MY LIFE IN WELLNESS
The broadcaster and menopause campaigner, 56, on the workout-life balance and learning from blue zones
MOVE
I recently did a CrossFitstyle competition on holiday. My workout partner and I won, but at the expense of my body. I ended up with backache and achilles pain. At my age, ‘beast mode’ training doesn’t work for me like it used to. I prefer to stick to lower-intensity strength training sessions, using weighted and body-weight movements.
ACCEPT
The only side that I ever really show is ‘happy’ me, but I do have down days. I can wake up feeling annoyed and not feeling confident – everything seems jarring. There are a few days of malfunctioning, then it lifts. I’ve realised that it’s normal to have these ups and downs and I focus on simple things that make me feel better.
FAST
I’m doing intermittent fasting at the moment, so I don’t eat anything from 8pm until 10.30am. I used to snack all evening and didn’t see anything wrong with it as I was reaching for healthy foods, such as carrots and hummus. But I’d end the day bloated and it wasn’t going down by the morning. Since putting a cut-off point on my eating, I crave [snacks] so much less and wake up feeling better.
COMMUNE
I’m interested in blue zones – the places in the world where people live the longest – and what they all have in common is community, living together and caring for each other. For me and my partner, being around people we care about is so important. For quality time with my kids, I just go along with whatever they want to do.
UNPLUG
I discovered Loop Quiet earplugs on a camping trip with my partner [Michael Douglas, celebrity hairdresser] and they’re amazing at blocking out noise. My mood suffers without seven hours’ sleep, so I’m wearing
