14 DAY TRIAL // Christina Hendricks plays curvy and uber-confident secretary Joan Holloway on the popular series “Mad Men,” as fans of the show must already know. Around the time of the Emmy Awards this year, word got out in the media that she was going on a very strict diet for her upcoming wedding with Geoffrey Arrend, which prompted talk of her wanting to lose her signature curves. Far be the thought from her, the actress tells Shape magazine.
Losing weight before the wedding is, as all women must know, almost like a rite of passage for the bride, with some of them even going to the so-called bridal boot camps to get in shape for the big day. Christina is different, though, in that any change she has made to her diet has nothing to do with her upcoming wedding day, but rather with looking to make her life better by eating healthier and staying in better shape. As far as her curves are concerned, they are better off where they are right now, the star explains.
“My healthiest habit is keeping positive about my body at whatever stage it is – being confident and celebrating who I am at the moment.” Hendricks says for Self. Therefore, if it’s not a low point in self-confidence that has made her switch her diet and start working out, then it’s because she wants a better life. In order to achieve this, she’s currently trying to keep away from carbs and to eat more proteins, while also working out three times a week with her fiancé.
Christina’s diet relies a lot on home-cooked meals, she says. “Christina is a self-professed foodie, even though she grew up in a household where her mom made ‘very much Southern '70s cooking, like fried chicken, mashed potatoes and quiche.’ It wasn't until she moved away from home that she realized there was a whole world of food out there. ‘Like vegetables!’ she said. ‘My mom didn’t like them, so she hardly ever cooked them – and when she did, they would be overcooked. Now when she comes over and I make fresh veggies, she says, ‘These are the most delicious things I’ve ever had!’ So I’ve turned my mom on to vegetables, which is good’.” Self writes after sitting down with Christina for a talk.
Aside from the new diet that is supposed to offer her a much-needed energy boost, Christina has also recently become a believer in the benefits of regular workouts, but only if her fiancé also accompanies her to the gym. This way, she has discovered that the routine is more fun and less of a strain. All in all, the end-result is supposed to be a better toned body and an improved health (and quality of life), but definitely not the skinny figure of other Hollywood starlets, Christina says.
Speaking of which, the star says she never imagined herself as the poster child for the curvy figure. She’s happy now that she’s become that, though. “At first, I thought people were calling me out and it made me feel uncomfortable that they were focused on it. Then when I realized it was all positive and it was actually helping other people, it started making me feel great.” the actress explains.