Dame Twiggy: 'Pilates changed my life'

Dame Twiggy says Pilates has "changed my life" after an injury 10 years ago.

Dame Twiggy

Dame Twiggy says Pilates has "changed my life".

The 73-year-old model - whose real name is Lesley Lawson - turned to the exercise after putting her back out 10 years ago and not only does it keep her in shape but it has helped her to build up core strength.

Twiggy told the September 2023 issue of Good Housekeeping magazine: "I badly put my back out 10 years ago – I bent down for something and it went into a spasm. I spent the week in bed and it really scared me. I went to a wonderful osteopath who recommended Pilates, which I started when I felt better, and it’s the best thing I have ever done in my life. I wish I had started earlier. It has changed my life. I do it once a week for an hour with a wonderful teacher and I always say to her, ‘Rachel you’ve changed my life!’ I have really built up the strength in my core and my back.”

Twiggy has been married to her second husband Leigh Lawson since 1988 and she credits their longlasting marriage to "luck" and being "gentler" with each other.

She said: "[Leigh and I] have been together for 38 years, which is frightening! I suppose luck has a lot to do with it. You never know when you meet somebody how it’s all going to turn out or what life is going to throw at you. We’ve both been through things that didn’t work out for various reasons and when you’ve had that experience, you’re a little gentler when you meet someone else."

The model also spoke about her excitement at the upcoming West End show, 'Close Up: The Twiggy Musical'.

She said: "I only get involved with projects that really spark something in me, with people I love and want to work with. Ben Elton is an old friend and I love him to bits. He’s a huge talent – so clever and such a sweet man. The musical came about when we were having dinner about six years ago and he said, half-jokingly, ‘I should do your story! It’s an amazing story set in an amazing period – I should write it.’"

‘The September 2023 issue of Good Housekeeping is now on sale’