Why is it that celebrities always seem to be thinner, sexier and more beautiful that us? What weight loss secrets do they use to get that way? Is it a diet, a diet pill, Weight Watchers, or what? It seems that if we could only get the inside information on the new celebrity weight loss program or weight loss pill, then we'd be almost guaranteed to experience fast weight loss of our own.

Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, Lindsay Lohan, Hilary Duff, Denise Richards, Janet Jackson, Daryl Hannah, Whitney Houston, Kirstie Alley and many other celebrities have all been in the news lately because of their own personal weight issues. This article looks at what weight loss strategies have worked for these and other celebrities, and how we can apply these same tactics to our own situation.

* Most Celebrities Are Thinner Than Us:

Despite the few celebrity weight loss failures, there's no denying that most celebrities look better than we do. Models, for example, are 23 percent leaner than the average (source: annecollins.com). Perhaps their trim appearance is part of the reason why we, as a nation, have such a fascination with the celebrity lifestyle.

Indeed, we typically reward and idolize the more slender celebrities. Just a quick look at People Magazine's list of the '50 Most Beautiful People 2005' reveals that only the lean made the list. People's 'Most Beautiful Women of 2005' list reveals the same thing - celebrities (at least the popular ones) are more thin than we are.

Even when we do find a celebrity that doesn't look like a stick figure, invariably we find that they have recently lost some weight. "No longer a crash dieter, Oprah Winfrey.....who at her heaviest was 237 lbs., has been eating right, sticking to lean protein and hitting the gym as she aims for her "safe zone" in the 150-lb. range. "Maybe for the first time, she's doing it for all the right reasons," says trainer Bob Greene of the talk-show queen's workouts (source: people.aol.com).

* How Do They Do It?

Even though celebrities do make diet and nutrition mistakes, the majority of them are still thinner than us. So how do the stars achieve quick weight loss when we battle and fight just to lose a few pounds? Is there some secret weight loss product or weight loss plan they're keeping hidden from us?

The secret is that there is no secret. Celebrities try the same diets we have, including the South Beach Diet, the Zone Diet, the Atkins Diet and countless others. There is no mysterious diet plan or diet product that works for every celebrity all the time, just as there is no such plan that will work for every one of us.

Celebrities that are successful in achieving a healthy weight loss generally do so with a nutritious weight loss diet and regular exercise. Take a look at these examples:

"I think Oprah Winfrey wins the weight battle of 2004 -- she looks fabulous.....Look at her, she's never looked better. She's been skinnier -- that's true -- but she's never looked better." "Oprah should set the standard for Hollywood weight loss," Paula says. "She's been very open about it. She's been up, she's been down, she's been wide, she's been skinny." She continues: "She didn't do the surgery and she doesn't really do the fad diets. She eats healthy, she has a personal trainer and she works really hard at it" (source: et.tv.yahoo.com).

Denise Richards put on 30 lbs. while carrying Lola (born June 1), but Richards had a secret weight-loss weapon: "It's called the Stress Diet," she says, half-joking, - and alluding to having filed for divorce (from Charlie Sheen) in her sixth month of pregnancy. But mostly she can thank her work with trainer Garrett Warren: She's been kickboxing and doing abdominal exercises four to six times weekly - and adhering to a portion-controlled diet (source: celebrity.aol.com).

"All

eyes were on the miraculous weight loss of Hollywood in 2004," Paula says. "But there's no real miracle about it, it's exercise, it's eating right and sometimes -- it's surgery!" (Source: et.tv.yahoo.com).

* Why Does It Work For Them And Not For Us?

It's no surprise that eating the right foods and exercising regularly will help us achieve our ideal weight. So why is it that celebrities seem to have so much more success than we do? There are three reasons why the stars lose weight faster than the average American: 1) Celebrities have more time than we do. 2) Celebrities have more money than we do. 3) Celebrities have a bigger incentive to stay fit and trim.

Although they do work long hours while touring or filming, there's no denying that the stars have more disposable time than we do. When you're rich enough to hire a nanny, a driver, a personal chef and many other assistants to take over the time-consuming tasks of life for you, it's easy to find more time to exercise.

"Singer Jessica Simpson started a new exercise routine to get in shape for her role as Daisy Duke in the upcoming Dukes of Hazard movie. Her workout includes two HOURS a day of squats and lunges and has motivated her to create a new workout video. "I have a white-girl bootie, so I'm doing all my squats to lift it a little bit and get some junk in my trunk," says Jessica (source: kidzworld.com).

"Usher's been workin' on his abs since he was 16, but claims that it's all because of good genes.....hard work and being disciplined - oh yeah, and 1,000 CRUNCHES a day. Usher also has a daily routine he calls "forty minutes of funk" which includes stretchin', skippin' and jumping jacks. Then he moves onto push-ups, leg raises and tricep dips.....can you say fitness freak!" (source: kidzworld.com).

