1. Cardio, HIIT, and Strength Training
Shutterstock
Thiessen enjoys a variety of different workouts, both at home and at the gym. “I’ve always been someone who doesn’t like doing the same thing every day, so I like to change my workouts up,” she says. “I do strength training and HIIT classes Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and then I do mat Pilates on Tuesdays and Thursdays. On the weekends I usually go hiking. In California we have such great hikes. I also have a Peloton, and I used that very much at the beginning of the pandemic. But I missed having that connection with real people, so since things are starting to open up, I went back to a private gym. But Cody [Rigsby] was my favorite on Peloton. He got me through every ride that I did. I love him; he’s the cutest cheerleader ever.”
2. Sleep Health
Shutterstock
Thiessen knows how beneficial exercise is for sleep health. “I’m really good about drinking water in the morning,” she says. “I usually drink either regular water or I'll do hot water with lemon. And then at night it’s either tea—I love turmeric and green teas from Kilogram—or I just try to down even more water before bed. Exercise helps everything, and it 100% impacts my sleep. If I don’t get my normal exercise in, I see a huge difference in how my body feels later that night—it makes it hard to fall asleep, and I’ve found it messes with the quality of my sleep as well.”
3. Love of Cooking
Thiessen loves cooking at home (just check out her cookbooks for proof!). “I grew up in a long line of women who love to cook,” she says. “I just kind of went right into it with them. As I’ve gotten older and I started traveling to other countries, my love of cooking just expanded… For me, it’s high protein, and really coming down on the carbs, or the bad carbs, as much as possible,” she previously said. “I’m nursing, so I can’t be too crazy and really be minimal, so I try to eat a whole grain everyday because I think it’s important, and because I want to give my baby everything he needs too. He’s not on a diet!”
4. No Skipping SPF
Shutterstock
Thiessen is diligent about protecting her skin from the California sun. “I really believe in SPF but didn’t worry about it as much when I was a kid,” she says. “I grew up in California, and we were at the beach almost every weekend. I was the girl whose mother and grandmother were using baby oil to suntan. Now I’ve become very strict about sunscreen, making sure I use it all the time and wearing hats when I go hiking because I always try to protect my face. I do love laying out, and I love the beach, but I’m responsible when it comes to the sun.”
5. Health and Longevity
As Thiessen approaches 50, she is focused on health and longevity over looks. “I’m the best I can be and I’m taking care of myself and doing things that I know will benefit the outside exterior of myself that people are seeing,” she says. “But yeah, those people don’t know what’s happening on the inside, right? Because that’s what actually helps the outside… I’m doing it for myself, I’m doing it for my kids, my husband. I want to be around for as long as possible of course, to be able to see my kids grow up and have kids of their own, and all those things that are much more important to me now.”