Celebrities who have taken part in Strictly Come Dancing would likely agree that one of the major benefits of the show is getting fit.
However, Gemma Atkinson has admitted that during her stint on the show in 2017, she actually gained weight!
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The actress is famed for her strong physique and gruelling daily workouts, but she revealed that she managed to put on "six or seven pounds" by the time she was eliminated after letting her "diet slip massively".
"I think I’m the only contestant who gained weight during Strictly," Gemma told the Women’s Health 'Going for Goal' podcast.
"I always say that openly because the training is hard, it’s intense, but because I train differently anyway, my body kind of went backwards a bit and the main reason was because I let my diet slip massively on Strictly.
Gemma Atkinson was partnered with Aljaz Skorjanec on Strictly
"We trained above the Cadbury’s shop, so I had a Toblerone nearly every day, fast food, anything that was just quick and easy really…I think I put on about six or seven pounds by the end of it."
Gemma, who welcomed her daughter Mia with partner Gorka Marquez last July, also confessed that during her pregnancy she was a "nervous wreck" when it came to watching her diet.
She added: "Growing and birthing a baby is the biggest workout you will ever do in your life. From the minute you find out you’re pregnant, I believe it’s a workout because you’re constantly trying to monitor what you eat and what you do, especially for the first three months I was a nervous wreck."
Gemma Atkinson speaks to Women’s Health April 2020 issue (Photo: Pete Pedonomou)
However, when her one-year-old daughter Mia arrived last summer, Gemma felt no pressure to get back into the gym immediately.
The doting mum recently told HELLO!: "I kind of enjoyed the first three months of not thinking about anything other than myself and Mia in our little bubble. I think it's quite a shame when new mums… they have the baby and the first thing they think about is getting back in shape because of the pressure they feel."
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