How Jennifer Aniston, 53, has maintained her figure with intermittent fasting and 15-15-15 workout

Jennifer Aniston has been in the public eye for decades now – but she proved on Wednesday that she still has the power to pull out a few surprises when she wowed in a sensational cover shoot for Allure that saw her putting her incredible figure on full display while posing in a tiny Chanel bra. 

The 53-year-old – who said in the accompanying interview that she no longer feels she has anything to ‘hide’ – showed off ripped abs and an incredibly youthful visage, while opening up for the first time about her brutal battle with infertility and IVF.

Despite the ‘challenges’ she has faced over the past few years, Jennifer admitted that she feels better than ever at the age of 53 – both physically and mentally – a point that she made clear both with her candid and open interview, and her jaw-dropping photo shoot. 

So how has the former Friends star managed to maintain such an ageless physique for all these years? 

The actress has been following an incredibly strict diet and workout regimen for decades now – having been told at the very start of her Hollywood career that she needed to drop 30lbs if she wanted to land any major roles. 

To the casual observer, Jennifer – who was at the time around the age of 19 or 20 – looked like a healthy young woman. But, Hollywood’s rigorous standards said otherwise. 

‘My agent gave it to me straight,’ she said in a 1996 cover story for Rolling Stone. ‘Nicest thing he ever did…. The disgusting thing of Hollywood — I wasn’t getting lots of jobs ’cause I was too heavy.’

But while the actress decried the ‘disgusting’ standards placed on actresses – she admitted that it was probably for the best that she changed up her ‘terrible’ diet, which consisted largely of milkshakes and French fries with gravy.  

‘I was like, “What?!” But my diet was terrible. Milkshakes and French fries with gravy,’ she said. ‘It was a good thing to start paying attention.’ 

30 years later, she is still in great shape as she proved while posing in just a tiny bra on the cover of Allure. Over the years, her approach has varied slightly. She initially would eat five small, nutritious meals a day.

However, she as since vowed on a 16:8 intermittent fasting diet, claiming she’d skip breakfast in 2021. Now, she has begun to incorporate breakfast back into her diet, likely after 10 AM to accommodate her fasting schedule.

The most consistent part of her health regimen is an emphasis on a high protein, low carb and sugar diet, eating in moderation and high-cardio workouts done in 15-minute intervals.

The Morning Show actress has touted that she treats herself to regular facials to keep her youthful complexion and the occasional chip or M&M – emphasis on the singular. With that level of will power, it’s no wonder she has stayed in such a trim shape. 

Now, as Jennifer flaunts the fruits of her decades-long labor, FEMAIL reveals the rigorous diet and exercise plan that has helped to keep her in such great shape throughout her Hollywood career.  

Jennifer cut out a few simple foods to lose 30lbs in order to get her role in Friends

Before Friends, the actress revealed she’d eat mayo sandwiches, French fries with gravy and milkshakes daily. But when she was told by her agent that she’d have to lose weight in order to get a leading role, it was then she decided to adapt a healthier lifestyle and dropped 30lbs in the process. 

According to Cinema Blend, she lost the weight by giving up foods like white bread and mayonnaise, along with butter and all snacking between meals. And afterwards, she said she felt more confident than ever.

‘It was amazing to see this thing emerge. I never knew I had this body in me,’ she told Rolling Stone. 

During Friends, her castmates later revealed that she would eat the same Cobb salad on set everyday, which consisted of shredded lettuce, chicken, egg whites and garbanzo beans. 

Jennifer kept off her weight by eating five small, but highly nutritious meals a day 

Back in 2015, her personal trainer, Kathy Kaehler, spoke out about how Jennifer stays in shape, and she revealed at the time that the actress was eating five small but highly-nutritious meals each day.

‘I don’t believe in calorie counting,’ she explained. ‘Jen eats at least three times a day, or ideally five small but nutritious meals.’

When asked what Jen preferred for breakfast, Kathy explained that she enjoyed things like ‘scrambled eggs with dried chili,’ washed down with hot water and lemon.

And she added that even Jen had cheat days once in a while, but that the most important part of the Murder Mystery star’s diet was moderation.

‘Jen does everything in moderation,’ Kathy explained. ‘She’ll have a glass of red wine with a friend and really enjoy it, rather than two bottles and feel terrible for days.

 ‘Jen would never sit there and eat an entire pack of cookies, but she would have one if she really fancies it and savor every bite.’

When it came to working out, Kathy shared that Jennifer would do five five-minute ‘workout blasts’ per day between meals.

Each burst consists of five one-minute exercises including skipping, tricep dips, tricep kickbacks, wall push-ups and floor push-ups.

In 2016, however, her workout regiment had changed. She said at the time that she exercised six days a week – three of those days, she did a spin-yoga class – 25-30 minutes of spin followed by 30-40 minutes of yoga. And on the other three days, she focused on weight training.

In addition, the Friends alum revealed in 2018 that she is passionate about clean eating, telling Women magazine that she loves to consume as much ‘organic fruits and vegetables’ as she can.

