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.

Executives from Jenny Craig and their advertising agency are on-hand to ensure that their vision for the campaign is met. To keep the stage from being overrun, the marketing and advertising team, plus special guests on set, will sit in the “video village” where they can watch monitors showing exactly what the director sees. They will listen to the director and cast via personal headsets. This way, the Jenny Craig executives can give feedback in real time.

Check out our backstage photo album!

Because a commercial shoot is a grueling, day-long event, breakfast and lunch are catered, and craft services maintains a table full of healthy and not-so-healthy snacks for grazing throughout the day. There’s even a vitamin man on hand with energy drinks and aspirin. Not everyone on set has called Jenny (nor do they need to), so my Jenny Craig meal is planned and stored in my trailer so I can stay on track, despite the temptations.

Dim lights

Fortunately for the Ping Pong and Farmer’s Market commercials, Tom and Patrick kept the mood light and fun. For Tom’s debut in Ping Pong, he was supposed to “pop” into the scene and announce his weight loss success. As you can see from the clip, he was very enthusiastic – which was a great icebreaker after a particularly strenuous stretch when we couldn’t get the scene right. For his part, Patrick was very enthusiastic about hair and make-up. He walked out onstage wearing a mullet, and I thought our director was going to have a heart attack.

Dim lights

After the commercials are edited and finalized, they are sent to a test audience for review. Some commercials get a great response, while others fall flat – which can be frustrating after a long day of filming. Fortunately, Ping Pong – and especially Farmer’s Market – tested very well with our audiences. I hope you enjoy this backstage photo and video album!