The abdomen is our problem area, says fitness guru Ramona Braganza

Celebrity fitness trainer Ramona Braganza has been sculpting hot Hollywood bodies for the past 25 years. Recently she has been in news for her innovative ‘321 — Baby Bulge Be Gone’ programme which translates into three cardio segments, two circuit strength training segments and one core segment. In Hollywood, she is the ‘go to’ trainer if you have few weeks to prepare for your next role or years to transform from head to toe.

Ramona, who is currently in Mumbai, says, “Being an Indian, I can say that our main problem area is our abdomen. We store fat there. It’s a challenge even for me but it’s necessary to love our genetic bodies and to work the best we can with it.”

She further stresses that commitment to any fitness regime is the basis for satisfactory results. “The main thing to think about is how many times a week you can commit to a programme before you start. Don’t make unreasonable demands on your time start slowly. And when you get into a rhythm, add more. Nutrition is half the battle so make changes in your nutrition one thing at a time. I believe it takes time to create habits, but we all have habits might as well make them healthy if we can,” she explains.

Affirming that the body achieves a goal happens when the mind and spirit are equally into it, she adds, “I hope that India will teach me about that as we lack that connection at times in the west.” Her main reason to visit India is, “My goal is to introduce my 321 workout, with which I train my celebrity clientele, to India and maybe even to Bollywood. I have partnered with a leading brand here, which has one of India’s largest portfolios of international wellness brands in India such as Spa L’Occitane... to bring my programmes to India.”

In Hollywood, she has trained celebrities including Jessica Alba, Halle Berry, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Biel, Kate Beckinsale, Amanda Seyfried, Ashlee Simpson, Eva Mendez, Jaime King, Dania Ramirez, Zac Effron, Ryan Reynolds, Tom Welling, Michael Weatherly, Shiloh Fernandez and Max Irons.

She recounts her experience with some of the celebrities, “When I was first working with Jessica Alba, we would often go for walks no one recognised her, but by season 2 of Dark Angel, it was not so easy. I remember cycling around Stanley Park, getting recognised and then having close to 50 cyclists joining us for our ride. Also while working with Jessica Biel and Ryan Reynolds, I took Jess jogging around a park. Half way around I slipped into a restroom and when I came out we couldn’t find each other. She ran forward and I ran back to the start. I had to call Ryan and have him come in his car for us to circle the park and find Jess.”

She feels fitness increases one’s confidence to an exceptional level. She narrates, “Once I was called on the day of the Oscars to Anne Hathaway’s home. She was getting ready to sing on stage at the Oscars with Hugh Jackman. It was three hours before she walked the red carpet and we were doing bicep curls while she had her hair and nails and was warming up her vocal chords.”