Image Source: Getty / Kevin Mazur and Photo Illustration: Ava Cruz
Taylor Swift never fails to impress, whether she’s dreaming up ways to sneak into her own concert or sharing a delicious cookie recipe. Her most impressive feat as of late? Singing, strutting, and styling her way through her Eras Tour. With a show that famously clocks in at three hours, 44 minutes, everyone wants to know how Swift keeps up her stamina.
Lately, Swift has been fairly tight-lipped about her fitness and wellness habits. She doesn’t share workouts on social media or in most interviews. This could be a personal effort to stop the promotion of celebrity diet culture, or it could just be another way Swift protects her privacy, which we know she’s fierce about. Like a fan hunting for Easter eggs in her songs, we scoured the internet for everything we could find about Swift’s wellness routine, which includes serious cardio, eating plenty of her favorite foods, and journaling.
She Believes in Balance
“During the week, I try to eat healthily, so that means salads, yogurt, and sandwiches,” she told WebMD in 2010. “. . . it’s nothing too regimented or crazy. I don’t like to create too many rules where I don’t need them.” On the weekends, though, she goes for classic comfort foods. “I love a burger and fries, I love ice cream so much, and I love baking cookies. Actually, I love baking anything.”
Apparently, Swift is a big Starbucks fan and loves the vanilla latte during weekdays and a PSL on weekends.
She Prioritizes Cardio
How does Swift build that famous on-tour stamina? In 2010, that was with an hour of cardio on the treadmill every day. “For me, running is about blasting a whole bunch of new songs and running to the beat,” she told WebMD. (It seems Swift was doing treadmill strut workouts long before we ever did them to her music.)
Swift is also a documented fan of Body by Simone (BBS) workout classes, according to a 2016 story by People. The method was created by celebrity trainer Simone De La Rue and blends dance-cardio and resistance exercises. You can try a Body By Simone Workout on the POPSUGAR Fitness YouTube channel, or stream workouts on the BBS Digital Studio by signing up for a membership ($20/month after a 14-day free trial).
She Loves to Cook
In 2019, Swift shared her top three favorite dinner-party recipes with Elle: Ina Garten’s Real Meatballs and Spaghetti, Nigella Lawson‘s Mughlai Chicken, and Jamie Oliver‘s Chicken Fajitas With Molé Sauce. Some of her favorite things to bake in the winter are pumpkin bread and ginger molasses cookies, but she’s also shared snaps of cinnamon rolls and a recipe for chai sugar cookies.
One of her favorite breakfasts is buckwheat crepes with ham, parmesan cheese, and a fried egg, as she told Bon Appétit in a 2012 interview. She pairs it with orange juice, which she drinks every morning, and she always keeps her fridge stocked with Diet Coke.
She Stays Hydrated
Swift is known for drinking so much water that her friends “call [her] an alien,” she told WebMD in 2010. Apparently, in those days, she kept a case of water in her car, just to make sure she never ran out. She reaffirmed her hydration habits in the 2012 interview with Bon Appétit, saying her dressing room is always stocked with water.
She Takes a Few Supplements
Swift told Elle that she takes L-theanine to help with stress and anxiety and magnesium for muscle health and energy. L-theanine helps you stay alert and increases levels of neurotransmitters dopamine and GABA. Magnesium supports healthy serotonin production, plus helps you sleep. (Note: It’s always a good idea to talk to your doctor before incorporating any new supplement into your routine, as they can interfere with health conditions and interact with prescription medications.)
She Works on Positive Body Image
In Swift’s 2020 Netflix documentary, “Miss Americana,” she bravely shared that she struggled with an eating disorder in the past and has done serious work to overcome it. “I tend to get triggered by something, whether it’s a picture of me where I feel like my tummy looked too big, or someone said that I looked pregnant, and that will trigger me to just starve a little bit. Just stop eating,” she said in the documentary. She remembers near-fainting after shows while on her “1989” tour. “I don’t think you know you’re doing it when you do it gradually. You don’t ever say ‘I have an eating disorder’ but you count everything you eat.”
She spoke more about her healing journey in an article she wrote for Elle in 2019 in honor of her 30th birthday. “I learned to stop hating every ounce of fat on my body. I worked hard to retrain my brain that a little extra weight means curves, shinier hair, and more energy,” she wrote. “I work on accepting my body every day.”
She Travels With Wellness Essentials
Between all her tours, Swift is a seasoned traveler, so it’s safe to say she has her routine down. She always travels with candles, and the first thing she does when she gets to her hotel room is unpack. She told WebMD that having a comforting routine is crucial for her to stay balanced.
She’s Always Writing
“As a young kid, I learned to process my emotions by writing,” Swift told WebMD. She began writing poetry in second grade and hasn’t stopped writing since. She told WebMD that she uses writing to keep herself honest and work through feelings from rejection and loneliness to joy and love.