Ola Jordan has revealed that she’s been left with a painful health condition after years of “punishing” her body.
The ballroom dancer, 42, who left Strictly Come Dancing in 2015, told Women’s Fitness magazine that she doesn’t miss the “intensity” of the training, but still enjoys watching the popular BBC show.
However, it would appear that her dancing career has had an impact as Ola also revealed that she now suffers from a health issue that means it can take her an “hour to straighten up”.
Ola said: “I left Strictly in 2015 – almost a decade ago now! I don’t miss the intensity of the training as I’m at the age where I’m settled and content. I still love watching the show but I’ve got a bad back now, thanks to a slipped disc.
“I think it happened due to years of punishing my body. I get up in the morning and it can take me about an hour to straighten up sometimes! I do stretches in the living room, which helps, and it’s important for me to keep moving.”
A slipped disc occurs when the tissue between the bones in a person’s spine bulges, with patients feeling pain if this ends up pressing on their nerves, according to the NHS.
Symptoms include pain in the lower back, tingling or numbness in other areas, neck pain, issues bending, muscles weakness and pain in the hips, legs or buttocks if it has led to sciatica (pressing on the sciatic nerve).
Ola joined Strictly in 2006 and was on the show until 2015, with her husband, James Jordan also appearing. In 2019, the Polish-born dancer explained what it was like to work on the much-loved dance competition.
She said: “I think people don’t appreciate how much work goes into Strictly. When I say six months I mean it’s 24/7 for six months. You don’t have the weekends off.
“You don’t have days off. When professional dancers sign up for the show, from August ’til Christmas there is no day off.”
Once she left the show, Ola became a judge on the Polish version of the show, a gig she described as “great” and “really good for me” at the time.
In July, Ola revealed that her daughter, Ella, had been struggling with her health and said she was “not looking forward” to being alone with her while James was away.
The youngster has had issues with her ears, with the pain meaning she hasn’t been able to attend swimming lessons. Ola said that she “really battled with her health” last winter.
It was also reported that Ola and James underwent a health transformation after they lost their Strictly physiques. However, they eventually lost seven stone, reports the Mirror.
In an Instagram video, the pair said: “We felt amazing after losing weight.” James added: “I felt like I had a new wife, it was brilliant – and I get in trouble for saying things like that!”
