UFC Star Michelle Waterson-Gomez in Workout Gear Does Dips: “It’s a Struggle”

UFC Star Michelle Waterson-Gomez doesn’t need extra plates when she’s doing dips at the gym—something she makes fun of in an Instagram post. Waterson-Gomez, 38, shared a video of herself wearing black leggings and a gray t-shirt, doing an upper body workout with the text “When you got a built in weighted… 😅” written over the video. “It’s a struggle lol 😆,” she captioned the post. “Relatable 😅🫠,” a fan commented. Here’s how the MMA star trains, eats, and lives her fittest fighter life.

1. Drills, Boxing, and Tabata

Waterson-Gomez says when it comes to training, nothing is more important than drills. “I also like shadow boxing which is like fighting an imaginary opponent,” she told Women Fitness. “Shadow boxing allows you to fix your mistakes and make your movement smooth so that it becomes second nature. Doing bag work is also a good workout routine. It allows me to work on my power and footwork. One of my favorite things to do to improve my stamina are tabatas. 20 seconds high intensity, 10 seconds rest, seven times, then rest for one min in between sets. Do it three times. This is a very short but very effective way to build your explosive muscles.”

2. Training Diet

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Waterson-Gomez is strict with her diet when she’s training to fight. “I stay very hydrated, and eat very clean,” she told Women Fitness. “I try to stay away from processed, fried foods. Towards the end of my camp I stick to leaner meats and lots of green veggies.”

3. Fighting Beauty

Waterson-Gomez refuses to be boxed in by stereotypes of what a fighter should look like. "When I talk to people that have no idea that I fight, their first thing they say is, "Really, you fight? You don't look like a fighter,'" she told PeopleStyle. “I'm like, 'Well, what are fighters supposed to look like?' Some of us like to wear makeup, the red lips, the sexy black dress [too]."

4. Shaped by Martial Arts

Waterson-Gomez says martial arts has shaped who she is today and she couldn’t be more grateful. “It gave me a voice when I was too afraid to speak,” she told Numéro Netherlands. “It gave me the courage to take action when I was petrified with fear. There have been so many times throughout my life when Ifelt lost or stuck, and I leaned on my training as a martial artist to help guide me. Martial arts taught me to be humble, patient, persistent and driven.”

5. Love For Julie Kedzie and Holly Holm

Waterson-Gomez is inspired by and has great respect for fellow fighters Julie Kedzie and Holly Holm. “These ladies inspire me in more ways than one,” she told Women Fitness. “Outside of being amazing people, they carry the spirit of true warriors and I have learned so much from them. I have sweat, bled, cried and celebrated with these two and I would do anything for them.”

Whitney Simmons, a popular fitness influencer, consistently shares her wellness journey with her millions of followers. Known for her dedication to mental and physical health, she regularly posts workout routines, tips for managing her autoimmune condition, and the importance of gratitude. Recently, Simmons shared a back and bicep workout on Instagram, offering tips like "elbows have to stay pinched to your side" when doing bicep curls. Beyond the gym, she’s open about her struggles with psoriasis and how she's embraced confidence over time. From mixing up her workouts to trying new fitness approaches like Pilates, Simmons is an inspiration to her followers, showing that wellness is a combination of fitness, mental health, and self-care. Here's a look into her approach.

1. She Lifts Weights

Simmons showed off a recent workout that targeted her back and biceps while wearing cute brown camo workout pants, a white tube top, and white sneakers. When doing bicep curls, she explained that “elbows have to “stay pinched to your side,” and palms should face the sky. Another tip the trainer gave was to drive your elbow towards your hip, then squeeze your lat at the bottom when doing single-arm cable pulldowns.