‘Eat as much organic fruit and vegetables as you can, keep sugar [intake] low, drink tons and tons of water, and get good sleep,’ she explained. 

Jennifer switched to intermittent fasting in 2019, and would go 16 hours without eating

However, in 2019, the actress revealed that she had switched her eating habits and was no longer eating five small meals a day.

Instead, she said she was on a 16:8 intermittent fasting diet – which involves fasting for 16 hours a day and eating absolutely anything for the last eight hours.

‘I do intermittent fasting, so no food in the morning. I noticed a big difference in going without solid food for 16 hours,’ she told Radio Times at the time.

After facing some backlash over the diet, Jennifer defended the diet and opened up further about why fasting worked for her personally – explaining that it happened naturally since she often skipped breakfast.

In June 2021, she told People: ‘I kind of naturally do intermittent fasting, just because I’m not a breakfast person. I just like a cup of coffee and my collagen. I was hitting a stage in my life where I wanted to up the health game.’

Jen also switched her workout to focus more on cardio, using what she calls the 15-15-15 method. 

‘I usually do a trifecta. 15 minutes on the bike, 15 on the treadmill running and then 15 on the elliptical. You have to shake it up, you know, muscle confusion,’ she told People in a different interview.

She had been going strong with this practice up until October 2020 – when she unfortunately injured her back from a workout. 

‘Back in October my back went out. I’d done a really hard workout, and then one day I tried to get up and couldn’t,’ she explained. 

‘I literally fell to the floor and ended up having to go get an MRI. Sure enough, I had a 9-mm bulging disc, which is really intense. So my whole workout had to change.’ 

She then had to reinvent her work out to no longer include running. She replaced some of her high-intensity cardio with pilates instead, which she said ‘really works your body out in a very gentle way.’ 

Jennifer stayed fit in recent years by sticking to a high-protein, low carb, and little sugar diet 

Since Friends, Jennifer has changed her eating patterns a few times over the years, but one thing has remained consistent: her commitment to a strict diet that focuses on high-proteins, low carbs and very little sugar.

It seems like she is no longer fasting for 16 hours anymore, as she told First For Women magazine in March that she had found a way to incorporate breakfast back into diet. She explained at the time that she starts her day off with liquids, followed by a high-protein meal. 

‘When I wake up I have warm lemon water, then a shake or avocado and eggs. I found ways to make eggs every which way,’ she revealed.

‘But I also do oatmeal with an egg white whipped in,’ she added. ‘Do it right before the oatmeal is finished cooking – it gives extra protein and this fluffy texture that’s delicious.’ 

The actress is also fond of smoothies, revealing in 2021 that she liked to start her morning routine off with a chocolate-based mix that included chocolate almond milk, two scoops of Vital Proteins Chocolate Collagen Peptides, cherries and bananas, a few drops of stevia, antioxidants and one cup of ice. 

She also stays healthy by keeping sugar out of her alcoholic beverages. In 2021, when asked about her drink preferences she told InStyle: ‘A margarita — clean, no sugar — or a dirty martini. I only have two to three drinks, tops, and I don’t do exotic.’

When speaking with People in 2021, she explained that while she tried to avoid carbs altogether for many years, she does eat them now, but only in moderation.

‘[I] started to give myself a break, allowing yourself to have pasta, a sandwich. Everyone’s very afraid of the bread basket, and I’m no longer afraid. As long as it’s all done in moderation,’ she explained.

‘There’s something my body appreciates about [having carbs], like, “Oh, thank you! Why are you depriving me of things I love?”

Jen also allows herself to snack, but keeps it to a minimum. She even has the will power to stop at ‘just one.’

‘Usually. I’m good at that. I can have one M&M, one chip. I know, that’s so annoying,’ she told InStyle in August 2021. 

As for exercising, she ultimately returned to her love of cardio after her back healed. She explained to the outlet: ‘I had an injury last fall and I was only able to do Pilates, which I absolutely love. But I was missing that kind of sweat when you just go for it. I’m going back to my 15-15-15.’

She added that on the rare days she skips working out, she always needs to incorporate ‘some kind of movement.’ 

‘And then just old school: I can chase myself around a gym. I need some kind of movement, even if it’s just 10 minutes a day on a trampoline,’ the actress continued. 

And she firmly believes in keeping variety in her workout. She told First For Women magazine in March: ‘Changing up my workout routine is key. I always try to surprise my muscles.’ 

Some of the new cardio exercises she has incorporated include Rise Nation – which is a fitness climbing cardio class – and jump roping. 

‘When my trainer Leyon, whom I love more than life, handed me a jump rope for the first time, I said, “You’re out of your mind,”‘ she quipped.

‘I would dread doing it and I would skip instead of jump over the rope,’ added the Los Angeles native.  ‘But within six months my jumping became fluid. Now I can just go and go and go.’

She still also maintains her yoga practice and incorporated meditation which she calls her ‘favorite moment’ of the day.