Exclusive: ‘We have a Spice Girls menopause group chat,’ - Mel B reveals all about her exercise, wellness and beauty regime

As a huge Spice Girl fan, when I got an email inviting me to meet the one and only Mel B I couldn’t say no.

While I was a little dubious upon reading the details and discovering it included partaking in a Zumba class - I have absolutely no rhythm and Mel is a trained dancer - all my worries were brushed aside when the music started. “That’s why Zumba is so great,” the singer tells me when I explained my initial anticipation.

Here, the star, who made an appearance at SXSW’s Zumba House, reveals all about her wellness routine, including having a menopause group chat with the other Spice Girls…

Get moving

“I love it so much, because it’s not so strict. When I was training as a dancer, it was very conformed. If you did a ballet step wrong, it was very constricted to how you move. Whereas Zumba, to me, as long as you know the basic sidestep, you can just do your own thing all over it, which is very, very freeing.”

She adds, “You can add in your own spice to Zumba and there’s something really fun about dancing with a group of other people. It’s infectious!”

As someone who has been open about her mental health struggles - particularly following her divorce from ex Stephen Belafonte, who she says was “abusive” but is something he strongly denies - Mel says that is “really important to move.” The star, 51, explains, “Moving makes you feel so much better. And I don't think we put enough emphasis on that.”

She adds, “Also, because what do we do? We sit down for work, we sit down and eat. We sit down and watch TV. Who wants to be a couch potato?”

But, Zumba isn’t the only way she keeps fit. In recent years the mum-of-three has focused on strength training. “I turned 51 this year and from the age of about 35, you start losing all your collagen and your bone density.”

“So I've been trying to do my version of weights. I walk around my farm with a weighted vest,” she shares, adding, “To go into a gym and weight lift is daunting, but I can lift one of my Rottweilers up and I can find ways that are doable.”

Mel adds that she’s also “constantly moving,” walking her beloved three dogs, two of which join us during our chat, and tending to her farm.

She makes it clear that getting your body moving “doesn’t have to cost much,” either. “If you’re going to the park or meeting for coffee, instead of taking the car, you take your bike or you speed walk there. I love speed walking. It looks hilarious but I love it.”

Healthy habits

And her wellness habits extend beyond exercise. “Me and my husband just put a little spa in our house. I have a LED red SunShower, a Himalayan salt sauna and an ice bath outside, which I love doing.”

Explaining the benefits, Mel, who tied the knot to hairdresser Rory McPhee last year, shares, “It’s what it does to your nervous system, which is really good for women that have suffered from trauma. It's really good just to reset your body.”

She adds, “The maximum you're meant to stay in over a week is 12 minutes, so I do three minutes every other day.”

The star also starts every day with “one hour of self raki” before Rory brings her a coffee. “The morning that he doesn't get me a coffee, I'm gonna have a breakdown because he’s set the standard now,” she laughs.

Crazy for collagen

Collagen is also a non-negotiable for Mel. So much so that she’s an ambassador for Revive Collagen. “It came at such a magical time because I was just figuring out if I wanted to try HRT.”

“I’m in a group chat with all the other Spice Girls and we're all hormonal, talking about symptoms, saying ‘I don't know if it's peri, I don't know if it's full menopause.’ So I wanted to try and see if something would help.”

Mel continues, “I take the Menopause Max in the morning and then I'd take a Menopause Beauty Sleep one at nighttime. Between the hot sweats and the brain fog and the insomnia, that just kind of levelled me out.”

“The good thing about Revive is you can take it alongside HRT too and it's just a little sachet so it’s easy to take. Not only does it taste good, it’s the highest, most potent one on the market so it really gets into your system.”

Beauty staples

When it comes to beauty, Mel admits, “I'm a gadget girl.”

Her go-tos? “I've got an LED mask, my own Dermabrasion [device]. I'm like, ‘let me just see if the wave is real,’ when somebody goes, ‘oh, this is the must-have thing,’ I let it fade and then if people are still talking about it I’ll try it.”

And, of course, she’s a huge fan of fellow Spice Girl Victoria Beckham’s eponymous beauty brand. “Victoria always sends me stuff [her products]. I always say to her, ‘make sure you make shades for my colour people,’” she reveals.

Sharing her parting beauty and wellness advice, Mel concludes, “Look after your skin and drink water. It all starts with the basics… It really is that simple. Drink water, move, eat vegetables and wash make-up off your face every night.”