I Tried Eating Doughnuts During My Workout Like Brie Larson & Exercise Never Tasted So Good

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I am the world's most productive lazy person. Allow me to explain: I'm the kind of person who will happily wake up at 8 a.m. on a Saturday to hit the gym, but later that same day, I'll probably moan and groan about having to do my hair and get ready for a night out. It's just who I am, guys, and I don't have a logical explanation for you. What I do have for you, though, is a very helpful life hack, if you can relate to my productive laziness and need some tips: On New Year's Eve — aka the biggest night out of the entire year — I tried eating doughnuts during my workout like Brie Larson, and I learned it's the one surefire way to get motivated, whether it's the workout itself you can't seem to get fired up for, or if, like me, you need a little nudge when it comes to going out and actually socializing with other human beings.

Here's the thing: I don't like New Year's Eve. I never have, and I probably never will. But my SO happens to love it, and in the past six years of our relationship, we've bickered every single year about how to celebrate the holiday. This year, though, we decided to meet each other halfway: He planned a very cute date for us earlier in the day that he knew I would enjoy — ice skating (my all-time favorite thing to do in the winter), followed by dinner — and I agreed to go out with him for a couple of drinks that night so we could watch the ball drop in Times Square and share a kiss at midnight.

I was happy with this plan overall, but deep down, I was still kind of dreading going out to a bar — even a local, dive-y one — on New Year's Eve, of all nights. Plus, my SO and I wound up having some time to kill between dinner and the bar, so we went back to our apartment to chill for a bit, and I could quickly feel myself losing steam to actually make it out of the house and continue the evening.

Enter: Brie Larson's doughnut-inspired workout, aka the answer to my lazy New Year's Eve prayers.

In case you don't know, Brie Larson is kind of a big fan of combining food and exercise — specifically, dessert foods. Back in November 2018, the Captain Marvel actress posted an Instagram video of herself crushing a core workout, then taking a big bite out of a delicious-looking doughnut. And just the other day, Larson posted another video of herself working out, but instead of nomming on a doughnut between sets, her trainer handed her a cookie to snack on. God, I love her.

Personally, when it comes to working out, I don't need a ton of help getting motivated. Like I said, I'll easily crush a cardio session with a smile on my face at any time of day, but ask me to stay awake after 10 p.m. and socialize with people? That's gonna be a toughie for me.

Once I started to feel myself fading on New Year's Eve, I knew I needed to do something to boost my energy ASAP before I fully melted into my couch. I'd already been stalking Larson's Instagram for several days at this point (#IStan), and once I realized I had a box of doughnuts waiting for me in my apartment, I knew exactly what I had to do.

Full disclosure: As you can probably tell, I could barely do Brie Larson's core workout from her November 2018 Instagram post. In her version of the workout (she doesn't name exactly what it is in her post, but it seems like a slightly more advanced version of lying leg raises, which can help you build both core strength and hip flexibility, according to Women's Health), you can see in Larson's video that she's able to lift her back fully off the ground and steadily bring her legs back down. As for me, the more I tried to lift my back off the floor, the wobblier my legs got, so I stuck with a more simplistic version of the exercise to make sure I didn't hurt myself.

BTW, Larson's workout definitely does not include a nosy cat staring at her the entire time, but if you, too, have a furry feline (or canine) who insists on hovering nearby no matter what you're doing, feel free to have 'em join you — just make sure you don't let them get to the doughnuts.

I did three sets of 20 lying leg raises that night — nothing too intense — and took a couple bites of doughnut in between each set, just like my girl Brie. Yes, it was delicious. Yes, my fingers were very sticky. And yes, I loved every second of it. Between the sugar rush of the doughnuts, and the bump in my heart rate from the actual exercise, I felt totally reinvigorated and ready to go out and celebrate New Year's Eve after my third set.

Final Thoughts

Now, you (and my SO, who kindly filmed the experience for me with a confused expression on his face the whole time) might be baffled by this entire concept, not to mention the idea of it actually being effective, but let me tell you: It worked. Granted, I will say that I probably wouldn't do this on the reg in my usual workout routine (it's not the most pleasant feeling in the world to have doughnut particles sloshing around in your stomach during an ab workout), but for a quick boost of energy and motivation? Heck yeah it was effective, and that's all I was really looking for that night to help a homebody like myself power through the New Year's Eve festivities.

If you're thinking of combining sweets and sweat at home yourself, I personally recommend rolling with the combo for a relatively low-key workout, so you don't upset your stomach. And remember, you can always modify a workout if it feels like it doesn't suit your skill level, just like I did with Larson's lying leg raises.

Or, of course, your modification might be to swap doughnuts for waffles, or a box of chocolates. Whatever works for you, girl.