Brooke Shields forced herself to get personal trainer

Los Angeles, Dec 22 (IANS) Actress Brooke Shields forced herself to get a personal trainer to help her avoid having surgery on her back as she has had a number of injuries caused by dancing in Broadway shows.

Shields, 52, says she has "never been skinny", and when she was younger, her athletic build was not "celebrated". But the star has had to get an expert as part of a "very sort of rigorous rehabilitation programme" to help her avoid having surgery on her back, which is an injury she suffered dancing in Broadway shows, reports people.com.

"Since I've turned 50, there's been more focus on my body than ever. I have never been skinny. The thing is, I was in an industry where being athletic was not celebrated. I have friends who are supermodels, and I never had that body. I've never been asked to walk in a Versace show," she said.

"I have a trainer, and I'm not a trainer person. But I've had to enter into a very sort of rigorous rehabilitation program to avoid surgery on my back. I've already had four surgeries on my feet and two on my knee - all from Broadway dancing injuries".

"On Broadway, they don't really rehab the dancers like they do in sports. It's, 'The show must go on'. Maybe you'll get five minutes with a physical therapist, or they'll get someone to come in and tape you with kinesiology tape, which is what I sort of lived on for a long time," added Shields.