Being fit isn’t something that comes naturally to Eamonn Holmes – not least because of the years of chronic pain he suffered before his double hip replacement last year. But the This Morning presenter is speaking out about his decision to make sure he gets at least 10 minutes of exercise each day – having realised the health dangers he risks by not being active are more terrifying than the reality of getting on the move.
"Walking was not appealing to me," he says of his past years of hip pain. "Mentally it still isn’t. But the alternative is less appealing to me – which is the onset of illnesses like cancer, dementia, diabetes, that sort of thing. So when I had my double hip replacement last year it gave me another opportunity to get back and do something," the 57-year-old TV star admits.
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"I’m not saying it’s easy, I’m not saying I’ve been converted into someone who will say, ‘Wow! This will change your life!’ It will change your life but if you’ve lived with chronic pain like I have done it’s not easy. Your brain tells you, ‘I don’t like moving’. But then when you do it, you can begin to break through these barriers,” he explains.
Eamonn Holmes and wife Ruth Langsford are getting fit!
Eamonn has teamed up with his wife, Ruth Langsford, and Public Health England to get the nation moving after the news last month that six million adults in England do not even manage one brisk ten minute walk a month. And tomorrow, Wednesday 6th September, he’ll be chatting live to This Morning’s Dr Hilary Jones on HELLO!’s Facebook page, to discuss the reality of Britain’s lack of activity – and what we should all be doing about it.
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Eamonn is using the Active 10 app which reminds him each day of the importance of getting out for just ten minutes, and getting his heart racing. “It is a great life line,” he explains. “It says to me: here’s the minimum! Get out with your app, do ten minutes a day, that’s all you have to do, come back slightly breathless. And that’s great because it’s achievable – it doesn’t take much to get me slightly breathless. A lot of us fool ourselves into thinking we’re doing proper exercise when we go out ambling with the dog, but what this app says to you is: No! You’ve got to do this at a brisk pace. Do that every day, that’s not too bad. You’re ticking a lot of boxes doing that.”