DJ and broadcaster Jo Whiley says the gym has played a big part in keeping her life on track through tough times
Jo Whiley has opened up on the role that strength training has played in her managing the menopause – and why she thinks dance floors are places for everyone.
The Radio 2 DJ, 59, looked in great shape as she posed for photos in Women’s Health UK magazine. And she says hitting the gym is a crucial part of her life. BBC and Radio star Jo said: “I did go through a period of time when I felt like I was just a bit weak, but I think it’s probably when the menopause hit.
“When I was going through [it], I think the conversation wasn’t being had that vocally, like it wasn’t on social media with Davina and her campaign…I really lost myself. I cried all the time. I mean, I cry a lot anyway, but I cried all the time. I just felt very weak. And going to the gym and getting myself strong has played a really, really big part in helping me be the person I am today. It really saved me.”
Mum-of-four Jo, who is married to record executive Steve Morton, said in an interview in April she is now trying to “bulletproof her life” so she can be around for her kids for decades to come. Her decision comes after the death of a number of close friends. She has also been a great source of support to her sister Frances. She has cri du chat syndrome, a genetic disorder that can cause significant learning disabilities and has other health issues such as diabetes.
Jo was instrumental in facilitating vaccine prioritisation during the pandemic for Frances and other people in similar situations. Jo said: “I think when Covid happened, it was exposed that there was this huge forgotten sector of society – people with learning disabilities. “So much of the system is pretty broken, and it needs fixing with urgency…I probably just have the mental worry of all the guilt, all the stuff that goes with it [thinking that] I’m not helping enough.
“My husband’s brilliant, and the kids as well, at just going: ‘It’s okay’. And they help out as much as they can, too…Respite is very important, and self-preservation is incredibly important. She was sectioned once, and that was a very, very dark time – it was really awful. And they were great at supporting me through that.”
She also told how she has noticed a change in gigs since the pandemic too. Jo said: “When we started doing our shows again, it was like this wall of joy and enjoyment from everybody that was there. Everything was so much more fierce, more ferocious, just the appetite for having the best time and appreciation for every single song that we played. It’s really beautiful…The dance floor is exactly where anybody can be, no matter what age. No matter who you are.”
Jo also revealed to Women’s Health she has had to overcome anxiety on stage in recent years and has had a mindset shift which helped. She said: “It’s taken a lot of personal development to get me on that stage in front of those people. It’s been really hard…I remember doing one gig, and I was just so scared…I thought, I can’t go on like this. This is ridiculous. It’s ruining my life, because I’m just such a ball of anxiety…I realised how happy it’s making people when I do these gigs and the audience that I’m playing to is why I do what I’m doing…That was a game changer.”
* The full interview can be read on the Women’s Health UK website now, or in the new issue on sale from September 17.
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