady of Weight Loss--an art-oriented, humor-filled, motivational site for those on the journey to fat loss--has e-cards you can send.

Know a pal online who needs a dose of motivational art and humor?

There's a great e-card at left. It's the "Love Thyself" card, and the little scribblngs say:

"Exercise is my middle name."
"Yes, I can."
"Fruit over cake."
"No matter what, I'll stay the course."
"Love Thyself."

~~and my fave of all:

"I do not accept delivery of my ancestors' fat genes."

While the e-card is free, there are cool greeting cards and motivational objects for sale, and I just bought a bunch of them.

I especially am wild about the one at right. It's not ARTISTICALLY the neatest one. But the message is spot on. When you make a mistake. When you eat that bit of crap food. When you go over your calorie count. Sit, take a breath, assess the whys of it. Think of strategies for future avoidance and triumph. But, most of all, remember to say:

"All is Forgiven. MOVE ON."

Don't get ovewhelmed. Don't get depressed. Don't beat yourself into a bloody psychological pulp. "All is forgiven." You are human. You are complex. You have to struggle and strive. "Move on."

I am human. I am complex. I must struggle. And I must strive.

And I must move on.

Love that. Good to remember. Always, keep moving on. Leave the guilt and shame behind and MOVE ON and tackle the next snack, the next meal, the next hour, the next day, the next weigh in.

ALL IS FORGIVEN...Move on.

Six Beginning Steps To Get You A Weight Loss Happily-Ever-After Ending

Since the stated goal for Princess Dieter and all those who are on a similar journey is to achieve the happy-ever-after of a healthy weight and good fitness, let's see what Kathryn Martyn, NLP expert, weight loss coach, says are the necessary 6 steps for a successful outcome (ie. H.E.A.):

1) State what you want (not what you do not want). "I want to weigh 135
pounds."

2) Determine whether you can achieve it (do you believe it is
possible?).

3) What resources do you have and what do you need (time, money, gear,
clothes, equipment, coaching, whatever).

4) Check whether anyone else is involved and any potential obstacles that
may come up regarding others. Think of everyone involved in your day-to-day
life.

5) Picture yourself "as if" you've obtained what you say you want and see
if that picture fits. Do you like what you see?

6) Put together a plan of action for the achievement of your
outcome.

Okay, so, how far along have we gotten here. Let's do the checklist:

Regarding #1: CHECK. I stated in the previous post that I was aiming for 160. So, "I want to weight 160 pounds."

On to #2: As the footer philosophy and the first entries make clear, yes. I choose to have a positive attitude. I choose to believe I can do this. Why? Others have trod the same path. They are role models that say it can be done by a human being. Princess Dieter, being human, can do it, too. I may have more (or fewer) obstacles than other morbidly obese royalty who've gone before and succeeded, but it's still achievable. They showed it could be done. So, "Yes, I believe I can make it happen!"

Next--#3: What resources do I have? I previously owned or recently bought the following:

1. new exercise clothes--simple, basic, comfortable
2. two new pair of walking shoes, one white and light blue and one all-black.
3. a set of Bowflex weights
4. a resistance band
5. a stability ball
6. an exercise mat
7. On Demand cable channels with exercise classes
8. a treadmill
9. several books on dieting, including YOU: THE DIET and VOLUMETRICS

I have the time. I can't fall back on that excuse. It's the inclination I have to muster. AND I WILL!!!

I also plan to reassess the family budget and see if I can hire, even if short-term, a personal coach to give me guidance on how to exercise without hurting myself. At 289 pounds, it's very hard to move. Just walking is an undertaking. Going up stairs is killer on the knees--and going down is only marginally easier. So, expert advice would be beneficial.

Gliding to #4: Meal planning gets tough cause my hubby only likes a few veggies and fruits, and he won't eat beans or oatmeal or some stuff. But breakfast and lunch are pretty much clear sailing (M through F) and not such a hurdle on weekends. Dinner is the thing. We get take-out all the time cause I'm a horrible, horrible cook. Princesses should have someone else cook!!! This step will require coordination, and I"m working on it. I have to collect about 20 really easy recipes that include stuff hubby will eat and that works for my calorie/points needs. It's doable, but it's gonna be a difficult thing for kitchen-a-phobic and cooking-impaired Princess Dieter.


And now #5: YES!!!

Finally, #6: Still working on this one. Today, I"m going to the farmer's market and supermarket and getting lots of produce, whole grain pasta and bread, lean meats, and low-fat dairy products. First, I need to figure out what we're gonna be having for dinners this week. Hubby needs soft foods due to oral surgery and I need stuff that's gonna keep me full and veggiefied. I'll put in about 2 hours in making a list (I have the books and magazines scattered about). Then, spend money on edibles time! (BTW, I put up a link to the Cooking Light site over on my sidebar. Lots of recipes there. Mmm.)

I also want to schedule a 20 minute exercise time for 5 to 6 times a week. I don't even know if I'll last for twenty given the radix lecti level of fitness at which I am. IF I only make it to 10 mins, then I'll have to break it up into two 10 minute periods. But can I do it? YES!

~~