1️⃣ 3x10 bentover barbell row

2️⃣ 3x10 wide bicep curls

3️⃣ 3x10 single arm cable pulldown

superset with 4️⃣ 10 cable bicep curls

5️⃣ 2x10 reverse fly

2. She Doesn’t Hide Her Psoriasis

Simmons once felt uncomfortable showing her psoriasis, an autoimmune condition that causes itchy, scaly patches of skin, but now she’s in a more confident place not to feel shame or embarrassment over the condition. “The more severe it got, the more I wanted to cover it,” she told Women’s Health. She worried that showing it would make people uncomfortable. But now, she chooses to be vulnerable. “I have so many women in my DMs who say, ‘I used to cover every inch of my body at the gym, and now I just don’t care. I am going to wear the shorts.’”

3. She’s Grateful

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Faced with heavy and dark life issues, at one point, Simmons wanted to end her life by driving into a concrete wall. “But “at the very last second, I decided, ‘Not yet,’” she told Women’s Health. A few days later she started therapy and was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. She took a long break from social media, and followers began asking what had happened. She shared her story on the Fleurish podcast and then eventually her channels. Therapy and telling her story helped her grow confident, and now Simmions is in a great place. “From seeing nothing beautiful in any day, to now—I am so grateful that I made it through that,” she says. “It is a beautiful day to be alive.”

4. She Mixes Up Her Workouts

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Experts always recommend switching up your gym routine to help prevent hitting a plateau with fitness goals, reduce the risk of injury, and keep workouts fun. Simmons mixes up her workouts and shares with followers exactly what she does to achieve her goals. For leg days, she does the following:

“LEGS GET IT ❤️‍🔥 let me walk you through my glute workout”

1️⃣ 3x10 bb hip thrust

2️⃣ 3x8 bb RDL

3️⃣ 3x8 front rack step up

4️⃣ 3x10 glute med cable kickbacks

In another video, she shared other ways to target your legs and glutes.

Whitney Simmons/Instagram

1️⃣ 3x8 bb RDL

2️⃣ 3x10 bb hip thrust

3️⃣ 3x8 deficit reverse lunge

4️⃣ 3x10 weighted glute dom back extension

superset

5️⃣ 10 bodyweight

5. She Isn’t Afraid to Try New Workouts

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Earlier this year, Simmons tried Pilates for the first time. In the video, simply titled “Pilates Princess,” she did a variety of moves and was taken aback by how much she worked her muscles. Are we on the easiest resistance,” she asked her instructor. “This just feels a little too advanced,” she joked. “My belly hurts so bad,” she laughed when doing the ab portion of the workout. When it came time to focus on the lower body, she asked, “Do you see my legs shaking.” She then said, “I don’t think I’ve ever worked my inner thighs like this.”

Tatiana Suarez is training hard in her workout gear. In a new social media post the UFC fighter shows off her super strong body in a two-piece set during a Sin City sweat session. “Two grappling sessions this Monday! Training to be the best every day! Let’s go 👊🏼🤼‍♀️,” she captioned the Instagram video and photo. “Champ,” commented one of her followers, while several others added fire emojis. How does she approach diet, fitness, and self-care? Here is everything you need to know about her lifestyle habits.

1. People Tried to Talk Her Out of Wrestling

Tatiana felt pressured to stay away from wrestling as a kid."I was three years old when I started wrestling, and my whole life, people told me I shouldn't," she told Women's Health. "I would wrestle with their sons, and they'd be like, 'You're so cute. You should probably go do tennis.' And I'm like, 'I think tennis is great, but I'm wrestling, and I just beat your son. So maybe he should go do a different sport, not me.'"

2. Neck Injury and Cancer Treatment

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In 2011 Tatiana suffered a neck injury and while being treated, doctors discovered a cancerous tumor on her thyroid. She took a day-by-day approach to recovery. "I had to keep my diet a certain way, and I had to do certain exercises for my neck every day, and they were so tedious and boring," says Tatiana. "Not only that, but I couldn't do what I love, which is to go live and do my sport." Focusing on what she could control and letting go of what she couldn't helped her get through it all. "It's always easier said than done," she says. "But it's a constant battle."

