Cat Deeley is proof you don’t need to go hard in the gym for results. While the 48-year-old looks stronger than ever, she recognises that ‘heavy workouts’ aren’t for her, adding that ‘running and gyms don’t suit me; you have to find what you like’.
In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar, she said that on the rare occasion she does do one, she ‘feels terrible for about two days and can’t walk up and down stairs!’ Instead, she swears by three things: yoga, hiking and tennis – plus the Mediterranean diet. ‘As I’m getting older – which is a privilege; we all get older, if we’re lucky – I’m backing my health with science,’ she explained. Here’s all you need to know about her training routine, and her diet.
1.She has practiced yoga for 20 years
As she shared a video of herself doing yoga, Cat said: ‘I’ve been doing yoga for 20 years and I truly love it – it switches off my brain and helps me breathe. Even though I’ve been practicing for so long, I’m no more bendy than the average person, but it makes me feel good and I never regret taking just 45 minutes for myself.’
2. She does virtual yoga classes four times per week
Speaking to Harper’s Bazaar, she added: ‘I use this amazing website called Yogaglo, which means I can do it whenever and wherever. I bookmark certain classes – like one that’s half an hour, one that’s 45 minutes, and one that’s an hour, and I just slot it in.’ In a separate interview with Cosmopolitan, she added: ‘I do yoga four times a week.’
3. She hikes every day
When she’s not presenting on This Morning, Cat likes to take a daily hike. In the same interview with Cosmopolitan, she said: ‘[I] try to go on a hike every day. Even if you can just do twenty minutes it makes all the difference – I just put my trainers on and walk down the hill with my dog. You never regret doing exercise, you never come back and wish you hadn’t done it, it feels amazing.’
4. She relies on yoga to manage her mental health, as well as her physical
‘Yoga really works for me because you have to concentrate on your breathing and your movement at the same time, so it stops my brain from going a million miles an hour,’ she shared.
5. She plays tennis with her family
In 2022, Cat posted a video of herself and her family on a tennis court and wrote: ‘Our new family obsession. Talent? Questionable. Enthusiasm? Undeniable. Anyone for tennis?’
6. She swears by the Mediterranean diet
‘A Mediterranean diet suits me. I like a little bit of everything – predominantly fruits and vegetables and a bit of protein – but I love French bread, red wine and a coffee. Like fitness, diet is about finding what works for you, and that way you can do it on a regular basis. If you listen to everything on food, it’s like, “well now you can’t eat potatoes”, and “have you heard about eggs?”, “don’t have dairy” – and then you look at what’s actually in some oat milks and that’s not good!
‘I think you need to listen to your body. Pay attention and see what makes your skin better, see what makes you feel better, see what gives you a better night’s sleep…,’ she told Harper’s Bazaar.
7. She juices every morning
‘In the morning, I like a celery, cucumber, lemon and ginger juice. I often batch make it and keep it in Mason jars in the fridge for when I’m in a rush,’ she added.
8. She uses infrared saunas for muscle recovery
‘At the moment I’m loving an infrared sauna. It feels as though it detoxes your system, but it also soothes any aches and pains that you’ve got,’ she revealed to Harper’s Bazaar.
As Women’s Health UK’s fitness director (and a qualified yoga teacher), Bridie Wilkins has been passionately reporting on exercise, health and nutrition since the start of her decade-long career in journalism. She secured her first role at Look Magazine, where her obsession with fitness began and she launched the magazine’s health and fitness column, Look Fit, before going on to become Health and Fitness writer at HELLO!. Since, she has written for Stylist, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, The Metro, Runner’s World and Red.
Now, she oversees all fitness content across womenshealthmag.com.uk and the print magazine, spearheading leading cross-platform franchises, such as ‘Fit At Any Age’, where we showcase the women proving that age is no barrier to exercise. She has also represented the brand on BBC Radio London, plus various podcasts and Substacks – all with the aim to encourage more women to exercise and show them how.
Outside of work, find her trying the latest Pilates studio, testing her VO2 max for fun (TY, Oura), or posting workouts on Instagram.