A look at Marilyn Monroe's diet & workout shows she was fitness trailblazer

Legendary sex symbol Marilyn Monroe was hailed for her voluptuous curves, and while the blonde bombshell was often caricatured as a bimbo, her diet and workout regimen reveals a fitness savvy well ahead of her time.

In an Aug. 5, 2012 piece commemorating the 50th anniversary of her death, Monroe's surprisingly visionary fitness routine reveals she was a proponent of strength-training and a high-protein, low-carb diet decades before the trend became hip.

 

Legendary sex symbol Marilyn Monroe was one of the first Hollywood starlets to follow a high-protein diet and lift weights.

The 5-foot-5 Marilyn, whose weight fluctuated between 118-140 pounds, typically had eggs and milk for breakfast, steak and vegetables for dinner, and lifted weights for at least 10 minutes a day.

"Before I take my morning shower, I start warming a cup of milk on the hot plate I keep in my hotel room," said Monroe. "When it’s hot, I break two raw eggs into the milk, whip them up with a fork, and drink them while I’m dressing. I supplement this with a multi-vitamin pill."

Marilyn continued her low-carb eating plan at dinner: "My dinners at home are startlingly simple. Every night I stop at the market and pick up a steak, lamb chops or some liver, which I broil in the oven. I usually eat four or five raw carrots with my meat, and that is all."

While Monroe gained some weight after turning 30, she slimmed down and was leaner than ever shortly before her death at age 36. Despite being known for her curves, Marilyn lifted weights to maintain her voluptuous figure, and didn't spend hours exercising every day the way stars today do.

"I couldn’t stand exercise if I had to feel regimented about it," said Monroe. "I spend at least 10 minutes each morning working out with small weights. I have evolved my own exercises for the muscles I wish to keep firm, and I know they are right for me because I can feel them putting the proper muscles into play as I exercise."

Marilyn's laid-back fitness routine was a stark contrast to the grueling diet and workout programs embraced by today's Hollywood starlets, who work out two hours a day (like Gwyneth Paltrow), run 4-6 miles daily (like Victoria Beckham) or subsist on low-calorie diets (like Jessica Alba).

Despite the fame she achieved during her lifetime, Monroe insisted she never understood all the hype surrounding her.

"Frankly, I’ve never considered my figure so exceptional," said Marilyn, who spent part of her childhood in foster care. "My biggest single concern used to be getting enough to eat."

This article originally appeared in : A look at Marilyn Monroe's diet & workout shows she was fitness trailblazer