The new year often feels like an opportunity for a fresh start, and for many people that means refocusing on our health. Jennifer Aniston has been goals for years — dare I say decades — when it comes to staying healthy, and as she prepares to star in The Morning Show Season 4 sometime on the 2025 TV schedule, she revealed some keys to how she stays in shape. From tips about her workouts to what she eats, I’m here for anything the Friends star has for some New Year’s inspiration.
Aging in Hollywood is a topic Jennifer Aniston has tackled before, but as difficult as it may be, it seems the 55-year-old actress is doing it as gracefully as anybody. So what’s her secret? Aniston spoke to TODAY about what she eats, admitting her diet is “boring,” but that she’s not too strict about it:
I do 80/20. I give myself days where I can have whatever I want. I don’t deprive myself.
Good news! It sounds like you can go ahead and keep that meat right in your Thanksgiving trifle, at least 20% of the time!
Jennifer Aniston drinks “tons of water” and for the majority of the time, she said she eats nutrient-dense meals that are full of protein and vegetables. Then there are the more lenient days, which allow for those fun nights out with Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern and the extravagant dinners with Courteney Cox, Kristen Bell and so many other stars.
She said she does snack, but she chooses healthy options like popcorn and protein bars and shakes. Making small adjustments to your meals can also make a big difference, Jennifer Aniston said, like using vinegar instead of salt and salad dressing. She said:
Stuff like that will create a taste that is so delicious, where you’re not just dousing everything with salt and butter or olive oil to make it taste good.
Oh, but those things taste so good! (It's pretty clear why I don’t look like Jennifer Aniston.)
The Office Space actress said it’s actually not her diet that poses the biggest challenge — even after all those Friends Thanksgiving episodes — it’s getting enough rest. She continued:
My bigger challenge is sleep. I think that’s all part of our nutritional hygiene — the amount of water we get as well as the amount of sleep we get. It’s the combination of all of those things that make your workouts the most effective.
It definitely makes sense that getting enough sleep will help your body perform its best when exercising, so what exactly does that look like for the Rachel Green portrayer? Jennifer Aniston admits that, like all of us, she does dread going to the gym every once in a while, but having her trainer surprise her with a new workout every day keeps her interested. Aniston works out about four times a week, but that doesn’t mean she lives at the gym. She said:
You don’t have to break your body to get strong. Your workouts don’t have to be hours a day. If I say I only have 30 minutes today, [my trainer] will kick my ass.
There ya go. If you only have a half-hour to get your ass kicked, then get your ass kicked for a half-hour. These are all some great tips to keep in mind for the new year, and you can bet that after I start to follow these tidbits of advice, I will reward myself with a Friends marathon (courtesy of my Max subscription) to indulge in all the funny things Joey says about food.
