Crawling under the duvet and bingeing on Ben & Jerry’s may be most women’s reaction to heartbreak. But Madonna Louise Ciccone is not most women.

Even on the day her multi-million-pound divorce from Guy Ritchie became final, it was business as usual for the Queen of Pop with a gruelling two-hour workout – same as every day, six days a week, every week.

Tracy Anderson knows this because she’s been pretty much a constant at Madonna’s side since the break-up, helping the superstar hone and refine the body she notoriously flaunted in a Louis Vuitton ad last week.

And personal trainer Tracy’s not impressed by critics who responded to the 50-year-old’s crotch-flashing by saying: “Put it away, grandma… you’re too old!”

Unique insight

“There are days when she doesn’t feel good and days when she’s having a hard time, but Madonna still works out for two hours whatever,” says Tracy.

“She’s consistent and she doesn’t ever make excuses. Nothing has changed since the divorce, Madonna hasn’t changed.

“I never trained Guy and I wouldn’t want to,” adds Tracy, 33, who has a unique insight into the mind of the superstar singer, and is rightly proud of the famous body she helps sculpt.

“Madonna will never look her age,” she insists. “She doesn’t even look half her age – she looks 19.

“I don’t have to scream at her because she’s so motivated. She organises her time so she can train – she makes an appointment to do it and she keeps it, but two hours is the most she ever exercises in a day.”

Madonna was recently described as “half-starved” but tiny, tanned Tracy claims that she eats well and even allows herself the occasional treat – sugar- and gluten-free, of course.

“All my clients eat. Madonna has a very healthy appetite. She doesn’t eat processed food, she’s very conscious of the quality of the things she eats but she has treats – she loves cupcakes.

“To say she is on a starvation diet is bull****. She burns a lot of calories.

“She will never get fat. Why would she let it go? She relaxes but she’s smart, she knows that if she stops exercising she will have loose skin tone. Why should we criticise someone who works hard, is consistent and gets results because they’re smart with their time?”

Madonna shares Tracy with one of her best friends, Gwyneth Paltrow, with Tracy helping relaunch Gwynnie’s sexy new look last year.

But even glam Gwyneth struggled with Tracy’s routines, which are based on dance aerobics, at first: “She is the best role model because she couldn’t dance at all when we started,”says Tracy.

Yet Gwyneth must have got the hang of it. Says the actress: “Never did I imagine that in my 30s, after two children, I would be able to change my body to the degree I have. It works, you will see results you never thought possible.”

But it doesn’t come without commitment. There’s no rest for either A-lister – no matter where they are in the world. When she can’t be with them, Tracy trains them via a live video link. “We use iChat on our computers so we can see each other,” she explains.

Tracy, who is 5ft and a super-skinny size 6, also insists that Oscar-winner Gwynnie is a big eater. “She is a serious chef. She makes the most elaborate meals – some I can’t even pronounce – but her pancakes are amazing. She shares her recipes but they’re very health-conscious.

“All three of us could not live without my method, it’s the key to being able to eat what we want.”

Tracy is so proud of her A-plus star students that she begs both to flash more flesh.

Far from being horrified by Madonna’s Vuitton ad, Tracy thinks we should all be giving her a big round of applause.

“I say please show some skin – and show what a good job I’m doing! It’s motivating for people to see them look so hot,” she says.

Just jealous

“I tell people to be thankful that Madonna is showing that it’s possible to be ageless – people should applaud and celebrate that. Anybody who criticises her is just jealous!

“If you see her live she looks unbelievable, she’s a one-off, but what puts people off is that she does it all with hard work. It’s not expensive creams or treatments.”

Tracy was equally thrilled when Gwyneth paraded her pins while promoting Iron Man last year. She says: “I begged her to wear the tiny skirts, to show off. I take credit for designing the body, but I give her credit for actually doing it.”

Tracy developed her method following years of unsuccessful dieting – at the end of which she’d gained two-and-a-half stone – and after being branded fat while at dance school in New York.

“I’ve always had a huge appetite, I go to restaurants just for the bread. I could have blamed genetics as my dad is obese – he’s 5ft 8ins and 21 stone – and I understand why people do when they’ve worked hard and don’t get a reward.”

But for Tracy, her method was a fresh start.

These days the only downside of her fame is being snapped leaving training sessions, hot and sweaty, with her hair plastered to her head.

“I’ve had to get used to the walk of shame. In London I had to walk between Madonna’s house and the gym every day but we’ve figured out a way to avoid it now.”

The upside is that Tracy was able to take son Sam, 10, and ex-husband basketball player Eric Anderson along as personal guests on Madonna’s world tour.

Not bad for a woman whose dance teacher told her she’d only ever be “the teapot in Beauty And The Beast”.

TRACY’S TOP FIVE TIPS

(1)Put an appointment in your diary six days a week to workout for an hour. Whether you start exercising or not, make the appointment.

(2) If you have weight to lose, start by drinking green juice first thing in the morning – a blend of kale, spinach, chard, parsley, ginger and lemon.

(3)Cut out all oil, spices and dairy – which cause bloating in women. Stick to lean proteins like chicken and steak with lots of greens. If you need a sugar fix, have sorbet or a frozen peach.

(4)Learn a new dance combination from the DVD each week. Practise the steps every day until you master it then move to the next. Eventually you can do the whole DVD without even thinking about it.

(5)The last step is the cardio work on a mat, which bolts all the muscles together to get them toned with great definition. Then any surface fat will come off in days.

The Tracy Anderson Method: Dance Cardio Workout is out now on ITV DVD