Whether you still love today’s Madonna as much as you idolized her as the Material Girl, one thing is for sure. She’s managed to stay looking fit and fabulous well beyond fifty! In fact, yesterday Madonna turned 54 years old. From her super firm thighs to her rock hard abs and impressive biceps, Madonna has managed to build a strong and toned body that is super sexy. While I don’t own her more recent albums, every time I see one of her videos I’m inspired by how incredible she looks!
She is so committed to fitness that she has her own gym chain, called Hard Candy. The only downside is that they’re only located in Chile, Mexico and Russia. However, the gym chain, which Madonna started with her current trainer, Nicole Winhoffer, has plans for further expansion around the world.
Madonna has always been a trendsetter, and the same has been true of her fitness routines and diets throughout the years. What’s she doing and eating at age 54 to toned and sexy? Let’s find out!
DANCE INSPIRED WORKOUTS
Dance being an important part of her job, Madonna has focused a lot on dance inspired workouts over the years. For many years, she worked with celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson who used a unique dance-inspired toning style workout with Madge. Currently Madonna works with trainer and dancer Nicole Winhoffer who helps her train for her demanding on-stage dance performances. According to Shape Magazine, one of Madonna’s favorite workouts of the moment is Barre3, a ballet based strength workout the targets the legs, glutes and core. You can check out some ballet-inspired exercises to firm your bum in my blog post called, “Charlize Theron’s Ballerina Workout: 4 Glute Moves for a Ballet-Rific Booty” /for-women/charlize-therons-ballerina-glute-workout. Madonna also offers several dance cardio classes at her Hard Candy gyms.
SWITCHING IT UP
Truly, it seems that there is no single routine that is Madonna’s end-all be-all. In addition to her dance training, she continues to run (as she has since her Material Girl days) and sometimes bicycles to the gym. With her trainer she works out 6 days per week and does a mix of stretching, toning and strengthening, cardio, abs and arms.
COO-COO FOR COCONUT WATER
Madonna loves coconut water and swears by it for her workouts. It contains potassium which is crucial to support her muscles, as well as electrolytes to rehydrate her body. Madonna likes coconut water so much that she bought the Vita Coco company! Coconut water has somewhat of a sour or metallic taste, not so sweet like you might imagine. It contains only 39 calories per 100 ml serving, has very little sugar and just a trace of fat. In addition to the potassium and electrolytes, it’s a good source of vitamins C and B, as well as protein, calcium, iron, manganese, magnesium and zinc. Madonna’s trainer Nicole Winhoffer also has her taking ginseng to regulate blood sugars, stimulate blood flow and increase energy.
MACROBIOTIC DIET
What’s a macrobiotic diet? Madonna eats things that help encourage the growth of ‘good’ bacteria in her bowel, which helps to stave off illness. This includes a largely vegetarian diet of whole grains, vegetables, seaweed, soy and tempeh, all of which help to nurture the growth of intestinal flora. While this may sound sort of woo-woo, there’s some science behind it. The concept is similar to eating probiotics (like acidophilous) that come in yogurt or can be consumed in supplements. These friendly bacteria help the digestion and limit the growth of ‘bad’ bacteria like yeasts and others that could cause stomach problems. Madonna is also known to eat a lot of fruits, including apples, oranges and peaches, as well as lots of berries for snacks.
So what are the most important lessons we can learn from Madonna? One of the takeaways is that no single workout is the key to fitness. It’s important to include strength training, stretching and cardiovascular training in your routines and not to neglect any of the muscle groups parts in your body. Second, imagine how busy Madonna’s schedule is! No matter what, says her trainer, Madonna always makes time for her body!
If you’re looking for a workout program that is flexible enough to fit into your busy lifestyle AND that will get you looking firm and toned like Madonna, give Athlean-XX for Women a try! We work out a different part of the body each day, and for each body part there’s the option of a home DVD workout, or one of two gym workouts on a handy card you can take with you! With Athlean-XX for Women you’ve got a plan that fits your lifestyle rather than working your life around the plan!