Four celebrity workouts you would not want to try at home

Being a celebrity is not all it’s cracked up to be.

Sure, having more money than God, living the high life and an army of fans has its perks. But being a Hollywood A-lister is not all pink champagne and parties, you know.

It’s hard work. No, not the acting and the singing – that’s the easy part. I’m talking about looking good for your fans – striving for the body beautiful. After all, you won’t last long in Hollywood with a beer belly, saggy arms and a fat arse.

Those thighs simply won’t tone up by themselves – no matter how much money you throw at them.
Of course, a lot of cash gets you good advice and your own personal trainer – but some celebrities will go the extra mile – or 12.

These are the celebrities who will stop at nothing in their pursuit of the physical perfection. Even thinking about them makes us exhausted!

Celebrity fitness workout number one – Usher
Want to know how the R&B star gets his washboard stomach?

Try doing 1,000 crunches a day. Which begs questions like: How long that takes him? Does he not get bored? Can he eat afterwards or does he spend the rest of the day doubled up in a darkened room?

Anyway, it clearly works, looking at his rather impressive six-pack. And that’s only the start, as he then embarks on a routine called ‘40 minutes of funk’, which includes skipping, stretching, dancing and jumping jacks.

Finished? No, he then moves on to push-ups, leg raises and tricep dips.

Celebrity fitness workout number two – Madonna
Madonna may look in great shape for her age – but she certainly puts the work in.

Her gruelling daily routine starts with a good, hard session of Astanga yoga – which really is not for the faint-hearted.

She then manages to get a Pilates session in there just before a macrobiotic lunch. In the afternoon, depending on her schedule, she will try and fit a session of swimming, cycling or even martial arts in there just to keep her ticking over. She’ll then cycle to the gym – that’s two workouts in one – just to warm down.

OK, I am exhausted just writing about it.

Celebrity fitness workout number three – LL Cool J

You just don’t get a body like that unless you are prepared to put in some hard work. And LL Cool J certainly puts in the work.

His daily routine usually starts on the treadmill or exercise bike ‘to get the blood flowing’. He then moves on to squats (or leg presses), immediately followed by a set of pull-ups, or rows, and alternate back and forth for 3-4 sets. He is not allowed any rest between any of these sets.

Once he has done that, he is allowed a minute to catch his breath, before moving on to his chest with some dips, pushups, or bench work. This is followed immediately by jumping lunges done with an overhead press (holding dumbbells).

Then comes the boxing. He’ll generally spar for 1-2 minutes with his personal trainer, and in between each session he will do bodyweight jump squats.

He’ll then finish it off with some treadmill work or track running – usually around 12 miles a day.

Celebrity fitness workout number four – Bruce Lee
The dead martial arts star certainly pushed his body to the max. Not only did he spend a lot of time doing stretching, aerobics and, obviously, martial arts, he was also a keen body builder.

Here is one of his favourite fitness regimes:
Shoulders: Clean and presses - 2 sets, 8 reps
Lats: Barbell pullovers - 2 sets, 8 reps
Bicep: Barbell curls - 2 sets, 8 reps
Chest: Bench-presses - 2 sets, 6 reps
Lower Back/Glutes - 2 sets, 8 rep
Quads Squats - 2 sets, 12 reps
Abs Waist Twists - 4 sets, 90 repetitions
Sit up Twist- 4 sets, 20 repetitions
Leg Raises - 4 sets, 20 repetitions
Leaning Twist - 4 sets, 50 repetitions

Sources:
Mynippon
Bodybuilding.com
Askmen.com
Momscape