Strictly's Shirley Ballas forced to 'cut back work' after battling painful health condition

Strictly Come Dancing head judge Shirley Ballas made changes to her life after a health diagnosis that could force her to undergo "three operations".

The 64-year-old believes a lifetime of "back bending and head flicking" has led to issues with her back. And while doctors have suggested the issue could be corrected with surgery, Shirley is keen to avoid going under the knife.

She says it has prompted a number of changes in her life, including 5am ice baths, juicing, and even reducing the number of hours she works in a week. Shirley revealed her diagnosis on the Mid-Point podcast with Gabby Logan.

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She said: "I've got this disorder in my spine, degenerative spine, which I haven't really talked about with anybody yet, but there's three types of operations, and I don't want to do the operations. So I'm doing anti-inflammatory, I'm trying to do more juicing, I'm ice-bathing."

The Strictly judge says she can now spend up to four minutes a day in her ice bath, something that she believes "really stimulates" her at the start of each day.

She continued: "I can go up to four minutes now, which I have built up to in the freezing, freezing cold, first thing at 5am. I would say it really stimulates me to start the day."

Furthermore, to postpone any potential surgeries, she has reduced her working hours, emphasizing that she prefers to avoid operations as long as possible.

When asked by Gabby if her back issues are a result of her dancing career, Shirley responded by acknowledging the impact of dance and aging: "Dance related, wear and tear on an old body, on an old gal."

She went on: "It's just what it is really. All that back bending and head flicking, as you see on Strictly Come Dancing, when they're going for it.

"It's not an easy sport when you've done it seven days a week, 24/7 all your life, and you're still doing it. My main job is teaching, I think people think I'm in the life of TV but I'm not, you'll see me on TV for different things but I have a full-time job."

The Strictly head judge explained that her primary focus is nurturing future talent in ballroom dance, often travelling globally to teach and lecture. She mentioned how her back issues have influenced her diet, leading her to eliminate processed foods and participate in an annual juicing masterclass in Portugal.

Shirley added: "I'm very careful now about what I put in my body that could be giving me inflammation, that could be causing the pain to be worse. So I like to do the juicing and I like to try my best to keep myself in shape."

Since making these dietary changes, she has noticed weight loss and improved skin condition. Shirley joined the Strictly judging panel in 2017, taking over from Len Goodman.