Salma Hayek is dancing on the treadmill – in her workout gear. In a new social media post the actress celebrates latina singer Shakira on her special day while getting a creative workout in. “Happy birthday Queen Shakira, you are a musical goddess. Thank you for your music. @shakira #grateful Disclaimer: If you don’t have Latin or Arab blood, don’t try this at home,” she captioned the post. How does the star maintain her fit physique? Celebwell rounded up her top diet and fitness habits.
1. Horseback Riding
Salma is an avid equestrian. “Chasing sunsets,” she captioned a post of herself riding a horse. According to the American Heart Association, riding horses is great for your health. Not only does it boost cardiovascular health, but builds core strength, burns calories, and lowers blood pressure. It is also great for your mental health as it helps relax you.
2. No Diets
“I don’t like to diet and I’m not good at it,” Salma confessed on her Cooler Cleanse website. She added to More that she has a love-love relationship with food. "Everybody has a weakness and mine is food," she said. "If you love food and you love red wine and they put you in France, you’re in a good place and you’re in a bad place at the same time."
3. Restorative Yoga
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"Some people have the discipline to exercise in the morning, and I didn't develop that," Salma told People about her lack of enthusiasm to exercise. "I work with a woman in London who taught me how to hold my body in a way where the muscles are activated all day long. So even when you brush your teeth, you're working the muscles," she continued. "It's restorative yoga. She taught me how to tone [my muscles] without clenching them. You relax them and focus on the parts that need to be used, but never with tension. If you're aware of your body, you'd be surprised by the effect it can have."
4. Walking
She also gets her steps in by walking her dog. "This is my version of exercise and these are my #dogs coaches ... These are my trainers!" she shared in one Instagram post. Going for a daily walk can be a game changer in terms of exercise, especially at a brisk speed. One study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that walking at a brisk pace for about 30 minutes a day led to a reduced risk of heart disease, cancer, dementia and death, compared with walking a similar number of steps but at a slower pace.
5. Dancing
“I hate working out, but I love dancing,” Salma joked on Instagram in another post where she was dancing on the treadmill. Dancing is a great workout for many reasons. Not only does it build strength and promote flexibility, but helps you lose weight and even promotes cardiovascular function. A 2016 study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine determined that people who engaged in moderate-intensity dancing were 46 percent less likely to develop heart disease or die from it than non-dancers. In comparison, moderate-intensity walkers were just 25 percent less likely to suffer heart health issues.