Jessica Ennis. Face of the British Olympics. Heptathlon gold medallist. Beautiful, modest and a six pack to die for.
So, just how does Jess do it? We caught up with her and the low-down on her diet secrets and exercise regime. Oh, and why she can never compete without eye make up.
Vital Stats
Age: 27
Height: 5ft 4
Weight: 8st 9lb
Dress size: 8-10
“I have a sweet tooth so every day I always have a pudding like chocolate brownies, a chocolate éclair or something chocolatey. I just love chocolate!” she laughs.
And with her size 8 figure, rippling muscles and six pack stomach, you’d assume Jess, 26, is keen to flaunt her figure but she admits that even she’s prone to the odd body hang-up from time to time.
** “Yes, there are things I want to change about my body but if I say what they are everyone will start looking at them!**
“Being an athlete I probably look at my body in a different way to most girls,” admits Jess.
Jess may be muscly and toned to perfection but she’s still very much a girlie girl and loved having her hair styled and makeup professionally done for our shoot.
And she admits: “I want to look nice all the time so I always wear foundation, and eye make up when I’m competing - I wouldn’t go out without it!
“Some of the other athletes are really glamorous and even wear false eyelashes and nails to compete!”
“And because my Lycra outfit of knickers and a cropped bra top is so skimpy – it’s like wearing a bikini to work - I have regular leg waxes as I want to be streamlined and comfortable.”
In between sessions she fits in running, weights and circuit training in the gym, as well as daily power naps, massage and physio sessions.
“With seven disciplines I never get bored as every day is different. I spend more time on the long jump, shotput and javelin as I have changed my style since suffering a stress fracture in my ankle (which forced her to pull out of just days before the Beijing Olympics)” she says. Training with such intensity, Jessica doesn’t need to calorie count and if anything she needs to boost her food intake to ensure her weight stays at around 8st 9lbs and her energy levels remain steady.
“Around competition time I’ll lose a couple of pounds but I need to make sure I am light enough to make me quick around the track or for the high jump but still strong,” she explains.
An Olympian Diet
Her day starts with a breakfast of toast or cereal with apple or orange juice.
She then does a morning training session, snacking on a cereal bar and sports drink or protein shake to help her muscles recover, then lunch is soup or a chicken sandwich before her afternoon training session.
And speaking of her dreams of taking the gold, she admits that sometimes she battles with lazy days – just like the rest of us.
“I’m used to the sweat, pain and hard work of training although some days when my body is tired and sore I don’t want to get out of bed,” she confesses.
Quick fire questions!
Chinese or Indian?
I love Indian takeaways and always order a lamb dish as I adore lamb
High heels or flats?
I love wearing heels when I get dressed up for a do but they cant be too high as I can’t risk getting injured.
R&B or dance music?
R&B. I often have Rihanna and Jay-Z on my iPod. But I also listen to Busta Rhymes - I have different playlists depending on my training schedule.