Bow Down To Beyoncé’s Workout & Diet Routine

In Beyoncé’s 2008 hit, “Halo,” she implies that her lover is an angel. Perhaps she needed this kind of saving grace in her life for balance because her workout routine is so hellish. Or maybe that’s just speculation coming from a writer who hates crunches and loves chicken cacciatore. Who's to say?  

Although many mere mortals like myself would consider Beyoncé’s fitness and diet plan to be torture crafted by Satan himself, it’s kept the famed performer in prime shape. This week, she turned 38, but she looks like she could be 18 years younger than that. After three kids and what seems like a million hits, the star is the epitome of fitness goals.

Although her famed line is "I woke up like this," deep down she knows that staying in shape takes thought and work. And, of course, it's important to remember that there isn't one right way to be healthy. So if Bey's way is too intense for you, that's totally fair.

Here are some of her go-to tips for looking like the goddess/diva/queen we’ve all come to know and worship. 

Bey has long been a fan of this plant-based meal planing resource, which is the brainchild of her trainer and nutritionist Marco Borges. 22 Days is a customizable program that aims to make eating healthy, organic, totally vegan meals easier. Beyoncé loves this vegan plan so much, she went vegan in the lead-up to Coachella, and even offered fans an opportunity to win Beyoncé or Jay Z concert tickets for life if they joined her in this plant-based lifestyle.  

For the record, Mascha Davis — MPH, RDN, a registered dietitian nutritionist in Los Angeles and spokesperson for the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics — previously told Refinery29 that going vegan isn’t a silver bullet when it comes to your nutrition.

In the Netflix film Homecoming — which gave behind-the-scenes insight into Bey’s historic Coachella performance —  Beyoncé shared that her diet was restrictive in more ways than limiting meat and dairy. She also banned most forms of carbs and alcohol. “In order to meet my goal, I'm limiting myself to no bread, no carbs, no dairy, no meat, no fish, no alcohol. And I'm hungry," she said in the documentary. 

For the record, carbs play a critical part in giving your body energy, but as experts previously shared with Refinery29, not all carbs are created equal. I personally feel carbs are as irreplaceable as Bey herself.

Being healthy is all about balance. Beyoncé previously shared that her go-to Sunday meal is pizza. Extra tomato sauce and jalapeños are her toppings of choice, according to Deslish. "I always treat myself to one meal on Sundays when I can have whatever I want. Usually it's pizza, which is my favourite indulgence," she told Shape Magazine.

No one has moves like Bey. And for her, dancing is both fun and a great way to get in a good sweat. "For me, dancing is what keeps me active," she shared with Shape. 

And when she isn’t shaking it like she’s rerecording the "Crazy In Love" music video, she finds motivation in (surprise!) music. "I'll put on a song that I really like and do [biceps curls with] five-pound weights [for] the whole song and just try to burn out," she told Self.

In 2015, Marie Claire broke down one of Beyoncé’s workouts step by step. It involved tons of core work, including standing side crunches and full body sit-ups incorporating a medicine ball. Intense stuff. 

Beyoncé’s life is obviously busier (and fresher) than yours. Just saying. When she has a crazy day, but has a few extra minutes, she’ll do squats, lunges, and planks on the fly, according to PopSugar.  This “fit it in” approach is #Goals. But I personally can’t imagine doing squats as I wait for my bread to toast. 

In preparation for her Formation World Tour, Bey did tons of running and boxing, trainer Borges told Glamour at the time. "Sprints are ideal for building stamina and explosiveness, which B needs to move across the stage," Borges said. He noted that he has her alternate between one-minute of sprinting with two minutes of speed-walking for 30 minutes.

In preparation for Coachella, she stepped up the cardio again. “Eventually I want to be able to do SoulCycle, the stairs, and rehearsal in a day,” she says in Homecoming. This may make you question whether Bey’s days also only consist of only 24 hours. For this, I have no answer.

Borges also shares with Glamour that stretching is an important part of Bey’s workout routine. "I stretch B at the end of every workout," he said. This can improve your flexibility, and aid recovery. The "when in doubt, stretch it out" rule is for celebrities, too.