Making Time to Namaste – Mandy Ingber

Mandy Ingber may be single-handedly responsible for keeping Hollywood’s hautest stars both limber and sane. Though it might sound like she’s a therapist, Ingber is actually the yoga instructor of choice for celebrities like Brooke Shields, Woody Harrelson, Ricki Lake and Chelsea Handler. When she’s not perfecting Jennifer Aniston’s Tree Pose or whipping prize pupil Kate Beckinsale into shape, she aspires to find the right partner with whom to open her own studio. But with so many celebrity clients, as well as DVD, book and media projects on her plate, just how does Mandy manage to find even one free moment in her overflowing schedule? Thank goodness for Pranayama!

7:00 AM: I wake up and meditate for 20 minutes. The first thing I do when I wake up is say “thank you.”

8:00 AM: I try to get a workout for myself in before I work with my clients. I do this to center myself. Today I went to Kinetic Cycling, which is something I enjoy, as I used to be a full-time spinning instructor. I love this form of cardio, and it gives me the group energy I crave.

9:00 AM: After I bathe, I swing by M Street Café in Santa Monica to get myself a green tea and some egg whites and berries on the go.

10:00 AM: I head over to see my first client, Kate Beckinsale. We do some yoga using the Yogalosophy hybrid moves from my DVD. I play a mixture of the Dirty Dancing soundtrack, some Weekend Players and Bach. We have a small interruption when her dogs enter for Savasana. I just love seeing Kate; I practically see her on a daily basis.

11:30 AM: I rush over to my second client of the day, Jennifer Aniston. I’m excited to see her. Sometimes her boyfriend, Justin Theroux, works out with us, but today Jen is alone. We do 30 minutes of spin and 30 minutes of yoga. Sometimes we listen to my playlist, sometimes it’s his or hers. The Katy Perry song “Firework” is a favorite of late.

1:00 PM: I stop for lunch at my grandma’s house. Since I’m a native Angeleno, my 88-year-old Russian grandmother is local. I don’t get to see her enough.

3:00 PM: Now I’m at the E! set of “Chelsea Lately.” Chelsea is so good to her staff that she offers them weekly yoga with me. She and I took a vacation together with Jen once, and she immediately got me over to her set afterwards. I thought that was such a generous thing to do for the staff. They are my only consistent yoga group.

4:30 – 5:30 PM: have a phone meeting with my editor/ publisher to go over details of my book, Yogalosophy: The ULTIMATE 28-Day Mind Body Makeover (which comes out in March) and the accompanying photoshoot. I can’t believe I actually wrote a book.

7:00 PM: I head to a Rock of Ages screening at Mann’s Chinese Theatre. Justin Theroux is not only Jennifer Aniston’s man and a great actor, but he is a writer as well; he wrote this film. The premiere is HUGE and the movie is so much fun. The event is star-studded: Alec Baldwin and Russell Brand do a bow together, and Tom Cruise is there. I always forget how much I love his acting because he’s such a movie star. He’s very funny in this flick.

10:00 PM: I head to Tower Bar for a little late-night nibble. (Okay, I ate the popcorn….I was HUNGRY).

12:00 AM: This is a late evening for me, but a girl’s got to have fun sometimes! I check my e-mails, do a little Facebook stalking and check astro.com. I feel a little lonely but grateful that I am home. I have peace.