Alexandra Breckenridge is looking angelic at the beach. In a new social media post the Virgin River star shows off her beautiful body in a white billowy gown during a photoshoot in Southern California. “Beach shoot. LA,” the mother-of-two captioned the Instagram post. In an accompanying video she posed while laying on the beach with the Pacific Ocean waves crashing on her. How does the actress approach health and fitness? Celebwell rounded up her top lifestyle habits.
Alexandra is a foodie. She regularly shares meals that she cooks on social media, including sourdough bread, lentil stew, and butternut squash soup. The star has a few guilty pleasures. “Ice cream and wine…separately! I do love a good hotdog, even though I try not to eat a lot of meat. And macaroni and cheese,” she confessed to New Beauty.
Alex exercises. She does “light circuit training at the gym,” she told New Beauty. “I’m not a big fan of working out ’til I can’t stand anymore! It’s just not for me.” There is one exercise she can’t stand. “My least favorite is a burpee — I refuse to do them,” she told Us Magazine.
“My favorite workout is on the Pilates reformer,” Alex told Us Magazine. Why is pilates a good workout? According to the Mayo Clinic there are lots of benefits to the workout, as it “strengthens the body’s inner core while increasing its flexibility resulting in improved overall health. It can also promote longer, leaner muscles, injury prevention, relief from stress and back pain, enhanced athletic performance, and heightened mind-body awareness.
Alexandra revealed to Us that she does a certain ocean sport. “I got my scuba diving license because I’m terrified of drowning and I wanted to prove I could overcome my fear,” she said. Scuba diving offers similar benefits to snorkeling, a great aerobic exercise and calorie burning activity. Other health benefits may include improved cardiovascular function, stress reduction, mood enhancement, and muscular toning.
“No matter how hectic my day might be, I try to find a little bit of ‘me time,’ even if it’s only for a couple minutes after my little one goes to bed. I’m obsessed with essential oils and they’re scattered throughout my house. Not only are they lifesavers when I’m feeling sick (I swear by them as the ultimate cold remedy!), but they’re amazing when I need to decompress. Lavender oils, in particular, are soothing especially after a long of day of shooting and running around with a toddler,” Alexandra told Good Housekeeping. “Even if I get 30 minutes to myself, I’ll take a hot bath with my baby sleeping in her in her bassinet right next to me. I’ll light some candles, turn on my favorite comedy show (The Office, need I say more?!), and breathe in the calming lavender scent.” How can baths do your body and mind good? They have been linked to better sleep and even found helpful to minimize anxiety and depression. One recent study even found that they may even boast cardiovascular benefits.