There’s a reason everyone loves Rachael Ray—she’s just so darn real. And ironically, it’s super-important for celebs to seem real. It’s the reason Oprah pretends to walk her own dogs, the reason the Hiltons pretend to work, the reason Nicole Richie pretends she’s dining at In 'N' Out. And part of Rachael's lovable realness is her inability to squeeze exercise into her busy-busy-busy schedule. So she recently came up with “Better Than Nothing,” a show segment highlighting—in her words—the “absolute minimum to maintain your weight and health.”  But is that enough?

Here’s the thing. The minimum has already been helpfully established by the American Heart Association. It’s “moderately intense physical activity…done regularly for a total of 30 minutes or longer on most or all days.” Of course, I don't think that would fly well with fitness-phobic viewers. So instead, the BTN workouts run more along the lines of dish towel stretches and honeydew melon shoulder presses. I give Rachael credit for trying to scrape her laziest fans off the couch, but “better than nothing” is still a long way from fulfilling “the absolute minimum.” 

Here’s the other thing. Rachael has been getting a lot of press lately for gaining weight quickly. Not a few pounds—most tabs are guessing it’s around twenty, on a 5’3” frame. If their numbers are right, she’s jumped from a BMI of 24.8 (the high end of normal) to a BMI of 28.9 (the high end of overweight).

There’s also her diet—she’s a fan of olive oil, salami, mac ‘n’ cheese, sausage, bacon, and spaghetti carbonara. She admits, “I eat pasta and bread and do all the things you’re not supposed to. I never make it to the gym.” She says she believes in moderation, but when you cook for a living, I can see where it would be hard to eat anything in moderation. I’m a terrible cook and I still overeat.

But I’m also starting to wonder if she’s been taking her own advice and going with the “better than nothing” fitness plan. I guess juggling a talk show, a magazine, and a line of cookbooks would wreak havoc on even the best-laid workout plans. But when you ignore fitness altogether, or go for “better than nothing,” it starts to show. Hopefully she’ll at least upgrade to the “minimum” soon.

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