Training and Dieting Tips from Hollywood Celebrity Trainers

According to a recent report by CNN after speaking with five celebrity trainers, who, without hesitation, say their star clients have to work just as hard as anyone else to achieve their weight loss and fitness goals. The main difference between training a celebrity and training any other client, they say, is scheduling.

Here are some of their comments about training their celebrity clients.

“The only difference is possibly the hour that I’m training them.”

“Another difference between training celebrity clients and other clients is often a tighter deadline.”

“If I have to get them ready for a project and I’ve only got six weeks, or two months, that’s a lot more pressure on them than it would be to just get ready for the summer to wear a bikini, or for overall health and maintenance.”

“Even supermodels have to work out. You may have nice long legs or whatever, but if you want to have muscle tone, you need to lift weights."

The approach

Celebrity trainers have various philosophies when it comes to training, but most tailor their regimens to fit seamlessly into their clients’ hectic lives.

Celebrity trainers create a plan their clients can stick to, with exercises that can be done out of the gym while traveling or on location, and diet plans that accommodate night after night of fundraisers and awards show dinners. Here’s how some of them do it:


Valerie Waters

Training philosophy: “Get in, get out, get a life.” Waters’ workouts last less than an hour, incorporating circuit training with weights and a “kitchen purge” to clear out bad food which she replaces with healthy options.

Best tip: “Don’t be afraid of weights. They’re the quickest way to change your body”


Gunnar Peterson

Training philosophy: Peterson creates different workouts for different clients every day. He has clients eat protein early in the day, making breakfast the largest meal and dinner the smallest.

Best tip: “Get on a regular routine. Exercise should be a cornerstone of your life, like brushing your teeth. It’s not even an option to blow it off.”


Ashley Borden

Training philosophy: As one of Karl List’s master trainers, Borden focuses on mio-fascial release, or deep tissue stretching; biomechanics with resistance and balance exercises; cardio, proper water intake and diet. She suggests drinking 100 ounces or water a day and gives her clients cardio homework, which they track using a heart rate monitor.

Best tip: Take care of the arches in your feet. “When your arches collapse, your knees rotate inward, and your hips rotate outward giving you a saddlebag appearance. It then pulls your sternum down, it pulls your neck forward, and everything collapses.” She suggests orthotics and mio-fascial release to combat chronic pain and posture problems.


Michael George

Training philosophy: George varies his workouts to keep clients engaged. He borrows from Eastern and Western philosophies, using martial arts, yoga, Pilates and meditation in conjunction with strength training. He saves time by using multiple muscle groups in each exercise, like a squat with a bicep curl. He also incorporates pliometrics and core boards.

Best tip: Don’t wait too long to integrate a healthy diet and consistent exercise into your days. “I’ve seen a lot of people come to me when it’s a little bit too late,” he said, “I’ve had [clients] pass away due to illnesses, cancer, heart disease, whatever it may be. The time is now. If you don’t put your health first you’re never really going to truly be happy.”


Bob Greene

Training philosophy: Greene tries to look at the entire individual and get clients to visualize how doing all the exercises he suggests will improve their lives. He says the physical benefits are almost meaningless if they don’t translate to “you having a better life overall … especially those areas not related to fitness.”

Best tip: “First thing is, know what you want,” Greene said. He said a lot of people want to work out because it’s “in” or they know they should be doing it, but don’t have a specific goal. “Know the reason you are making these changes in your habits, what is it you really want to achieve.” He also said most people need to do both weight training and cardio.