Mondays can be tough, but Kaley Cuoco tries her best to start the week off on the right foot.
“We really try to ramp it up on Mondays,” her trainer Ryan Sorensen previously told Shape, adding that she has a “never miss a Monday,” attitude.
Cuoco has always lived an active lifestyle, but the 38-year-old has become more dedicated to her fitness routine as she’s gotten older.
“Bottom line is, you know, I’m not 21 anymore,” she previously told Women’s Health. “It used to be so easy, I didn’t have to do as much. Now, (working out is) part of my day.”
Like all of us, the actor has days where she’s not feeling motivated. In those moments, she reminds herself that “it’s just an hour of my day.”
“And you never leave a workout and go, ‘I wish I didn’t do that.’ Even if it wasn’t the workout you envisioned, even if it it was a little bit more low-key. Getting a good sweat sets the whole tone for the day,” she previously told TODAY.com.
Staying active is a priority for Cuoco, and Sorensen says his client typically gets around 10,000 steps in each day.
“She always tries to do some sort of physical activity, whether it’s with me, whether it’s with yoga or riding horses,” he told E! News.
Wondering what workouts Cuoco loves best? Curious about the foods she eats to stay in shape? Here’s everything she’s said about her fitness routine and diet.
She’s a proud yogi
Cuoco called yoga “the secret” to her toned physique in 2016 while chatting with ET.
“Yoga is the reason that I have been (looking great). It has done everything, mentally and physically. I love it,” she said.
The star is particularly fond of hot yoga, as she told Women’s Health. Despite her dedication to fitness, she admitted that she also feels like skipping her workouts on occasion.
“Sometimes do I want to get up in the morning and do it?” she said. “No. But when I get out, I feel like a million bucks.”
She stays loyal to her favorite workouts
Keeping a number of workouts in your fitness arsenal can keep your body on its toes, and Cuoco isn’t afraid to try new exercises. However, she tends to stay loyal to her go-to workouts.
“If I get a little bit bored, I’ll switch over to SoulCycle, which I love too,” she previously told Women’s Health. “It’s all or nothing. I’m hot or cold. I’m not a gray area. So if I’m doing yoga, we’re doing it every day this week….Then I’m like, ‘Oh my god, I have to switch.’”
She knows what workouts don’t work for her
Running isn’t for Cuoco, and she’s unapologetic about that.
“I tried spinning, I tried running, I tried yoga, I tried Pilates,” she previously told Women’s Health. “I realized I don’t like running…I refuse to do it. I like spinning, so I try to mix that in.”
She tweaks her workouts based on the type of acting role she’s pursuing
When she was prepping for Season Two of “The Flight Attendant,” Cuoco stepped up her workout game.
“Her training regimen consisted of high-intensity circuit full-body training, like cardio, strength training, and lots of core twice a week,” Sorensen told Shape. “Hot yoga once a week, and a couple of days a week she would ride (cycling), which is a beast of a workout.”
While training for an action role in 2022, the actor worked out with her trainer six days a week.
“My job is to always be in communication with her, keep her motivated with result-driven targets, and always listen to her body to make sure we are doing what her body can handle at any given point,” he said.
She eats every two hours
Cuoco fends off the hangry horrors by eating every few hours.
“I learned over the past few years that I have to eat every two hours,” she previously told Women’s Health. “I just do, and I’m not talking about giant meals, but I literally start to fall apart, especially when I’m shooting…there has to be at least a snack or something that I’m eating because I just lose energy so quickly.”
Noting that she used to be “afraid to eat,” Cuoco explained that she now knows “the right things to eat.”
“I’m much healthier now than I used to be. And I feel better than I ever have, but I also probably eat more than I ever have, which is interesting,” she said. “I’m actually eating smaller meals and drinking more water and less alcohol.”
She tries to incorporate fun into her workouts
During their full-body workouts, Cuoco and Sorensen do a mix of resistance training plus conditioning and stability work. The personal trainer told E! News his client enjoys using a stability ball but isn’t a fan of the VersaClimber machine.
To keep Cuoco motivated, Sorensen likes to infuse a bit of fun into her workouts.
“We just kind of get creative with balancing on the ball on our knees and doing a dumbbell press, or doing some plyometrics on the box or some med ball slams and ball throws,” he said. “Just really keeping her interested and just about having fun because, obviously, working out isn’t always the most fun, but we seem to have a good time.”
She avoids mindless eating
It’s tempting to turn on the TV and open a bag of chips at the end of a long day, but Cuoco has learned that this form of multitasking isn’t for her.
“I no longer watch TV while I eat. I think that’s a big distraction ‘cause you’re not thinking about what’s going on…so it’s just being very mindful,” she told Women’s Health.
While chatting with Shape, the star also said she consciously changed her diet after marrying her ex-husband professional tennis player Ryan Sweeting.
“We got into this habit we called the bedtime snack. The drawers next to the bed were filled with candy. Eventually, I realized it was mindless eating,” she said, per Us Weekly. “I was just doing it because he was doing it, and it was adding hundreds of calories I didn’t even think about. So I cut that out.”
She committed to HIIT treadmill workouts postpartum
After giving birth to her daughter Matilda, Cuoco turned to an intense 25-minute treadmill workout to get back into the swing of her fitness routine.
“Putting that incline up is so good for your muscles, and for your circulation,” she previously told TODAY.com. “I’ll also walk backward, which is amazing for your butt and legs. It pretty much works everything.”
Cuoco’s HIIT interval routine featured 10 one-minute rounds with 30 seconds of work and 30 seconds of rest. At the beginning of the workout, the star started at a 1% incline and 6.4 speed. With each round, she increased the intensity by 1% for the inline and 0.2 for the speed.
She tried a hands-free workout after developing Carpal tunnel syndrome
Who knew holding a baby too much could lead to Carpal tunnel syndrome? As Cuoco explained in a video posted to Sorensen’s Instagram channel, that’s exactly what happened to her following the birth of her baby girl.
As a result, the duo shifted gears to focus more on lower body and core workouts to give the new mom time to heal. In the video, Cuoco tackles a range of moves, including step exercises, and incorporates resistance bands and an exercise ball.
She allows herself one cheat day a week
Life is all about balance, and Cuoco lets loose with her diet once in a while.
“I have to have a cheat day,” she told Shape, per Us Weekly. “I know when I’m being good all week long that come Sunday, I’m going to lie by the pool, have a drink, and eat some pizza. Then I wake up on Monday morning and I’m all ready to start the week again. I’m just going to be in a bad mood all the time if there’s no light at the end of the tunnel.”
She has a balanced, consistent diet
Cuoco told Women’s Health she typically starts her morning with peanut butter on toast, followed by something light for lunch, like half of a sandwich or tuna on a salad or in a wrap.
For snacks, Cuoco said she likes to nosh on Luna Bars, a rice cake, pears, an apple with peanut butter and smoothies
“I love a smoothie,” she said. “I think it’s a great way to get a nice meal in there, and it’s quite easy.”
At dinnertime, the star usually opts for something healthy like fish and veggies.
