Michelle Monaghan, the celebrated actress known for her roles in Mission: Impossible and The White Lotus, turned 49 on March 23. Her youthful appearance and toned physique have garnered attention, prompting many to wonder about her wellness regimen. Monaghan's approach encompasses a balanced diet, consistent exercise, and mindfulness practices.
Skincare Secrets
Monaghan emphasizes the importance of skincare, particularly sun protection, especially after being diagnosed with melanoma in her 30s. This experience led her to carefully consider the ingredients in her skincare products and to understand the dangers of sun exposure.
Sun Protection and Awareness: Monaghan highlights the heightened awareness of sun protection in Asia. She uses SPF daily.
U Beauty: As a spokesperson for U Beauty, Monaghan incorporates their products into her routine. She told ELLE.com about using The Resurfacing Compound, noting a visible improvement in her skin's texture, diminished age spots, sun damage, and reduced pore size within a week. She also praised the Super Hydrator Body.Monaghan celebrated the launch of U Beauty's SMOOTH Dynamic Wrinkle Defense Serum at The Hole in Los Angeles, California on Sept. 9.
Streamlined Routine: Streamlining her beauty routine allows her to maximize other moments, such as meditation.
Read also: Health and wellness insights from Michelle Wolf
Diet and Nutrition
Monaghan avoids restrictive diets, favoring a sensible approach to eating. She emphasizes moderation and balance, allowing herself indulgences while maintaining a generally healthy diet.
Hydration: She drinks at least 3 liters of water a day and starts her day with lemon water, which she believes helps flush and detoxify her system.
Balanced Diet: She eats a really well-balanced diet.
Green Juice: To compensate for her dislike of fruit, Monaghan drinks a green juice every morning, packed with vitamins from vegetables. She tries to drink green juice three times a week- kale, celery, spinach. Sometimes that replaces her coffee.
Breakfast: Breakfast is her fuel for the day. She eats a protein-packed breakfast. A typical breakfast might be a bowl of goat’s-milk yogurt with granola, berries, raisins, shaved almonds, flaxseed, and a banana smoothie.
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Lunch: She eats salads "three or four times a week." She also likes turkey sandwiches with avocado and a slice of Swiss cheese, and homemade soup, "broccoli, cauliflower, butternut squash-make a big batch and you have it for days," she says.
Dinner: Dinner might be trout or salmon, paired with steamed or roasted veggies or brown rice.
Flexibility: "Ultimately, it's eating sensibly…but if I'm at a restaurant, all bets are off!" she said. She is also the girl that likes to go to the beach all day and get a Number Three at McDonald’s on the way home-everything in moderation.
Exercise and Physical Activity
Michelle Monaghan maintains an active lifestyle, incorporating various forms of exercise into her routine. She emphasizes the mental benefits of exercise, viewing it as a form of self-care.
Strength Training: Michelle works out with a trainer three days a week doing strength training. Her hour-long sessions consist of exercises like cable work, squats, lunges, and step-ups. "It's a push to make myself go-it's hard!" she says. "But whenever I get off my lazy butt, I'm happy I did," she says. According to the Mayo Clinic, strength and weight training help reduce body fat, preserve and increase lean muscle mass, and burn calories more efficiently.
Read also: Wellness Tips from Michelle Pfeiffer
Pilates: "Pilates is my everyday self-care," she revealed in a recent post. Pilates is a great total-body workout that focuses on strength, mobility, balance, and flexibility. Pilates is a game changer for mind, body and spirit. Pilates is “really challenging,” she added to Shape. “I find that it’s a good balance for my running, which makes my muscles tight. Pilates loosens me up.”Monaghan's abs are thanks to her devotion to her workout routine, Pilates instructor Jacqui Kingswell tells TODAY.com. Kingswell says she began training with Monaghan in early 2024, just a few months before Season 3 of the show started filming in Thailand.
Pilates Exercises for Core Strength: Kingswell, the instructor behind The Pilates Class, says that with each full-body workout, Kingswell made sure Monaghan targeted all of her abdominal muscles, including the deepest ones.Her Pilates technique starts with a few simple steps that activate multiple layers of muscles throughout the abdomen. First, activate your pelvic floor, she says. Next, your transverse abdominis, the deepest layer of the abdominal muscles. To do this, "draw your belly button back towards your spine, and then your ribs down to your hips. And once you get those full cues locked in, it changes your life," she says.Some of her go-to Pilates exercises for Monaghan included toe taps, abdominal curls, and leg extensions. Then, she'd "level up" those moves and have Monaghan perform these same moves while balancing on a Pilates ball.
Running: Michelle previously revealed to Into The Gloss that she loves running and even completed a half marathon.
SoulCycle: "I also love SoulCycle. I played a Spin instructor in a movie, and at the time I thought, There's no way I'm getting on a bike. But SoulCycle had just opened in L.A., so I went with friends. The lights were off, candles were burning, and we were hooked.
Outdoor Activities: Outdoor exercise is also part of her routine. She enjoys hiking and playing beach volleyball. "Years ago, when I started working out, it was about getting my body in shape. But now the mental benefits outweigh the physical ones. That's why I love going for a hike in the morning. There's something about climbing a mountain that's symbolic-you set your intention and what you want to focus on. I think about what I have to do today or what I have to accomplish this week. It allows me that space where there's no one else around," she added to Shape.“Going on a hike with a friend or my husband works for me because it doesn’t feel like exercise,” Michelle told Women’s Health. “You’re catching up or having a gossip session, and time goes by quickly. This weekend my husband and I played beach volleyball with friends and worked up the greatest sweat,” she told Women’s Health.
Consistency is Key: The main thing, for anybody wanting to see results, is to find a workout that you love because consistency is key, and that's what Michelle does," Kingswell says. "She's really consistent with her workouts. She's not just jumping on and like training for six weeks and then not working out at all, like she genuinely loves to feel good, to work out. And so she's consistently finding a routine that makes her feel good."
Mindfulness and Self-Care
Monaghan prioritizes mental well-being through meditation, sleep, and self-care practices.
Meditation: She does that 20 minute meditation in the morning before the kiddos wake up.
Sleep: "Sleep is king in my house. It's something I really value because I know how good it makes me feel and look when I'm well rested. If I can get a solid nine hours in, I'm winning at life," she laughed.
Massage: Monaghan swears by a simple massage before prioritizing her number one beauty secret: sleep. "I was taught lymphatic drainage techniques by a couple of different facialists, and the benefits are incredible, especially under your clavicle. It really helps take out inflammation and depuffs certain areas of your body."
Cold Plunges: Michelle Monoghan is taking the cold plunge - in her swimsuit. In a new social media post the actress slips into a two-piece and takes an ice bath while vacationing in Thailand.
Family Time: Of course, her weekends come with a cozy twist. "I'm an early riser and a morning person, but I love a Saturday or Sunday wake up where I get to stay in bed, pull back the curtains, and drink coffee while hanging out with my husband and hearing our kids walk around the house.