Marilyn Monroe liked her steak hot, ate ice cream frequently, hated outdoor sports, didn’t go to the gym. Late diva revealed how she got her perfect hourglass figure: ‘I spend 10 minutes…’

No fad diets. No starving or a diet comprised of bland, vegan fare. No subsisting on just plant-based foods or cutting off dairy products. Yet, she was the very epitome of sensuality, unrivalled beauty, and a global star in an era without social media. However, Marilyn Monroe’s diet would make many modern health enthusiasts clutch their pearls in outrage!

In a 1952 interview with the now-defunct Pageant magazine, the Gentlemen Prefer Blondes diva revealed the diet and workout regimen that gave her the hourglass figure, which has long been hailed as the ideal body type in popular culture.

Her Bizarre Breakfast

The diva said her breakfast was simple but wholesome – consisting of milk and eggs – not boiled or poached, but raw!


“I’ve been told that my eating habits are absolutely bizarre, but I don’t think so. Before I take my morning shower, I start warming a cup of milk on the hot plate I keep in my hotel room. When it’s hot, I break two raw eggs into the milk, whip them up with a fork, and drink them while I’m dressing. I supplement this with a multivitamin pill," she revealed.

Monroe Was An Avowed Meat Lover

The Some Like It Hot star said that for her evening meal, she followed a remarkably simple routine. Each night, she would visit a market close to the hotel and buy either a steak, lamb chops, or a portion of liver. She would then cook the meat in the small electric oven available in her room. Alongside it, she generally ate four or five raw carrots and nothing else, jokingly suggesting that her fondness for carrots made her feel almost like a rabbit.

Despite keeping her daytime meals uncomplicated, she had developed a rather indulgent nighttime habit. After attending her evening drama classes, she would often stop at Wil Wright’s ice cream parlour on her journey back home and treat herself to a hot fudge sundae. Thus, while her main meals were modest and straightforward, she balanced that simplicity with an occasional rich and sugary dessert.

Her Workout Regimen

The Seven Year Itch actress said that she was not a fan of outdoor sports. However, she spent some time every morning working with weights. “I never used to bother with exercises. Now I spend at least 10 minutes each morning working out with small weights. I have evolved my own exercises for the muscles I wish to keep firm, and I know they are right for me because I can feel them putting the proper muscles into play as I exercise,” she said.

She began her workout by lying on the floor next to her bed and performing a simple routine designed to strengthen and firm the upper body. Holding five-pound weights, she started with her arms extended outward and gradually raised them until they met above her head. She completed this movement 15 times at a slow, controlled pace.

She then repeated the exercise for another 15 repetitions, beginning with her arms already positioned overhead. After that, she lowered her arms to an angle of approximately 45 degrees from the floor and rotated the weights in circular movements, continuing until she felt sufficiently tired.

Rather than following a strict, repetitive rhythm like the exercise instructors heard on radio programmes, she preferred a more relaxed approach. She disliked the idea of making physical activity feel overly structured or regimented, believing that too much discipline and routine would take away her enjoyment of exercising.

“I couldn’t stand exercise if I had to feel regimented about it…” she stated.