Actress Jaimie Alexander On Losing Weight and Gaining Muscle

Actress Jaimie Alexander plays a strong, powerful character on TV (you know her as the tough and tattooed Jane Doe on the hit series Blindspot), and she’s just as hard-hitting in real life. The woman works out with a US Navy Seal! Here, her opinionated take on life and exercise.

It’s near the end of the day at the Shape cover shoot, and Jaimie Alexander, 32, is devouring an oatmeal cookie and washing it down with a beer. You’d think the slim actress would run in the other direction from desserts or carbs, but like her mysterious character on Blindspot, Jaimie is full of surprises. As her Cavalier King Charles spaniel–poodle mix, Etta, plays nearby, Jaimie sits down and tells us all about her weight (she used to be some 9kg heavier), those crazy tattoos that cover her body on the show (she has a few of her own) and her best workout moves for guaranteed results. Read on for everything we learned.

GIRLIE IS A FOREIGN CONCEPT TO JAIMIE.

“I grew up with four brothers. I used to play sports with them. And I liked wearing their clothes. I’d run around in T-shirts, jeans and baseball caps. Even my nickname, James, is a guy’s name. I didn’t understand how to be comfortable being feminine, painting my nails pink and wearing girlie dresses. No wonder I didn’t have a lot of female friends until I was in my late twenties – I just didn’t know how to be around them.”

SHE EATS LIKE A DUDE.

“I learned a lot from being around boys all the time. I’m not easily off ended, and I have a certain toughness. I also eat really fast. If I didn’t, my brothers would take my food. When we were young, they would go: ‘Oh, there’s some chocolate left? Mine!’ It made me durable. I can take a lot.”

SKINNY IS SO NOT HER GOAL IN LIFE.