I get to interview a lot of celebrities and experts for my job—hands down one of my favorite things I do—but not everyone makes me feel the way Jennifer Grey did. I had actual goosebumps and that rush of endorphins you get when someone really inspires you. At 60 years old, the actress is gearing up for a huge Dirty Dancing sequel (more on that below), spreading the word about cellular nutrition through her partnership with Celltrient, and just soaking up all the goodness this life has to offer. So pour a glass of hot chocolate, cozy up and get lost in Grey’s words of wisdom below. (I know I sure have!)
Have health and wellness always been significant factors in your life?
“First of all, I come from a family where health and wellness were always very important. It’s part of my DNA. We grew up eating health food and my mom was doing yoga and TM [transcendental meditation] way before anyone was talking about wellness. Of course I was that kid with the weird dried fruit for treats in her school lunch, our house had none of the fun stuff. All my friends had sugary cereals and soda and white bread and iceberg lettuce. I had to basically make people come over. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve basically become my mother (she says, laughing). I’m genetically predisposed to ferreting out nuggets I can implement to help maintain optimum health, and most importantly, maintain a certain quality of life.”
Are you still a super healthy eater now?
“My only dietary requirement is that I only eat food that I look forward to eating. For me, that means lot of healthy food like delicious salads and fish, but also pastas. For snacks, I always have hardboiled eggs, yogurt, berries, almond butter, avocados, and bread of course. Lately I’ve become obsessed with baking sourdough bread like everyone else since COVID. I make it every other day so we always have this fresh loaf, and then I slather it with butter and jam or cheese. I recently made my first homemade plum jam. I don’t like to deny myself when it comes to food. To me, food is nourishment and food is to be enjoyed. It’s just about balance.”
How did you become interested in cellular nutrition?
“I’m a nerd—I love to research and educate myself about anything regarding optimizing my health, so the idea of cellular nutrition was something I was intrigued by and looking to try as I started getting older. To be able to get older is by far one of the greatest gifts, and being able to do the things I love like dancing and doing things with my daughter—continuing to feel like me—is probably one of the most important things I can think of. What I like about Celltrient is that it works in concert with my lifestyle and supports what my body is already doing naturally. I already eat healthy—berries, nuts and salmon, etc—and now I can incorporate cellular nutrients from Celltrient to add this new level of nutrition.”
What is your current Celltrient supplement regimen?
“I’ve been taking the Cellular Protect and Strength capsules twice a day. Celltrient Protect is helping to make sure my cells have what they need to make the antioxidants to help protect them. How strong you feel and how much stamina you have are important, but it’s not just about how much muscle mass you have, it’s about how well your muscle’s cells are working. That’s where Celltrient Strength comes in.”
What is your approach to aging?
“I believe whole-heartedly that age is a mindset. Biological age is what it is, but I truly believe it’s more about how you feel—how you feel in your body and how you feel about your body. My energy has always been something that is very integral to my identity, and I know that in order to feel my best, I need to move my body regularly. And in order to ensure that I do that, I need to enjoy whatever it is that I’m doing. I love being physically strong and staying out of pain because pain is not fun. I was always pretty active growing up—taking all kinds of dance classes—but after I made Dirty Dancing in my late 20s, I stopped dancing completely. And then 20 years later, when I did Dancing With The Stars at 50, even though I was in great shape, I could feel the difference between what my body could do then versus before just because of the natural changes that occur due to aging.”
What kind of dancing do you do now?
“After Dancing With The Stars, I fell back in love with dance. I became obsessed with social dancing and last year, I was back in ballet class and I actually started dancing on point, for the first time in my life. I don’t think I’ll ever stop dancing. No matter how old I am, I’m going to shift and adjust to whatever makes my body happy.
I also pole dance, well I do when it’s not COVID, but I don’t do the inversions anymore—you know, the tricks when you go upside down—because I’ve had six spinal surgeries. But I’m still doing the parts I love that feel good for me. It’s just the most spiritual, gorgeous, organic way of moving. What you’re really doing is letting your body dictate how it wants to move and what it wants to do. You kind of just go into this vibe of letting your body do what it’s happy doing. It’s my favorite kind of dance to do right now and it has been for years. It’s so rare in our culture for people to be able to explore their sexuality without it being about sex or about what your body looks like. It’s about dropping into your gorgeous energy, which we all have.”
What is your advice for someone who isn’t motivated to work out?
“If you’re struggling to find motivation to exercise, I recommend finding exercise that you look forward to you, not dread. For me, it’s a variety of dance classes. Finding a groove and getting a rhythm. I try to make sure that wherever possible, whenever possible, I try to make as many of my choices pleasure-based. I feel energized when I’m excited.”
What about your advice for women in general?
“I truly believe that the second half of a woman’s life is the best half and that women are hot at every age. As I get older, I’m getting better. I’m excited to see where I’m gonna go and what I’m gonna do. I want everyone to feel that way. Life should be fun and exciting, and enjoyed.”
You know I have to ask this…are there any skin-care products you swear by?
“First, I think not drinking and smoking is a really great idea. I haven’t done either since I was 30—I think that makes a big difference in my skin. But about the products…there’s one I’m obsessed with called Biologique Recherche P50 1970. I swear by it—I think it’s the best product I’ve ever used, and everyone I know uses it now. It totally cleared my daughter’s skin up after nothing else did. It’s amazing. I sometimes do microneedling; I have a little machine at my house. I also like Lancer products. I like his Glow Microdermabrasion. I do very little, but I like trying new things. Right now I’m using Embroylisse and an Odacite serum.”
What about makeup?
“I also like using very little makeup. I’ve noticed that after a certain age, the less makeup I have on, the younger I look, and the more makeup I have on, the older I look. I think powder and foundation have to be used sparingly and it’s good to just dot them on the areas you need as opposed to just covering yourself. I really love the Gucci Westman blush and lipstick. I just don’t like feeling like I have stuff on my face.”
And we can’t forget about sunscreen. Do you have a favorite?
“I like this Dr. Dennis Gross tinted sunscreen. I always wear sunscreen, even though I’ve been in the house for months now. I like keeping the sun off my face and putting that glowy sunscreen on very thinly, sometimes mixed with a serum.”
Is there anything you can tease about the Dirty Dancing sequel? I’m on the edge of my seat!
“The only thing I can tease is that I’m executive producing it and I’m one of the leads, and there’s going to be dancing and sexiness and a love story. That’s all I know [laughs]. It’s not going to be a story about young people and I’m the old lady sitting on the bench, that’s for sure. We have to make sure we are sending the message that the second half of a woman’s life is just as good, if not better than the first half.”
Will there be any pole dancing?
“My pole dancing is so powerful that it’s not really about Hustlers or stripping. It’s much more about a deep connection to feminine sexuality and erotic energy, which doesn’t go away as long as you live by the way. You have a lot to look forward to. It’s a very powerful force that’s with you ‘til you die.”
