The Victoria Secret Fashion Show is set to take place on October 15, and excitement is already building. In the lead-up to the big event, the iconic Victoria’s Secret models are putting in the work. Here’s a look at how they prepare for the runway.
Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show: Workouts
Victoria’s Secret models tend to follow varied, full-body routines that emphasize balance between strength, cardio, and flexibility. They often include HIIT (high-intensity interval training) sessions, light resistance work (bands, light dumbbells, bodyweight movements), and targeted exercises for legs, glutes, core, and arms.
Also common: cardio forms like running, jump rope, cycling, or dance cardio to maintain lean conditioning. You can read more about Victoria’s Secret model workouts here.
As a recent addition, model trainer Megan Roup has shared five staple moves that many models use to get runway-ready: side reach, split lunge, cross-body plank, bird dog, and heel taps.
These moves combine core engagement, stability, and toning. Before big events, models often train harder, adding sessions and targeting abs, glutes, and legs.
Related Post: Victoria’s Secret Legs Workout
Here are some workout tips from some of the models to prepare for the Victoria’s Secret fashion show:
Inside Adriana Lima’s Show Prep Workout
How does Adriana prepare for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show? Adriana Lima is famous for her intense boxing-focused workouts, which she has credited for keeping her in runway shape for decades. Six weeks before a show, she trains daily with boxing, jump rope, resistance work, and occasional yoga or Lagree.
She has explained that boxing takes up around 90% of her sessions, helping her maintain endurance, lean muscle, and mental focus.
In the final stretch before a show, she may even increase her frequency to twice a day, blending cardio and strength-based movements.
Candice Swanepoel’s Fitness Routine Before the Show
Candice Swanepoel’s workout regimen is built around a mix of cardio, resistance training, and yoga, which helps her maintain both tone and flexibility.
She often ramps up her sessions two weeks before a show, shifting into more sculpting workouts with weights, core work, and balance training.
Yoga aids her recovery and flexibility, while HIIT or ModelFit workouts sculpt a lean, defined runway body.
Alessandra Ambrosio’s Go-To Workout for Show Time
Alessandra Ambrosio is known for keeping a consistent baseline of fitness year-round, then intensifying her workouts before a show. In final weeks, she sometimes trains twice daily with treadmill cardio, core work, and leg exercises using ankle weights.
She also practices Pilates, yoga, and lighter resistance training to sculpt and elongate her muscles.
Her trainers use compound circuits to target multiple muscles at once, keeping her strong, lean, and fluid for walking.
Behati Prinsloo’s Fitness Secrets for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show
Behati Prinsloo has a slightly more relaxed approach compared to some of her peers, but she intensifies her activity before the show.
She usually trains a few times weekly, but before the runway she’s active daily with workouts, yoga, swimming, or dancing.
Behati has worked with celebrity trainers and uses methods such as Body by Simone classes, reformer Pilates, yoga, resistance band work, and swimming.
This mix gives her both the cardiovascular stamina and lean muscle tone needed for carrying elaborate wings and costumes.
How Elsa Hosk Trains for the Show
Elsa Hosk is recognized for her disciplined boxing and strength-training workouts, which she pairs with conditioning exercises and cardio. She’s one of the most consistent among the Victoria’s Secret models, training regularly to stay camera- and runway-ready.
Her sessions include boxing drills, core conditioning, and body sculpting routines, and she fuels her training days with clean, plant-forward nutrition. Boxing, in particular, gives her stamina and lean definition while helping her manage stress before shows.
Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show: Diet
Many trainers emphasize diet as 80% of success, so food must be smart, sustainable, and supportive. A clean, nutrient-dense diet keeps models lean, fuels shoots, supports skin and hair, and reduces bloating and water retention.
Models now avoid strict “no-dairy” or “zero sugar” rules, focusing instead on cutting refined sugars, processed foods, and sodium. They eat smaller meals every 2–3 hours, including vegetables, lean proteins, plant-based options, and healthy fats.
Carbs are often eaten earlier in the day or pre-workout, and may be reduced further before shows.
Most models don’t strictly count calories, focusing instead on food quality, body signals, and consistent eating habits.
Here are some diet tips from some of the models:
Adriana Lima
Adriana’s diet is very regimented. She eats six small meals daily, focusing on lean proteins, vegetables, and clean carbs. Breakfast may include oatmeal with raisins, egg whites, and coffee, while lunch could be grilled chicken or fish with vegetables.
Snacks are usually raw veggies, and dinner is something light. Lima has admitted sometimes using extreme prep, like protein shakes only for nine days before the runway, while controlling water intake to reduce bloating.
Although effective for her, she stresses these methods are very specific and always monitored by professionals.
Candice Swanepoel
Candice Swanepoels’ diet emphasizes clean, whole foods. She often starts her day with smoothies made from coconut oil, flaxseed oil, bananas, berries, and nut butters.
She balances meals with lean protein, vegetables, and complex carbs, avoiding processed foods, sugar, and late-night eating. When training harder, Candice eats slightly more to recover but still prioritizes high-quality ingredients.
Candice believes eating clean not only shapes her body but also keeps her energized and confident on stage.
Alessandra Ambrosio
Her diet during show prep focuses on lean proteins and vegetables, often eating seared salmon with asparagus or protein smoothies with healthy add-ins like spirulina and avocado.
Breakfast could be avocado toast with eggs, while lunch might include a salad with chicken or fish and a green juice after workouts. For dinner, she tends to keep it lighter,though she does enjoy sushi on nights out.
Alessandra has always emphasized balance: while she cuts back on indulgences during prep, she avoids overly restrictive patterns and instead chooses foods that fuel her energy, recovery, and confidence.
Behati Prinsloo
Behati’s show-prep diet cuts sugar, salt, and excess carbs, focusing instead on protein, vegetables, and hydration.
Breakfast often includes coffee with almond milk, oatmeal with berries, or avocado toast with eggs.
Lunch is usually a salad with quinoa and grilled chicken, while dinner might be sushi or another lighter meal. She snacks on almonds, pumpkin seeds, and golden berries, drinking plenty of water and coconut water.
She avoids processed meats and heavily processed foods, helping her maintain energy and keep her look fresh and natural.
Elsa Hosk
Her diet emphasizes nutrient-dense, whole foods. Before workouts, she often drinks fresh juices made from kale, beets, apples, or carrots for energy.
Afterward, she prefers acai bowls packed with kale, spinach, banana, blueberries, coconut, plant protein, and bee pollen. She sometimes adds healthy fats like coconut oil or “brain octane oil” to her coffee.
While she usually follows a clean eating pattern, she’s also known to indulge occasionally, enjoying foods like In-N-Out burgers in moderation.
Elsa’s balance of disciplined clean eating with occasional flexibility makes her both runway-ready and able to maintain her health over time.
Other Tips
Many Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show models recognize the importance of managing stress, since stress hormones can contribute to belly fat.
They reduce stress through meditation, massages, or relaxing baths, and also prioritize 7–9 hours of sleep each night.
It’s no surprise that hydration is another major focus for Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show preparation.
Models aim to drink 2–4 liters of water daily to stay energized, support skin health, and reduce bloating.
Sources:
https://www.byrdie.com/victorias-secret-workout-review
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One Response
I’ve tried both Ballet Beautiful and Body by Simone (the DVD versions).
BBS is very fun, and it’s definitely high-impact (there aren’t any modifications, either). Ballet Beautiful is low-impact, but you’ll feel the burn since everything is high-rep.