Christie Brinkley, 66, Shows Off Abs And Gets Real About Pandemic Weight Gain

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From Women's Health

  • Model Christie Brinkley is getting real about her fitness journey over the last year.

  • At the end of 2019, Christie broke her arm while training for Dancing with the Stars.

  • With limited mobility, she couldn't work out as rigorously anymore and ended up gaining weight during the lockdown.


In the days leading up to her 67th birthday, model Christie Brinkley is getting real about her fitness journey over the last year. Throughout the pandemic (which she's weathered from Turks and Caicos, natch) she's learned to be kinder to her body and cut herself some slack. She got candid in a new Instagram post, showing off her still-super-toned bod.

At the end of 2019, Christie broke her arm while training for Dancing with the Stars, prompting her daughter Sailor to replace her. "After my very nasty break of my right arm and the frozen shoulder it gave me I couldn’t do downward dogs, planks, push ups, and at the other end my hip was getting worse with each passing year and long bike rides left me limping...I started to feel limited! Restricted! Dare I say... old!" she wrote.

With limited mobility, she couldn't work out as rigorously anymore and ended up gaining weight during the lockdown. "I just couldn’t get enough vigorous exercise, and with quarantine came banana breads and the inevitable extra pounds," she said. "I must add I felt overwhelmed by the number of injuries I was dealing with ( I’ve been very adventurous! Ouch!) but I realized I just needed to start with one thing and keep moving forward..."

Now, as she rings in year 67, she's looking forward to returning to her pre-injury fitness routine: "So I took action, fixed my hip, got the total replacement, and I am overjoyed to be able to move my body again. I am getting stronger every day, and I like think I’m ready for anything...a hike, swim dive, paddle, ride, ski, and even a big piece of birthday cake! Hey I can work it off!" Pre-pandemic, Christie swore by a low-carb vegetarian diet. "Even on a low-carb diet, you should be able to like, live it up," she previously told Women's Health.

Before she got hurt, Christie was a lifelong runner, and worked out on her Total Gym home exercise machine (she's a spokesperson for the brand). "I would say running is my favorite way to sweat, but I’m not really supposed to do that anymore because of injuries," she told The Cut in 2018.

She also always made time for group fitness. "I love spin instructors," she previously told Women’s Health. "Sometimes you need a little drill sergeant to inspire you and keep you going."

Beyond running and spinning, Christie would work tiny changes into her daily routine. "I noticed that the second you do any activity and you add your arms as though you’re dancing, it revs you up," she told The Cut. "Whether it’s walking down the beach and moving your arms like you’re swimming, or picking up rocks and walking with them, you really start sweating and breathing heavily. The second you try to adjust those teeny changes, they make a huge difference."

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