3. Proper Nutrition

She also focused on adding lean muscle while staying light enough to transition to 115 pounds (the strawweight division) when it was time to compete again. "I ate a lot of high-protein foods and healthy fats like olive oil on salad, chicken, steak, eggs, and avocado," she says. "I also incorporated fish oil, creatine for when I spar, and Thorne's Curcumin Phytosome, which helps a lot with my inflammation." She avoids sugar and processed foods.

4. Jiu Jitsu and Boxing

"I'm a great wrestler, I know I'm great at jujitsu, I'm great at kicking," Tatiana says. "So right now, I've been focusing a lot on boxing because I know that it's probably my weakest thing. It's also given me a newfound respect for boxers."

5. Training 7 Days a Week

Tatiana trains seven days a week. Her workouts include cardio, strength training, jujitsu, and physical therapy. "I can't wrestle yet. I drill it, but I can't bend my knee all the way," says Tatiana. "When I'm in [training] camp, there's not so much emphasis on cardio just because I do cardio throughout my workouts.”

Francielle Mattos, a successful bodybuilder, frequently shares her favorite workout routines on Instagram, inspiring her followers with her dedication and hard work. In a recent set of gym photos and videos, Mattos is seen posing in workout gear, performing sit-ups, hip thrusts, and using the leg extension machine. Her caption, "This is wellness," reflects her commitment to maintaining a balanced and strong body. Here’s a deeper look into how Mattos stays in peak shape.

1. She Works With A Trainer

Mattos works with a trainer to help herself stay fit. She talked about her trainer in the caption of this Instagram post. “Closing the week with training 🔥 ♥️ 💪🏼This week has yielded … At the commands of my trainer @carlosaugustogaron that today I possessed 😂😂😂Must be @growthsupplements HAZE's pre workout, I'm sure he's taking it…”

2. She Does Leg Extensions

Francielle Mattos/instagram

Mattos is seen doing hamstring curls in her recent post, and the previous blurb’s post. Asphalt Green states that this exercise has a lot of benefits. “These machines provide isolation exercises for your legs. This type of exercise works only one muscle or group of muscles, which means you can build up that part of your body quickly. If you want your thigh muscles to really stand out in those shorts you just bought, the leg extension machine is for you! Leg extensions using this exercise machine work your thighs. In fact, that’s basically the only thing that they work. That’s great if you want to build strength and mass quickly.”

3. She Strength Trains

Being a bodybuilder, Mattos has to do a lot of strength training. She shares a lot of posts on Instagram of herself using weights, including the two previous posts. The Mayo Clinic reports that strength training is extremely beneficial. “Strength training may enhance your quality of life and improve your ability to do everyday activities. Strength training can also protect your joints from injury. Building muscle also can contribute to better balance and may reduce your risk of falls. This can help you maintain independence as you age.”

4. She Works Hard

Mattos makes sure to work hard when she hits the gym. She talked about this in the caption of this Instagram post. “There is only one person who can limit his own growth. By yourself. You are the only person who can revolutionize your own life. You're the only person who can hurt yourself. It is within your heart that you will find the energy required to transform your life. Atleta @growthsupplements. What was that training 😅 😂 @carlosaugustogaron I had a bad time from start to finish, thanks friend 🤜🏻🤛🏻 Garon will leave the full workout in the comments ☝🏻”

5. She Does Hip Thrusts

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Mattos is seen doing hip thrusts in her recent Instagram post, and the previous blurb’s Instagram video. Gymless states that the exercise is very beneficial. “Hip thrusts are plastered on nearly every fitness influencer’s page nowadays. Fortunately, they are a dynamic and effective exercise that has soared in popularity among fitness enthusiasts and athletes…It’s a great compound movement that targets the gluteal muscles (‘glutes’), and it’s crucial for improving lower body strength, power, and juicy lower-body aesthetics.”