Davina McCall, 51, addresses fitness backlash and admits she's addicted to exercise

Davina McCall has become a headline fixture in recent months for her six-pack bikini selfies and string of workout DVDs. In fact, the 51-year-old is so into her fitness regime, she’s admitted she considers herself to be addicted to exercise.

McCall made a guest appearance on ‘This Morning’ and opened up to presenters, Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford, about the social media backlash she faces on a daily basis in regards to her love of keeping fit.

“People are like, ‘are you addicted to exercise?’. I could think of worse things to be addicted to,” she admitted. “If I could, I would go five or six times a week.”

The television presenter, who famously struggled with a drug and alcohol addiction in the past, also took the opportunity to open up about how she deals with online trolls.

“What I love about social media is that it is a way to respond in your own way, you’ve got a voice,” she revealed. “That’s quite interesting and I always think it’s a good thing and also a bad thing. There are times I want to respond, and I’m not going to, and that’s hard. I sit on my hands and think, ‘don’t do it’.”

McCall is often praised for the bikini selfies she shares via Instagram but the social media platform also gives trolls a voice with many accusing her of being ‘far too thin’.

Some followers have even gone so far as to accuse McCall of encouraging eating disorders.

In response, McCall admitted: “I don’t care what people say about that, because if I believed I was a bad role model I wouldn’t do what I was doing. Everybody is going to have an opinion, I try not to read it too much.”

“I just think, ‘I’m going to post this. I’m 51, I feel in good shape’, and I know that looking at other people’s posts, I follow people to be inspired. I don’t follow people to troll them.”

Last month, McCall took to Instagram to share a defiant message to critics alongside a bikini snap.

“Don’t care what you think,” she wrote. “I feel good in my skin. And leading a healthy life is a huge part of why I feel body positive. I don’t judge anyone for the life they choose or the shape they are. Life is too frickin’ short… if you hate all of this stuff then seriously unfollow me.”

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