Strictly Come Dancing star Ellie Simmonds isn’t immune from being self-conscious about her body while wearing the revealing costumes.
During her Paralympic training, the five-time gold champion would swim nine times a week for 18 hours and has opened up about her weight gain since quitting the sport after Tokyo in 2020.
Speaking exclusively to OK! , she said: “The first time I was trying on costumes I was thinking to myself, my body has changed since being an athlete. I’ve typically put on weight since retiring last year. Now I’m going to the gym probably twice a week – I’ve lost all my muscle, and you know you get stretch marks and all that?
“Being an athlete and being a woman, you’re very conscious of your body and the insecurities of that, so I was thinking going into Strictly, ‘I want to cover everything up’, but then when I was trying the costumes on I ended up trying the crop tops and stuff, and I was like, ‘Oh my god I love this!’
“Previously my body was my engine and something I’ve looked after and have kept in tip top shape. Now my life doesn’t revolve around exercise, and I’m just grabbing and going with food. It’s now about being OK with the fact I’m a bit heavier than I was and I have got a bit more cushion and a bit more skin!”
Ellie, who is 4ft, has achondroplasia, a rare genetic condition which causes a type of dwarfism.
A Paralympic star since making her swimming debut aged 13 when she won double gold in Beijing, by the time London came calling four years later, Ellie, 27, was the poster girl of the Games, winning another two gold medals on home turf.
Ellie’s honesty and openness is one of her defining traits along with her unwavering positivity. When asked what dwarfism means to her, she profoundly responds: “It means me. I’m very proud to be disabled and living with dwarfism. I can’t change myself. All I’ve known is being small and adapting and being aware.
“Dwarfism has never stopped me from doing anything. It’s made me stronger and more determined. I’m a very competitive and determined individual. With living with dwarfism you have to go that extra mile, you have to adapt, you have to focus more – it’s helped me to become a Paralympian, the person, the Ellie Simmonds I am today.”
Strictly is on Saturdays on BBC One and iPlayer
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