Photo: Billy Farrell / BFAnyc.com
Brazilian bombshell, bikini aficionado, and barre enthusiast Alessandra Ambrosio has donned wings for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show for nearly a decade. Now that the purveyor of lingerie is putting on its first Swim Special (tonight at 10 p.m. on CBS), the model can be seen stalking the runway in bikinis. While the rest of us are buried beneath layers upon layers of clothing, consoling ourselves with comfort food and suffering from vitamin D deficiency, Ambrosio and her fellow Angels will be flaunting their bikini-ready gams and abs of steel in sunny Puerto Rico. The Brazilian kindly ventured to the frozen tundra (i.e., New York City) to do press rounds for tonight’s show. Here she explains how she gets ready for a scantily clad turn on the catwalk, the secret to the swimsuit selfie, and more.
How did you prep for the swimsuit special?
I like doing Spin classes. I just tried these barre classes and I really like it. I’ve been doing a lot of that. And I like doing yoga. I try to do a combination of those things. And I try to be outside as much as possible, just doing outside activities, like going for a run on the beach or a hike—whatever I have available where I am. It’s about doing something every day.
Did you change up your diet?
I try to eat healthy, like cutting out the sugar and adding a lot of protein and greens and vegetables and other healthy things. I’m from Brazil, so I naturally like to eat fresh food. There is always a fresh catch of the day. That’s what I go for.
You already have a sick body, but what do you do to enhance it?
I like a good scrub. I don’t really do self-tanning. I use the lotions that give you an [instant] glow, like the ones that wash off. We shoot sometimes 10 hours in the sun. Even if I used SPF 70 every two hours, we’re still going to get tan.
What does the Victoria’s Secret hair and makeup team do before you hit the runway?
They put this lotion on to make you [look] nice and glowy. It has some shimmer in it. They do minimal makeup. And they give us beach waves with some salt spray.
You seem to live in a bikini, so what is the secret to the swimsuit selfie?
You have to position your upper body forward and then curve your assets. But it really depends what you want. First, it’s about the light. The light has to look good. So it’s about getting a glowy, beautiful light. Sunset is my favorite. Then, you hold the phone as far away as possible and angle it down while curving your body.
Tommy Ton
—Katie Dickens, Style.com/Arabia
