Natalie Cassidy: I'm addicted to exercise

Nat talks about how she’s kept her fabulous new figure, settling down with her boyfriend and her New Year health scare

Monday, 5 May 2008

It’s two weeks since Natalie Cassidy confessed to Now that she loves being a size 0 and when we meet her at London’s Soho House she looks fantastic. She’s svelte, showing off her figure in white jeans and a cropped top, revealing an impressively flat stomach.

Ex-EastEnders star Natalie, 24, has an exciting year ahead of her. Not only has she kept off the 2½st she lost last year making her best-selling fitness DVD Natalie Cassidy: Then And Now Workout, but she’s all loved up with her boyfriend of nine months Ben Porter, 40, and is inundated with offers of acting work.

The only shadow cast over her life since her impressive body transformation has been finding out that she has polycystic ovary syndrome. Natalie exclusively reveals to us how she discovered that she has the condition, which can not only affect your chances of getting pregnant, but also makes it harder to lose weight. However, she’s bubbly and funny as she relaxes with a coffee and chats about how her life has changed.

You look amazing. Has it been hard keeping the weight off?

It took me three months to lose it before Christmas and I’ve been working hard at maintaining it ever since. The hardest thing for me now is learning to stop thinking about it. If I don’t do my exercise now, I feel depressed. I’m addicted! I have to remind myself that this is who I am now and I’m not going back to piling on the pounds. That was another part of my life.

Have you treated yourself to a new wardrobe now that you’re so skinny?

Yes, I chucked out everything. I think you have to because if you don’t, then it’s like you’re saying it’s OK if you go back to that size. I’ve spent far too much money, but I love shopping now.

Do you still weigh yourself?

No, I refuse to get on the scales every day – it’s wrong. I have a pair of trousers that if they get tight I know I have to do a bit more exercise and cut back. It’s that simple. If you start obsessing with scales, weight loss can become dangerous. I like the fact that I still have curves. It’s not just about weight, it’s about toning.

Where have you toned up the most?

My arms. I didn’t want skinny arms, but I love the way my muscles dip in and out now. I’m proud of my legs, too, because when I started my thighs were the same size as my waist is now.

Were you upset with the rumours that you’d put weight on at Christmas?

In the photos that were printed I was wearing a big coat and a ruffled top, so I guess I looked bigger. What do I have to do, wear a bikini every day just to prove that I haven’t put on weight? I’m a bit bored of it now, but if people want to take photos of me at bad angles and say I’m fat, I don’t care because I know I’m not.

What’s your diet and exercise regime now?

I do my DVD routine pretty much every day. I know it off by heart, so I can do it anywhere. I try to vary it with going to the park and working out. I’ve cut out all the rubbish in my diet, but I still I have my treat days.

What do you treat yourself to?

When I go out I treat myself to a few glasses of wine, but I usually have a bit of a dance as well and that works off a lot of the calories. As long as you don’t have a fry-up the next day and still do your exercise, you’re OK. Life’s too short to live like a monk. Why look good and feel good if you can’t go out and have a glass of wine in your new frock?

Have you had many slip-ups?

Not really, because I’ve built a whole new lifestyle. Keeping the weight off has been a bit harder for me, though, because I found out in January that I have polycystic ovaries.

How did you find out?

I was finding that my trousers were a bit tight and even though I was doing my DVD, I wasn’t losing weight. My menstrual cycle was affected so I went to the doctors’ for some tests and I found out that I had polycystic ovaries. One of the downsides of it is I’m more prone to weight gain, so I realised I’d have to do my DVD workout more frequently. It’s a pain because it means I have to work a bit harder, but in some ways it makes it more of an achievement.

How does it feel to have the fastest-ever selling fitness DVD?

It’s unbelievable. I always thought it’d do well, but I never expected it to be as big as it’s been. It’s all been a bit of a whirlwind and it’s totally changed my life. Not only do I feel better about myself, but it’s also opened up so many opportunities for me. I may have changed shape, but I’m still the same person and I’m never going to get a big head about it. I have so many lovely reactions when I’m out. People are always telling me that they’ve bought my DVD and loved it.

Do you find that you’re being offered different types of roles since you lost weight?

Yes, being slimmer’s opened up doors for me as I can now play more parts. I’m currently in a play called The Cherry Orchard in Chichester – I play a maid and I don’t think I would have got that part if I was still bigger. Rather than just playing the funny, loveable friend, I could possibly be the romantic lead now that I’m slimmer. Don’t get me wrong, I love character roles, but it would be great to play a sex siren.

Have people’s attitudes towards you changed?

People have changed a bit, which is wrong, but then that’s life. People approach me differently and seem to have a bit more respect for me now.

How are things going with your boyfriend Ben?

It’s marvellous. He knew me when I was heavier so he doesn’t care whether I’m skinny or not. He takes it all in his stride. We’re having a really fun time together at the moment. He’s an actor too – he’s in The Woman In Black in the West End at the moment – so it’s been difficult to see each other due to our work schedules, but we make it work. We’ve been together since the end of last August, but I feel like it’s been ages – in showbiz years that’s for ever.

Any plans to tie the knot?

Oh, I don’t know about that yet. I do want kids and I want to get married, but we’ll see what happens. I’ve never been happier.

How are you coping with the new-found attention you’re getting from male fans?

At the beginning, there were wolf whistles when I walked down the street and it took me a while to realise that they were for me. I even had someone come up to me the other day and ask if they could take me out on a lunch date. I had to say: ‘Oh, I’m very sorry, but I have a boyfriend,’ and then I walked off with a great big grin on my face.

Whose figure do you admire?

I think Kelly Brook looks fantastic. She’s womanly and has great curves without being too thin. I love her swimwear range, too. I own far too many bikinis these days!

With Sid Owen and Patsy Palmer back in EastEnders would you be tempted to return to the show?

At the moment I’m really busy and, to be honest, EastEnders might not even want me back. I think Sid and Patsy are brilliant, though. I was in it for so many years it’s like watching a family video rather than a soap. I still love the show, though, and I always will – it’s got me to where I am today.

Natalie Cassidy’s Then And Now Workout is out now on DVD from Universal Pictures, priced £19.99

Shape up fast with Natalie’s healthy eating plan

Breakfast
A bowl of cereal
with yogurt and berries and a cup
of black coffee.
Snack
A piece of fruit
– usually a banana for an energy boost.

Lunch
Tuna salad with red onion and a slice of brown bread.

Snack
An apple

Dinner
Steak or fish with steamed vegetables.