Carrie Underwood has dropped 20 pounds since winning American Idol and more importantly, she has kept it off. She jokes about how she put on weight while competing on American Idol and blames the cafeteria like food, stress and long hours of sedentary work as the culprit. So after she won and after her first tour, she started seriously working on developing a diet and exercise plan. Here is her plan:

Carrie started by keeping a food diary shortly after her first tour. She was startled to see that most of her daily calories were consumed in the evening hours. Sound familiar? That’s because most of us do the same thing – that is strictly diet by day and then become more lax with our discipline at night. Now, she is able to check her notes to see how many calories she has consumed during the day to determine what she can eat for the remainder of that day. She logs everything, including her beverages. When there are no food labels, like when she is out at a restaurant or on the road, she relies on “The Calorie King Calorie, Fat & Carbohydrate Counter” by Allan Borushek or the website, calorieking.com. Both list the calories, carbs and fat for a majority of the dishes served by popular chain restaurants. Underwood said, “For example, I know P.F. Chang’s has these lettuce wrap appetizers that are around 100 calories. One of those and an entree and I’m good to go.” Additionally, she has switched from eating high calorie/fat snacks like ice cream to the 100-calorie snack packs or small baggies of Kaski cereal. She carries it with her for a quick and healthy snack when she is on the go. Finally, she has also cut out sugars and soda which has helped clear up her skin.

As for her exercise routine, Underwood hired a personal trainer to assist her in buying several pieces of gym equipment as well as to teach her how to use them properly. She now does 30 minutes of cardio followed by free weight training. She said, “My favorite thing is cardio. It really helps the pounds melt off, and it gives me so much more energy. Now when I’m performing and running around the stage, it’s no big deal, whereas before I was always gasping for breath. Working out has really paid off onstage.” She also admitted to being a fan of the Jillian Michaels exercise DVD’s which she says will kick your butt! When stressed, she turns to a punching bag which not only relieves her stress but also gives her a good workout. Finally, she uses positive motivation to remain in shape. She says that when she sees a photo of herself and likes a particular body part, she will work hard to keep it that way: “I’ll look at a photo and think, ‘My arms look great!’ — and then I go work out on my arms. Once you’re enjoying things about your body, you realize how much you want to keep them that way or make them better.”

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