The Surprising 10-Minute Fitness Routine Martha Stewart Does Before Breakfast

Most people scroll through their phone or hit snooze at least once before facing the day. Martha Stewart has already finished the newspaper, solved her puzzles, and moved through a chunk of her workout by the time a lot of households are still deciding whether to get out of bed.

What actually happens in that early window surprised more than a few fans once she started sharing it in detail, mostly because it’s shorter and less complicated than the disciplined image suggests.

Her Morning Is Built Around Being Out the Door by 6:15

Stewart has described her schedule down to the minute, and it leaves very little room for drifting. “I go to the gym every morning at 6:30, so I have to be out of the house at 6:15,” she told Hello Magazine, adding that her alarm is set for 5:45 to leave time for a shower and a cappuccino before heading out.

That kind of precision is exactly what turns a workout into a habit instead of a maybe. There’s no debate about whether there’s time for exercise, because the schedule is built backward from the gym door, not squeezed in around whatever else the day throws at her.

The Pilates Session Happens Before a Single Bite of Breakfast

According to AARP, Stewart does Pilates three mornings a week at 6:15, and breakfast doesn’t happen until after that session wraps. Green juice, a cappuccino, and yogurt with wheat germ and egg come once the workout is already behind her, not before it.

That order matters more than it seems. Exercising on an empty stomach first thing is a personal preference rather than a universal rule, but for Stewart, it’s clearly the anchor her whole morning gets built around rather than an afterthought squeezed in later.

A Quick Reformer Session Is Doing More Than It Looks Like

Stewart posted an Instagram video of herself working through a short arm-and-abs sequence on a Pilates reformer alongside her trainer, captioning it, “Harder and more effective than it looks!!” The clip runs through a compact, targeted routine rather than a sprawling hour-long session.

A focused reformer sequence like that, built around a handful of core and arm movements, typically takes about ten minutes to move through properly. It’s a small window of actual working time, which is part of why it reads as surprising once people realize how little of it is filler.

Yoga and Walking Round Out the Rest of the Week

Pilates isn’t the only thing in rotation. Stewart has said she loves practicing yoga “to keep my muscles long, limber, and flexible,” and her trainer, Kollins Ezekh, has noted that she’s “a big fan of walking” on the days that don’t involve a formal session.

That mix keeps things from feeling repetitive while still hitting flexibility and low-impact cardio without adding much complexity. None of it requires special equipment or a dedicated block of time, which is a big part of why it’s sustainable enough to stick for years rather than months.

The Goal Isn’t a Certain Look, It’s Staying Capable

Ezekh has described Stewart’s overall approach as “functional fitness — stuff that helps her stay strong, mobile and independent in her day-to-day life,” rather than training built around aesthetics. That framing shows up in how she spends the rest of her day too, moving through farm chores, gardening, and animal care that add even more low-key activity on top of the formal workout.

That distinction is probably the most transferable part of the whole routine. A short, consistent session aimed at staying strong and mobile is a lot easier to keep up long-term than a punishing program built around chasing a specific physique.