So here we are in our 20th city after crisscrossing the country making every day Famous. What is Famous anyway? Is it showing up at an event after hearing it advertised on the radio? Or is it stopping by a park and joining a bootcamp when you were just walking back to your hotel?


Or maybe you were just doing your job and showed up to work, giving all you had, taking care of babies fighting for their lives. The truth is, in every moment each one of us are famous to somebody! And some even have stars on the sidewalk of a street called Hollywood Blvd. As I walked the street and saw the stars, some of them I knew and some I didn’t. I stood in front of the famous Chinese theater and I realized that even though we look different and seem to live different lives, we are all the same. I looked at the handprints and footprints of the “famous” people I knew and reflected on the fact that each of their journeys started with one step.

Filed under: Make Today Famous by Ali
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Sometimes people use the phrase “a day at the beach” to imply a lazy, do-nothing day. But did I ever experience something different! We went down to Huntington Beach to the US OPEN Surfing Championship. People all around me were being active, living healthy lifestyles. There were people walking, biking, playing volleyball and swimming! And then there were the surfers! Not knowing much about surfing, I took the opportunity to interview a surfer who ended up being from France and we talked about the strength it takes to ride a wave, yet alone do tricks!

Then as we were walking, we saw these great young guys playing football in the grassy area at the beach and I knew I had found my challenge participants! They were really good sports as they did push-ups and arm wrestling and even smiled as my mom kept telling them how “pretty” they were! Check it out!

Filed under: Ali on the road, Fitness events by Ali
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Oh my goodness you won’t believe what happened in Columbus, Ohio! We were waiting to be let into NBC studios in downtown Columbus, for me to go on the Midday show with Mike! And my mom lost her mind. Or should I say our camera! She freaked out and was sure she was pick-pocketed! And the camera was missing! As amazing as it sounds, she let all her friends know on Facebook. Then guess what? Late that afternoon I received a Tweet from a guy named John who asked me if I had lost my camera. He had gone through the camera to see if he recognized anyone in the pictures. He didn’t, but he saw a picture of a radio station that mom had taken that same morning so he called the station and did not have any luck. Then, he went online and discovered that I was the girl in the pictures and searched Twitter to find me! Can you believe it? After some correspondence, arrangements were made and John drove to our hotel and returned the camera to us! I guess the lesson of the story is: In a day and age where the first thought that goes through someone’s head is ‘pick-pocketing’, there are still people out there that will go through some pretty extensive effort to do a good deed and return a lost camera! And just so you know Columbus, mom also went back on her Facebook page to tell ‘the world’ how there was this fabulous ‘Hero’ in Columbus!

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Although our impromptu workouts have been hit or miss along the 20 city tour, Ohio was definitely a hit! As we pulled up, there were a few people waiting for our lunchtime workout. I first noticed Becky from Twitter @beautifulbecky. Although we were twitter pals, I had no idea that Becky was a member of the “100 lbs. lost” club. Fabulous job Becky! Then I turned and there was Cristy Bombatch. She’s the artist that has captured Brittany, my friend from The Biggest Loser, in these amazing paintings! As we started to get ready for our workout, I thought I was having deja vu! Wait, am I in Tucson? Am I in Phoenix? No! I’m in Ohio and Amy Brown was here in front of me AGAIN! Amy and her husband have great success stories in their own lives (on the far left in this photo) and find the chance to fit in wellness at every opportunity and apparently in every city that they can!

I think our biggest hit was Stanley, or shall I say Stanley aka Abs of Steel! As I pushed and pushed his legs down during the leg lift exercise, I could not get Stanley’s legs to hit the ground. His Abs of Steel were unbreakable!

Filed under: Fitness events by Ali
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Saratoga Springs was amazing and although mom and I got carried away with hat buying, we still wanted to make sure we got in our impromptu workout! The city was roaring with lots of energy. People converged from all over for opening day at the Saratoga Racetrack! With all the horse betting going on, I was sure I could find some people betting their lives on better health! As we went through our typical day of press, I found out that there were lots of events planned throughout the very short race season and one was the Silks and Satins 5K in co ordinance with the Silks and Satins Ball! So rather than compete with our ‘own’ event, I decided the best way to Make Today Famous on our Mind Body Sole Tour was to join our Twitter Blast workout with the 5K, and help support the Special Olympics.

