I read this yesterday and tried the #3 crunches at the gym last night. I'm not sure if I'm interpreting her instructions right, but I basically alternated lifting my legs while doing crunches. It got pretty hard and I didn't nearly get up to 60 reps in a row! Seems like a good way to mix up ab exercises.

I also read her diet and agree that I would be starving myself if I were to follow it. I was a bit shocked.

i don't think the diet is thaaaat bad...it's pretty close to what i follow anyways. the workout sounds great though..i will definitely try it

obviously the diet's going to work! It's like 600 calories :S That is seriously unhealthy...

I don't know if I could live on that diet and keep my senses.

The diet seems ok, but not if you're expected to do 60 mins of cardio a day!!

Also, I'm sorry but Madonna is the worst person she could pick for advertising non-overdeveloped muscles.

I just figured the calories in Week 1 Sunday and it's like under 700 calories. I'm sorry, as much as I want to be thin and whatnot I also want to ENJOY life and I enjoy eating too much to deprive myself that much.

The workout is fine. The diet, however, is not. You'd basically be starving yourself while exercising hardcore. Yeah, I'll pass.

There aren't near enough calories in that diet to sustain you for very long. Especially with that much physical activity.

I've seen this trainer's tips before and think she is seriously lacking in evidence based practice. Seriously, 3 lb. weights? My muscle's wouldn't respond to that, might as well lift a toothpick. I combine cardio w/weights and sensible diet. This trainer is amateur hour but somehow lucked into celebrity clients. And I agree w/above poster I like my arms so much better than Madge's. . . don't know if it is her genetics or what but they just arn't attractive. . . As far as Gweneth goes, she looks thin but not particularly fit IMO>

Sigh...women don't get overdeveloped muscles....Madonna is as bulky as most women will get and she works out A LOT.

levi1, lately GP's legs have been looking FIERCE.

And this trainer...I think she's a selling a load of horse poo to women who are afraid of actually lifting weights and are therefore willing to buy it.

Have any of you tried this workout? I have done 100 reps of arm exercises with 2.5 pounds weights in each hand and DID feel the effort.

It does not sound very safe to be eating so few calories for so many weeks. Wouldn't that just kill your metabolism, despite all of the exercise? Not to mention you'd probably feel like junk. I felt and looked like death on a stick all through my trying-not-to-eat-to-get-skinny-again phase. How would your muscles even retain any tone without enough fuel? Ok, enough rambling, but yeesh.

I'd be a tempermental jerk if I followed the diet. I would need more calories.

I'm not impressed at all with this "trainer". I'm not sure how many people know, but Tracey Anderson is a total fraud. She started her many businesses here in Indiana (Fishers to be exact) and basically opened studios and then ran them into the ground because she just didn't pay her bills. She still owes several former clients hundreds of dollars for just closing up shop and not refunding money. The machine that she supposedly designed (and that I believe both Madonna and Gwyneth have purchased) was actually built by a gentleman that became her husband or live-in or something. Anyway, it's all very sorted and yes, she lucked out in getting these celebrity clients and no one seems to know about what kind of person she really is. If you want to read an article about her go to:

http://www.indianapolismonthly.com/article.aspx?id=18612

BTW - I'm not a former disgruntled client. Just a gal who could have easily been duped into paying her crazy "personal training" fees and then found myself being starved to death on her "diet" and trying to do her workout plan at the same time. No thank you!

I wouldn't be able to focus on anything if I followed that diet. Celery does not count as lunch!

I don't quite understand all of those exercises. Wish we had photos or video.

this sounds mass

The exercise might work - I don't know, haven't looked that closely (obviously it works for Madonna and Gwyneth).

But that diet? I figured the first day listed, and it's less than 600 calories!!! That's not healthy or safe! My *breakfast* ususally has more calories than that, seriously. I would probably be hospitalized within a few days if I tried to live on that. Really, I can't even imagine. Just the thought is making me cranky.

