Fit Fix: Celebrity Choreographer Aicha McKenzie's Morning Fitness Routine Will Make You Rethink Yours | HuffPost Life

'I never work out to punish myself for what I’ve eaten.'

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Life editor at HuffPost UK

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Celebrity choreographer Aicha McKenzie made her mark as a dancer after working with the likes of Kanye West, Rihanna, Katy Perry and Madonna.

She then went on to choreograph iconic events including the London 2012 Olympics and many Brit Award performances.

Prior to her dance career, she was a rhythmic gymnastic champion in the British and Commonwealth games, becoming the first black woman to win her category.

Most recently, the mother-of-two has built her own empire as the founder of a AMCK FIT: a fusion of dance, fitness and style.

AMCK FIT includes dance lessons, aimed to raise your heart rate while you’re smiling and having fun, hybrid lessons with elements of dancing, boxing, yoga and Pilates, and moving meditation classes.

Fitting in her own workouts with her busy schedule isn’t easy, and she finds herself squeezing in squats and planks bursts first thing every morning.

So what does a week in the life of McKenzie look like, from food to fitness? We put our 12 Fit Fix questions to the dancer to find out more.

My Journey 🌍

What do you credit to your success?

“Hard work, self belief and a sprinkling of luck. I always try to make the most of opportunities and try to always do what feels right.”

What’s one of the most memorable moments in your career?

“My very first professional dance gig springs to mind. I was hired to dance with ‘Take That’ at the MTV Awards when I was 17. More recently, I was 39 weeks pregnant standing on the pitch at the stadium in Twickenham choreographing the opening ceremony of Rugby World Cup Final.”

Have you experienced a low point and how did you get past it?

“The hardest point in my life was when I lost my mother. I was 21 and working as a professional dancer and model. My world was thrown totally but the dance community gathered round me and supported me.”

My Training 💪

Talk us through your week in fitness.

“I tend to work out little and often, fitting my fitness in as and when I can. I stretch and do yoga every morning, which can be sometimes just 10 minutes or a full 45, then do a little three min abs and plank burst before I jump in the shower. Whilst I clean my teeth I do squats or I stand in tree pose depending on how I feel. I don’t often get to do a full 90 minute class more than once a week.”

What’s your favourite type of workout and why?

“I work out quite organically in the sense that I move in the way that feels good to my body each day. Therefore, it’s always a mix of yoga, Pilates, dance strength and conditioning moves. I also mix that in with walking, always take the stairs and I find that functional training also makes up the rest of my general cardio and fitness.”

What’s your favourite way to spend your rest day?

“I don’t have set rest days in the same way I don’t have food cheat days. It’s all about balance.”

My Food 🍳

What do you eat throughout the week to complement your training schedule?

“I make a fresh smoothie every morning. At the moment, my kids and I are enjoying banana, pineapple, apple, spinach spriulina [superfood plant source], chia and ginger. I eat good fats like avocados, lots of fish and a fairly high carb intake. We are a half-Italian family and eat lots of pasta, so my body is used to it.”

What are your pre and post-workout snacks?

“A slice of toast with peanut butter and banana. On the go it’s granola bars, cashew nuts, raisins and salted plantain chips.”

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned about food?

“That it’s not your enemy. Food is such a big part of our lives socially and emotionally. I never work out to punish myself for what I’ve eaten and I like to eat what I enjoy. I crave greens and a big fresh salad as much as I do a pizza and glass of red wine. Once again, it’s about balance.”

My Motivation 🙌

Do you have a motivational mantra that keeps you going?

“Breath, the universe has got you.”

Do you always have fitness goals you are aiming for?

“To be the best version of myself I can be. Glow from the inside out and to be able to smile at life. All those things I don’t believe can be achieved by obsessing about a flat tummy or if you’re walking around hungry.”

What’s your ultimate workout track?

“Prince - Sexy MF.”

‘Fit Fix’ is a weekly dose of fitspiration from leading athletes and fitness fanatics. Each week we chat to stars about their weekly workouts, the food they eat and what keeps them going.

Before You Go

Ballet Dancers Changing the Landscape

Misty Copeland(01 of13)

Misty Copeland became the third African American female soloist at the American Ballet Theater back in 2007. Since then, she's spoken openly about racism in the dance world. "[Ballet is] such a traditional and historic art form that people are afraid to change it," she said in an interview with New York Magazine. "But I think it has to if it’s going to last in the world we live in today. It's hard to change someone’s ideas when they might not even really consciously know that they’re being racist, or have racist ideas, just because ballet has been this way for hundreds of years."
Her new Under Armor ad has been making waves online, effectively conveying a contemporary interpretation of what it means to be a ballerina.

