“IT’S BEEN TOUGH” — Matt Baker opens up about a difficult health battle and admits he’s been in rehab

Presenter Matt Baker, who is starring on Countryfile tonight (January 11), has been open about his health, especially after sustaining an injury.

While appearing in Goldilocks and the Three Bears, an improperly secured chair stunt failed, leading to a fall that impacted his coccyx.

As a result, former Blue Peter host Matt was left with a painful herniated disc. And despite regular sessions to help improve it, he revealed in 2024 that he was still having a tough time.

Matt was left with a painful herniated disc following a stunt (Credit: ITV)

Matt Baker on his ‘challenging’ herniated disc

While speaking to The Sun, he told the newspaper: “It’s a pain, it’s really challenging to get back and get fully fit again.”

Admitting it had been “really tough” for him, Matt added: “I’m just trying to do rehab all the time and stretch and do strength training exercises and that.”

Matt, who used to be a gymnast, experienced significant difficulty with the inflexibility resulting from the hernia, particularly in light of his athletic background. In February 2024, he revealed he “decided to have a nerve block injection”.

“For a long time now, I’ve been dealing with a herniated disc. As an ex-gymnast, it’s hard not to be able to bend forward, so I decided to have a nerve block injection,” he wrote on Instagram.

“What a brilliant surgeon and lovely NHS team it was that did my treatment. Thank you all! (Also, a big thanks to the nurse who used to watch me on Blue Peter – the buttered toast was amazing).”

‘I can’t tell you how upsetting it is as an ex-gymnast’

During an appearance on Gabby Logan’s Mid Point podcast in March 2024, the presenter asked Matt if he could still do backflips.

In response, he said: “No, I can’t now. I’ve injured my back. I can’t tell you how upsetting it is as an ex-gymnast, not to be able to bend forward.”

He continued: “I did my back in. I was doing a panto. I was doing Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and we were practising with the stunt chairs, and the chair wasn’t set correctly and bang!”

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