Abs workouts and intense cardio aren’t in the schedule

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Jennifer Aniston is a living legend, but this weekend, she’ll be in the presence of another Hollywood icon. During Feb. 24’s SAG Awards ceremony, Jennifer will be presenting the 59th SAG Lifetime Achievement Award to superstar actress, singer, writer, and director Barbra Streisand.

Of course, Jennifer looks better than ever at 55, but this hasn’t been a walk in the park (Central Park, for all you Friends fans out there). The actress has worked hard to maintain her muscles over the years and is only getting better at it with age. If that means waking up well before the sun rises to sweat, putting in hour-long high-intensity sessions, or sweating it out until she has a self-portrait on the yoga mat, Jennifer admits that she’s done it all.

But, that’s all in the past for her. She’s become wiser about her workouts, what her body is capable of, and specifically what it needs now in her 50s. During the pandemic and due to a back injury suffered on set, one new workout modality won her over and completely transformed her weekly routine: Pvolve, short for Personal Evolution. It’s a low-impact functional fitness method that incorporates resistance-based equipment to work the whole bod in all planes of motion (more on that to come!).

Here’s exactly what Jennifer Aniston’s workout routine is now and what she eats in a day to look and feel stronger than ever at 55.

Jennifer ideally works out four times a week.

Naturally work and life can get in the way, and no week is exactly the same. “It varies from week to week, depending on a work schedule,” she tells WH. “Ideally, I would love four workout days a week, and then a day where it’s more of a major walk or hike.”

She’s sweating smarter, not harder these days and makes every minute truly count. “I can do 20 minutes and get as good of a workout as if I work for an entire hour,” Jennifer says.

“We think we have to work out for the solid hour and that can be a bit intimidating,” Jennifer says. She’s learned there is a better way. “You really can get an efficient workout with just a good 20 minutes if that’s all the time you have, even 10 minutes of doing something that gets your body moving. I just find comfort in that.” Honestly, same.

If she’s working and on set, her sweat sessions may drop to two or three days that week. “I don’t put the pressure on myself like I used to,” Jennifer says.

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She stopped doing long, intense cardio sessions completely.

Her previous fitness routine looked a lot different. “I used to wake up hours before I had to get to work and those hours are already kind of bananas in terms of how early.” (I’m talking in the 4 A.M.s folks!)

“I’ve stopped doing 45 minutes to an hour of just constant cardio, running, and boot camp because my knees can’t take it anymore, and it’s just not efficient,” she adds.

Instead, she’s doing Pvolve for physical and mental health. Jennifer started by streaming on-demand classes from the website and recently added in-person private sessions with Dani Coleman, Pvolve’s director of training and head trainer. “That’s what I love about it,” Jennifer says. “It’s such a mind-body connection because it’s not just throwing your arms out to the side or doing jumping jacks. You’re really mindful of your body and its movement.”

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Now, Jennifer does full-body workouts that suit her mood.

The exact moves and intensity of her routine vary. Her workout “depends on what I’m feeling,” Jennifer explains. “That’s the fun thing about this program—you can curate your workouts to whatever your mood is that day or whatever your body’s feeling that day, exactly how long you want to go, what equipment you want to use that day, the difficulty level. I just love that: build your own workout.”

She doesn’t love to focus on a muscle or area all the time, though. “It’s usually some form of an overall body workout,” Jennifer says. “I rarely I walk in and think, ‘I’m just going to hit the abs today.’ I really would like to get a full-body workout every time.

“I really love the sliders workout because it’s your upper body and your lower body; it can incorporate everything. I’m in love with my P.band, which is something I can just put my bag wherever I want. It’s nice to have when you’re in a car waiting for something. It’s a great thing to be able to just do a couple moves.” (The P.band includes a resistance band attached to a set of gloves that engages muscles in the arms, back, and shoulders.)

Jennifer’s targeting muscles she never has before and in totally new ways. “[A Pvolve workout] is not as gentle as it seems,” she says. “It is working muscles out I can’t believe are getting work, little micro muscles that never get any attention, and I’m dripping in sweat. I couldn’t believe my first workout.”

Jennifer still includes yoga and Pilates in her routine.

The resistance band workouts aren’t the only modality keeping the star fit lately. “I definitely incorporate Pilates,” she adds. “I like to add in some yoga as well. I always like to mix things up because it keeps things very interesting.”

If there isn’t time for those specific modalities, she still has variety built in with her Pvolve repertoire. “Because [Pvolve] has so many variations of workouts, I can really just do that.” There are lower impact stretch and physical therapy-inspired options and progressive weight training as well as heart pumping cardio burn using bodyweight or any combo of the equipment. Boredom? Not here.

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Jennifer’s meals always include a protein and vegetables.

To begin her day, she makes her breakfast drinkable. “First I start off with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar mixed in water, room temperature water, which is fantastic for my gut.” She also has coffee.

When lunch comes around, she’s hungry for something more substantial. “I’ll usually have lunch around one or two, and it’s usually some form of vegetables and a protein.”

Snacks are a part of her day as well. “In the afternoon, I’ll just have a snack of like an apple and almond butter, or popcorn,” Jennifer says. She lets her taste buds guide. “Or just something that I want.”

Her final meal of the day looks a lot like lunch. “Dinner is just same thing, vegetables and protein, in some form that’s interesting and delicious.”

Then, on weekends, “I do whatever I want,” Jennifer says. She clarifies that it’s not a free for all. What that actually means for her, “I’ll allow myself pizza or a burger or pasta or something extra special.”

Hydration comes naturally for her with good ol’ H2O, and lots of it, all day long. “I usually drink so much water that it’s comical.”

Jennifer does at-home private sessions and streams workouts.

After about a year of streaming the workouts, Jennifer started working one-on-one with Coleman. “Dani is really my first love. I don’t stray from my first.”

“Dani will come to the house and we’ll get to do a workout live, which is always great,” Jennifer says. “It’s always harder because Dani is all about direct corrections of your form—if you’re even off by a millisecond or your shoulders down—which is really important. But otherwise I just mirror it up to my Apple TV. When I’m traveling, [the workout] is on my computer or on my iPad. I take it on the road; it’s mobile.”

Jennifer initially changed her workout to rehab an injury—and her health has continued to improved.

Jennifer’s new workout routine allows her to move her body safely even with an injury. “I stumbled upon and became in love with the Pvolve because I had a back injury coming back from a movie doing all this the harness work,” she says. “I was able to work out, get a really good substantial workout, and my body didn’t continue to break.”

“I don’t have that excuse of, ‘Oh, my back problem’ or ‘My hip isn’t feeling great’ or whatever,” Jennifer says. “You don’t have to sit out on the bench until your injury is better. It will strengthen everything around the injured part. It’s a domino effect.”