Photo credit: LitelySalted.com
Mel B (Melanie Brown) was brought to fame as “Scary Spice” as part of the phenomenon chic-band the Spice Girls, but if we were to name her now she may be given a different title. Ripped Spice? Glamour Barbie Spice? Fancy Dancing Spice? She’s just … not so “scary” anymore! Mel and I spoke recently and she had lots to say about how she keeps her body so hard, what she does to earn amazing abs, Dancing with the Stars and her secrets to being set for a sexy love life.
Fitz: You’ve always been in great shape, but now you’re absolutely ripped. How did you go beyond being a girl of average fitness to being a mother of two with an incredibly lean hard body and showcase abs?
Mel B: Aww thanks Fitz. Well I try to work out at least two or three times a week. I work out for about an an hour and a half, doing a lot of running, interval training, walking on an incline and weights. I try to make it different every time. Sometimes I’ll do a class, go hiking, or the stairs in Santa Monica. If I don’t change things up, things just get boring and
there’s no motivation left to do it.
Fitz: How intense are your workouts?
Mel B: Very intense, cause I like to sweat. I like to leave a workout thinking, “Oh my God, I just kicked my own ass!”
Fitz: What’s the hardest thing you do?
Mel B: Well, the other day I ran eight miles in about one hour!
Fitz: Have a favorite abdominal exercise?
Mel B: I just got a new tool called an “Ab Rocket”, which is a really great piece of equipment.
Fitz: Tell me about your eating habits.
Mel B: I have a food delivery service I use called Freshology. They bring really good, calorie controlled packaged dinners. And apart from that my husband is a really good cook. He makes fresh clean dinners every single night for the family. I believe you’ve got to have a balance though. Once or twice a week I have what I call “Sod it” days in which I have pizza or In and Out burgers so I don’t feel like I’m being denied.
Fitz: Do you think you’d be as fit as you are today if you weren’t in the public eye?
Mel: Yes! I mean, I only started working out about three and a half years ago, after I had my last baby. I’ve always been pretty active, but had never actually walked in to a gym for exercise until then. Once I began I really got in to it cause it makes you feel so good! I wish I had started working out before I reached 30 though, cause as everyone knows … once you hit 30 everything changes and your metabolism slows down. It’s best to start being somewhat fit before 30, but better late then never, right?
Fitz: How did the “Dancing with the Stars” experience change your body?
Mel B: It really toned everything up. Dancing for six hours a day toned muscles I didn’t even know I had. Being in heels all day was hard too. It put a lot of stress on my body, but absolutely toned up everything.
Fitz: You’re now starring in/hosting a new fitness game for PlayStation Move called “Get Fit with Mel B”. Who’s it for? Are the workout advanced or geared towards a slower crowd?
Mel B: It’s actually catered to everyone. It scans your body and you can choose a beginner or advanced workout. Every time you log on to play, it reminds you of your last workouts and pushes you to do better. It will even make a program for your specific goals like a six-week bikini body plan or a longer term one. It helps you with nutrition too. It’s completely personalized and I love it.
Fitz: Have you worked out with it yet?
Mel B: Yes, it was kind of weird working out to my own voice though. But it’s fun and the workouts can be really addicitive because they’re designed just for you!
Fitz: On a scale from 1-10, how would you rate your satisfaction with your body?
Mel B: I’d say an 8, cause there’s always room for improvement.
Fitz: You recently told George Lopez on his show that you and your husband often have sex up to three times a day. Do you think your high level of body confidence has something to do with that? What do you recommend for other women who’d like to feel more comfortable with themselves?
Mel B: Well me and my husband have known each other for eight years, so we’re just very comfortable with each other. I think women should just accept their body type and try to be the best version of themselves they can be. I’ve always had a big butt and big boobs and I love it; it’s what I’ve had all my life so I just embrace that and make the most of it. Everyone is different and unique; we don’t all have to be super super skinny!
Fitz: Last question. Your nickname from the Spice Girls was Scary Spice. You’re not so scary any more. In fact, you’re more like a Glamour Barbie Spice. What nickname would you choose at this point?
Mel B: Well, we didn’t even choose our nicknames back then, a magazine nicknamed us and the fans seemed to like it. I like my nickname though, I think there’s a bit of scary in every one!
