German fitness influencer Pamela Reif is sharing a new workout with her followers called “tummy torture” (so no one can say they don’t know what they’re signing up for!). Reif, 27, posted a video of herself wearing red workout pants and a white crop top, dancing for the camera. “NEW AB WORKOUT. 10min Tummy Torture! Are you ready for a killer six pack Vol. 3? And yes… I failed once 😂 But we are in love with the challenge, right? Including new moves, super duper amazing music & my laughing / struggling face,” she captioned the post. Here’s what Reif’s diet, exercise, and wellness looks like.
Reif knows exercise is much easier to stick to if it’s enjoyable. “Having fun doing sport is the most important thing in order to continually become fitter,” she tells Women’s Health. “It may sound strange, but it’s important to take the pressure off yourself. If you want to be fit in the long term, you have to take it easy and not judge yourself if you don’t exercise 5 times a week. I’ve always trained 4 to 5 units a week and kept at it – continuity is the most important thing. My sessions last about 1 hour and I always focus on strength training. Since the lockdown, I’ve gotten a taste for training using only my own body weight. I still stick to that and do at least 3 bodyweight workouts per week, i.e. 2 HIIT and abdominal sessions, 1 upper body workout. Sometimes heavy weights are only added on leg day.”
Reif practices intermittent fasting, skipping breakfast and breaking her fast at 1pm. “I usually do not have breakfast! I started with intermittent fasting a little more than a year ago and the meal continues to be omitted early in the morning,” she tells Grazia. “My ‘food window’ is usually from 1 pm to 9 pm. At lunchtime, however, I usually start with porridge or when it has to go very quickly: a nut or date bar. My recommendation for a low-calorie dinner is a simple vegetable ratatouille. Necessary so much can go wrong. Cut all kinds of vegetables into cubes – I like to use zucchini, eggplant, peppers and tomatoes – first fry them in some avocado or coconut oil, salt, pepper. Then add tomato passata or tomato puree. This is found in every supermarket – but you should be careful that no sugar has been added. Finally add freshly chopped or dried Italian herbs, optionally feta cheese, olives or artichokes – and you’re done!”
Reif avoids dairy and added sugar. “I eat a natural diet, avoid dairy products, white flour and refined sugar, but am not afraid of fructose,” she tells Women’s Health. “I eat fruit without limit, but the focus is on hearty meals. I cook everything myself and pay attention to organic products. It is important that nutrition does not feel like a ban. I created a healthy option for everything that was delicious but had too many ‘unhealthy’ ingredients. Whether it’s gnocchi or bounty porridge – I have so much fun cooking and developing recipes myself. Everything happens pretty quickly for me, my daily routine doesn’t allow me to stand in the kitchen for hours – that’s important to implement every day. I also always eat without the distraction of my phone: just being aware of the food is wonderful and was crucial for me in learning not to eat beyond the point of hunger.”
Reif believes in cheat meals (not cheat days!). “A healthy, balanced diet tolerates a cheat meal,” she tells Grazia. “If someone eats only burgers and pizza and eats a salad on Sundays, they do not become healthy and slim. This is exactly how I see it the other way: if you eat an 80-90 percent healthy diet, the one ‘unhealthy’ meal does not do you harm. The main thing is that you can find your own diet regimen and can go through it for the long term.”
Reif makes an effort to live an environmentally-friendly life. “At the beginning I avoided plastic, separated waste and shopped more consciously,” she tells Women’s Health. “Once the ball gets rolling, you can examine every area of life. Cosmetics, cleaning products and detergents – suddenly you look closely everywhere. I have switched to almost exclusively using products with ingredients that are harmless to health and reducing packaging waste. This is how my own detergent with Everdrop developed. Because the skin is our largest organ, everything that lies on it is also absorbed by the body. This way you can also live more sustainably.”