Yuan Yuan Tan(02 of13)

Yuan Yuan Tan is a principal dancer with the San Francisco Ballet. In the late 1990s she became the youngest principal in the company’s history and the first Chinese dancer to be promoted to that level.

Shannon Harkins(03 of13)

Shannon Harkins was 13 years old when The Washington Post called her "the face of African American ballet dancers' struggles." At that time, she was the only African American girl at Level 7 at the Washington School of Ballet -- the highest pre-professional level.

Desmond Richardson(04 of13)

Desmond Richardson is the co-founder and co-artistic director of Complexions Contemporary Ballet, a company that seeks to reinvent dance by creating an open environment that embraces multicultural forms of movement. Richardson also performed as a principal dancer at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for seven years.

Natalia Osipova(05 of13)

While Natalia Osipova may look like the stereotypical image of a ballerina, her viewpoints express anything but. "I am not interested in sporting diamond tiaras on stage, or having my point shoes cooked and eaten by my fans," she explained to The Spectator this year. "Ballet has evolved and the ballerina figure with it. The world around us offers new challenges, new stimuli and new opportunities, and I believe that it is the responsibility of every artist to be constantly ready to respond to these. There is simply no reason, nor time, to perpetuate century-old clichés, such as the remote, semi-divine figure of the 19th-century ballet star."
Osipova's attitude eschews the celebrity of a glamorous field, and we can't help but love her progressive tone.

Chehon Wespi-Tschopp(06 of13)

Chehon Wespi-Tschopp became America's Favorite Dancer back on "So You Think You Can Dance" Season 9. Being the first male contestant to identify first and foremost as a ballet dancer, he brought the art form into the realm of mainstream television.

José Manuel Carreño(07 of13)

Born in Cuba, former ABT star José Manuel Carreño is the Artistic Director at the Ballet San Jose. After dancing as the Prince in "Swan Lake" as his final performance, he ventured from New York City to Northern California to lead the financially-troubled company.

Wendy Whelan(08 of13)

Wendy Whelan has become something of a figurehead for veteran dancers, advocating for financial support and career services for ballet icons nearing retirement. “We are not supported federally at all once we leave the ballet. There is no support whatsoever, financially or insurance wise for dancers in the United States."
After 30 years at the New York City Ballet, the principal dancer will bid her adieu this October, with plans to continue dancing with the likes of Edward Watson and the folks at Manhattan's City Center.

Cassa Pancho(09 of13)

Cassa Pancho is the founder of Ballet Black, a company devoted to inspiring opportunities for "dancers and students of black and Asian descent."
"All through ballet school I was really aware of the lack of black people around me," she explained to The Guardian. "So for my dissertation I thought I would interview black women working in ballet and see what they had to say –- but I couldn't find a single black woman working in ballet, and that really stunned me. When I graduated, I decided, very naively, to do something about it myself."
You can read more about Cira Robinson, Damien Johnson and Sayaka Ichikawa -- all senior artists at Ballet Black -- here. (Photo of the company by Bill Cooper.)

Carlos Acosta(10 of13)

Cuban-born Carlos Acosta, a principal guest artist at The Royal Ballet, has spoken openly about the lack of representation in ballet.
“The percentage of classical black ballet dancers around the world is sadly minimal, which is quite embarrassing,” Acosta has said. “In most companies, when a talented black dancer is chosen as a member, they don’t know how to cast them properly. Still, there is this mentality, especially with directors, that a black ballerina in the middle of a flock of white swans would somehow alter the harmony.”

Sylvie Guillem(11 of13)

Sylvie Guillem made a name for herself after leaving the Paris Opera Ballet to become an international freelance ballerina. Now in her late 40s, the woman bold enough to appear on the cover of French Vogue nude and without makeup (long before the makeup-free selfie craze) is happily bursting through barriers between the modern dance world and ballet with works like "6000 Miles Away."

Shiori Kase(12 of13)

Tokyo-born Shiori Kase is a soloist with the English National Ballet who recently wowed critics in the London staging of the "psycho-thriller" ballet, "Coppélia."

Michaela DePrince(13 of13)

Sierra Leone-born Michaela DePrince spent her early years in an orphanage after her father was killed during the civil war in her country. After being adopted by an American family and entering the world of ballet, she was told at the age of eight that America wasn't "ready for a black girl ballerina." Despite her challenging childhood, she's gone on to win a position in ABT's preprofessional division and the Dutch National Junior Company.

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