Customer Reviews

Believe It, Be It: How Being the Biggest Loser Won Me Back My Life

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I'm a huge fan of The Biggest Loser brand -- from the TV show, to the cookbooks and workout DVDs. So, when I stumbled upon the memoirs of Ali Vincent -- the first female Biggest Loser winner -- I didn't hesitate to pick it up.

Believe It, Be It is a quick read, and a very inspiring tale documenting Vincent's life and her road to weight loss. I really enjoyed the back-stage pass to The Biggest Loser process and the behind-the-scenes details about life on the ranch -- it provided a very interesting perspective on the series for fans of the program. However, Vincent's own revelations are also worth a read. The writing isn't great -- at all -- but the content is good. Vincent talks about her past problems that lead to her obesity with a lot of transparency and honesty. I was surprised by her candor about her childhood and some of her misteps in adulthood, and really appreciated Vincent's courage in writing this book.

The main story is punctuated with short tips, anecdotes and inspirational pull-outs. As a reader, I thought these were a little distracting and maybe too frequent throughout the text, but most provided some good quick information.

At the end of the day, I kind of left the book feeling that Vincent might be a little workout-obsessed. She writes that she no longer goes to movie theatres because she'd rather watch a DVD on her treadmill. (Really?) It's inspiring to see how much weight she lost and to learn how she did it, but for me, it was also a little discouraging to realize that unless you want to work out for 4-8 hours a day, that path from a size 20 to a size 4 might not be quite so easy for the rest of us to follow.

As a avid watcher of The Biggest Loser, I was very excited when I saw Ali Vincent was coming out with her own book, so I preordered it on the spot! I received the book yesterday and stayed up last night reading it. I just could not put it down!

Ali was the first women to ever win on The Biggest Loser (and I had all but given up that a women would EVER be able to win on that show)! I was hoping she would give some insight into what it was like being on TBL and wow, did she ever!!! She broke it down and explained what it was like on a daily basis and how things were BEHIND the scenes! That was so fun to read, but what was great is how much you get to learn about Ali as a person!!!

You learn what it was like to audition for TBL, as well as what it was really like on there first challenge. I laughed so hard reading about how thirsty her mom was, and how she offered to spit in her mouth (and was happy that her mom said no), that I thought I was going to wake my husband up! I also learned how to find inspiration by "Collecting Evidence For Success" as Ali calls it. She explains how her and her mom used being the 11th couple in line, on the 11th day of the month as evidence that it was meant to be for them to be on TBL. When they were given the color pink, she started noticing all the pink in the world around her, seeing it as sign that she was going to win!

Ali wasnt afraid to put herself out there and really be truthful about how things were, personally, with her mother and on the Ranch. I think, everyone who watches TBL will find themselves drawn into this wonderful book. That being said, its not just about TBL show, its about one womens journey to regain her life back. Anyone who struggles or has ever struggled with there weight will immediatly feel a kinship with Ali. Its written in such a way, that you cant help but to be excited for her and with her. I'll never look at the color pink in the same way now!

I really wish I could rate this book 10 stars. Ali Vincent's story is an uplifing and inspiring read. While reading this book, I really felt like she was sitting right there talking to me in person. Her bubbly personality can be found on every single page.

This book was not just about Ali's weight loss. You wont find any mention about her calorie intake or the details of her food journal. What you will find though is a young lady who fell in love with herself again and changed from the inside out.. someone who belived in herself and kept her eyes on her goal even when curve balls where thrown her way.

I don't know if Ali will read the reviews on her book here or not but Ali if you happen to read this, I just want to say Thank You!!!! For about two years now I have found my life on auto pilot and I have found myself going back to some unhealthy habits that I have with food. I plan on using the tools that you wrote about in your book to jumpstart my life....

