They’ve opened their hearts and bared their souls to marry complete strangers in front of the nation, and now the four gorgeous Married at First Sight NZ brides have bravely exposed their bodies too!
Joining Woman’s Day for an exclusive photo shoot and a chat, Three’s latest reality TV stars have different approaches to their health and wellbeing. But the one thing they all have in common is body positivity.
With different body shapes, as well as diverse life stages, each stunning woman has found the key to making them feel great – and it shows!
While one woman enjoys a high-carb diet, another sticks to low. And when it comes to exercise, one does zilch while another hits the gym six days a week.
Now, Rose, Vicky, Carmen and Anna share their routines, motivations and even their guilty pleasures – and we’re sure you’ll be inspired!
Carmen Stimpson
There’s a surprising reason Carmen Stimpson loves her body – the Kardashian sisters!
“If it wasn’t for the Kardashians being a thing, I’d hate my body,” she says. “I’m big in many places – I’ve got big thighs, big hips and I feel it’s easier these days to embrace that type of thing. Having curves is my favourite thing.”
The 25-year-old reveals that four years ago, she was “quite big”, but after breaking up with her boyfriend, she decided to start working out to get a revenge body.
“I lost heaps of weight and then I noticed that exercise actually helped my mental health,” tells Carmen. “Even going for a 30-minute walk makes you have more energy and feel happier.”
The pastry chef says she’s always loved food and even has a tattoo of a cake on her butt! “I’m addicted to sugar, but everything is about balance because I love all food. I eat salad but add things like mango and macadamia nuts to spice it up.”
Prior to starring on MAFS, she was planning to go back to university to study food science. “I’d really like to get into that because I want people to enjoy their food and not feel guilty about it.”
Anna Saxton
Singer-songwriter Anna Saxton oozes confidence, but admits she hasn’t always felt that way. “I’ve always been bigger than my friends,” she says, adding that she has suffered low self-esteem.
A year ago, the 25-year-old started working out at the gym with an aim of getting “skinny”, but found it was making her miserable, so she changed her focus.
“I wanted my body to be strong,” explains Anna.
“My body has to be number one and what I put into it is so important. I want to be strong because strong females are amazing!”
Watch: MAFS’ Anna and Jordan share their plans for the future. Article continues below.
While some days are a struggle, instead of beating herself up, she takes a kinder approach. “If I have no energy to go to the gym, I make sure I drink enough water that day and go for a walk. And the next day I’ll do the same until I feel like I can get back into the gym.”
Anna lifts weights so she eats a lot of carbs, and also likes to treat herself to a slice of cake or a doughnut every few days.
“I have to remind myself to embrace my imperfections and feel confident about them,” she shares.
Victoria Fuller
When it comes to her body, Victoria Fuller loves her strong legs, which are a result of playing multiple sports from a young age, and her killer abs.
“I tend to – and this is really cool – get abs really easily,” she says with a grin. “I get them from just eating well.”
The gorgeous primary school teacher had healthy habits instilled in her from a young age thanks to her doctor father and nurse mother.
While she goes to the gym four or five days a week, she also relies on a mix of an Atkins and Paleo diet to keep herself trim. Vicky also incorporates intermittent fasting into her day-to-day life.
“I don’t eat breakfast,” she reveals.
“I don’t eat until two or three in the afternoon most days, and over time it becomes a habit because your body isn’t hungry to have three meals, so you’re using fat as your fuel rather than carbs.”
The 27-year-old instead kicks off her day with freshly squeezed lemon juice in water, and takes supplements like zinc, fish oil and vitamin D.
She is also passionate about keeping her mind healthy and loves to read a variety of books, ranging from forming habits to Buddhism to help her live her best life.
“I’m a big believer in living each day to your best potential,” she asserts.
“So whatever is happening that day, whatever interaction you’re having, you make the most of it. You don’t want to look back with regret because you’re not getting that moment back.”
Rose Cruickshank
She’s a 45-year-old mum to Simoné, 21, Paris, 20, and Sophie, 14, but Rose Cruickshank still rocks a bikini!
“I love that my body is natural,” she tells.
“I haven’t had any work done. Well, I tan my body up because tanned fat looks better than white fat!”
While she doesn’t have time for exercise, Rose adopts a semi-vegetarian diet to help keep her energy levels up. Consuming lots of salads, smoothies, blueberries and spinach, the stunning brunette focuses on eating well from Monday to Friday, then indulging in a rosé or two on the weekend. It’s a diet that was inspired by her mother, who passed away two years ago.
“My mum survived breast cancer for 24 years through purely what she put in her mouth,” says Rose.
“I used to think she was crazy and over the top, but you know what? I’ve ended up adopting her plant-based diet and I’ve lost weight and I feel better. We need to go back to basics and that’s what I’ve done.”
But there’s one indulgence Rose cannot and will not give up – the rich goodness of chocolate. “I eat half a cake of chocolate a day, so if I gave that up, I’d probably lose a size,” she laughs. “The trick is to use high cocoa content – I eat 70% plus. Dark chocolate is the trick!”
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