Ashley Madekwe is working up a sweat with her celeb friends in her workout gear. In a new social media post the Revenge star flaunts her washboard abs during a sweat session at Alo gym with Cara Santana and Jamie Chung. The girls execute an impressive workout on the Pilates reformer. How does the star approach diet, fitness, and self-care? Here is everything you need to know about her lifestyle habits.
Ashley loves dance-based fitness. “There is a real leaning towards ballet as a basis for a workout here. There’s a place called Ballet Bodies and then there’s Ballet Beautiful online and I think they actually have classes in New York. I’ve joined Ballet Beautiful and I do the video while I’m traveling, if I can’t get to my regular classes. But I want to try the other one in LA. You feel pretty when you’re in a leotard,” she told Elle UK.
Ashley also revealed to Elle that she enjoys outdoor workouts. “I hike a couple of times a week – either Runyon Canyon or Fireman Canyon. I didn’t really get what hiking was until I got to LA, but it is kind of hardcore, and it can have a big impact,” she told the publication.
Ashley loves Pilates. “My Pilates are one-on-one sessions and I do that because I find that I cheat in a group environment. I would definitely sit at the back and be absolutely lazy if I don’t have my trainer Katy watching me,” she said. 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.
Ashley tries to eat as green as possible. “They make it very easy to be healthy in LA. Even grocery shopping is made easy. They make the ingredients very convenient. There are lots of pre-prepared vegetables and it’s not necessarily more expensive. And It’s very easy to get a green juice here. Though you can definitely make bad choices as well. I like to have a cupcake every now and then… Life is short,” she told Elle.
Ashley gets her zen on. “I also like to do Bikram yoga. That 90 minutes of moving meditation keeps me sane. It’s a time where I’m not thinking about anything other than the postures that I’m doing,” she revealed to In the Eye of the Beholder blog. There is a laundry list of reasons to do yoga, explains Harvard Health. “Researchers found that people who practiced yoga for at least 30 minutes once a week for at least four years, gained less weight during middle adulthood,” they said. “People who were overweight actually lost weight. Overall, those who practiced yoga had lower body mass indexes (BMIs) compared with those who did not practice yoga. Researchers attributed this to mindfulness. Mindful eating can lead to a more positive relationship with food and eating.”