Changing her tune: country star Reba McEntire still enjoys her ranch-style roots, but sticks to a recently reformed diet - Cover Story

American Fitness, March-April, 1993 by Bonnie Siegler

Country star Reba McEntire still enjoys her ranch-style roots, but sticks to a recently reformed diet.

Reba McEntire is country music's hottest female singer who has successfully made the crossover to pop singing. Dubbed "The Queen of Country Music," the 36-year-old Oklahoma native has fame, fortune, adoring fans and, since motherhood, a new outlook on diet and fitness.

"My father was a rancher and world champion steer roper so we used to have meat on the table every night," she recalls. "And our biggest treat was the testicles of a bull--served up deep fried at that. I know, very high in cholesterol, but what southern food isn't?"

Today McEntire, husband/manager Navel Blackstock and two-year-old son Shelby enjoy living a healthful life on their picturesque ranch overlooking the Cumberland River in Tennessee. The cowgirl turned country singer, who released "It's Your Call" last December, likes to walk her ranch checking on the horses and running with the dogs. "With 30 acres of land, it's a good workout," says McEntire, whose last album, "For My Broken Heart," became her biggest seller by going double-platinum in the first nine months of release. "I also do chores around the house, like gardening--you'd be surprised what a sweat you can work up by gardening--it's good for the muscles. Plus, our house has four stories, so I run up and down stairs everyday.

"I really haven't had much time lately for horseback riding--we have 22 of them--but I could ride for hours," she adds. "It's great exercise." To this day, McEntire boasts she can do a mean barrel race, though a previous back injury due to barrel competition curbed her appetite for the sport.

"I have a small gym in my home where I work out with free weights, about five pounds, Nautilus machines and a cross-country ski machine," she says. "But I don't get to use the gym as often as I'd like because all my free time lately is dedicated to Shelby."

However, McEntire tries to do some form of exercise for at least 30 minutes a day. "Swimming in the pool or a game of tennis makes me feel good," she says. "When I'm on the road I usually try and stay in hotels with fully equipped spas or gyms, which is becoming more the norm lately. I use the Stairmaster, treadmill or pool for at least a half hour, and it helps in my shows."

McEntire's schedule got even more challenging after the birth of her son. Soon after Shelby was born, she went into the studio to record and then went on to start production of her new show. "We had a grand staircase and dance routines on the staircase," she recalls. "That's pretty rough after having a baby. We worked for three weeks putting the show together doing two shows a day. That was a lot of physical exercise I wasn't used to, but it helped me lose the 40 pounds I gained during pregnancy."

With a high-pressure, high-profile career that has garnered the performer 20 albums (six gold and one platinum), a Grammy award and feature and TV films, McEntire believes in effective stress management. Her relaxation routine includes massages once a week. "Getting a full body massage revitalizes me, takes the tension out of my whole body and gives me energy to return to what I have to do," confides McEntire. "All in all, I think I take pretty good care of myself combining good nutrition with some form of daily exercise."

Inside McEntire's sprawling ranch, her kitchen reflects a light and airy atmosphere. "I've all but given up eating meat, opting more for chicken, fish and salads--salads especially in the summer," she says. Upon finding she was allergic to dairy products, McEntire learned to get calcium by eating other calcium-rich foods such as broccoli. "There are still times I like to throw a thick steak on the grill," she admits in her unmistakable southern drawl. "I make sure it's lean and the fat is taken off, just like the skin on the chicken."

Between the tennis courts and swimming pool area is the patio, complete with a large barbecue. "We love eating outdoors so we've perfected grilled tuna and swordfish," says the reformed healthy eater. "Put that with steamed vegetables and rice and you've got a well-balanced, low-fat dinner. My eating habits changed drastically over the last couple of years. I sat down one day and realized this is just not good for me or the baby. You'll do a lot more things for a child than you will just for yourself." So instead of waffles with peanut butter, syrup and jelly, she now enjoys brown rice and oatmeal.

Living a leaner lifestyle has also introduced McEntire to natural fruit juices. She usually drinks at least eight ounces of water every two hours daily. Now she also makes fresh juice in her own juicemaker. "The one I had today for breakfast was apple/orange, but my favorite is carrot with a quarter of bell pepper, a chunk of cucumber, a stalk of celery and half an apple," she says. "The apple gives it the right sweetness. The drink is very filling and it really cleans out my system."

McEntire says her new diet and exercise regimen did not happen overnight, but rather, it came about gradually. "In college, I weighed 140 pounds," admits McEntire. "I wasn't fat, but I was kind of big. When my career started taking off and I moved to Nashville, I started taking better care of myself. And with Shelby, I really turned my eating habits around.