By Ali Vincent, Special to BiggestLoserClub.com
I think that a huge mistake was made at tonight's elimination. Do I think Shanon will be successful at home? YES, of course she will. I also know that she would have had the opportunity to learn so much more about herself had she stayed at the ranch. The ranch is priceless because of the space it allows you to be in, to really take a look at who you are.
I love Helen but I think this was a selfish decision. As a mother she should have encouraged her daughter to push herself and step out of her box and fight to stay. Imagine the growth she would have experienced being on the ranch without her mom. Helen got to have that experience, why not Shanon? I know that this might have been an uncomfortable decision to make, their both loving each other so much, and they truly do, and both just wanting the other to be happy.
Sometimes however we don't always support each other the right way in these types of relationships. For years my mother and I wanted to lose weight together and did. We also gained weight together because we didn't always have the courage to support each other in ways that were sometimes hard, or harder than just helping each other "feel" good.
I think in this special bond of mother and daughter all too often there is a codependency of sorts. The last thing in the world you ever want is for someone you love to feel bad, so we go into cradling and protecting, which all too often probably isn't the best support in terms of growth. Everything happens for a reason. I just hope there is never a time when they look back and wish they had done it differently.
Lock Down
Really? A lock on the gym door? WOW! Talk about being thrown a curve ball. Advantage or disadvantage? I guess the scale could tell us but did it really have anything to do with equipment? I love going to the gym because it allows me to get to where I need to go in a guaranteed environment.
Example: I know that if I need to burn a specific amount of calories in a given time frame, I can go to the stairmill and burn 300 calories in 30 minutes if I set it at level 10, or I can do drills on the treadmill. What I do know though is that in any given situation we are able to push ourselves further in a group situation. With that said, I think that the difference was working as a group versus having the tools in the gym. And it seems that with Bob having his team split, I'm sure that affected the intensity of the workouts and the fact that everybody was thinking about the gym too much when they needed to lean on each other, gym or no gym.
Tara/Laura
I love Tara but honestly I am so tired of hearing about her, and Jillian's making it so much about Laura. So Tara is a stronger contestant. I think the world can see that now, but is it necessary to point it out in every given situation? I believe that Laura is doing what she can... I can't wait 'till they go to singles.
Row, Row, Row
Rowing is one of my favorite cardio activities. In fact, I have the Concept 2 rower that you saw in the challenge in my living room. It is a total body workout but also gives your joints a break, which is always good. I often notice is that hardly anyone in the gym uses the rower, but I'm telling you fellow club members, it is an amazing workout... try it, you'll love it! Set it anywhere from level 8 to 10 and keep your reps above 35 or get on in between your resistance training and do 500 meters as fast as you can.
Congrats to everyone this week for making it through what seemed might be an impossible challenge. I say that mostly 'cause I know Bob and Jill, and any time they feel any kind of challenge coming up, they go overboard... in a good way of course! I want to also say that I was really impressed with Kristin and Mike as well as everyone else, but I really like to see how they are stepping up to the plate... Kristin is a FORCE!
-- Ali.
Believe it! Be it!
Ali Vincent of Season 5 was the first woman to ever win The Biggest Loser grand prize.
I think that a huge mistake was made at tonight's elimination. Do I think Shanon will be successful at home? YES, of course she will. I also know that she would have had the opportunity to learn so much more about herself had she stayed at the ranch. The ranch is priceless because of the space it allows you to be in, to really take a look at who you are.
I love Helen but I think this was a selfish decision. As a mother she should have encouraged her daughter to push herself and step out of her box and fight to stay. Imagine the growth she would have experienced being on the ranch without her mom. Helen got to have that experience, why not Shanon? I know that this might have been an uncomfortable decision to make, their both loving each other so much, and they truly do, and both just wanting the other to be happy.
Sometimes however we don't always support each other the right way in these types of relationships. For years my mother and I wanted to lose weight together and did. We also gained weight together because we didn't always have the courage to support each other in ways that were sometimes hard, or harder than just helping each other "feel" good.
I think in this special bond of mother and daughter all too often there is a codependency of sorts. The last thing in the world you ever want is for someone you love to feel bad, so we go into cradling and protecting, which all too often probably isn't the best support in terms of growth. Everything happens for a reason. I just hope there is never a time when they look back and wish they had done it differently.
Lock Down
Really? A lock on the gym door? WOW! Talk about being thrown a curve ball. Advantage or disadvantage? I guess the scale could tell us but did it really have anything to do with equipment? I love going to the gym because it allows me to get to where I need to go in a guaranteed environment.
Example: I know that if I need to burn a specific amount of calories in a given time frame, I can go to the stairmill and burn 300 calories in 30 minutes if I set it at level 10, or I can do drills on the treadmill. What I do know though is that in any given situation we are able to push ourselves further in a group situation. With that said, I think that the difference was working as a group versus having the tools in the gym. And it seems that with Bob having his team split, I'm sure that affected the intensity of the workouts and the fact that everybody was thinking about the gym too much when they needed to lean on each other, gym or no gym.
Tara/Laura
I love Tara but honestly I am so tired of hearing about her, and Jillian's making it so much about Laura. So Tara is a stronger contestant. I think the world can see that now, but is it necessary to point it out in every given situation? I believe that Laura is doing what she can... I can't wait 'till they go to singles.
Row, Row, Row
Rowing is one of my favorite cardio activities. In fact, I have the Concept 2 rower that you saw in the challenge in my living room. It is a total body workout but also gives your joints a break, which is always good. I often notice is that hardly anyone in the gym uses the rower, but I'm telling you fellow club members, it is an amazing workout... try it, you'll love it! Set it anywhere from level 8 to 10 and keep your reps above 35 or get on in between your resistance training and do 500 meters as fast as you can.
Congrats to everyone this week for making it through what seemed might be an impossible challenge. I say that mostly 'cause I know Bob and Jill, and any time they feel any kind of challenge coming up, they go overboard... in a good way of course! I want to also say that I was really impressed with Kristin and Mike as well as everyone else, but I really like to see how they are stepping up to the plate... Kristin is a FORCE!
-- Ali.
Believe it! Be it!
Ali Vincent of Season 5 was the first woman to ever win The Biggest Loser grand prize.
