Being an athlete, my meals are so simple. They are just based on what I need for fuel. So I’ve never been like, “Oh, let me get my cookbook out and see what sauces I can have on this.” It’s just been, “Right, that’s a carb, that’s a protein, that’s the veg and vitamins I need in that, whack it together and eat it before training.” When I played rugby, it was particularly strict. [Fury, aka Jodie Ounsley, was a rugby union player for Exeter Chiefs women.] But now I’m a Gladiator, it’s not as full-on: I’m still always eating well, but it will be nice to expand what I eat.
I do love all cheesecake. And do you know Tony’s chocolate? They keep bringing weird ones out all the time. I swear I try one of them and then they’ll bring out a new one with pretzels or something. So those are my go-tos.
Which of the Gladiators has the most unusual diet? It’s got to be Giant. The amount of food that man eats is crazy. I remember the first training sessions we did, I was honestly blown away: he had these massive baking bowls filled with porridge. And that was just his breakfast! But he’s just burning calories all the time, even when he’s resting, never mind when he’s exercising.
My dad was an MMA fighter, so I’ve grown up in that environment. My mum doesn’t do sport herself, but she helped my dad with his diet so she’s got a great idea of how to fuel athletes. She does really good roasts and yorkshire puddings – those are my top-tier family comfort foods. And on Bonfire Night, she always makes a meat and potato pie. It doesn’t look amazing, but it tastes unreal and it’s proper Yorkshire vibes.
When I was three, I picked up a sack of carrots, put them on my shoulders and started sprinting around the kitchen. My dad used to do the coal race [the annual world coal carrying championships in Gawthorpe, Yorkshire] and I remember seeing him running with sacks on his back in the garden training for it. I didn’t understand what the heck he was doing, but I copied him. And he said I just kept going and going. So my dad entered me in the kids’ race and I won it. And I did it every year from then until I became a rugby professional and had to stop.
In grassroots rugby, everyone drinks after a match. But when you go into professional rugby, obviously it’s quite strict and the booze is pretty limited. Because I moved away from home at 16 to do rugby full time, drinking didn’t really interest me. I had a few crazy nights when I was 18, but now I’ll just have a glass of wine or a cider on a special occasion.
The only cookbooks I’ve got are for my air fryer. And I’ve been quite impressed: you can put crumbled cornflakes on chicken and it tastes like KFC – but much more healthy. And it’s really handy if you’re constantly on the go. You can quickly put some chicken on or even make omelettes in it, which saves so much time.
I wish I liked fish, but I can’t stand it. And it’s so annoying, because it’s great nutrition and it looks so nice as well. Even prawns, fish and chips – it must be anything that comes out the sea, I just can’t hack it.
I try to get most of my nutrition from food and then top it up with supplements: vitamin D, vitamin C, omega 3, magnesium.
If I could invite anyone to a dinner party, it’s got to be Usain Bolt. Just because I absolutely idolised him when I was younger. I remember seeing him at the Olympics, and I’m convinced that spiked me into being, “Yeah, I want to be an athlete.”
My favourite things
Food
That would have to be chicken. I have chicken, in different variations, for every meal. Apart from breakfast. Oh god, no! I don’t have chicken for breakfast.
Drink
Most of the time we have to drink water, but I do love a soft drink, so probably a Coke, if I was treating myself. And, obviously, I love Yorkshire tea.
Place to eat
It’s got to be this curry house that the family go to, the Spiced Mango near Dewsbury. It’s a proper family-led place run by such genuine, hard-working people and it’s lovely.
Dish to make
The first meal I learned to cook was a risotto with chicken, chorizo and spinach. And it’s my comfort meal now if I come home or I want to cook for someone.
The new series of Gladiators is on BBC One and iPlayer now
