Actress Jane Seymour recently celebrated her 69th birthday hosting a gala for her Open Hearts Foundation, which in its 10th year continues to "empower people to transform adversity into opportunity, serving other through philanthropy and volunteerism."
The former Bond girl says it's her mission to use her fame to help others and is grateful that she's in good health and able to help those in need. In a recent interview, Seymour — who starred in the hit TV series "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" — reveals that she dropped 14 pounds to help prevent type 2 diabetes.
"I kind of got used to being bigger," says the actress. "Not that I was really huge or anything, but in my family, there is type 2 diabetes and my bloodwork was bordering pre-diabetic. My doctor told me that if I lost at least six pounds I could reverse it."
Seymour, who stunned fans by posing for Playboy at age 67, says she lost weight by intermittent fasting and relying on the healthy, organic vegetables she grows in her garden.
"I eat everything in moderation and don't think of myself all the time," she reveals. "I'm thinking about other thigs, the kids or the grandchildren, and I'm working. That gives me the energy I need."
Seymour heads to the golf course to get her exercise and is a firm believer of Pilates and using the Gyrotonic machine, which she has included in her fitness regimen for 30 years.
One of her favorite moves is holding a plank pose, and while she may not reach the new world record of 8 hours and 15 minutes just established by former U.S. Marine, 62-year-old George Hood last week, Seymour says it helps maintain a flat, toned stomach.
She also likes to get her cardiovascular training in by fast walking at least three times weekly and pedals about 20 minutes on a stationary bike using weights to tone her upper body at the same time. Seymour is determined to stave off diabetes so that she can enjoy her four children and three grandchildren.
"I watched my grandmother die from type 2 diabetes," she recalls. "I watched the gangrene go up her leg, which caused her leg to be amputated. It's a very serious condition. It's not something to be taken lightly. And the truth is that you can reverse it pretty easily and get off all the meds, and live a much better life."
Age has not deterred her zest for living.
"There is an enormous freedom in having lived as long as I have," she said in an interview with Playboy at the time of her photoshoot. "Like my father used to say, I am comfortable in my own skin. I feel much sexier now than I did when I was younger."