From fast food-eating Midwestern girl to one of the most sought-after celebrity trainers in the U.S., Jackie Warner has conquered everything from reality TV to owning and operating two of L.A.’s most exclusive fitness facilities. And now, with a new book, a line of nutritional supplements, and some seriously popular workout DVDs (watch out Jane Fonda!), Warner has hit the Big Apple with plenty of new moves to share.
At Evian’s “Live Young, Get Fit!” event in New York, Greatist caught up with Warner to get down and dirty doing what she does best: working us out. Follow along for her tips on maximizing cardio, beating monotony, and becoming your own fitness hero. Plus, see if you can hang for her latest power circuit workout (below!).
What’s your workout philosophy, personally and for your clients?
I always say it’s not how long, it’s how strong. So basically it’s not about doing an hour-and-a-half a day or an hour a day, it’s about going to intensity and going to muscle failure, which is very, very important.
… I have the type of body that doesn’t like to put on muscle. So I lift like guys lift. I press 35 to 45-pound dumbbells because that’s what I have to do to keep this musculature. For me, it’s all about resistance training.
When in doubt, what should every strength session include?
Working primary muscle groups. So chest, back, quads, qlutes, hamstrings. Those are the fat-burning muscles. Those are the ones that are going to really work for you.
What about working in cardio?
If you’re going to do cardio most effectively, there are a couple ways to do it. You can do high-intensity interval training (HIIT), which is 20 minutes of cardio before [strength training]. Or, you can do cardio acceleration, which is doing your resistance training and then working in a minute or two of extreme cardio in between your sets.
At Greatist, we’re the first to admit that health and fitness is hard — no matter who you are. What do you personally struggle with most?
Monotony. I’ve been training myself for so many years that I really have to excite myself. One way I do that is by changing my playlist frequently. And the other way is by creating new programs and combinations of exercises. I’ll write out about a month at a time, and then head to the gym with my workout journal and get really excited to do that new program.
Who would you say is your biggest fitness idol or hero?
Fitness idol is difficult because I don’t idolize people. I’ve never had heroes — that’s just not my mentality. If there’s anything I want to do, I’ll do it myself. I will work and practice until I get good at that thing, or make that thing happen.
As far as an influence of mine, though, when I was 25 I worked for the Susan Powter show. (Susan Powter was an old fitness guru back in the 90s who wrote the book “Stop the Insanity.”) I actually worked as her audience coordinator — so not fitness-related at all. But I saw that world of hers, and the fitness world, and must have been influenced in some way.
And what about workout partners? If you could train with anyone in the world, who would that be?
Gabrielle Reece. When she was a professional athlete and doing her thing I just thought her body was perfect. And she’s still amazing. So Amazonian, and strong, and beautiful.
What’s the Jackie Warner brand about in 140 characters or less:
Eat. Move. Believe.
I really deal with the whole person. It’s 75 percent food, definitely. But you must move every day of your life for at least 10 minutes intensely. And you have to believe you deserve to have a healthier lifestyle, a healthier energy, and all of the things that come along with that in life.
Our thoughts exactly.
The Workout
Ready to get moving? Try this power circuit workout designed by Warner herself for Evian’s “Live Young, Get Fit!” workout in New York. It definitely kicked our butts — in a good way!
WARM-UP
A. Bodyweight Squats – 15 reps
B. Push-Ups – 10 reps
(Perform as a superset, three times through.)
CIRCUIT 1
A. Squat with side leg raise – 15 reps
B. T push-ups – 10 reps
C. Mountain climbers – 25 reps
D. Fire Hydrants – 15 reps
(Perform as a continuous circuit, two times through.)
CIRCUIT 2
A. Seesaw lunges – 10 reps
B. Split jumps – 10-15 reps
C. Burpees with push-up – 10 reps
D. Leg jacks – 15-20 reps
(Perform as a continuous circuit, two times through.)
CIRCUIT 3
A. Jump squats – 10-15 reps
B. Plank push-ups – 10 reps
C. Half-glute bridge with leg lift – 15 reps
D. Bodyweight dips – 10-15 reps
(Perform as a continuous circuit, two times through.)
CIRCUIT 4
A. Resistance band bicep curl – 10 reps
B. Resistance band punch outs – 10 reps
C. Resistance band lateral side raise – 10 reps
D. Resistance band overhead tricep extension – 10 reps
E. Jumping Jacks – 60 reps
(Perform as a continuous circuit, two times through.)
CIRCUIT 5
A. Spiderman planks– 10 reps
B. Reverse crunches – 20 reps
C. Leg lifts – 10 reps
(Perform as a continuous circuit, two times through.)
To learn more about Jackie Warner, visit jackiewarner.com and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.
Tried this workout, or one of Jackie Warner’s DVDs? Tell us what you think in the comments below!
Photos by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Evian (top); Jordan Shakeshaft (bottom)