Not only do celebrities have the time to exercise for hours on end, but they typically have the money to hire the absolute best weight loss support team. Julia Roberts, for example, earns an estimated $25,000,000 each year. Cameron Diaz earns $20,000,000 annually. Angelina Jolie pulls down about $12,000,000 each year and Reese Witherspoon gets a $15,000,000 yearly paycheck (source: bankrate.com). With that much cash on hand, the stars can easily afford to hire the best personal trainers, the best nutritionists, the best dietitians and the best personal chefs.

"Celebrities also have the luxury of personal trainers and nutritionists to help them with rigorous diet regimes" (source: abcnews.go.com).

With a personal chef to prepare every meal, celebrities find it easier to follow a low fat diet. A registered dietitian in the house makes it easy for stars to get a unique diet recipe or any other weight loss information they want. Simply put, having the salary of a celebrity makes it easier to lose weight.

Indeed, it's that same high salary that gives celebrities their incredible incentive to stay slender. The blunt truth of the matter is that Hollywood and the entertainment industry is not kind to overweight stars, often shunning them in favor of 'thin beauty'. Celebrities see a very real connection between their weight and their earnings power, which gives them the motivation they need to keep trying when many others would give up.

Statistics show that approximately two-thirds of Americans are overweight. Research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that 80 percent of overweight individuals and almost 87 percent of obese individuals are trying to lose or maintain their weight. As a nation, we're trying to win the battle of the bulge, but we often lack the motivation to consistently exercise and eat right. How much easier would that struggle be if there were a $25,000,000 prize waiting for us when we reached our goal weight?

* How We Can Use The Diet And Weight Loss Programs Of The

Stars:

Although most Americans can't afford the same support staff hired by the celebrities, we can learn from their success and use that information to achieve our own health and fitness goals. Here's what we can do to copy the weight control tactics of celebrities:

1) Find an exercise program that takes less time. 2) Search for free diet information and free weight loss information. 3) Earn and keep more money by losing weight.

First of all, it's time to face reality that most of us will never have hours each day to dedicate to exercise like the celebrities do. That's not an excuse to quit! Instead, find an exercise routine that will get results in a shorter period of time. A great example is circuit training, where you get aerobic and resistance exercise at the same time. By combining these two types of workout into one, it's entirely possible to get real fat loss results in only thirty minutes each day.

Some time-strapped celebrities use circuit training to achieve their fitness goals. Matthew McConaughey, for example, ".....was circuit training - combining cardiovascular exercise with muscle-strengthening moves....." (source: STAR Magazine 11-14-05).

Circuit training works, especially for those of us short on time. As an example, consider Pick Up The Pace 30-Minute Workout For Women. This is a health club that offers hydraulic circuit training and has seen gym members accomplish incredible results. As reported on their website, member Minnie lost 10.5 inches during the month of February 2005. Vymell C. lost 9.5 inches the same month. The site also reports that Betty K. joined Pick Up The Pace in January, 2003. By September, 2004 she had lost 50 inches, and dropped from a size 18 to an 8. Stacie Y. lost 68 pounds, 54 1/4 inches, and dropped 6 sizes.

The next thing we can do to mimic celebrity weight loss success is find free diet information and free weight loss information. The truth about health and fitness is out there, and much of it is free.

Finally, we can copy celebrity weight loss by giving ourselves a real cash incentive to lose weight. While we probably won't ever hit that $25,000,000 payday, we can earn and keep more money by losing weight. It's true! Losing weight will help us earn and save more money. "Studies have consistently shown that obese employees are paid less than normal-weight employees doing similar jobs" (source: HealthNewsDigest.com).

A comprehensive study of wages in 1998 found that obese workers earn significantly less than than non-obese employees. How much less? About $3.41 per hour! This discrepancy was found only in those workers who had employer-sponsored health insurance, perhaps suggesting that the higher costs of insuring obese individuals was being passed on to the employees themselves. (Source: Bundorf and co-author Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine at the Center for Health Policy/Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research).

So it's possible that losing weight could eventually add substantially to our paycheck! But did you know that losing weight may also lower the amount of money we personally pay out in medical costs? According to a study published in Health Affairs recently, obese Americans pay $732 more for health care each year than do normal-weight adults. Is that as much as a celebrity earns each year? Of course not - but it is a cash incentive for us to lose weight!

Celebrities will always have the advantage when it comes to weight loss. But with some extra effort we can achieve the same results!

About the author:

* Tracie Johanson is the founder of Pick Up The Pace, a 30-minute exercise studio for women, focusing on fitness, health and nutrition for maximum weight loss. Please visit http://www.letspickupthepace.com/ for more information.

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