If your teen years were anything like ours, The Spice Girls ruled your world. We can vividly remember the day the movie Spice World came out and we clamored to the theater with all our girlfriends (over 20 of us in tow) to get prime seats on opening day in order to sing along with Posh, Baby, Scary, Sporty and Ginger. Not only did the Spice Girls seemingly provide a role model for every “type” of girl, but also they were all incredibly fit! And while we’ll venture to guess that singing and dancing for hours on end would whip any of us into midriff baring shape, for those of us with a bit less time on our hands than that required for a full-time pop-star gig (unpaid, of course, because, let’s be honest here, if we had the vocal chops for a signing career we would have gone that route years ago!), former Spice Girl Mel B (AKA Scary Spice) is here to help us out!
With a new PlayStation fitness program out now, (which takes advantage of Sony’s brand new Move technology,) Mel B is quickly becoming our favorite personal trainer (and virtual BFF too). And although the former rock star (and Dancing With The Stars Contestant!) doesn’t have any formal fitness training, she’s been working with FitnessFirst (a chain of gyms in the U.K.), has learned everything she can about health and fitness and even wrote a book! Plus, let’s be honest here, her body is pretty much all the accreditation we need anyway! And with “get fit” pledges topping many of your New Year’s resolution lists (we asked, you told, we weren’t surprised!), we can’t help but think that taking a high-energy workout-like stroll down memory lane with one of our favorite Spice Girls is just about the most fun way to get fit that we can think of.
Still need more motivation? We sat down with Mel B to get the scoop on her Get Fit with Mel B ($39.99) PlayStation fitness game, her passion for fitness and even her favorite workouts!
As far as we can tell (from our obsession with the Spice Girls days!), you’ve always been in great shape. Have you always had a passion for health and fitness?
No I haven’t. When I had my last baby, Angel, 3 1/2 years ago, I put on at least 75 lbs and the baby only weighed 5. I thought, “If I don’t start working out now, I’m never going to do it.” I was 32 and it’s true what they say: once you hit your 30s, your metabolism starts slowing down. So I thought it was better late than never. I literally threw myself into the fitness world. Found workouts that I liked, took different classes and started enjoying it.
You have a new Playstation workout out now, what sets it apart from the other fitness programs on the market?
When I saw the technology in this program, I jumped at the chance to be involved. It’s such an exciting way to get in shape and is unlike anything else on the market. The program includes over 250 exercises to strengthen, tone, increase flexibility and promote aerobic fitness – so definitely includes a big chunk of exercises that I do! And the program uniquely combines nutrition, personalization (which tracks your likes, dislikes and goals) and technology so it’s like having a personal fitness coach in your home. It’s all about motivating people to Get Fit – whether mom, dad, cousin, niece – it’s tailored for everyone. You can tone it down or amp it up – to get the best exercise possible. If you don’t know how to workout – this game will teach you. I didn’t understand until I could play it myself but it’s really unlike anything else on the market.
What do you do to stay fit now?
I enjoy running and doing aerobics. Drench high-energy kickboxing classes or Barry’s Boot Camp. And I love hiking outside.
If you could give women just 1 piece of advice with regard to health, fitness or nutrition, what would it be?
Half the battle of being fit and healthy is getting yourself in the gym – the hardest part is getting there. Get the initial head start and that’s half the battle.
Do you have any other fitness tricks up your (super-toned) sleeve?
Running and walking (especially alternating) in intervals and cross training!
