Brooke Burke is adapting.
“At this stage in my life as a woman, Mother Nature is giving us one challenge after another,” the TV personality told Fox News Digital during a conversation about fitness and health.
Burke, who turns 53 in September, incorporates compound movements and heavy weight training into her training plan, something that women often shy away from.
“I want to talk about this briefly because most women are afraid of heavy weight training, and there’s this myth that heavy weight training will make you fat, but that’s not true. To really transform your body, you have to eat a lot of protein, lift heavy weights and be committed to the program,” she said.
“What I realized is, I’m in my 50s and no one’s told me to ‘learn how to weight train’ to prepare for menopause. The reasons you need to weight train are for bone density; for bone health, to prevent osteoporosis; it changes your hormones; it boosts your metabolism; it builds strength; it improves your coordination so you can do other things.”
“This is the first time I’ve really added heavy weights. And by heavy, I mean like 10-pound arms, you know? I’ve always added heavy weights to my Booty Burn program to get that curve in my butt,” says Burke, who hosts a Live! Zoom workout class every Friday on her website, BrookeBurke.com. “But it’s making me stronger. I feel my body changing. I’m maintaining lean muscle. And I’m getting more protein into my diet because my body needs it.”
Depriving your body of what it needs — food — is something the former “Dancing with the Stars” host doesn’t recommend.
“I feel like our country is at a point right now where we’re looking for temporary solutions, fad diets, shocking our bodies, being too disciplined and not enjoying life. I’m eating more. I’m leaner, I’m stronger, I feel more satisfied. I have more energy. I’m eating nutritious foods, I’m getting more protein. My smoothies, someone asked me on social media the other day how many calories are in a smoothie and I said, ‘I don’t count calories’. I just don’t count them. I’m not going to count them. I have enough counting in my life,” she said. “My smoothies have a lot of calories in them but here’s the difference: they’re nutritious. They’re full of good fats. They’re nourishing your brain, they’re nourishing your body, they’re fueling your whole body. It’s just retraining your brain. Eat, guys. Don’t starve yourself.”
Burke says that when she does intermittent fasting in the morning, she does it “intentionally” and adds lots of cream to her coffee.
“I would never have done that. Younger me? No way. This is how I feel in my body. I’m happy and I’m eating really well. Flavourful food, herbs, spices, oils – it’s a different way of approaching health. It’s not the same as when I was in my 20s. It’s better now, more fun, more flavourful.”
