Strictly Come Dancing presenter and NAIA Beach co-founder Tess Daly MBE, 56, talks to Joanna Ebsworth about her fascination with gut health, the importance of reducing inflammation, and why singing along to a karaoke app boosts her health.
Words: Joanna Ebsworth. Images: Chloe Grace
I suppose I always took my health for granted before becoming a mother. Obviously, I had the power of youth on my side, and I’ve been fortunate to always enjoy good health, never really giving it a second thought for that reason.
But when you become a mother, you realise you have to be strong and healthy, firstly because you’re looking after a little person and it’s physically quite demanding, but also because you realise that these little people are entirely dependent upon you for their survival. And suddenly you realise you need to look after yourself because you’re more important than you used to be when it was just you on your own.
In my experience, the demands on us become greater as we get older. And that means you’ve got to keep yourself in tip top shape and make health a priority just to deliver on every level and show up for everyone in your life.
I think eating for energy is really important, and I’m one of those people who has to graze throughout the day to keep refuelling. I have three main meals with lots of little nibbles in between, and I’ve always got a car picnic going on because I’m always driving somewhere. I wouldn’t dream of skipping a meal – that would be against my Northern roots!
I’ve always had a healthy relationship with food. Prior to becoming a mum, I was a model from the age of 17 and I travelled all over the world working for some of the top designers. But I quickly realised that not everybody around me had the most positive relationship with food.
Working in the fashion world was a bit of an eye opener for me, and it further underlined the fact that food was to be enjoyed and that it shouldn’t be demonised. I’ve never dieted, and as a mother of daughters, I’ve always been very careful not to demonise sugar and not count calories, and I refuse to embrace any negative connotation around food because I think moderation is key.
I’ve always been fascinated by the power of food to harm or heal. I first got into the idea of food as medicine when I was in New York in the late 90s and I discovered a book called The Food Pharmacy.
It talked about the medicinal properties of food and how certain foods can reduce inflammation, and it was a revelation to me that you could kind of heal yourself from the inside out by eating foods such as garlic and ginger, which are antiviral, antifungal and anti-inflammatory.
I’ve long been interested in eating to reduce inflammation and boost my immune system, and I find it fascinating that it seems like gut health has only really become a thing more recently, especially when we all know now that inflammation causes diseases.
I’m also very interested in endocrinology. I’ve studied hormones and their effects on how we think, just for myself, for pleasure, and it’s been a hobby for as long as I can remember – I’ve even thought about studying it to degree level.
I’m very interested in the gut-brain connection and how it affects our hormones and overall wellbeing. The very essence of our being depends a lot on our hormonal balance, and I realised a lot of our hormones are linked to our gut and immune system. In fact, 70 per cent of the body’s immune system that fights disease is in our gut.
And we all know, if you take it right down to basics, that if you feel sluggish, bloated and uncomfortable in your stomach, you’re not going to be running around with a smile on your face.
I don’t profess to be any kind of saint when it comes to eating healthily. Yes, there’s lots of healthy stuff in my fridge, including kimchi, but I can’t go a day without chocolate. That’s a little treat for me, and again, I think moderation is key to maintaining a healthy food intake because if I start telling myself I can’t have something, I automatically want it.
I’m wearing the same size jeans I was wearing in my 20s, but that’s not from dieting, it’s from maintaining. I just eat until I’m full and don’t overeat, so I wouldn’t call that portion control. My dad always used to call it an “efficacy of sufficiency”.
For me, sorting the good health information from the bad is about common sense. We know from looking at research into Blue Zone countries where people live into their hundreds that having a spoonful of extra virgin olive oil over a salad is good for us, as is eating whole foods and green vegetables for their nutrients rather than processed foods.
So, I tend to align myself with healthy foods that have a history of working well to reduce inflammation rather than following fads. I also do a ginger shot every day and I’ve taken the Wellwoman Original Multivitamin for years because it ticks every nutritional box – everything I eat on top is just an additional benefit
I like using little health hacks I know will benefit my gut. I sprinkle seeds over everything including salads and porridge to up my fibre intake, and rather than boiling my broccoli, I’ll bake it in the oven on a low heat to retain all the nutrients.
I recently wrote a book called 4 Steps: To A Happier, Healthier You (£18.99, Bantam Press), and I especially loved talking about everything I practise in my own life, from eating well and gut health to how sleep affects your gut and the benefits of regular movement for your wellbeing.
I’m in my 50s, and I genuinely feel I have the same energy as I did in my 20s.
I tend to exercise at home doing a little something every day. I haven’t got time for a complete exercise regime, but I will do planks in my living room every day because core strength is really important to me at my age now, plus I’m also very tall and do a lot of running around in heels, so I need to support my back.
I do one minute of planks followed by some cat-camel yoga stretches for a minute, and I’ll repeat that three or four times. That works for me because it’s not too intense, but it delivers the same benefits, and I do a bit of cardio and muscle building with weights maybe two or three times a week for my upper body and arms because I find I have to keep working to maintain muscle definition.