600 calories? What is she thinking?

yeah, this freaked me out when I first read it. I would love to look like Gwyneth, but I DO NOT have the time to work out for two hours six days a week. is that not borderline exercise bulimia?

OK wait I'm confused. For the toning exercises, the first three are done with no weight? That doesn't seem like it would do anything, especially the wrist flick thing. Or am I wrong?

If you want a good workout, sign up for a bootcamp in your area. Because Holy God - it's about to kick my butt and I love it!

I have to say I hate it when trainers give "diet"/nutritional plans. Unless they're actually a dietician or nutritionist, they're not any expert to be giving people nutrition plans.

I'm not sure how this really gets Madonna as sculpted as she is! I've always heard to do heavy weight to increase muscle definition. She's super toned for this workout to be all that she needed to do to get to how her body looks today.

Well, if you have hours to spend at the gym, then perhaps you can do hundreds of reps of any given move...but honestly, I don't want to end up looking like Madonna, I think she has a nasty body.

The diet combined with the over-exercising...that is awful! Neither Gwyn nor Madonna looks like they are sick (euphemism for anorexic/bulimic) they actually look great (except Madge's arms are a wee bit scary, but I think that has to do with her age). I mean, I just can't believe anyone following this would look as good as Gwyneth right now. Starving yourself while exercising an extreme amount, this plan would put me in the hospital after a week.

what a load of B.S.

i'm surprise that fitsugar has again chosen to promote this trainer in an article without comment because her advice is VERY CONTROVERSIAL.

some her work out ideas are ok but clearly there is not enough calories in that diet for an active woman. one of the comments on the original article made me laugh:

"The diet bans processed food, dairy and all spices..."
Umm, expect sugar free jello, soy pudding, Kashi bars, veggie bacon ect... Please.

i don't think it's thaaaaat bad...

the diet is under 800 calories a day and the minimum requirement is 1200 a day to not feel starved. Ill take the workout plan, but no way am I going to starve myself to lose weight.

Geez, of course she doesn't agree with running...anyone following her "diet" would probably pass out in the middle of the road. It looks like she's advocating eating 600-900 calories per day in addition to doing cardio and a million reps of 3 lb weights...this is all the OPPOSITE of what my trainer told me. You need at LEAST 1200 calories a day to function, more if you're active. And give me 20 lb dumbbells to do rows, bench presses, shoulder presses, deadlifts, squats, etc., any day. Heavy weights help you keep your muscle mass and they're a lot more effective than doing 200 reps with 3 lb weights.

I'd rather have Gunnar Peterson or Jillian Michaels any day over this chick.

That is not a good diet,they are burning far too many calories that they obviously arent getting through their diet. It's bogus. I agree with Spectra...you burn like 1200 calories daily just doing regular tasks. Unless you just sat around and did nothing all day.

I eat about 1200 calories right now, sometimes less. And I know its not healthy at all. I have just taken adderall basically my whole life so its difficult to eat a lot. I force myself to eat, even if I'm not hungry.

I'm a 180lb six foot one inch MAN, and let me TELL YOU...THREE pounds HURTS when you do this many reps!!! I do her workout at the gym (while the crazy weights men stare at me in disbelief)...and I have round shoulders coming out!!!

Her workout works...my shoulders are developing FAST.

One of my fitness goals in life is to get Madonna arms.

I'm fine with the workout, but the low low low number of calories consumed would shoot your metabolism for life. Seriously. Her set point must be so screwed up now. Trust me, one of my co-workers is a perfect example! She messed with her metabolism in her 20's and 30's, and now she has to follow the strictest diet to not gain weight. And it's not like she's super skinny! She is what would be considered overweight, and it's not even like she eats that much.

So ladies, don't starve yourselves! You're only making it harder for you to maintain a healthy weight later in life!

i'm sure doing 100 reps will hurt & get results, but you could get the same with much shorter workouts using more weight & fewer reps.

Ouch, sounds a lot.

n00dledancer...I really did try that, but I just wasn't getting the shape of my muscles quite the way I wanted them to.