Rihanna’s lucky number five

My oh my, Rhianna’s toned legs, pert bottom and lean arms are every girls dream, and I say dream, because many of you look at images of the star and believe that in order to having a body as lithe as hers, you would either have had to come straight from a fantastic gene pool (this, we already know, you can’t choose), you have to have a strict exercise regime similar to likes of Jennifer Aniston who has admitted in the past to enduring crazy hours sweating it out, or you must literally deprive yourself of delicious treats. I know we are all envisioning macaroons right now, in every shade of the rainbow. 

However, this post comes as a celebration, not just for me, but for many of you that feel it really should be more clear-cut and simple then the above. Surely you can live a little and still have enviable curves? Look as Ri-Ri herself - you can buy any trash-mag, and chances are you’ll flip to a page that has her sculling back on a carb-loaded beer, or eating take away treats. 

Well guess what, there is proof now that you can live... and still have a taut tum. It’s all to do with the lucky number five. Who would have though numerology and health would come hand in hand?!

Harley Pasternak, Rihanna’s health and fitness coach, says he keeps celebs like Rihanna and Megan Fox in shape by getting them to wear a pedometer, which can be bought for as little as $10!

'I tell her (Rihanna) to make sure she takes 10,000 steps a day,' the fitness expert told Grazia magazine.

According to Pedometer researcher Dr. Catrine Tudor-Locke, Australian women take an average of 5210 steps a day, that’s just over half of what Rihanna’s personal trainer Harley prescribes.

So the first step to getting Rihanna’s cellulite-free pins is to walk more. Walk to the shops if necessary, or to the bus stop. If this isn’t possible within your daily routine, add a light walk on your lunch break or once you get home.

As well as walking, Harley gets the singer to do a workout five days a week that takes just 25 minutes and can be done anytime, anywhere.

This much sort after workout includes a five minute warm up jog followed by five minutes of upper body work, this can take the form of push ups. He then moves on to five minutes of lower body work, think lunges and squats. The next five minutes is spent on the body’s core, this is when Rihanna works on her abdominal (i.e crunches), and then the last five minutes is spent cooling down by doing some light skipping. 

The five minute time frames spent on individual sections of the body really help Rihanna keep her body in check; it means she has no poor areas that need work. Her whole body is literally rocking! 

Next time you hit snooze on your alarm in the morning, consider this: That 25 minutes you’re in bed dreading the next alarm to ring, you could be laying on your carpet, within the same room, working towards Rihanna’s bod! Gym membership, not even needed!

The magically number five continues on still within Rihanna’s health and fitness life. Instead of the traditional three meals a day, Harley’s diet recommends eating five small meals, a rule that a lot of dieticians and weight loss consultants have been suggesting for years. Each of these meals must contain five key ingredients - protein, fibre, 'healthy' carbs, (eg fruit and vegetables), a 'healthy' fat (eg avocado or nuts), and a sugar-free drink such as green tea or vitamin water. 

By eating these small meals throughout the day, Rihanna is keeping her metabolism roaring, meaning that when she does treat herself, it doesn’t go straight to her hips like most of us, but gets burnt almost straight away.

One perk of this eating plan is that dieters, including Rihanna, can have a 'cheat day' once a week, when they are allowed to eat treats like chocolate. Harley says this helps his clients keep their diet on track. Allowing yourself to something naughty will mean you will be more consistent throughout the week and mentally you won’t feel like your depriving yourself.

I hope this inspires you as you work towards your summer-ready beach bod. 

Take care and until next time,

SS x

Kenzo’s very loud roar

Kenzo is making its mark as one of the most sort-after street style labels to be snapped in. 

Recent collections feature signature jungle motifs in bright colours which are all made in easy to wear fabrics such as tee shirts and light weight cotton jumpers. This combination creates a best seller, not only will you look ridiculously cool, but if the item is comfortable to wear as well as simple to layer, it will become a go to item, for any occasion.

The labels latest following including the likes of Rihanna and internationally renowned blogger Andy Torres (Torres wore the now sold out Kenzo tiger jumper during NYFW). Fashionistas are enjoying the resurgence of bright tropical colours as opposed to the obvious array of sorbet tones that are now floating around everywhere. 

Andy Torres in a Kenzo tiger sweater during recent New York Fashion Week.

Rihanna stepped out in head to toe orange, the focal point a Kenzo tee.

It’s interesting to note that both Rihanna and Torres have stuck to one colour palette. Rihanna went with sizzling orange from head to toe (she broke this look up with a minimal print evident in her high waisted pants) with the exception of her black point heels, and Torres likewise went with an array of aqua marines and also paired her ensemble with black ankle strap heels. 

Design duo behind the label, Humberto Leon and Carol Lim, took their inspiration from the 1970s jungle period of the house's Japanese founder Kenzo Takada. Kenzo Takada was known for clashing bright prints as these were the cheapest materials that could be bought from Japanese flea markets when his label was first launched all those years ago.

Obviously the stand out pieces that I am lusting over are the Kenzo tiger jumper in green and also the labels orange and leopard pony-hair messenger bag. The long strap, architectural shape and fun colours make it a cool staple for our coming warmer months. Imagine this bag slung over your shoulder while drinking a tequila sunrise (I just had to match an orange based cocktail to this striking piece!).

SS x