Here's What Jenna Dewan Tatum Actually Does During Her Workouts

Watch one scene of Step Up, and you know that Jenna Dewan Tatum is a seriously talented dancer. So it's no surprise that dance plays a huge role in her workout routine—she's all about getting down to a beat, whether she's doing straight-up dance cardio or challenging her muscles with resistance training.

Dewan Tatum squeezes it all into one sweaty workout with LA-based trainer Jennifer Johnson, creator of the JJ Dancer Method. "She’s a trainer who is also a dancer and she makes it fun for me," Dewan Tatum told Health. "If it’s not fun, I won’t go. We dance, we do routines for 45 minutes to an hour, whatever time we have."

The number of workouts she fits in each week fully depends on how much time she has. "It depends on the week, but if I get one or two workouts in, I’m happy," Dewan Tatum told Health.

But with just a couple of 45-minute workouts a week, they don't hold back. "Jenna is so, so busy, so we go hardcore for 45 minutes so we can get everything in," Johnson tells SELF. This means squeezing in both cardio and strength training, which includes both compound movements that work multiple muscle groups at once (like squats and lunges) and isolation exercises that target smaller muscles. (Oh, and not very much time to rest.)

We asked Johnson for the details on what one of Dewan Tatum's typical workouts might look like, and fair warning—you might get a little sweaty just reading about it.

"She's a dancer, so you'd think that we'd do a ton of dance cardio," says Johnson. But to make sure she gets in the strength training she needs, they do less "pure" dance cardio than you might think. "My method is usually half dance cardio, half muscle conditioning, but with Jenna it's more like one-quarter dance cardio and three-quarters muscle conditioning," says Johnson.

For two to three songs, though, they break out the moves big-time to get her heart rate going and warm up her joints and muscles. "With dance, it's not the same movement over and over, like running or [indoor cycling]," says Johnson. "You're jumping, you're squatting, you're on the floor, you're side-to-side, you're spinning, you're turning, and you constantly [change] directions and intensity of movement," she says. "And you're having so much fun that it's easier to get the cardio in."

Here's a snippet of one of their go-to moves—Johnson's dubbed it "the Jenna squat."

Then, they move onto about one song of kickboxing, incorporating moves like hitch kicks and punches—and some dance. "It's like kickboxing with twerking in it," she says.

"Then, we'll pull out steps to get the booty and the legs activated, while I'm sneaking cardio in," says Johnson.

Even though they've moved on from the straight-up dance cardio portion of their workout at this point, this section still feels like choreography, says Johnson—they're stepping to the beat for about two songs.

This isn't exactly like those old-school step classes, though. Johnson says they stack up four steps (which is pretty high), and they move quickly to keep Dewan Tatum's heart rate up. "It's like a routine on the box," she says.

Moves like step-ups are an excellent way to target the glutes and hamstrings, and there are also lunges, squats, jumps, and kicks mixed into this part of the workout. "We go all the way up and all the way down [in every exercise]," says Johnson.

During this section, they're focusing on large compound movements, which are great for getting the most bang for your buck during a workout. "Your lower body is on fire," says Johnson.

Dewan Tatum loves using a resistance band to work her arms and back, says Johnson. For one to two songs, they'll target her biceps, shoulders, and triceps. One of their go-to exercises is tricep extensions—while standing on the center of the band with her hands wrapped around both ends, her elbows face the ceiling as her hands press straight up and back down. They might do 8 slow reps, 16 quick reps, then repeat that one more time.

Throughout, they're still moving to the beat of the music, says Johnson. "Your arms are burning, but at least you're having fun while you're doing it—we're working the muscle groups and still having a dance party at the same time," she explains.

Then, they'll move to the floor for butt and core work for about four songs. Johnson will have Dewan Tatum do butt exercises like donkey kicks and leg lifts with 10-pound ankle weights to up the burn.

After they've dialed in on her glutes, they finish up with abs. They'll often use equipment like medicine balls and gliding discs (or sliders), says Johnson. One of their go-to core moves is V-ups with sliding discs. "Your elbows are on the mat and your feet are on the sliders, and as you pike up, you open your legs out to a V, and when you go back down you put your feet back together," she explains. Here's what it looks like in action:

"The most important thing is that your booty is high in the air, because that's what's activating your abs—you want to use your abs to lift you up, not your legs or your hip flexors," she adds.

Finally, they'll cool down with some stretching.

Since there's very little rest involved in their sessions together, Johnson keeps Dewan Tatum's heart rate high the entire time, so she's getting in both strength training and cardio throughout the workout. Minimizing rest is a great way to make the most of your time at the gym.

Of course, this might not be exactly what every workout with Johnson looks like—in fact, the one thing Dewan Tatum can count on is that Johnson will mix things up. "If I feel like she's doing the same thing too much, that's when we abandon ship and do something different," says Johnson. "[We'll make changes like] adding ankle weights or using heavier ankle weights, using a different piece of equipment to hit the same body part, or holding things longer," she says. She might change the pace or the number of reps they do, and occasionally they'll take some time to lift heavy at Dewan Tatum's house.

In general, their formula pretty much guarantees a sweaty workout that hits the major muscle groups—and doesn't feel like a chore. And a workout like that definitely deserves a post-sweat celebration.

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