Michelle Obama Reveals the 'Military'-Style Workout She Swore by as First Lady

Former First Lady Michelle Obama recently revealed that her go-to high-intensity workout is Solidcore, which she describes as having a "military" style of intensity.

Speaking on her "IMO" podcast alongside special guest rapper Megan Thee Stallion, the 62-year-old fitness advocate shared that she transitioned to this intense, low-impact routine to maintain her strength, core stability and famously toned physique.

The workout, described as “Pilates on steroids,” is a 50-minute high-intensity strength-training session using a specialized resistance machine.

Moves are slowed down significantly in brutal pacing that involves holding positions like planks for three minutes.

The 31-year-old rapper said, "I've been doing a lot of Pilates now. I'm just now getting hip to this new Pilates, and I'm like, okay, so I need to go to New York, and I need Solidcore.”

Obama replied, "It's a reformer kind of class, but it's more intense. You're on the Megaformer, and let's say you hold a plank, but you're gonna hold it for three minutes. And then they're gonna have you crunch in from the holding position, and small little movements…and you're sweating your b--- off."

"When I was doing it, I was first lady, and it was when the founder of it started it in [Washington] D.C.…it was a military kind of situation," she added.

While Solidcore delivers maximum muscle engagement, Obama pairs this "military situation" with a well-rounded weekly regimen.

Her broader routine balances high-energy cardio with functional mobility, including regular SoulCycle spinning classes, boxing, bootcamps with friends, resistance bands and single-leg balance work to protect joints.

Obama’s longtime personal trainer, Cornell McClellan, told People, "She can do sociable things and get outside. She loves SoulCycle."

"With [Michelle] and President Obama, we mix it up a lot," he continued, adding that the former first couple loved boxing. "We do things with weights, with kettlebells, with bands and tubes and TRXs to keep the body guessing."

The fit former FLOTUS complements intense training by eating healthy while occasionally enjoying burgers and fries.

"I do love a good burger and fries. French fries are my favorite food in the whole world. If I could, I'd eat them at every meal – but I can't," she told Women’s Health.

"My whole thing is moderation. If I make good, healthy choices most of the time, then having what I love every once in a while won't hurt. I have to exercise and eat in a balanced way. If I start ignoring both, I will put on weight."

Obama said that while she has height on her side, it doesn’t always play to her advantage.

"I am fortunate in that I'm 5' 11', so it takes a while for the weight to be seen, but it'll come," the mother-of-two added. "If I didn't exercise and eat right, I would be heavier, and I have been."