Autumn Calabrese may be one of the newest trainers to work her magic on E!’s “Revenge Body,” but the fitness guru knew what she was in for when the cameras started rolling.
“I always call myself a therapist and a trainer,” the 15-year fitness pro told Page Six on Thursday. “We’re gonna work through some stuff, we’re not just working out.”
Contestants on the lifestyle-overhaul show, hosted by Khloé Kardashian, get treated to celebrity-status perks including a famed trainer and grade-A nutrition advice, but in time they find that their motivation — which started out as getting “revenge” on a former partner or tragic experience — turns into something positive and encouraging.
“The trainers, myself, and Khloé turn that pretty quick,” Calabrese said, shifting the client’s mindset away from whatever negative energy they’re clinging to. “It is no longer is about [that], it’s about you.”
“They’re not just working through, ‘Okay, I need to not eat pizza and I need to eat kale,’ but they’re really working through emotional things,” she explained. “A lot of times when you have a significant amount of weight to lose, it’s attached to something more than just, ‘I enjoy chips and cookies,’ there’s a little bit more emotion behind that, so we have to work through all of that to make sure it’s not short-term success but long-term success.”
Although Calabrese — whose journey to becoming a fitness expert was sparked after her long-time passion for dance ended in an injury — found that the message of the show was filled with “positivity and self-confidence,” working out with her client Terra wasn’t always easy.
“I do believe in tough love [but] I’m not a trainer who yells at people,” she told us. “We definitely had our moments, but I’m super proud of how she did and I’m excited for the episode to air.”
Terra — who, like Calabrese, is a mom from Ohio — followed the trainer’s program, “80 Day Obsession,” which is comprised of three phases of a strength cardio-based workout that increases in intensity over time.
The trainer, who has worked with Brooke Burke and Rachel Zoe, also introduced her contestant to meal prepping and implemented her eating plan, “The Ultimate Portion Fix.”
“You cannot out-train a bad diet, so without the nutrition, the success is going to be so much slower if at all,” Calabrese explained, noting she too has overcome nutrition struggles.
“You can put in a workout and go eat one meal and can completely outdo it,” she said.
Calabrese’s advice for eating well doesn’t involve severe restrictions, just control.
“It’s empowering to say, ‘I know I can have it, I’m choosing not to because it doesn’t serve my goal,'” Calabrese said.
“Every time you make that choice, it almost like reinforces it and makes it that much stronger because you’re like, ‘Yeah, I didn’t do it, and I’m not going to do it again’ and then you see the number on the scale going down, you see your body changing and you see your clothes fitting differently and you’re like, ‘Oh, my good choices are working!’ So it all falls into place if you give it time,” she continued.
With the process, which lasts 12 weeks on the show, Calabrese encouraged patience and taking time to gradually work toward goals — trainer-style.
“If I have to drag you to that finish line, we’re going together,” she said.
Calabrese makes her E! debut on Sunday night.