At 53, Michael Strahan is in one of the most active periods of his life, despite being off the football field for nearly two decades now.
The media personality balances hosting Good Morning America with NFL on FOX on Sundays as well as The $100,000 Pyramid, all while being a father of four and a granddad to baby Onyx.
Michael spoke with WebMD’s online magazine about keeping fit and healthy in his 50s while maintaining his very busy life, including the one major point in his journey that triggered a shift.
© DisneyInstead of an incident with his own health, it was his daughter Isabella’s health journey that scared him into putting things “into perspective.” Isabella was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a form of brain cancer most common in children, in 2023 at the age of 18.
Michael’s words about Isabella
“Isabella showed me what real courage and strength are,” Michael told the publication. After a year-long journey with chemotherapy at Duke University’s children’s hospital, she completed her treatment and is now cancer free and back in school.
“Hearing her say, ‘Dad, I’ll do whatever it takes. I really want to live,’ that broke me,” the former New York Giants defensive end confessed. “But it also made me appreciate life in a new way and put things into perspective. We all have busy jobs and lives; those things pale in comparison to what’s important, which is family.” Watch Michael and Isabella reveal her diagnosis on GMA in the video below…
A busy life
However, being in the thick of so many career ventures, he says, is actually good for him, because it keeps his mind sharp. “It’s exciting because everything I do is unique.”
“Hosting a game show is nothing like doing an NFL show, which is nothing like doing GMA and the news. They all make me exercise a completely different part of my brain.”
Michael explained that in his 20s, life was all about putting in the work without thinking too much about the consequences, but three decades later, that has changed considerably.
© Instagram“I’m more mindful of what I put into my body — of drinking, of cigars, of all of that, but I’m also more mindful of the mental aspects of my life: doing the things I want to do, the things that bring me joy and make me happy, and trying not to add stress — especially other people’s stress — to my plate,” he noted.
Michael’s daily routine
The dad-of-four shared some more insight into his daily routine, comprising of at least one hour of exercise every day, ranging from weights to cardio to pilates, to avoid the cricks that come with his “aging body.”
© Getty Images“Heck, sometimes I wake up and have an injury I didn’t have the night before,” he quipped. “I’m like, ‘How did I hurt myself sleeping?’ I can’t quite figure that one out. But despite all that, I don’t feel like just because you hit a certain age that suddenly you’re supposed to act tired and have less enthusiasm for life.”
One thing the ABC News anchor also says he’s learned is to be more intentional about going to the doctor and getting regular checkups as opposed to waiting for things to “go away.”
© Getty Images“Why in the world would you go through your life not feeling right or in pain? If I’m driving my car and I’m hearing something knocking, I’m getting my car fixed. Why wouldn’t I do that with my body?”
