Celebrity Inspiration VII: Camilla Belle

There are many celebrities that really value fitness and nutrition. Of these, there are a very select few, male and female, who I think are at the pinnacle of fitness and nutrition and are those who give me ideas and inspire me within my own fitness and nutrition. Today I am going to focus on 'Push' actress Camilla Belle.

Camilla Belle, although still a young actress has been around for many years now, from older films such as 'The Lost World: Jurassic Park' and 'Back To The Secret Garden' through to her most recent successes in ' When A Stranger Calls', 'The Quiet', '10,000 BC' and 'Push', the latter of which I bought on Blu-Ray Disc just a week ago, and in which I felt inspired having seen a really wonderfully choreographed and performed fight scene early on in the picture. 'Push' wasn't Camilla Belle's first experience with performing stunts in which she needed to undergo training however.

Here Camilla Belle answers some training questions regarding 'When A Stranger Calls':

What was the physical training for this role like?

"It was pretty rigorous. It was pretty difficult. Jill's a sprinter, and I had never set foot in a track before in my life. I dance. I'm not an athlete in that way. And [they] wanted me to bulk up a bit, and get some muscle and have a more athletic body. So then I got a trainer and we went to the gym a few times a week and the track. And it was like over an hour in the gym doing tons of weights. And then we went in the track, and I had to learn the technical aspects of running, and how to run correctly. And I had to really know how to sprint and how to be good at it. And it was protein shakes--lots of protein in my diet--and epsom salt baths. And I was sore every day. And also it was hard because I had just graduated from high school when I decided to do this. It was summer vacation, and all my friends are...all on the beach, and I'm there training in the gym and trying to get muscle bulk. [laughs] But it was just great at the end of it, when I got to see my body really change a lot in the span of like two months of training, which is really a satisfying thing."

What about the stunts? Any special training for those?

"We had some kind of martial arts type of thing just to kind of get into the [mood]. And that came more easily for me, because really it's all about the choreography. And having a dancing background, it's just about where you go, where the punch goes...strangling goes here. So I really, really enjoyed that. I had a really good time."

Did you keep up the exercise routine even after you were done with the role?

"I really kind of filled up all my jeans with muscle mass. I felt like a machine. [laughs] It was insane. So I kind of had to try to go back to dance and elongate everything again. I try to keep up the push-ups and some weights here and there. But definitely not as rigorous as I was. And I still don't like running. I didn't like it before, and I still don't. [laughs] I just never found running really fun. I've kept up kind of the gym stuff, but not the protein diet."

There are many inspirations out there, celebrity and non-celebrity. Today I chose Camilla Belle but there are many more who inspire me that I will get onto in the future. It doesn't matter who inspires you. Even if it's simply yourself, feeling inspired can help you go above and beyond in all aspects of your life. Keep looking for inspiration and be an inspiration to others yourself. Feel inspired!