Sexy Celebrity Leg Secrets!
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"She's got legs, she knows how to use them." -- ZZ TopThere is certainly no shortage of leggy ladies in Hollywood, but gorgeous gams always come with a price. Believe it or not, those stunning stems you see out on the red carpet are not simply the product of luck or favorable genes. Celebrities work hard to sculpt their lovely limbs through a combination of strength training, cardio and a healthy diet. So who’s currently got a leg up on the competition, and how'd they do it?
According to an In Touch magazine poll, Gwen Stefani, Jennifer Lopez, Cameron Diaz, Jessica Simpson and Tina Turner come out on top of the leg list. Stefani and Turner also made the list of "the sexiest legs in show business" provided by the British tabloid The Sun, along with such popular celebrities as Beyonce, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.
Gwen Stefani's key to success is… well, getting sweaty. She likes exercises that get her blood pumping, like jumping rope, using her elliptical trainer and strength training, which she just rediscovered.
Gwen makes it look easy to have great legs, but she has to work hard, just like everyone else. She loves pizza but explains, "If I want to eat pizza, I do, but then if I want to wear cute clothes, I don't. I have to get into these clothes, so I exercise outside, such as hiking, and work out with a trainer."
Multitalented celebrities like Stefani have to keep in great shape for their live shows and photo shoots, but when transitioning into film, they often have to increase the intensity to look the part. Jessica Simpson worked hard with a personal trainer for six months to get her scene-stealing stems in the Dukes of Hazzard.
This bubbly blonde has always had a nice physique, but for her role as Daisy Duke, she had to tone and shape her legs and butt. Simpson had to do justice to the famous Daisy Dukes that ushered in a new era in short shorts. The actress used personal trainer Mike Alexander, who not only developed and chaperoned her workouts, but also sat with her through every meal. The only bread Simpson ate was wheat, and she abstained from sugar and fried foods.
The workout regimen that Alexander tailored for the Southern starlet consisted of 20-30 minutes of cardio and 45-60 minutes of resistance training, five or six days a week. He explains that squats have to be one of the biggest metabolism-boosting exercises there are. The two main exercises in Simpson’s routine were squats (2-3 sets of 20 reps) and lunges (each leg: 2-3 sets of 12 reps).
Alexander recommends trying squats to raise your bottom and sculpt your thighs:
"Stand with your feet approximately two feet apart. Then turn your feet outwards, keeping them in line with your knees. Hold your arms out in front of you and slowly lower yourself down until your thighs are parallel with the floor. Keep your bottom tucked underneath you and your stomach pulled in. Hold this position for three seconds before slowly standing back up. Do 20 repetitions."
Though Cameron Diaz is no stranger to healthy eating, the star admits that she wasn't a convert to exercise until after she landed her big role in the Charlie's Angels movie.
"Before Charlie's Angels, I never exercised. Not a day. I always associated it with pain and discomfort -- something you do if you have to," Cameron told Self magazine. "Then, for the movie, we worked out eight hours a day, five days a week for three months, and I learned what it felt like to be strong."
Though she no longer works out eight hours a day, Diaz's current exercise regimen includes cardiovascular exercise on the elliptical trainer, light weight lifting and Pilates. According to CelebrityDiets.org, one of Cameron's favorite exercises for developing great legs is the reverse lunge. And, these days, she enjoys breaking a sweat!
"I love being physical. I love sweating. I love getting my heart rate up. I love challenging myself. Physically, I can do pretty much anything I put my mind to, and I like that feeling," Cameron says.
If you want to get legs like a Hollywood diva, our Chief Fitness Pro Raphael Calzadilla can help you get a leg up on the competition.
"Many women think they can spot reduce," Raphael notes. "They want to get their legs and hips slimmer. They think there are some magical exercises that can do that. Leg exercises strengthen the muscles and tighten them. But unless total body fat is reduced, combined with a cardio program, it’s not going to work."
While cardio works wonders in burning fat, it's the muscle-building exercises that really hold the power to achieving results. Generally, you should do three days a week of a full body workout.
