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CNN Saturday Morning News

Summer Shape-Up: Interviews With Donna Richardson, Billy Blanks, Denise Austin

Aired May 25, 2002 - 08:43   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, we're not letting you off very easy. Time now for more of our summer shape up with three fitness experts. They're joining us this morning from three different cities. Donna Richardson is in Miami, Billy Blanks is in Los Angeles and Denise Austin is in Washington.

Good morning all of you.

BILLY BLANKS, FITNESS EXPERT: Good morning.

DENISE AUSTIN, FITNESS EXPERT: Good morning.

DONNA RICHARDSON, FITNESS EXPERT: Good morning.

PHILLIPS: All right, so I know I asked you this in the break, but I want all of you to fess up here. Does each person do each other's exercises?

RICHARDSON: Yes.

AUSTIN: I do Tae Bo.

RICHARDSON: Exercise is exercise.

AUSTIN: I've worked out with Denise's workouts, yes.

PHILLIPS: And Billy, you follow the gals?

BLANKS: Well, you know, I mean I do their bun exercises because, you know, we do it in Tae Bo, so, yes, I think we all do everybody's exercises.

PHILLIPS: That's true, buns are very important, aren't they?

BLANKS: Yes.

AUSTIN: Yes.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys, let's get...

AUSTIN: Squeeze 'em right now.

PHILLIPS: Yes, OK, believe me, I am.

AUSTIN: Nice tight tushies.

PHILLIPS: If you only knew.

All right, let's get right to the e-mail, shall we?

AUSTIN: Sure.

PHILLIPS: This one comes from Amy in Arlington, Texas and it's very simple. She says, "Help."

Now, it's very intimidating to lose weight sometimes and sometimes you feel like OK, it's absolutely impossible and the next thing you know, you know, you're much bigger than you ever wanted to be.

Each one of you quickly, your quick words of advice for help.

Billy, let's start with you.

BLANKS: Well, I would say, you know, I would tell Amy if she wants to get into a workout what she needs to do is just, you know, take her time and find a workout that she can feel comfortable with and give her an opportunity just to actually feel comfortable. And as she do that, she'll start to see the weight loss thing go away. So don't think about the weight, just think about health and being the best that you can be.

PHILLIPS: Denise?

AUSTIN: Well, I always tell people to start off small. Ten minutes a day. If you can get 10 minutes in, you will start to feel the difference. Then you'll, maybe, the next day do 15 minutes. And in a couple weeks you're onto 30 minutes each day, and that would be the best. If you just start small, 10 minutes a day, you can do it.

PHILLIPS: Donna?

RICHARDSON: I think you have to start with the right mindset. You have to do it because you want to do it, not because your husband thinks you're overweight or maybe you want to look like your friend, who gets all the compliments, or you want to look like the model. You have to first start and feel that it's important enough for you to get started with a fitness program.

PHILLIPS: All right, let's take a phone call, shall we? Corrine (ph) on the line from Milwaukee. What's your question, Corrine, and with whom does it go?

CORRINE: Oh, well, any of the experts could answer a simple question about name some of the high fiber foods that you would recommend.

AUSTIN: Well, I love oatmeal. Any of the grains are going to be good for you because it helps to fill you up. And fiber is so important because also it helps absorb some of the fat and get rid of it. So oatmeal is one of the best. I eat sweet potatoes. Anything that's really good for you. And not the junk, not the high calories, not like the white breads or the white things. Just go for the good, good grains, that whole wheat.

PHILLIPS: Denise?

RICHARDSON: I would also have to add just making sure you get in fruits and vegetables every day.

PHILLIPS: Good point, Donna.

Billy?

BLANKS: I would say the same thing, make sure you get your fruit and vegetables in every day. And the wheat and grain is very important.

PHILLIPS: All right, here we go, Gabriella Lepowell (ph) wants to know, "How can coffee affect the diet? Does caffeine-free coffee affect the same way?" Billy?

BLANKS: Well, you know, coffee, a lot of people like to use it as a diuretic, you know? It helps you go to the bathroom in the morning and I mean it gives you energy. But...

PHILLIPS: Yes, we all giggled because we all know.

BLANKS: But, you know, you've just got to watch your coffee because if you drink too much it can hurt you, too. So you've just got to be careful and be smart about what you do when you drink coffee.

PHILLIPS: All right, this...

RICHARDSON: Yes, I think you have to limit the coffee and also really focus in on drinking more water. It's important to get that H2O in.

PHILLIPS: Yes, I've got to admit, our whole family, we went caffeine-free. We do water, water, water, all morning, afternoon, at night. And I feel I don't even need the coffee anymore.

AUSTIN: Good.

RICHARDSON: That's good.

PHILLIPS: You really don't need it to wake you up, do you?

