Dancing with chronic pain NERIDA'S SECRET BATTLE

How the bubbly mover and shaker keeps on top of a condition that needs constant attention

- Wendyl Nissen

Dancer and choreographer Nerida Cortese shares her tips for living a healthy life.

You're a Dancing With the Stars icon and a dance teacher, so you are obviously very fit. How do you look after your body?

I was born with one leg shorter than the other and I didn't find out I had scoliosis [sideways curvature of the spine] until I was 17. I was dancing and in a lot of pain, and couldn't breathe properly. I still get a lot of back pain. I do Pilates and I also do electro-muscle stimulation (EMS) training, where you put on a wet vest, and they put little electrode nodes on you and every 10 seconds your muscles contract. It's not painful and is really low-impact, but after 20 minutes, it feels like I've done an hour's workout and I don't break or sprain anything. At 47, my brain says, "Yes, let's do it", but my body is like, "Hell no!" I also get plenty of sleep, at least eight hours a night, because I have a very busy brain.

You and sons Kees [16] and Jett [12] have attracted a huge following on social media with your dance videos. How did that come about?