Victoria Konefal (Ciara)
Diet: “In terms of quarantine, my daily movement has not been as high as it used to be, so I’m trying to monitor my caloric intake. For breakfast, I usually start off with a protein shake with various health elixirs added in, just to make sure I have energy and all the vitamins and minerals that I need for the morning. For lunch, I’ll make some avocado toast, something simple. For dinner, I’ll usually take a protein like turkey or chicken and add various vegetables. Sometimes it’s Brussels sprouts, sometimes it’s broccoli. Last night, it was bok choy. I do eat a lot of salads, but I find that they are easier for me when I order out, because you need a ton of ingredients to make a good one. I’m trying to social distance and stay at home as much as possible, so, right now, it’s rice, plain pasta, and any leftover veggies I have. For snacking, I love popcorn, if it’s made with olive oil instead of butter. It’s high in fiber and iron, very filling and very low in calories. I have an air popper, so I make my own. I also eat fruit. It tastes like candy to me.”
Fitness: “I work out at least five to six days a week. I give myself one day of rest, because that’s been clinically proven to be better on your muscles. [When not in quarantine] I take different fitness classes, whether it’s hot yoga or spinning or training with my kickboxing instructor. On top of classes, I go to the gym every day for at least an hour. I hate cardio, so my go-to for that is the Stairmaster, because it gets my cardio done very quickly. It also works out my quads and my glutes, so it’s two birds with one stone. When I get to the gym, I head to that machine first. Then I play around with free weights. It also depends on what I’m focusing on that day, whether it’s a leg day or arm day or ab day. I switch up the routine. For leg day, I do variations of squats and dead lifts. For arms, I’ll do kickboxing — that’s always good, or the rowing machine or pull-ups and push-ups. For abs, I do the Ab Ripper X, which is an online video for abs, specifically. It’s 15 minutes and over 300 different ab movements. That’s something I’m able to do at home, which has been great now that we’re in quarantine. I also have a ClassPass account, which I can use for various workout videos across L.A. They’re offering free online classes with some of their trainers, so that’s something I’ve been doing, too. It’s been yoga and Pilates mostly.”
Victoria’s top three tips:*
“If you feel like giving up, imagine your end goal and how great it’s going to feel when you finally achieve that. Keep that in mind if you’re about to give up.”
* “Stick to a routine and find consistency. You’re not going to see results unless you’re consistent with what you do.”
* “It’s impossible to not [give into] your cravings every once in awhile, and there’s no shame in that. I’m very guilty of having cheat days. That’s absolutely fine. Don’t be hard on yourself, and give yourself a break. Just try to maintain a balanced diet.”
Eric Martsolf (Brady)
Diet: “I don’t believe in diets. I don’t believe in depriving yourself of anything. I’m a believer in moderation, which means I enjoy my cocktail at night, but I pay for it in the morning during my workout. When I wake up, I throw down a protein shake. I switch from plant protein to whey protein. I put some fruit in [a blend- er], some coconut water, and mix it up. If I don’t have a shake, I’ll have eggs. Eggs are a superfood, and I love them. Lunchtime usually consists of some kind of lunch meat. Once in a while, I’ll throw it on bread. I have a variety of mustards that I will throw my turkey or chicken breast into. For dinner, I have the luxury of having a wife who cooks incredibly and organically. Last night, we had mahi-mahi, some brown rice and the most ridiculous tasting asparagus I’ve ever had in my life. Snacking is my vice, so I’ve had to really work on that. Some of my secrets: I like string cheese, because it takes a while to peel and eat it. I also like to eat frozen berries — those big bags you can get at Sprouts or Trader Joe’s. Those are awesome. I pour them into a bowl and eat them whole. Frozen berries and string cheese are my two go-tos.”
Fitness: “Things have changed a little bit since quarantine. Formerly a gym rat, I, obviously, am no longer that. Times have changed, and I’ve had to adjust. I work out about four times a week. My routine has completely changed from what it was as far as trying to maintain any health. I meet my wife in the garage promptly at 9:30 every morning, and we work out. We talk to one another, we make it fun. Now I follow the Beachbody program [beachbodyon demand.com]. You just hit play on your laptop, and you have instructors right in front of you, guiding you through everything. There are lower-body workouts, upper-body workouts, cardio workouts…. They’re all staggered so you don’t end up falling into the same routine. They’re only 20 minutes apiece. Once in awhile, when we’re feeling a little energetic, we’ll do two in a row. Another great program we do is called 10 Rounds. It’s a workout that intersperses boxing into it. The beautiful thing about boxing is whenever you throw a punch, you’re getting a core workout, as well. To me, the secret behind keeping in shape is to shock your muscles. You can’t get caught in a routine, because your muscles will get used to the routine and not respond any more.”
Eric’s top three tips:
*“Portion control. Eat what you want, just don’t eat as much of it.”
* “Get out of your comfort zone. Get out of your own way. Don’t make excuses like, ‘I’ve never done that before.’ Give it a shot. The worst that can happen is that you hate the workout, but the best thing that can happen is you find a new love of exercise.”
* “Make exercise fun. Don’t make it an arduous task. If you hate what you’re doing in order to keep yourself in shape, you’re never going to uphold it. Break a sweat every day, but find a way to enjoy it.”