Comment: Thursday, March 06, 2008 2:46:00 AM - 
Bonnie said...
Thanks again for the reminder that you cannot spot reduce and that results are always a combo of cardio, strength training and diet. We all know it, yet we still hope for some easy out to getting and staying in shape. Not gonna happen!
Comment: Thursday, March 06, 2008 10:13:00 AM - Amy in Michigan said...
Eight hours a day for Charlie's Angels. Whew, that's a lot of sweatin'. Great job, Cameron.
Comment: Thursday, March 06, 2008 12:10:00 PM - 
said...
Forgive me if I sound cynical, but if someone wants to give me Cam's paycheck from Charlies's Angels, I would gladly bump my regimen from 30 minutes, 3 times a week, to 8 hours a day, 5 days a week! As it is, I am 5'3", weigh 115 and at age 45 I wear a size 0-2 depending on the cut, so, I'm good, thanks!
Comment: Thursday, March 06, 2008 11:37:00 PM - said...
Ok, well all of this is great to know and I bet it works if you can stick with it. Here is where the problem is all these celebrities have 1.Personal Trainers that push them and stand right next to them and make sure they do it right. 2. They have a personal chef or some to get the right foods and make them eat it. AND 3. They have the money to pay for all that. So for those like me that don't have a lot of money or the people to support me whike I am working out makes thing very difficult. So, maybe there should be a fund passed for everyone over weight from children to adults, whether a lil over weight to very over weight, to give all those people personal trainers, personal chefs and someone to help them every step of the way. Then we could look like celebs.
Comment: Friday, March 07, 2008 10:15:00 AM - alesia said...
I am 46 years old and weigh 135lbs. and exercise has always been a major part of my life. I appauld all women who choose to take care of themselves. Rich or poor it is still a choice. We choose what to eat and if we want to workout. I choose to stay healthy
Comment: Friday, March 07, 2008 10:40:00 AM - said...
I would love the opportunity to get paid to work out all day long and have personal trainers, personal chefs..etc. Unfortunately the real world doesn't work that way. Celebrity life isn't real life folks, so don't compare yourself to them.
Comment: Friday, March 07, 2008 3:54:00 PM - said...
dido,I am short with VERY chunky legs and there is nothing a personal trainer and diet can do about that!that's what I was born with...I have exercised and dieted but they still stay bigger than the rest of me so I had lipo and although that didn't make them nearly perfect that was my last resort...it was extremely painful but I can now wear more clothes than before.
Comment: Friday, March 07, 2008 10:03:00 PM - said...
Cameron Diaz's body shape is long and lean, so she is genetically blessed and no doubt this body type served her well in her role in Charlie's Angels. Frankly, I thought she looked great to begin with prior to her 8 hours a day workouts. Not everyone is created equally and self acceptance is key to living in peace; taking in consideration that you eat a sensible diet, exercise and rest, destress, and have a good support system.
Comment: Saturday, March 08, 2008 6:54:00 PM - pzz said...
As someone has already said above that if I had tons of money, personal trainer and personal chefs, we all will be looking like celebs.
Hollywood is so bad for women everywhere. All that glitz and glamour is nothing but wasteful. Look at all these millionair Paris, Brit, Lindsey, Nina, what a bad role models. Rehabs has become a joke. They are on competition to see who goes for how many times.
I know I don't like to be fat and want to look good for own satisfaction not because somebody wants me to or I have to do to please somebody.
If a woman is confident, has self-esteem, feels good about herself, that woman will do it on her own and for herself.
All these modeling and brushing of pics in the magazines has done nothing but createe a disease in women to look like celebs.
I excercise for myself, my daughters and my grandson, I can enjoy time with them, do things with my gradson, go fishing with him, place soccer, foodball and hockey and baseball. I am 5'2, 58 years old. I ride my bike in summer to 30-35 km, shovel snow in winter for workout and I just did that here in Canada. I drink lots of water because I want to have great skin, stay out of the sun, so my skin does not like leather in summer, do oil massage in my hair at night, so the hot summer does not make it look like raggy and jutes type. I drink lemon in water every morning for digestive system, nervous system, purification of blood and toxins and good blood circulation.
