The body beautiful

Jennifer Cohen—personal trainer to the stars and author of No Gym Required—offers advice on getting lingerie ready.

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What do you think a sexy female body looks like?
“Great question. I think sexiness comes from the inside out. Take a beautifully sculpted body and put it on someone who doesn’t smile, cowers from the world, and exudes no energy, and all the sexiness is gone. If you don’t have a ‘perfect’ body but exude energy and confidence, people will be drawn to you and find you very sexy.”

And a sexy male body?
“Same as above, though I have to admit I have a personal preference for men with dark hair and dark eyes.”

When do you think your own body looks sexiest?
“When I’m regularly exercising and eating well. That means I don’t skip my workouts or ‘cheat’ by eating junk food for days in a row. It’s great to take a day off once in a while, but if I take too many days off, I start to feel it and see it. Consistent effort is the best way to look sexy—no question.”

Who are some of your sexiest celebrity clients?
“Keanu Reeves—he is such an unbelievably giving person. I always like working with him because he loves life and it shows. Gabrielle Union also has a great attitude and is amazing to work with. She’s extremely dedicated to living a healthy life, so I can focus on getting her the results she wants and not waste time managing her. That means when we set goals, we reach them.”

What are the top three things we should be doing to get toned and taut?
“Eat well: Eating is 70 per cent of the work. Calories in – calories out = weight gain or loss. I also recommend one cheat day a week to satisfy cravings. Exercise: I suggest 15 to 30 minutes a day for those who rarely exercise, and one hour or more for those who train regularly. This should be split 50-50 between cardio and resistance training. Stretch: Proper stretching can actually help tone as well as prevent injury. Make time to thoroughly stretch before and after exercising.”

What do a lot of us do wrong in our fitness routines?
“The biggest mistake people make is starting with unreasonable goals. They procrastinate because the task seems daunting, and cheating becomes so much more appealing. If you set a simple, easy goal, it’s a lot harder to fail. ‘Today I’m going to work out for 20 minutes.’ Or, ‘I’m going to lose four pounds in two weeks.’ These are goals that most of us can achieve with a simple change of habit.”

How can your “No Gym Required” philosophy help motivate us?
“It makes it easy for people to develop and maintain good lifestyle habits. My tag line is: ‘Anytime. Anywhere. No Excuses.’ Focus on using what you have around you (simple tools such as your own body weight or a broom handle) and utilize your surrounding environment. You will find that life is full of gyms everywhere around you. This makes it easy for anyone to stay in shape.”

What’s one piece of fitness advice you always give your clients?
“Work out whenever and wherever the mood strikes you. If you’re at home, grab a phone book in each hand and do a few lunges across the room. If you’re on a plane, walk the aisle and then brace yourself on your chair and lift yourself a few times. At work, take five minutes and work out using your desk or chair.”

How do your new weighted NGR Trainers ($165, ngrfit.com) work?
“The shoes are a simple way to increase resistance and calorie burn. The interchangeable weighted midsoles allow people to increase the weight of the shoes as they get fitter, and get more benefit out of their exercise routines or everyday activities. If you go for a walk with the weights in, you can burn up to 50 per cent more calories.”

What’s your favourite brand of workout clothes?
“I’m actually interested in developing my own clothing line, because I find everything is missing something (like proper pockets or comfortable support). I’d have to say Lululemon is my favourite for pants and sports bras, for now.”

What’s on your gym playlist?
“I just added Kevin Rudolf’s ‘Let it Rock’ and Pink’s ‘So What’ to my iPod two days ago. They’re great songs and really pump me up. There’s nothing like good music to get through a workout! That’s why I included an entire playlist in my book.”

Photography by Jennifer Robbins (Hair and makeup by Dora Salgado for margaretmaldonado.com)

First published in FASHION Magazine February 2009

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