Good Morning Britain's Ben Shephard has opened up about his 'catastrophic' knee injuries and his fitness journey at 50.
A New Chapter at 50
Chosen in 2004 as the approachable 'boy next door' persona of ITV's The Xtra Factor, Ben Shephard has, at 50 years old, emerged as an unexpected heartthrob. Chatting with friend Kate Thornton on her White Wine Question Time podcast, he revealed that since gracing the cover of Men's Health magazine, he's been met with an overwhelmingly enthusiastic reaction.
His impressive physique hasn't come without sacrifice, he acknowledges: 'And lots of my friends who are my age and a bit older have been through struggles for various reasons.'
'Life has moved on,' he added, 'and they are changing their careers or their lives in a certain position, and they are struggling with how they are feeling physically and emotionally, mentally.'
'What I decided to set out to do when I turned 50 was purely, it was very much for me. It wasn't about how it was going to appear, it wasn't about how people were going to envisage it; it was very much about whether I could prove to myself that I could be as fit at 50 as I was when I did that Men's Health cover back in 2012.'
From Carefree to Catastrophic
His initial magazine cover appearance occurred during a markedly different chapter of his life, he shared with Kate. At 37, he recounted, life was carefree: 'You can go out all night, you can wake up in the morning and you've got no issues.'
'Now, as you get older, my back's in a bad way, I've had catastrophic knee injuries, you know, I need more sleep, I understand the value of that.'
Proving Himself
Ben revealed he was determined to demonstrate that, at 50, he could achieve peak physical condition: 'I could prove that I had more lean muscle, I had lower body fat, I could run a 10K … those are quite easily measurable factors.'
He expressed particular pride in gracing not just the UK edition's cover, but also the Spanish and German versions — an accomplishment he valued even more highly given his lack of recognition in those countries.
Ben noted that he and Kate had been brought on board for The Xtra Factor precisely because of their accessibility: 'We weren't super sexy, super cool, super trendy. We were just people on the telly that you'd want to go in the pub and hang out with and stuff.'
Outselling the Stars
However, he now believes he can stand shoulder to shoulder with some of today's genuine heartthrobs: 'David Beckham, Jason Statham, Stormzy — they had all been on the covers. My cover outsold them,' he stated.
He continued: 'One of the reasons was because I was just that bloke off the telly. I wasn't a superstar footballer or a movie star or an amazing rock star, performer or musician.'
Commitment to Fitness
Despite suffering several injuries during training, he remains committed to pushing his limits: 'It's about putting yourself through that journey and proving to yourself what you can do, and striving for that personal best. It's something that I still try to achieve every day, and you don't do it every day, right? Some days you fail miserably, but on balance, over the course of the year, hopefully there are more positives than negatives.'