You know folks, use your common sense and realize what is good for you. and just do it.
Comment: Monday, March 10, 2008 11:24:00 PM - said...
More power to these Celebs!!! I can say that I am blessed with long legs myself, but I must say that I am also blessed with a an appetite! I'm working really hard on shedding off the pounds by changing my diet and my toning up @ the gym. So I don't hate I particapate!
Comment: Tuesday, March 11, 2008 3:36:00 PM - said...
As others have said-HOLLYWOOD is NOT reality! Sure all of us can easily have beautiful bodies IF we had the money to hire people to CLEAN our houses, do our laundry, and COOK and SHOP for organic, healthy foods NOT to mention a personal trainer following us around during our days and workouts!
I do also, think that genetics has a lot to do with this and having height helps (ALL these clebs are tall!) --which one of these women (Tina Turner's legs are pure genetics!) has given birth and gone thru menopause (Two times in a women's life when she can gain fat cells-(in number, not just size of the cells!) ?????
MEN-stop the UNREALISTIC expecations, ok? --look at how ugly guys are today? Women settle for soooo little and yet Men have more unrealistic expectations put on us than ever before! Men are either (majority) fat, baldy and tatooed (I don't want to sleep with a comic book!) or, they are skinny, punny and have that emaciated, pathetic look like most "feminitized" European men!
What's with the double standard! Enough of that! If I take care of myself, why would I want some "Sumo Wrestler" next to me?
Comment: Saturday, March 15, 2008 2:56:00 PM - Christiane said...
Diaz may not have gone to the gym to exercise, but she was a surfer, which tones all of your body. So that is not really accurate.
Comment: Wednesday, March 19, 2008 12:07:00 AM - said...
I am so tired of hearing about exercises, diet, weight, cardio, etc. Nothing makes a difference when you are genetically damned. I have been jogging, hiking, dancing (ballet), swimming, elliptical trainer-ing, walking and cross-country skiing my whole sad life and nothing makes a difference. I eat well or eat poorly and it still doesn't change anything. People actually believe that they can have a chance at wearing a babydoll dress and looking good in it, with great legs when the only way that will happen is if you were born with great legs. I'm so tired of hearing about how movie stars have to do exercises and have special diets, etc. and that's why they "earned" the results they have - Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Tina Turner, etc. They were just born with great legs and that's that. Sure, they don't sit and eat a whole chocolate cake or lots of icecream, a whole pizza, etc. but they don't have to do much of anything to achieve the greatness. The rest of us with terrible legs are just unfortunate, "poor", unlucky, pathetic, sad "lesser" females that have to "get in the back of the line", sit in "the back of the bus", take the "hand-me-down" men, the men with no looks, money, the ugly guys, worry about them cheating on them every waking minute, and all the crappy jobs because in the interview they went on they couldn't "wow" the guy who interviewed them with their legs to get the job. Face reality and stop giving people false hope because it's really sickening to watch.
Sincerely,
"Trapped in
My Own Nightmare"
PS I live in Las Vegas where every day I am faced with women in short dresses with long perfect legs in high heels that parade around the high-class casinos and get paid to do so by casinos. They always seem to wind up in front of me and my boyfriend, who looks at everything that moves, by the way. I wish just ONE time we could leave the house without having to see this shit.
Comment: Tuesday, March 25, 2008 9:10:00 AM - said...
To trapped: Stop being so jealous. I also have fat legs with celulite and cannot wear those short skirts, but I accentuate what I do have and do not keep harping about what I don't have.
Yes, we would all love the opportunity to have the personal trainers and chefs, but we don't, so go the gym, work on what you can enhance (and you CAN improve what you have). Maybe your boyfriend is looking all over because you are complaining all the time and pointing out all the sexy women to him while trying to find something negative about them. Be happy with what you do have (functioning body parts, many do not even have this yet are happy). Try being happier about yourself and happier things will come your way.
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