{"id":677924,"date":"2026-11-07T18:34:15","date_gmt":"2026-11-07T18:34:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/677924\/"},"modified":"2026-11-07T18:34:15","modified_gmt":"2026-11-07T18:34:15","slug":"at-91-judi-dench-stays-mobile-with-swimming-workouts-heres-her-routine-and-why-its-so-effective","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/677924\/","title":{"rendered":"At 91, Judi Dench stays mobile with swimming workouts \u2013 here\u2019s her routine and why it’s so effective"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dame Judi Dench has never been one to embrace a consistent exercise routine. When asked about her fitness habits by The Guardian<\/a>, the iconic actor famously quipped: \u2018Am I an exerciser? Not in the slightest. I drink champagne. I’ll start exercising tomorrow.\u2019 She\u2019s also openly admitted that she simply doesn\u2019t make a point of keeping fit and considers herself \u2018very bad at that.\u2019<\/p>\n

All that said, there is one workout she enjoys at her home in Surrey: swimming<\/a>. In a profile by The Guardian exploring her garden sanctuary, it was revealed that all of her family members are keen swimmers who \u2018make great use\u2019 of the swimming pool on her lawn, while Dench \u2018takes laps regularly\u2019. <\/p>\n

\"judi<\/p>\n

Jeff Spicer\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Granted, having a pool in your back garden makes it considerably easier to make swimming a habit, but there\u2019s good reason to take it up at your local pool or lido \u2013 especially as we age. ‘Judi Dench continuing to swim in her 90s is a reminder of how important it is to find activities we can enjoy throughout our lives,’ says PT and founder of Power of Mum app Nicole Chapman<\/a>. ‘Exercise doesn’t suddenly become less important because we’ve reached a certain age.’<\/p>\n

Swimming is a powerful form of movement that protects our bodies against many age-related physical declines, without the barriers that might come with lifting weights<\/a> or other more intense routines, like not knowing what to do, fear of hurting yourself, or not having a gym membership (swimming pools typically offer pay as you go access). Science shows there are three big benefits of taking it up, and Chapman explains how they work.<\/p>\n

\"judi<\/p>\n

Stuart C. Wilson\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Benefits of swimming as we ageIt builds joint-friendly strength: ‘The water supports much of your body weight, reducing the pressure on your joints and allowing you to move more freely and engage your muscles without impact,’ says Chapman. ‘One study<\/a> into water-based exercise has shown significant improvements in joint pain, stiffness and mobility in people with osteoarthritis.’It significantly reduces the risk of falls: A major four-year study<\/a> on over 1700 men aged 70 and older found that regular swimmers were 33% less likely to fall compared to older adults who engaged in other forms of exercise, thanks to improved balance and core stability. ‘Water creates resistance with every movement, helping to build lower-body strength while also engaging our core muscles \u2013 both of these play an important role in stability,’ explains Chapman.It boosts cognitive and cardiovascular health: Research<\/a> proves that swimming enhances cardiovascular efficiency and increases blood flow to the brain, which helps maintain cognitive performance, memory, and attention span as we age. ‘Aerobic exercise like swimming promotes blood flow to the brain which is associated with better cognitive function as we age,’ adds Chapman. ‘Swimming can also have a calming effect on our nervous system. The repetitive movement, combined with controlled, rhythmic breathing, can help reduce feelings of stress and anxiety.’<\/p>\n

No wonder Dench is such a big fan.<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

As Women\u2019s Health UK\u2019s fitness director and a qualified Pilates and yoga instructor, Bridie Wilkins has been passionately reporting on exercise, health and nutrition since the start of her decade-long career in journalism.<\/p>\n

After earning a first-class degree in journalism and NCTJ accreditation, she secured her first role at Look Magazine, where she launched the magazine\u2019s health and fitness column, Look Fit, before going on to become Health and Fitness writer at HELLO!<\/p>\n

Since, she has written for Stylist, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, The Metro, Runner\u2019s World and Red. Today, she oversees all fitness content across Women’s Health online and in <\/a>print, spearheading leading cross-platform franchises, such as \u2018Fit At Any Age\u2019, which showcases the women proving that age is no barrier to exercise.<\/p>\n

She has also represented the brand on BBC Radio London, plus various podcasts and Substacks \u2013 all with the aim to encourage more women to exercise and show them how. Outside of work, find her trying the latest Pilates studio, testing her VO2 max for fun (TY, Oura), or posting workouts on Instagram. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dame Judi Dench has never been one to embrace a consistent exercise routine. When asked about her fitness…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":677925,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[133281,133280,131705,1134,287072,1107,499,103,61,60,184510,1135,287071,223989],"class_list":["post-677924","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-collection-celebrity-workouts","tag-collection-fit-at-70-and-beyond","tag-collection-fit-at-any-age","tag-content-type-default","tag-contentid-aa0b9aac-da40-4307-a228-394bacb4d55d","tag-displaytype-standard-article","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-issyndicated-false","tag-locale-gb","tag-shorttitle-how-judi-dench-stays-mobile-with-swimming-at-91","tag-sponsored-false"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677924","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=677924"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677924\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/677925"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=677924"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=677924"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=677924"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}