All right, let's get onto another e-mail. This comes from Suzanne in San Francisco. "I exercise regularly, about three to five times a week, for an hour or so each time. I lift weights, do cardio exercise and I've built up a lot of muscle. I look great in clothes, but when it comes time to get into a bathing suit, I still can't get rid of that saddle bags, the excess cellulite. I really detest looking at my stomach and thighs in the mirror. What can I do?" Denise?

AUSTIN: Well, first of all, she's doing all the right things now and that's the key, because a cardio will help get rid of the fat from the whole body and then target toning specific body spots like those legs. Do really good thigh exercises to really focus on that area and then, of course, eating is important, too, eating the right foods and eating well.

I eat well 80 percent of the time and then have my treats 20 percent of the time. So you've got to also see what she's eating, too.

PHILLIPS: Billy, can we eat whatever we want if we increase our exercise?

BLANKS: Well, I believe you can eat whatever you want, you just have to, you know, be smart about it and have the control to be able to pull yourself away from what you like the most. And I always say, too, with getting in shape, if you have a body part that you're having a problem with, don't cover it up. Maybe put some shorts on and really exercise the part that you really want to get because the more you see it, the more you want to get rid of it and the more it'll help you tone in on it.

So I would tell her to do that.

RICHARDSON: I agree with Billy. I think that you have to have that goal right there where you can see it because that helps keep you motivated and it helps you stay on track to accomplishing your goal. And in reference to what Denise was saying, I really believe that you do have to keep to that program that you're doing. But sometimes you do hit a plateau and that means you just have to change up your program.

PHILLIPS: All right, Denise, this one's for you. "Thanks to your book, 'The 21 Day Jump Start Plan,' I've lost 100 pounds since the birth of my twins."

AUSTIN: Whoa.

PHILLIPS: Yes, really.

AUSTIN: Whew.

BLANKS: That is awesome.

PHILLIPS: Isn't it? Isn't that great?

RICHARDSON: Yes.

PHILLIPS: "Is it possible to tone up abdominal muscles after C- sections and this much weight loss, and how would you do it?"

AUSTIN: Yes. I would start slow, of course. I do each day three minutes worth of abdominal exercises. But one of the key things, if you were, if your C-section was cut across, you're OK. Your muscles weren't cut. But vertically they were a little. So hopefully they did the good way, the horizontal cut for the C-section.

But those muscles can get right back into shape. You can tone and start to firm up. And think about good posture throughout the day, too. A lot of times you've got to make sure the bellybutton in, pull in those abs. Don't let everything pooch out when you're sitting there. Sit up nice and tall. Think good posture.

PHILLIPS: All right, we're going to go to a phone call. Arcia (ph) from Texas has a question for Billy. Go ahead, Arcia.

ARCIA: Hi. My name is Arcia. I have been trying to flatten my abs but I have back problems and I have been using the ab wheels and I injured my elbow, my left elbow. So I'm having a real hard time doing it. I do my best to do crunches and drink a lot of water. So what's the best thing for me to do?

BLANKS: Well, I think one of the most important things is your diet is very important. That's going to help you really get abs. And, two, one, another thing is learn how to control your abs. A lot of people when they do abs, they don't really think about controlling their abs. They just do a movement or what they call stomach crunch or maybe a leg lift or whatever it is, or a sit-up, and they don't understand that you have to learn how to contract the muscles and tighten the muscles up as well as release it at the same time.

So at the end of the show, that, those are some of the things that I'll show you that you can do with abs.

PHILLIPS: All right, this question comes from San Diego, California. "My doctor told me that I need to lose 40 pounds. Got any advice on the best way to take it off? He's suggesting counting calories and cut back portions when eating."

Donna, why don't you take that one. And the doctor didn't mention anything about exercise. Is that a good idea?

RICHARDSON: I know. Yes, you have to combine the good nutrition with exercise. And then like Denise said earlier, you have to do some type of cardiovascular activity and you have to do the strength training along with that.

PHILLIPS: Yes, I can't argue with that. I know that firsthand.

All right, look, will you three come back?

AUSTIN: Sure.

RICHARDSON: Of course.

BLANKS: Love to. I would love to come back.

PHILLIPS: Good, let's do this again. And I want all three of you also to know that I've been receiving tons of e-mails from folks saying they've either done Tae Bo or they've watched your tapes, ladies. So everyone loves you. We haven't gotten one negative one saying they don't work. So that's good news.

AUSTIN: Good.

BLANKS: Well, that's awesome.

RICHARDSON: Good to see you, Billy and Denise.

BLANKS: Thank you.

AUSTIN: Happy summer.

RICHARDSON: Thanks.

BLANKS: All you guys...

AUSTIN: Pull it in. Pull it in.

PHILLIPS: Feel the love. Feel the love.

BLANKS: ... have a nice day.

PHILLIPS: All right, Donna, Billy and Denise...

BLANKS: Have a nice day.

PHILLIPS: All right, thanks, you guys.

AUSTIN: Thanks.

RICHARDSON: Much love to you.

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