After winning Season 4 of American Idol, Carrie Underwood has built a massively successful country music career. She won eight Grammys, seven CMA Awards, and countless other accolades in addition to snagging her “Reflections” Las Vegas residency and being a mom of two. Recently, Underwood experienced a full-circle moment when she joined American Idol as a judge two decades after appearing as a contestant. To top it all off, the 42-year-old has killer legs—and she often shows them off while performing.
So, what is Underwood’s secret to her killer calves and ultra-toned quads? Let’s take a closer look at the “Before He Cheats” singer’s go-to leg workouts and diet regimen.
Carrie Underwood Loves Circuits With Dumbbells
Underwood’s physique is so in demand that she created the fit52 fitness app, a subscription-based service that provides workout videos led by the country singer herself. The “Jesus, Take the Wheel” songstress has offered glimpses of her leg workouts in clips shared via Instagram.
In a February 2025 video, Underwood demonstrated a circuit with dumbbells. It included 15 reps of squat pulses followed by 10 reps of kneeling squats, 10 reps of kneeling to standing, and 10 reps of kneel-backs.
The celeb captioned the shared post with fit52, “Friends don’t let friends skip leg day. Try this lower-body workout with your workout buddy and get ready to fire up those legs!”
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Squats Are Her Friend
In August 2023, Underwood posted a tutorial via Instagram for three squat moves through fit52’s Instagram account. It featured bodyweight squats to curls, heel-elevated plie squats, and kettlebell kneeling squats.
“Form is key with this move, so we suggest nailing the basic squat then leveling up and experimenting with added weights and different modifications,” the video’s caption read. “Make your squats low and the vibes high!”
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Carrie Underwood’s Trainer Also Offered Insight Into Her Leg Workouts
Underwood’s trainer, Eve Overland, dished on her exercise preferences in an interview with Shape.
In addition to her love for squats, the “If I Didn’t Love You” singer incorporates deadlifts and other moves into her leg day sweat sessions.
“She likes to stick with the basics because they work,” Overland explained. “Lateral band walks, leg press machine [reps], hamstring curls, and cable straight leg kickbacks are a few more go-tos because of the great pump they give you.”
Overland continued, “Working out and staying healthy is just a way of life for Carrie. It is who she is, what she does. Carrie understands that staying strong, mobile, and conditioned is so important in all aspects of her life, on and off the stage. Working out is self care and her me time.”
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She Fuels Her Workouts With a Simple, Vegetarian Diet
In March 2024, Underwood opened up to Today about her diet regimen. She’s a vegetarian, so the country crooner prioritizes as many whole, nutritious foods—like fruits, vegetables, eggs, and nuts—as she can.
“Overall, keeping things as simple as possible is always the best,” she told the outlet. “We live in a world right now where everything is ultra-processed and it seems like the easiest thing is to grab fast food.”
When snacking on the go, Underwood said she still prioritizes fueling with nuts, fruits, and other options with little ingredients.
“Things that are very simple and nutritious, you’ll never go wrong with that,” Underwood shared. “I feel like that’s the best for your body and it makes you feel the best and then you can put your best foot forward.”
Content shared from celebwell.com.