Weight Loss Week: Maria Menounos Part II

The pressure to look good and be thin is something that goes far beyond Hollywood.

More than half of all Americans are overweight and that is more than a statistic to Access Hollywood’s own Maria Menounos. Yesterday she revealed how she too struggled with her weight when she gained forty pounds. Today she talks about how she melted the pounds away.

“Burgers, chips, pasta – these were the foods that were some of my favorites back in the day when I was a size twelve,” Maria said.

“This whole plate,” Maria begins, pointing to a collection of junk food, “would have gone down. That pizza would have gone down and then I would have had some pop tarts.”

Forty extra pounds later, Maria said she decided to make a change.

From pizza to peanuts and grease to grapefruit, Maria started keeping a detailed log of every calorie, carbs, fat and protein she was putting in her body.

“On September 15 I had egg whites with onions. I had a protein bar for a snack, I had a steak and cheese sub, which I loved,” she reads.

“I had Oreo cookies, but I only had three Oreos rather than forty,” Maria notes.

Deprivation never works. Instead I slowly weaned myself off the unhealthy foods by mixing in the more nutritious options.

“That’s not all I had to do,” Maria admits. “I had to hit the gym too.”

Without a dime to spare, Maria hired a trainer for just one day to put her on a plan that she followed for 11 months.

Here’s her routine, which she performed for the Access Hollywood cameras at the Sports Club L.A.

Click here to view Maria’s original workout plan.

“First up is push ups,” Maria notes. “I’m not good at them now. I was not good at them then, but I fought them with the girly way.

Maria did 2-3 sets of 15-20 reps.

Next up was squats, which were followed by overhead tricep extensions with a five-pound weight.

“Grab the 5 pound weights, keep your shoulders back, good posture,” Maria notes. “I would do 15 to 20 each. For 2-3 sets.”

Stick with the plan and you will see the results like Maria she said. “I’m so much happier and so much healthier now,” she notes.

On the next Access Hollywood Weight Loss Week continues when we look at the Biggest Loser’s incredible body lift transformation.