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Everything she does daily, and those she does a few times a week.
If you’re one of Penelope Cruz’s 6.3 million Insta followers, you’ll know she’s not one to post about her fitness regime. But you’ll also know that, at 48 and a mum of two, Penelope looks stronger and fitter than ever. All those red carpet pics are proof that whatever she’s doing is working, so we took it upon ourselves to find out exactly what comprises her wellness routine. Turns out, when you put together everything she’s said in previous interviews, she’s revealed a comprehensive breakdown. Take note.
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The New York Times shared that Penelope previously studied classical ballet as a child and sometimes practiced for up to four hours a day. ‘The feeling of your toes bleeding but you keep going with a smile, that really shapes you,’ she said.
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In an interview with Elle Canada, Penelope shared that while ballet is no longer a mainstay in her mode du jour, strength training and some cardio workouts are. ‘I studied classical ballet for 17 years, and it had so many benefits for me. Now I just do resistance work and a little cardio,’ she explained.
If you’re a regular WH reader, you’ll know all there is to know about the benefits of strength training. Here’s what happened when WH Fitness Editor Bridie Wilkins switched HIIT for weight lifting.
In the same interview with Elle Canada, Penelope shared that she only does strength work or cardio sessions ‘for an hour, about three or four times a week’.
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Another form of exercise Penelope swears by and has spoken about in a few interviews is Bikram yoga, a form of hot yoga.
‘I do Bikram yoga, which has completely changed my body,’ she told InStyle magazine. ‘You’re drenched in sweat throughout the entire class. It’s 90 minutes, but once you conquer 60, the last 30 gets easier.’
Penelope also touts it for boosting her energy levels. ’I used to be sluggish, and now my level of energy is through the roof. It’s like magic, but you have to earn that magic,’ she said.
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Speaking to Elle Canada, Penelope said: ‘I wake up around 7:30 a.m.; I need seven or eight hours of sleep a night. If I’m not working, I try to exercise in the morning. Then I have breakfast with my family, and if it’s a school day, I get my two kids, Leo and Luna, ready to leave.’
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When asked how she unwinds, Penelope told Elle Canada she relies on ‘sleep and exercise’ as well as ‘Transcendental meditation’ and the ‘occasional long massage’.
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According to Elle Canada, Penelope revealed that her fridge and cupboards are stocked with ‘lots of organic fruit and vegetables and free-range meat and fish’, as well as ‘quinoa, pasta, brown rice, coconut sugar, stevia and chocolate’.
She added: ‘I love eating healthily. I don’t follow a particular diet, but I love organic, healthy food; my kids also eat this way.’
Penelope also shared with People magazine that she’s into veggie burgers.
‘I was doing these vegetarian burgers that were amazing, and I would buy the ingredients at D’Agostino, my favourite supermarket,’ she said.
Penelope previously told James Corden that she has a weird eating habit: she snacks on salt. ‘It’s actually my cardiologist who told me to do that, because my blood pressure is very low,’ she explained.
‘I barely drink alcohol, and I quit smoking years ago. I don’t miss that in my life,’ she told InStyle.
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While it’s not known whether Penelope still works with a PT, she did once recruit the help of trainer to the stars, Gunnar Peterson, who has also worked with the likes of J Lo, Angelina Jolie and the Kardashians.
Read Gunnar’s top 8 exercise tips, that he implements with all of his clients.
Vogue UK shared that Penelope takes a daily combination of probiotics, enzymes and vitamins, with Penelope affirming they are ‘specific, good quality ones, not general multivitamins’.
To decipher what it is she needs to supplement, she sees an expert twice a year for a health check ‘to see what I might be deficient in’.
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On the beauty front, Penelope loves a bit of dry brushing, claiming that it ‘helps to eliminate toxins’.