A glimpse of her ’15 chins’ sends Shannon Tweed to hiking trail

By Cindy Pearlman | Big Picture News Inc.

LOS ANGELES — Even Shannon Tweed had one of those mid-life moments.

“I saw our show air and thought to myself, ‘No, no, no!’ ” cries the model and Mrs. Gene Simmons. “I said [forget] this! This does not look good. I have 15 chins up there!”

It’s 8 a.m. in Los Angeles, and that’s why Tweed and her daughter, Sophie Tweed-Simmons, are hiking up a canyon, taking breaks to talk to Thrive. It’s a beautiful, sunny day, which is why the two have decided to kiss off staying in the house.

The wife and daughter of the legendary Kiss rocker are all about staying in shape for their series “Shannon & Sophie” (8 p.m. Thursdays on the Up cable channel). The show revolves around the 22-year-old dealing with adulthood and her ambitions to sing while her protective mom helps her achieve her dreams.

“It’s a fun idea and we’re always together, which is nice. We even hike together,” said Shannon. “Later, we’ll take a Pilates class. There is power in numbers. ”

Those hikes are memorable. “We have Malamutes and we forget how large they are. We’re large people with three giant dogs. When people see us coming, they stop walking,” Tweed says with a laugh. “Everyone just seems so huge.”

The truth is both Shannon and Sophie make it a daily job to stay on a healthy path.

“For me, exercise is still like pulling teeth,” Tweed says. “But I have lost 20 pounds recently because I did see all my chins on earlier episodes of the show. I knew I was getting lazy. And come on, the first step of any exercise program is to stop kidding yourself.”

Tweed didn’t wait, starting a walking regimen that day. “I vowed each day to just hike a little further,” she said of her self-imposed program. “My dog hates me. But the truth is I walked off that weight.”

She also had to look hard at her diet. “I don’t eat as much chocolate as I used to eat. I do like a glass of wine, but you have to realize that it’s like drinking sugar. If I want to lose weight, I cut down on anything that’s sugar.”

“I still want to wear shorter skirts, and now my a—looks good,” Tweed says with a laugh. “My boobs are new. We’re good there. My boobs are younger than my daughters, so that’s good!”

As for Sofie, she had her own issues with the pounds creeping up. “I’ve struggled with weight my entire life,” she says. “I’ve always had to watch what I ate. But I did get into sports when I was younger, which helped shed the pounds doing something fun.

“Now that I’m older I realize that if you eat unhealthy then you will gain weight. It’s about making the little adjustments. Yes, I still go to the movies, but I’m not going to have a hot dog and popcorn. I’ll eat something healthy first at home.”

They’re not rigid about it. Tweed will have a cheat meal. “A glass of chardonnay wine and a White Castle burger. I don’t mind eating my feelings once in awhile.”

As for their show, Tweed says, “I try not to watch it. Of course, I do watch it and say, ‘God, why did I wear that?’ We don’t have all the stylists and makeup artists on this show. We’re sort of on our own here.”

Watching a quick mother-daughter spat on TV doesn’t bother them.

“We do slap downs,” Sophie jokes.

“Shut up,” Tweed interjects.

“I do have the look down. I can give that motherly evil eye,” Tweed says. “The good news is that my daughter doesn’t do anything terrible, so there’s nothing to hide. Hell, everything we’ve ever done has been in the press. Now we’re just taping it ourselves and putting it out there.”

What does Gene Simmons say about all this? “Gene thinks I’m a goddess who can do no wrong,” Tweed says. “He thinks we can do anything. More than that, I can just say that my husband likes me. He really, really likes me. Poor guy.”