Her workouts are next level.
OK, seriously: Have you seen Shakira lately? While she's always looked amazing, her health and fitness game is straight fire these days. It's not by accident—Shakira works seriously hard to look that good. Lucky for the rest of us, her trainer has spilled her secrets here and there. Here are the health habits Shakira swears by.
1 Set a schedule.
Anna Kaiser, who has been Shakira's go-to trainer for years, told E! News that the singer works out five days a week.
2 Get your heart rate up.
All of Shakira's workout goals revolve around her heart rate monitor. It "keeps her the most focused," Kaiser told E! News.
3 Strengthen your core.
This is important for Shakira, Kaiser told Us Weekly. "We focused on leaning out, strengthening her core, and boosting her booty—and then toning her arms like crazy,” she said.
4 Go big on intervals.
"We alternate between strength and cardio intervals," Kaiser told E! News. "Some days we do just cardio and then strength and some days we start with strength and then do cardio, we like to mix it up."
5 Set goals for yourself.
Shakira is huge on having goals for herself, Kaiser told E! News, and she's always working toward something.
6 Be smart about your training.
Shakira wants to know what she's doing and why, Kaiser told W magazine. "She's very smart and she wants to learn about the body and she wants to know why she’s doing what she’s doing and what her goal is, what she’s trying to accomplish," she said. "And that’s why we’ve had such a long relationship, because she knows what a stickler I am for functional smart training, but I also make it really fun."
7 Give surfing a go.
Shakira's been known to do this full-body workout here and there when she's traveling.
8 Zero in on different body parts.
Shakira doesn't just work out and hope for the best. Instead, Kaiser tells E! News that she's strategic and focuses on individual body parts and form.
9 Build up your endurance.
“We started cracking down four months before she went on tour, building up her endurance so that she could sustain performing at that crazy level of energy for two hours,” Kaiser told Us Weekly. “And bumping up her strength because she plays a lot of instruments, she’s dancing and she’s on and off stage through trap doors—so we needed to make sure that she was physically strong enough to endure all of that.”
10 Always be improving.
"I want to make sure that she is improving her endurance so that she can go into a two-hour show and also has the strength and stamina to make it through a five-month tour," Kaiser told E! News. "It's about making sure she gets a little bit of everything."
11 Focus on flexibility,
This is huge for her. Kaiser told E! News that when she and Shakira started working together, Shakira had some arthritis in her elbows and that her wrists were weak. Since then, they've done exercises to make sure they were making her stronger and more flexible.
12 Do your best to stay healthy.
Shakira's schedule is no joke—especially when she's on tour. That's why her health is a huge focus for her.
13 Try sweating more than once in a day.
Sometimes, Shakira goes hard at the gym twice a day. "She's doing two-a-days twice a week and the other three days she's doing one workout per day," Kaiser told E! News.
14 Throw a little tennis into the mix.
Shakira has shared more than a few photos on Instagram of herself on the tennis court.
15 Get momentum going.
Getting a workout routine started isn't always easy, but Shakira is willing to put the work in upfront. "Once you have a program and you get into the routine, it's much easier to keep going," Kaiser told E! News.
16 Be consistent.
Shakira will keep pushing regularly to make sure she's hitting her goals. "It's really important to make sure you stay consistent. Even if that day it took longer to reach the goal she's aiming for, she still did it," Kaiser told E! News.
17 Whip out a foam roller.
Shakira is hypermobile, meaning her joints and tendons are super flexible. "When you're hypermobile, it's easy to think your muscles are flexible but your flexibility is really around your joints and not your muscles," Kaiser told E! News. "Foam rolling is really important and making sure we are rolling out her fascia, her feet, her legs, and upper body to make sure she stays nice and healthy."
18 Push yourself.
Shakira doesn't slack at all at the gym. According to Kaiser, the singer will be in the studio until 6 a.m. and follow it up with a workout.
19 Don't be afraid to snack.
Kaiser likes to make sure Shakira is eating throughout the day, with a focus on eating every two to three hours, she told E! News. That means two to three snacks in addition to breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
20 Eat more protein.
Shakira has protein "in every meal," Kaiser told E! News. She also has "fresh veggies or small amounts of low glycemic fruit for snacks," she added.
21 Make cooking veggies mindless.
Cooking vegetables can be tricky and time-consuming, which is why Kaiser has Shakira do this, per W: Put fresh veggies in tinfoil with fish or another protein and cook it all together.
22 Stock up on soup.
Apparently Shakira loves soup. "We started introducing soups. Some great soups are filling and warm. So, at the four o'clock hour, when people are craving caffeine and a cookie, soup is a really great option because it fills you up and feels like a meal so it can keep you going until dinner, but it's not hugely caloric," Kaiser told E! News.
