Mariah Carey Connection

Mariah Carey, 39, reveals the diet and exercise regime that helped her lose two stones and slim down to a size 6.

You’ve lost an incredible two stone recently. How did you manage it?

 My secret is bleak diets, which is basically soups and fish prepared really blandly. And I’m not eating ice cream or fattening stuff. I didn’t feel like I had gained weight, but then I tried on a pair of shorts that I’d had for many years…Now they fit again. They’re actually kind of big!

As well as following a diet, you’ve been working out as well haven’t you?

I have a wonderful trainer whose name is Patricia, she lives in St Barts. People say: ‘Only you would fly someone from St Barts to New York to work out!’ We do water aerobics mostly. Even if we’re not working out, she monitors my diet and stuff like that. It makes things easier for me. It’s about discipline. I have a lot of discipline. When it’s time to get it together, I know that I have to.

So, are you happy with your body now?

I still feel like I have a way to go, but I don’t feel like I have to be a size zero. Right now, I feel really great. I feel better than I’ve ever felt. We should all embrace who we are physically. It’s not about necessarily even a size. It’s about feeling good and being comfortable in your own skin. I’m not supposed to be a stick-figure girl. It’s just not me. I’ve got a butt, and I want to keep it because I like it. Yeah, it grows and it shrinks. There’s only a certain amount of weight that I want to lose.

Do you find yourself jumping on the scales more often now though?

Muscle weighs more than fat, so why torture yourself with a scale? For me, it’s not about a number on a scale. If your clothes fit you better, then you know that you have lost some weight. Now I’m down to my 10th Grade size [age 16] and it feels good and yet it doesn’t feell good because I can’t eat what I want.

So what sort of food would you want to eat?

I love pizza. When I go home to New York from a long trip I always get a slice. And macaroni and cheese. It broke my heart [when I had to give it up]. It’s the thing that I have difficulty letting go of because it’s comfort food.

Source: Star Magazine | Text and Scans: Mariah Connection UK