As a Biggest Loser fan, I was interested to hear what Ali, one of the most kind, relatable and underestimated contestants of the series, would have to say. I wasn't looking for weight loss tips - I just wanted to learn about what Biggest Loser is really like, so for me, it was exciting to hear about what the challenges were really like, how much time each day is spent working out, interviewing, etc. I ended up feeling quite inspired along the way to think about what I want to do with my life and actually take steps toward achieving my dreams - a subject that, when said the wrong way, can make me feel depressed about because I might not already be living up to my fullest potential.

I found the side notes distracting (the material in them was good, but it would have made the book flow better if they had been incorporated into the body of the book) - even so, this was a very fast book to get through, just a few hours of reading. The conversational style made me feel like I was listening to a good friend who went off on many tangents and sometimes repeated herself, and I do wish that Ali would have gone into more detail about some of the projects that her foundation does - but these are minor shortcomings, the book was very enjoyable and motivating nonetheless.

Don't pass this book up - Ali's story will inspire anyone - In this book she is very candid about her personal journey - she discusses with such honesty her relationships, her deep feelings (that many people will recognize) about why she had become overweight in the first place - what she was hiding from, etc. The same issues many of us face in our daily lives - the difference for Ali was that she wanted a better life for herself, invisioned it for herself and after realizing that if she just believed in herself enough she could accommplish whatever she set out to do, and she did it !!!!!!

I met Ali at a book signing and she is as delightful in person as she appears on television - its not just about losing weight - its about losing all of those protective layers we pile on to hide from some of our realities that we do not want to face in our daily lives - because we might be forced to act on them -

Ali's message is simple, yet profound - you will not be disappointed after reading this very candid personal journey ....................if you listen to what she is saying - you will think about every decision you make in life in a whole new way .....................

I randomly picked up this book and I am really glad I did. I do not watch the Biggest Loser and had never heard of Ali Vincent prior to finding this book. I made a lot of connections with the author's weight struggle and overcoming it. Although the book seems to be primarily aimed at a female audience, I still thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it, especially to others struggling with weight loss and obescity.

I really liked this book. I was pleaseantly surprised that it was as good as it was. I would love to see more former BL contestants write and publish books like these. I've also read Julie Hadden's book (that was published around the same time as Ali's), and I found that book to be below average, Ali Vincent's book is so much better, more inspiring and personal written.

This book is a quick read, I found it to be well written and really enyoed it. It feels honest and not one of those "now that I'm a known name, I wanna publish something as fast as possible while people still remember me, put my name on it just to make money"-books...
Ali Vincent is personal in this book, I feel that she does give of herself and let us know more about her struggles and true self. For a weight loss book to be inspiring it has to be personal and feel "real", which Ali's book does. But at the same time, I would have liked for the book to be even more personal, to give us more insight in the daily struggle (which she admits there is) to maintain, to hear even more about the life after BL. But I guess that it is a fine line between being personal and too personal.

Overall, a very good book with lots of inspiration! I enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

I couldn't put this book down. I literally read it in one evening. I followed Ali on the Biggest Loser and knew her book would be inspiring. If you are looking for inspiration for your own weight loss journey this book is it. A diet it is not.
I get counting calories and working out but was more interested in how she turned on the switch in her head to lose the weight and change her life. This book delivered it. I love the bell story of believe it. be it. I keep saying to myself daily.
When things get rough, I will definitely refer to Ali's book. Ali does talk about the bodybugg a lot and it is making me want one!

Thanks to Ali for writing this wonderfully inspirational book- it helps me motivate myself to improve my healthy lifestyle!! I've been a huge fan of the Biggest Loser since Season 5 because of Ali, so I was excited when I saw "Believe it Be it" was coming out, that I preordered it. I felt it was well worth the preorder dollars!

This book is very inpiring and written as if Ali is sitting down chatting with you...very personal level. I especially enjoy the highlighted 'tips' throughout the chapters about a journey in weight loss and personal growth. The behind the scenes of Biggest Loser were also fun to read. I definately recommend if you are a fan of Biggest Loser tv show.