23 Track your progress.
Kaiser told E! News that she records Shakira's progress weekly to make sure that she's on track. "It's about building lean muscle which is going to increase your metabolism and then allow you to lose weight quicker," Kaiser said.
24 Have some fun with your food.
"We did some protein shakes, protein pancakes, and I would peel a couple of oranges and slice them up and top them with turmeric and cinnamon," Kaiser told E! News of Shakira's diet. "It is pretty much about making it fun and different and also the presentation."
25 Have a positive mindset.
"I didn't feel like I needed to focus on what not to eat, because [Shakira] was excited about food and what to eat, which I think is a healthier attitude," Kaiser told E! News. "It's better to say, 'Have this and that,' instead of, 'Don't have X, Y, Z,'" she added.
26 Have a daily indulgence.
Kaiser told E! News that she makes a point to get treats in for Shakira on the regular. "It doesn't have to be something big, it can just be something different every day. For example, we would do a cacao-topped rice cake or half of a protein bar, or I got her some chocolate tea, which kind of feels like a treat, with some dehydrated fruit," she said. "So it's about allowing yourself to have a lot of different things in small quantities and keep it as fresh as possible."
27 Make fish a regular part of your diet.
Shakira does. According to Kaiser, the singer has fish almost every day.
28 Savor what you eat.
Shakira likes to take time to actually enjoy her food instead of chowing down on the run. "If you cut up a piece of fruit, peel it, put it on a dish, and top it with something fun, it feels like a real snack. Instead of just walking down the street while peeling an orange and eating it—you're not actually taking a minute to enjoy that snack," Kaiser told E! News. "So instead, make it a little bit of a ritual and sit down every two to three hours, even if it takes you five minutes to eat it. You'll be surprised how that triggers your brain."
29 Don't forget the self care.
It's a crucial part of Shakira's regular routine, Kaiser told Us Weekly. Being fit is crucial, she said, but "it really was just as much about self care and making sure that she could make it through months of touring without getting injured, as well as maintaining her strength and stamina.”
30 Add swimming to the mix.
Twice a week, Kaiser adds a 45-minute interval swim workout for Shakira. “She loves to swim,” Kaiser told Us Weekly. “Plus, it’s low-intensity cardio.”
31 Try eating smaller meals more frequently.
“I wanted to make sure that she was eating multiple times a day, revving up her metabolism,” Kaiser told Us Weekly. “I bumped up the amount of times she ate every day with small amounts of food that would fill her up."
32 Find a new workout move to try.
Ever tried wall squats? Kaiser has Shakira squat up and down a wall while squeezing a medicine ball between her legs and holding weights in each hand.
33 Caffeinate before you work out.
Shakira is big on it. Immediately before her morning workouts, she has a cup of coffee “to get her heart rate up,” Kaiser told Us Weekly.
34 Mix up your boring crunches.
Shakira shared this Instagram post that showed Kaiser putting her through an intense abs workout. In it, Shakira targeted her side abs by keeping her back flat. With her hips twisted to one side, she crunched up and down.
35 Snack after a workout.
After her workouts, Shakira eats a combination of protein, fat, and carbs, like two small turkey sausages with a side of cucumber and tomatoes sprinkled with feta cheese, Kaiser told Us Weekly.
36 Treat yourself.
Kaiser told Us Weekly that she sometimes surprises Shakira at night with a treat. “She loves chocolate, so I would bring something to the door outside the recording studio like a few squares of Hu Kitchen Paleo dark chocolate or Golden Milk, which is macadamia milk, turmeric, and a little bit of coconut sugar," Kaiser said.
37 Try working out at night.
Shakira will occasionally work out at night—like late night. Sometimes, Kaiser told Us Weekly, this means she'll do a swim at 1 a.m. "There isn't a better way to calm your central nervous system and move your body in a yummy way that almost feels like you're taking a bath before bed," she said.
38 Get into the workout habit.
Kaiser is huge on this. "Getting yourself into a workout schedule before that helps you get into a rhythm, and it will be easier to keep going because you already have a routine and are in the habit of working out," she told Us Weekly.
39 Stick with a routine for a bit—then mix it up.
"We’re always working to give her, you know, a new focus, a new area and exercise that she can bring into her everyday life and work on so she feels comfortable with it," Kaiser told W. "Shakira does that same exercise set for two to four weeks."
40 Don't be afraid to goof off a little.
Working out is tough, and working out at Shakira's level is no joke. Luckily, she seems to make plenty of time to have fun with the process.
Korin Miller