The danger of pursuing midlife abs: As celebs like Gwyneth Paltrow and Davina McCall proudly show off their toned figures, fitness expert warns of serious risks

Skinny is officially back in fashion, and with it a worrying rise in shredded abs. But these toned stomachs aren’t just coming from 20-something fitness influencers, they’re the latest red carpet symbol for celebs into their 50s and even 60s.

Trinny Woodall, 62, Nicole Kidman, 59, and 55-year-old Amanda Holden are among the stars showing off their so-called '11-line' abs.

The sculpted physique, which is characterised by two pronounced vertical lines running down the sides of the abdomen, has been hailed as a revered new body ideal.

However, an expert warned that chasing this trend could lead to ‘obsessive exercise’, injury, mental health problems and poor bone health.

‘There is nothing inherently dangerous about having visible abdominal definition,’ personal trainer Edwina Jenner told The Daily Mail.

‘The risk comes when chasing those lines leads to restrictive eating, excessive or obsessive exercise, or the feeling that your body is never good enough. Visible abs are not a certificate of good health.

‘Most celebrities have huge budgets, access to world-class trainers, home gyms, nutritional guidance, private chefs and time to dedicate to their appearance, which is often a major part of their job.'

She added: ‘This is not real life for women, yet these impossible standards are put up daily.

‘It’s also important to know that lighting, posing and whether someone is tensing can make definition look more pronounced in a photograph.’

For us mere mortals, Edwina warns that attempts to copy such physiques can lead to a multitude of problems.

She said: ‘Not eating enough to support exercise and everyday life can cause fatigue, difficulty concentrating and poor recovery between workouts, which may lead to injury.

‘Over time, sustained underfuelling can compromise bone health and make it harder to maintain muscle.

‘Chasing a particular appearance can also lead to increasingly rigid eating and exercise routines, anxiety about gaining weight and an obsession with food and body shape.

‘This can become isolating for some women and contribute to an eating disorder.

‘My view is that giving a body feature a catchy name makes it easier to turn into the next fitness goal. “11-line abs” sounds like something you can order from a particular workout, when bodies are far more individual than that.’

A rise in GLP-1 use has seen skinny figures soar, however abs operate in a tricky middle space.

As a show of visible muscle, some might assume they’re a picture of physical health and strength, but the reality is many women achieve them by restricting calories.

Edwina said: ‘Lower body fat generally makes abdominal definition more visible. Around 18% is sometimes suggested as a rough guide for women, but that is not a reliable cut-off, as it’s affected by genetics.’

PwC estimates that one in eight Brits will be taking GLP-1s by 2027, with the likes of Kelly Osbourne, Serena Williams and James Corden already admitting to use.

Edwina said: ‘I think the rise of GLP-1 medications has contributed to the renewed emphasis on extreme thinness in celebrity culture.

‘These medications absolutely have their place. My concern is when the ambition shifts from improving health to becoming as thin as possible.

‘Women need to understand that weight loss can include muscle loss as well as fat loss. Being thinner is not the same as being healthier.’

Although there’s no suggestion any of the celebs named in this piece take Ozempic or Mounjaro, they will surely feel the pressure of being pictured alongside stars who do.

Edwina, who predominantly works with women aged 40 to 60, also revealed the particular challenges these stars face given their age.

She said: ‘As oestrogen levels fall during perimenopause and after menopause, women tend to store more fat around their middle, rather than their hips and bottom. This means your waistline can change even without a significant increase in your weight.

‘Alongside this, we lose muscle as we age, which affects our metabolic health and reduces our daily energy levels.

‘Combined with changes in sleep, eating habits, stress and lower activity levels, this can make it easier to gain fat.

‘That can make visible abdominal definition harder to achieve, but it does not mean women cannot build muscle or improve their fitness. The answer is not just to eat less and do more ab exercises.

‘My advice remains the same for midlife women. You can have a strong, capable core without starving yourself or seeing a single line.’

She concluded: ‘It’s fantastic and encouraging to see women in midlife celebrated for their strength and activity.

‘My concern is when that becomes another appearance standard women feel obliged to meet.

‘We should be widening the picture of what a fit, strong woman can look like, rather than giving her another body part to scrutinise.’

The stars pictured in this piece all work hard at their physiques.

Amanda Holden, for example, has admitted to eating just two meals a day, always skipping lunch.

And while she never deprives herself of an Aperol Spritz or a cheese sandwich, she previously told TV Times: ‘The deal I struck with myself was I have to run for my rosé in the summer and run for my red wine in winter.’

Actress Ali Larter, 50, wakes up at 4.30am to workout before her two kids wake and admits she ‘eats very clean, but I eat’.

Gwyneth Paltrow, 54, famously skips breakfast. She sparked fury in 2023 by admitting she eats bone broth for lunch, followed by an hour-long Pilates workout, and then a vegetable-heavy Paleo dinner (that’s no wheat, dairy or processed carbs).

Trinny Woodall, who showed off her amazing bikini body on a trip to India in March, swears by strength training or yoga five days-a-week.

Halle Berry, now 60, first unveiled her six-pack on Instagram in 2019. She said at the time that she had ‘smashed’ her goal of getting ‘ripped abs’.

She admitted it was hard work and not ‘easy’, adding ‘but that pay off? Worth every damn second’.

Amazingly, she has managed to maintain her figure into her 60s. In 2025, she admitted she ‘used to do a lot of cardio’ but had swapped running for weight training, after years of avoiding it in case it made her ‘muscly’.

Davina McCall, 58, wakes at 6.15am every day to workout on an empty stomach, before taking her dog, Bo, on a long walk wearing weighted gloves.

Charlize Theron, 51, lives an alcohol-free lifestyle and has juice and green salads ‘every day’. She credits Pilates for her ‘changed body’.

She once told Harper's Bazaar Australia: ‘I’m always calculating my activity. If I haven’t been moving a lot, I can’t eat a lot.’

Keri Russell, star of Netflix’s The Diplomat, learnt Krav Maga, a self-defence system developed for the Israel Defence Forces for a previous acting role and still does combat-style workouts with her PT to this day.

The 50-year-old actress loves bike riding too. In 2020, she told Shape Magazine: ‘I feel my absolute best – my sexiest – after a good workout’.

Nicole Kidman swears by a mixture of running, swimming and Lagree (which is an intense form of Reformer Pilates), while Sandra Bullock, 62, favours kickboxing, Pilates and weight training.

Edwina is the founder of The Strength Edit, an online membership offering structured six-week strength programmes, from beginner level upwards, helping women build strength at home or in the gym. Find her on Instagram: @edwinajennercoaching.