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I wasn’t too surprised when I found out that the FAMOUS ‘Welcome to Las Vegas’ sign is one of the most visited spots in America. 
You used to be able to pull up along the side of the road, run across to pose quickly in front of the sign and get your proof that indeed you went to Vegas in case your memory lapses during your trip.  I’m convinced that is why the saying “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” came about because people were too embarrassed to admit they couldn’t remember.  Anyway that is not the case anymore, in fact, not only is Elvis there waiting to accompany you in your picture pretty much 24 hours a day, they now have a designated parking lot.  As you can imagine, when I see a group of people in one spot I can’t help but think challenge, check out how we made one of the busiest spots in America more FAMOUS on our Mind Body Sole Tour.

Filed under: Ali on the road, Make Today Famous, Photos by Ali
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When I first landed in Vegas, it was pretty late and I have to admit that it never ceases to amaze me how many people go to Vegas.  It is kind of an odd phenomenon when you think of how so many people from across the world go to the middle of the desert to walk miles upon miles indoors in casino after casino.  It’s a world created for a reality where over-indulgence is not only accepted and advocated but also recommended.  With the buffet lines as long as city blocks, I decided to get away from the strip to see the real Vegas by the people that live in Vegas.  Just like my home state of Arizona, Vegas is pretty much miserable in the months of July and August where the heat gets so drastic that they sometimes have to close roads and runways at the airport because the heat is softening the asphalt.  Knowing this ahead of time, I had decided to do a mall walk to get in a little exercise.  I am honestly really enjoying the mall walks, they’re really fun! I used to think that only old people did mall walks now I’m convinced that smart people do mall walking.  After waking up with the morning NBC show, I was off for a fun filled day. 

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Upon pulling the winner’s name for the Shoe Crazy shopping spree, a lot of the customers were not thrilled with my choice as I picked the name of someone who had just arrived. Countless people waited for several hours to see who had won.

Overall the event was a huge success, the atmosphere was extremely positive and fun.  So many people came out and shared their fitness and life success stories with me. One guy was a firefighter from Yellowstone who had traveled 6-8 hours to share his weight loss success story with me. It is really amazing to have been a part of people changing their lives while I was on Biggest Loser. But it is equally gratifying to hear inspirational stories now as I travel around the nation with Famous Footwear.

I don’t know how many times I have said this but I will continue to preach the words of my grandfather, “you never plan to fail, you only fail to plan.” Just like in life, 30 seconds is longer than you think when you have a plan and shorter when you do not.  So when you hear I’m in town, come out to meet me and let’s get a plan together!

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From the very beginning of the shoe crazy event there was a line out the door.  The ENERGY in the store was fantastic!  We had the music up, Skechers representatives were there giving away prizes, and tons of people with amazing stories showed up to share them and of course get a chance to grab as many shoes as they can in 30 seconds.  It was really funny because I knew my flight that evening wasn’t until several hours after the event was over but there was so much going on that I didn’t realize I’d kept talking to everyone, not wanting it to end, and I ended up having to rush to catch my flight.  Thank you everyone for coming out and sharing part of your life with me and seeing all the great shoes available at Famous Footwear–it is definitely the one stop shop for your ‘Sole’

Filed under: Shoe Crazy, Tour stops by Ali
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Sharp Mary Birch Hospital in San Diego had an amazing women’s center where all of the nursing staff met in a conference room to hear me share my journey of life that began with the Biggest Loser. Although I believe that the Biggest Loser changed my life, it was only a spring board to where I am today. While sitting amongst people who constantly put others before themselves, it was a confirmation of that feeling.

San Diego is very proud of its NICU unit, as they should be. This hospital hosts some of the most critical babies and their nurses work around the clock administering critical care. I often think that when you chose your career to meet the needs of your life, we forget the difference that we are making in the lives of others.

It’s always one of the highlights of my different tour stops to honor the nurses on behalf of Famous Footwear and the March of Dimes to remind them how important it is to not only take care of the babies but themselves. I even had an opportunity at the hospital to participate in a silent auction where I won a trip to Hawaii!

Filed under: Ali on the road, March of Dimes, charity by Ali
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