Anastasia Ashley is a professional surfer, known for winning the Pipeline’s Women’s Pro. She just shared a new video on Instagram, where she takes her followers through her process of preparing to surf. In it, she put a wetsuit over a bathing suit top, before hitting the waves. She captioned the post, “GRWM to surf.. who else thinks thinks getting in and outta a wetsuit is a workout in itself?” How does she stay so fit? Read on to see 5 ways Anastasia Ashley stays in shape and the photos that prove they work—and to get beach-ready yourself, don't miss these essential 30 Best-Ever Celebrity Bathing Suit Photos!
1. She Surfs
Naturally, Ashley’s main source of fitness is surfing. She talked about the effect surfing has on her body to Cosmopolitan. “Surfing is a full-body workout. When you're riding the board and balancing, you use your legs for balance and stability. And because you're always squatting, which is an uncomfortable and abnormal body position, it challenges your butt and legs.”
2. She Does Cardio
Ashley revealed some of her favorite exercises to Cosmopolitan. “I'm in the gym usually every day and do a lot of specific exercises for legs to keep them strong,” she says. “While cardio alone won't keep you toned, I walk on a treadmill at a high incline, climb on the StairMaster, and do lots of quick intervals. With the incline walking, I'll do 12 to 15 incline at a 3 to 4 mile-per-hour pace. Even if you jog or run for five minutes on a super high incline, it's still pretty hard!”
3. She Warms Up
Ashley makes sure to warm up, especially before she competes. “Before an event, I try to get my heart rate up by jumping around, running in place, and stretching,” she tells Cosmopolitan. “I don't want to run up and down the beach because when I go into a heat, it's 15 to 20 minutes of nonstop intensity. You don't want to go into that tired. I just want to get the blood flowing to get ready. I'm not dancing in my mind; I'm in my own world. I just bounce around to get loose. I just kind of vibe.”
4. She’s Consistent
Ashley makes sure to make fitness a priority. She tells Guest Of A Guest that she makes sure to workout on a regular basis. “I make time for fitness and put it as a priority, and do something active every day even if I'm traveling or in a hotel. My girl favorite workouts are taking a spin class, and doing Pilates. I like group classes because it's always more fun working out with a friend or having other people around to motivate me!”
5. She Wants To Inspire Others
Being a female pro surfer, Ashley wants to inspire young girls out there. "I want to be out there and show you can be a strong, fearless, independent athlete and be a woman,” she says to Refinery29. “Growing up, it wasn’t a cool thing to be a female athlete or a female surfer. It taught me to be strong and do what I love.”