Welcome backstage! We have video and photos from a typical day in my life, on-set at a Jenny Craig commercial shoot, and this day was very close to my heart: My Mom and I shot the Farmer's Market commercial, one of the most popular from my Jenny Craig career. Then we segued into Ping Pong, with my fiance Tom and my brother Patrick.

A typical commercial shoot is a hive of activity. The director and crew are planning shots and lighting. Scenes are being set up, moved around and taken down. I spend a lot of time in wardrobe, make up and hair, while reviewing scripts – which will be revised throughout the day.

Just one year ago, Valerie unveiled a new milestone in her weight-loss journey: After losing 40 pounds with Jenny Craig, she decided to don a bikini for a national commercial and photo shoot.

As with her commitment to weight loss, getting in shape for the bikini was a serious undertaking – so she enlisted a coach in personal trainer, Christopher Ross Lane.

“I met Valerie in November 2008 at Maria Shriver’s women’s conference,” Christopher recalled. “At the time, they were talking about the concept of a bikini. The first goal was to see if we worked well with each other. We knew would be successful after she felt like she could trust me. We really clicked and that’s when we committed to the bikini.”