Keeping fit and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is a surefire way to feel your best, but how do the celeb lot do it? Is it a fancy juice plan? A PT to the stars? Sauteed kale that's been whipped up by a personal chef? Or do they have plenty of wellness tips that the rest of us could steal to help us on our own wellbeing journey? Believe it or not, it's often the latter. We speak to celebrities and influencers to find out exactly how they stay fit, look after themselves inside and out and ultimately feel great.
This week we caught up Vicky Pattison, the telly personality turned relatable Instagram queen who brightens up our evening scroll. She's here to remind you bloating/stomach rolls/no make-up days are part and parcel of being a woman and we are here for it.
After fun and practical tips for an instant pick-me-up…and long term results!? Follow @theboostuk, a community-powered by Closer
She's also brought out her own collection with Pour Moiwhich celebrates female empowerment and includes saucy underwear sets, stylish gym gear and cosy pyjamas.
In an exclusive interview with Closer, Vicky Pattison chats all things vitamins, bedtimes and how she picks herself up after a hard day...
What are your daily wellness habits?
I've got a life coach, if you're in a position to get someone like that, I really would advise it. He's transformed my life and he helps me to make sense of everything. Talking through your day and the things you're going through with someone who's neutral on the situation really helps.
My life coach always tells me to get out into nature with the trees and to get some fresh air. I never really put much weight on it until I got my dog, Milo, and just getting out for an hour every day taking him on his walk makes me feel much happier, healthier and more balanced. I advocate fresh air for everybody.
It's really basic, but I also love a face mask. I put a face mask on and for 15 minutes I just forget about everything. I feel like it absolves me of all my weekend guilt.
My favourite sheet masks are by Skin Republic, as well as their Retinol Hydrogel Under Eye Patches.
What are your go-to vitamins?
I love waking up in the morning and having a juice, it's a great way to start off your day. I feel like I've managed to get loads of fruits and veggies into my diet in a very small space of time. I'm all for protein shakes and juices. Plus, if you whack spinach into a protein shake, you don't really feel like you're drinking it. I'm all for sneaking fruits and veggies into my body any way that I can.
With the supplements, I've got a cupboard full, especially[Bioglan supplements {href='https://www.hollandandbarrett.com/shop/product/bioglan-womens-multi-vitamin-vitagummies-60006838?' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer'}). Obviously with going from brunette to blonde and wearing extensions means my hair has taken quite a hammering. I always like to take collagen supplements for healthy hair, nails and skin.
I'm all for everything like that, whatever makes you feel good about yourself, just do it.
What's your favourite way to exercise?
My favourite way to work out at the minute is zero gravity pilates.
After being on Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, I really looked at the way I trained. All of the things I'd been doing beforehand were weightlifting and more of the functional stuff. For a while, I wasn't really able to do that because I was quite badly injured.
I looked at alternative ways that were less intense on the joints and when I found zero gravity pilates, I completely fell in love with it. You look at the people who do it, like Chloe Lewis, Rochelle Humes and Lisa Snowdon, and their bodies are just lean and long and lush. So, yeah, I'm definitely on that hype at the moment.
What's your advice on feeling confident in your own skin?
I think learning to love the skin you're in is really difficult. It's so much easier said than done and it's taken me years to be comfortable with who I am.
For me, my twenties were wracked with self-doubt and insecurity and feelings of inadequacy. Now that I'm in my thirties, my only goal is to just be kinder to myself. I have boobs, I have bum, I have rolls, I have cellulite, I have some stretch marks. All of these things don't make me unattractive, they make me who I am.
I think that’s what this collection is about. You can see from the pictures that this collection is not about being ridiculously glamorous and impossibly sexy, it's about being comfortable with who you are.
How do you pick yourself up after a hard day?
I think self-care looks different for absolutely everybody. Life is difficult sometimes and we forget we're adjusting to a post-pandemic world. We're all going to have insecurities and anxieties and stresses that potentially didn't exist before.
I honestly just can't advocate enough for people to just be kind to themselves. As women, we're so obsessed with having it all figured out when we're supposed to learn and grow. We're supposed to figure it out along the way and make mistakes. I would just advise people to stop feeling like they have to do everything all at once, just be kind to themselves.
If you've had a hard day, just accept it. Feel your feels, turn your phone off, put Sex in the City on, have a bottle of wine, have a chocolate bar. If that's how you relax, do that. If it's cuddles with the boyfriend, do that. If it's getting out into nature and walking your dog, do that.
Just do whatever makes you feel better and whatever brings you peace and do it unapologetically.
Can you tell us about your collection with Pour Moi?
It's important that my collection with Pour Moi is like a beautiful expression of femininity and female empowerment. As women, we are multifaceted and we have so many different sides to us.
So yes, there's gorgeous sexy underwear, which have me feeling super glam, but there are also cute gym sets which make me feel strong.
What is your favourite piece from the new collection?
There’s a couple. There's this beautiful black chemise, Gigi Chemise which also has matching Gigi Plunge Bra and Gigi High Leg Knickers
There’s something very empowering about a matching bra and knicker set. I feel very capable when I wear a matching set.
Quickfire round:
Go-to gym wear brand? 110% Sweaty Betty, I also love the Sports Bra and Gym Short set from my collection with Pour Moi.
Favourite healthy snack? Optimum Nutrition Protein Bars.
Usual bedtime routine? I'll walk Milo and then am in bed for 10:30 PM. I'll try to get to sleep for about 1 AM.
Something that’s always in your fridge? Extra mature cheddar cheese. I'm obsessed.
Quote you live by? Comparison is the thief of joy.
Read more on Closer:
Vicky Pattison launches lingerie collection and it champions 'female empowerment'
Fridge raider: Love Island's Shaughna Phillips reveals her food secrets
On the importance of being real on Instagram:
I actually put up a post on Instagram where I discussed how I was struggling to keep up with the narrative I'd written for myself. All these holidays, these events, this constant positive image of myself - It's so draining.
I don't know how all of these other influencers do it. Hats off to them if that's genuinely who they are. But no, I'm the girl with the scraped knee, or the girl with the period belly, or the girl with a little bit of cellulite. That's who I am.
The more honest I am with myself and the more open I am on Instagram, I think the more it encourages other women to embrace themselves too.