Exercise can be a drudge if you don’t find something you enjoy doing. And if you don’t love it, you’re going to find a reason not to exercise a lot of the time. That’s why I love doing something as simple as skipping outside on the patio for three minutes.
Skipping really increases your endorphins, and it’s better than a coffee in the morning to wake you up! I’m high as a kite when I’ve finished skipping or jumping on my mini trampoline and I feel like a giddy kid again because you feel that kind of lightness of being.
I’ll also do 10-15 minutes of yoga stretching daily for whatever feels like it needs attention, whether that’s a stiff neck or stretching to reduce stress.
I’m obsessed with listening to guided meditations on the Aura app to relax. Like most people, I find it hard to keep my mind quiet long enough to meditate, but if it’s guided, and I have something to focus on, I find that works for me. I love to listen to sound healing meditations, and I try to listen to the app at least five times a week to quieten my monkey mind.
Stretching also helps to put me in the moment and so does playing with my dogs – they’re just so full of unconditional love, and that’s a proper endorphin booster.
I also like singing to unwind because it’s so joyful. And singing helps to stimulate the vagus nerve, which I’m really into and studying right now because it connects the brain to the body and is interconnected to our gut health. I’ve got this brilliant karaoke app and I just get Rihanna on, and sing and dance around the kitchen like a complete fool – but it lifts the spirit like nobody’s business!
The other day, my teenage daughter, Amber, said to me, “Mum, you’ve not gone public with that, have you?”, and I hadn’t even realised you could join other people on the app to sing and you can also make it public. That would’ve been a nightmare because trust me, I want to be Aretha Franklin in my dreams, but I’m a very long way from that and it would’ve been torturous for everyone if I’d accidentally hit the wrong button!
I was genuinely so humbled and honoured to receive an MBE for services to broadcasting. I’m actually still pinching myself. Being a part of people’s Saturday nights on Strictly Come Dancing for the past 20 years is something you never take for granted.
It’s a real privilege, although I think some people think I do Strictly… and nothing else. Whereas, I’m working until 11pm every night on my swimwear brand NAIA Beach. I absolutely love being the co-founder – along with my best friend Gayle who has 20 years’ experience in swimwear and the fashion retail industry – because I’ve always had an entrepreneurial streak and a constant interest in fashion throughout my television career.
We started building our brand four years ago when I couldn’t find swimwear that made me feel confident and ticked all the boxes of being flattering and glamorous but also durable and practical. We started small, but it’s taken on a life of its own and I really enjoy the creativity of designing for a brand that I’m passionate about.
I won’t pretend it’s not hard work. But the incredible feedback and photos we get from women telling us how our swimwear makes them feel confident and empowered and supported makes the hard work all worth it.
When you have your own business, it begins and ends with you, and it’s like having another baby, because you care about nurturing and growing it. Gayle and I work across every single facet of the business, from design, fabric, testing and delivery to logistics, suppliers and communicating with our customers about fit through the website’s live chat function, because customers are our number one priority.
But it’s been a wonderful learning curve along the way and the most rewarding and fulfilling venture I’ve ever taken on, I think. I’m definitely enjoying the ride.
Let’s be honest, you’re at your most naked in public when you’re on the beach! And that’s why we all want swimwear that makes us feel body confident.
Most brands fit on mannequins, but we fit five times – double the industry standard – on real bodies to ensure the most flattering fit possible. That’s our USP, and I think it’s also the reason why we’ve spread through word of mouth and sold out in stores so often, because there was a gap in the swimwear market for women like us.
We’ve also engineered our own fabric called SubtleSculpt™ for light support around the middle so you can have a long lunch on holiday and not have to worry about it afterwards. Because life’s too short to worry, isn’t it? And I’ll take a little help wherever I can get it!
Before going on holiday, I use several little hacks that help me feel more confident. I always fake tan before I go and top it up while I’m away, just because I feel better with a tan, and I fake it rather than bake it because sun damage lasts forever.
Obviously lying in the sun and feeling it on your skin is an absolute treat. But, again, it’s about moderation. You’ve got to use an SPF so you don’t burn, but I do use a sun cream that’s got this gorgeous luminous sheen in it – not a glittery sparkly one mind! – because luminous skin looks like toned, glowing, healthy skin.
For me, body confidence and feeling good about yourself comes from the inside. By the way, that doesn’t mean I feel amazing and confident all the time! But if I look after my skin and I’m wearing fabulous swim and resort wear on the beach, that goes a long way.
I’m not one of those people who runs around in my swimsuit or bikini on the beach, so I love a kaftan you can throw on, and I think a co-ord always looks effortlessly chic and stylish – like you’ve thought about your outfit when you’ve just thrown it on. For me, the less I have to do when I’m travelling or on holiday, the better.
So, I pack light, and I weigh my garments when I pack them. Anything that’s too heavy, or creases, doesn’t make the cut, because no one wants to feel hot and bothered in the sun, and life’s too short to be ironing on holiday!
Check out the new NAIA Beach 2025 collection of swimwear and resortwear at naiabeach.com.
