Martha Stewart’s 5 Secrets to Good Health at 83

Martha Stewart is getting a lot of new attention with “Martha,” the new Netflix documentary about her life, though the lifestyle doyenne never seems to leave the spotlight.

Now 83, she became the oldest cover model for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 2023. Fans are captivated by the sultry selfies she posts online and her seemingly ageless looks, including her signature blonde bob hairstyle.

The savvy businesswoman and America’s first self-made female billionaire has been a fixture on TV and book covers for decades, providing culinary, entertainment and decorating advice.

Stewart also seems to be the epitome of healthy longevity.

“I haven’t had any health problems. I don’t take any medications. I have very good blood pressure,” she told AARP last year.

“Aging is not something I think about. How old I am, slowing down, retiring – I just don’t think about that.”

Her health idol is her late mother, Martha Kostyra, who lived to be 93, she added. “She has never been sick. She was fantastic, she swam every day. She was a wonderful woman. Very, very good role model,” Stewart said last year.

What are Stewart’s secrets to longevity? Here are some of the healthy habits she’s talked about over the years:

Daily green juice

Stewart says she eats a very healthy diet, including drinking green juice every day, which she praises for giving her glowing skin and more energy.

“Green juice infuses your body with a variety of plant nutrients,” she previously told TODAY.com.

Her favorite green juice recipe calls for a pear or apple, celery, cucumber, parsley, spinach, ginger and lemon.

Fruits and vegetables provide antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals – beneficial substances that plants produce for their own protection.

Apples and spinach are among the heart-healthy fruits and vegetables that cardiologists list as their favorites.

Pilates

Stewart does Pilates three times a week at 6:15 a.m., she told AARP.

This famous core workout strengthens and shapes the body with small, precise movements that involve the arms and legs, explains certified Pilates instructor Stephanie Mansour.

The low-impact exercises can be done on a mat or on a reformer machine, which helps lengthen muscles and build strength, she adds.

When TODAY’s Craig Melvin tried a reformer Pilates class, he called it “possibly the most intense exercise” he’d ever done, noting that it used muscles he didn’t know he had.

Stewart’s other favorite exercise is horseback riding, which also works the core, can be a good cardiovascular workout and helps people relax, notes the American Heart Association.

Positive body image

Stewart has had “absolutely no plastic surgery whatsoever” and hates Botox, but does occasionally get facial fillers for lines, she said in an interview with Variety in 2023. She wears sunscreen every day to protect her skin from the sun to protect.

“I’ve got nice legs, I’ve got a good body, I’ve got good skin,” Stewart told TODAY.com when her Sports Illustrated cover was unveiled.

“I may be a little fat here and there, but who cares? It looks good overall, the packaging is good.”

It’s important to accept and appreciate your body, because body dissatisfaction can damage self-esteem, psychologists say.

Early wake-up time

Stewart likes to wake up early, often at 4 a.m., she told AARP. She listens to the news and then does her workout routine.

Many experts say that exercising in the morning is the best time of day to exercise. People finish it right away, so there’s less chance of something derailing the session, and they feel good about completing it first.

Morning people are also happier than those who wake up later in the day and they enjoy other health benefits, including a lower risk of depression and premature death, research shows.

Few regrets

Fixating on regrets can be a huge source of stress, psychologists say, but Stewart seems to focus on resilience and positivity.

She cites her “sad divorce and my well-documented legal problems” as the two real setbacks in her life — “that’s pretty good, I only have two,” she told AARP.

Beyond that, she has some regrets — like not collecting more art and paying more attention to a potential love interest — but “nothing major,” Stewart said.