If you ever watch "Live With Kelly and Ryan" you've probably seen Kelly Ripa showing off her fitness skills at some point. The longtime morning-show host isn't shy about jumping, dancing, stretching, and burpee-ing on air, and there's a reason she can crush it all with ease. Kelly works out a lot to maintain her fitness level — four to five days each week, to be exact, says Anna Kaiser, Ripa's longtime personal trainer and creator of Anna Kaiser Studios, a dance-inspired fitness method.
The two have been working together for 13+ years and share snippets from their workouts together on social media often. Ripa recently shared her pre-Oscars workout with Kaiser on her Instagram Stories, following the trainer through a vigorous dance cardio routine that had us breathless just watching. And on New Year's Eve, Ripa shared a touching video of moments between the two, writing "danced my way through 2022" and thanking Kaiser and two other trainers.
Curious about what Ripa's workouts with Kaiser are like? (After all, they've got to be good to keep Ripa repeating them for that many years.) Here's what to know about Ripa's fitness routine and her workouts with Kaiser, including an ab move that'll have your core shaking.
— Additional reporting by Victoria Messina
After training with Ripa for so long, Kaiser says they've got her routine down to a science. "Kelly's program alternates daily between sculpt, power, dance interval training, restorative yoga, and our signature step workout," Kaiser tells POPSUGAR. "I program the perfect combination of muscular endurance and power to make sure she continues to maintain/build muscle and get the right amount of heart-healthy cardio without hitting adrenal fatigue."
Here's what a typical week of workouts might look like for Ripa, according to Kaiser:
Their workouts are based on the classes that Anna Kaiser Studios offers, including:
Kaiser says her goal is to create a sustainable program that keeps them both inspired and training for life. "It's not about working out longer or harder — it's just about changing the workouts to make sure you're constantly challenged and engaged," Kaiser told POPSUGAR in 2018.
Now, "At 53 and 43, we are working out smarter and more consciously," Kaiser says. "I program her workouts to complement the other activities in her week and bring more energy, vitality, and clarity to her days."
Ripa has been working with Kaiser for years, but her exact workout routine has evolved over time. "When she was in her late 30s and 40s, we really focused on cardio," Kaiser told Shape in 2022. "She was doing a lot of [fitness] challenges for the show . . . and her stamina and cardio needed to be really strong."
More recently, Kaiser has been focused on helping Ripa build strength, energy, and endorphins, she told Shape. "We are watching her heart-rate monitor and tracking her metrics on her on a daily basis to make sure she gets exactly the amount of strength and cardio for what she needs today, which is very different from what it was 12 years ago."
The COVID pandemic presented obstacles for the training duo much like it did for others. "During COVID, I was pregnant and on maternity leave, and my studios were closed due to the government shut down," Kaiser tells POPSUGAR. "Kelly took the time to try a lot of other virtual workouts, and when we got back together a year later, she was very deconditioned and felt like she may never get herself back to where she was before the pandemic. So we started slowly, working back into our workouts, and we only focused on strength three times per week. After a couple of months, we added some low-impact cardio and, now, two years later, she is stronger and more fit than ever."
Kaiser says she loves working with long-term clients like Ripa, because it allows her and her staff to "create meaningful relationships" with them and "really understand what they need to thrive," she tells POPSUGAR. "We get the opportunity to support them through the different phases in their lives (pregnancy, postnatal, menopause, etc.) and celebrate the moments together."
And the magic of her workout mix is what keeps them coming back. "Most clients come to us after trying so many different workouts and not feeling or seeing the results they are looking for or feeling as though they are just another body in an overcrowded room," Kaiser says. At Anna Kaiser Studios, they tend to stick around because they continue to be "challenged, inspired, and motivated to keep getting stronger," she says.
Taking a look at Ripa's and Kaiser's videos of their workouts, the energy is contagious. In a world where fitness can be all too serious, Kaiser's method looks downright fun. She points to that, as well, for creating an environment that clients love and want to keep coming back to: "The positive addicting energy at the studios and the support from a community of women that truly supports each other."
When we chatted with Kaiser in 2018, we couldn't resist asking her about Ripa's core workouts, and the trainer graciously shared her favorite ab exercise with us. Below is a step-by-step look at how to do it at home:
Kaiser admitted that the sequence is "very hard," which explains why Ripa has such a strong core. "You have to try not to let your hips or shoulders move. You want to keep everything as still as possible," she said. (BRB, buying an exercise ball.)
In addition to Kaiser's workouts, Ripa also runs in Central Park a few times a week, Kaiser told Shape. Plus, she stays active with her family, whether that's rock climbing or skiing with her husband, Mark Consuelos.
"I design the week [of workouts] around her other activities to make sure we find the right balance," Kaiser tells POPSUGAR.
If this preview has you interested, there's great news: Kaiser's Anna Kaiser Studios offers tons of streamable workouts both on-demand and live, so anyone can train just like the "Live With Kelly and Ryan" star from the comfort of their own home. You can try one class for $18 or buy a 10-pack of virtual classes for $100.
Kaiser, who also trains Shakira and Alicia Keys, also shares workouts regularly on her social media platforms, like the core workout here.