She is cheerful and lively and is known for bringing a healthy dose of positivity to the world Strictly Come dance jury.
But Motsi Mabuse has revealed that going through perimenopause left her feeling ‘unhappy’, ‘uncomfortable’ in her own body and unable to dance with her husband.
The professional dancer, 45, who joined the BBC show as a judge in 2019, said experiencing symptoms early last year made her question who she was and wonder what version of herself she would “wake up” as.
A recent visit to the doctor also revealed that she was at risk of developing type 2 diabeteswhich runs in her family, but also has inflammation and high cortisol levels.
“I noticed a complete change in my energy levels and my knees started to hurt,” she said Women’s health.
“I had moments where I thought, ‘I have no feelings.’ [okay] in my body, I’m not comfortable with myself.’
Motsi Mabuse, 45, has revealed that perimenopause left her feeling ‘unhappy’, ‘uncomfortable’ in her own body and unable to dance with her husband
The professional dancer said experiencing symptoms early last year made her question who she was and wonder what version of herself she would “wake up” as.
‘I love dancing with my husband, I love moving and I couldn’t do that anymore. It made me unhappy.’
Ms Mabuse, whose sister Oti Mabuse was a professional dancer on the BBC show from 2015 to 2022, has been married to fellow dancer Evgenij Voznyuk since 2017. They have an eight-year-old daughter together.
The South African dancer, who returns to the judging panel alongside Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood and Anton Du Beke when the BBC dance series returns next month, said she had lost control of her identity.
‘Which Motsi am I meeting today?’ she remembered wondering every morning. “Is it the one that’s going to make me cry?
‘Is it the one who is happy? Is it the one no one wants to see? You wake up every day and discover a new side of yourself,” she told the publication. “That’s menopause.”
However, she said seeing a therapist has had a positive impact on her life and has even changed the way she raises her daughter.
‘I’ll take everything [my daughter] says very seriously. “I ask her all kinds of questions because I want to know where she is mentally,” she said.
‘There is nothing worse than your child having an intellectual disability [health] problem and you are not aware of it.’
A recent visit to the doctor also revealed that she was at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a disease that runs in her family, and that she also has inflammation and high cortisol levels.
The Strictly star became a WeightWatchers ambassador in 2023 and has lost two stone, but is still haunted by being told to lose weight as a young dancer.
However, she said seeing a therapist has had a positive impact on her life and has even changed the way she raises her daughter
married to fellow dancer Evgenij Voznyuk since 2017. They have an eight-year-old daughter together
The full interview appears in the September issue of Women’s Health UK
She said of a recent visit to her GP: ‘We did a full body check and my doctor said, ‘Mrs Mabuse, you can’t go on like this.’
“My parents and grandparents have type 2 diabetes and I had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant, and my doctor said, ‘If you want to stay healthy long-term, we need to make some changes.’
The Strictly star became an ambassador for WeightWatchers in 2023 and has lost two stone, but is still haunted by the message that he needs to lose weight as a young dancer.
“For me, this journey has never been about shrinking,” she said. ‘It was about getting stronger.
“Every dancer has had that conversation with a trainer who says ‘lose weight’ and that is the most painful thing you will ever hear.”
The full interview appears in the September issue of Women’s Health UK.
