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Chicago P.D. Star Nicole Ari Parker Shares Swimsuit Photo "Forever Your Ride and Live"

This is how she lost 20 pounds.

Chicago P.D. star Nicole Ari Parker celebrated an important milestone earlier this year—18 years of marriage to husband Boris Kodjoe. The And Just Like That… star, 52, and Kodjoe spent their anniversary at the beach, with Parker sharing a reel of the pair relaxing in swim shorts and a black swimsuit. "Happy 18th Babe ☀️ 🌊 👊🏽 #ForeverYourRide&Live #gotchu @boriskodjoe," she captioned the post. Here are the lifestyle tips that make Parker look and feel better every year.

1

Hotel Workouts

Nicole Ari Parker/Instagram

Parker loves weight lifting and cardio sessions on the treadmill when she's at home. She also has a routine figured out for when she's on the road. "I'm always in hotels and I have this workout that I do in my PJs," she says. "I get out of bed, lay on floor and do a circuit of five exercises: squats, lunges, push-ups, sit-ups and jumping jacks. I do it four times and I'm done. Think about it this way: It's easy to do this wherever you are and I promise you will start your day energized if you do this. We actually launched an app last week called KOFIT that has my exact workout."

2

20 Minute Workouts

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Parker worked hard to make her workout app accessible for everyone. "We were really trying to figure out a way to not focus so much on weight loss, but healthy habits," she says. "The way you shower, brush your teeth and put on your clothes, you can also fit in five minutes of fitness. So we have five-minute workouts that you can do twice to turn them into 10-minute workouts. We also have 20-minute workouts."

3

Losing 20 Pounds

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Parker lost 20 pounds by making small changes that would be consistent, over intense punishing diets. "I did it by calming down and doing a little bit every day," she says. "Instead of cramming a 20-pound weight loss into a 30-day juice fast, I realized that if I eat right and dedicate 15 minutes of every day to my workout the weeks go by and the weight falls off."

4

Sunscreen and Skincare

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Parker is diligent about protecting her skin from the sun. "As a Black woman, I have just started learning that I need to wear sunscreen, too," she says. "I like spray-on sunscreens because I wear a lot of makeup. I'm also really into moisturizing. It's always the legs, arms, and hands that get all the moisturizer, so I like to really take my time and apply to my whole body. And I like to cleanse with the NaturesBeautibar [soaps] — it's a woman-owned company, and the products are all natural and just divine."

5

Gratitude Journal

Nicole Ari Parker/Instagram

Parker and her husband keep a gratitude journal every day. "We wake up early and write down our dreams and thoughts," she says. "It's kind of weird. My husband is this giant guy and he's writing in a composition notebook that I bought at a drugstore. He can't sit in a lotus position due to sports injury, but we'll sit outside in the sunshine and write down all that we're grateful for. It changes things. Focusing on the good makes all the difference."

 

Ferozan Mast
Ferozan Mast is a science, health and wellness writer with a passion for making science and research-backed information accessible to a general audience. Read more
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