Fans remember her as the spellbinding actress who played Sabrina Spellman in Sabrina The Teenage Witch on Nickelodeon in the 90s, but as she celebrates turning 50 years old, Melissa Joan Hart has experienced a magical transformation of her own.
The 1990s star shot to fame as the beloved teenager on the American sitcom and revealed to her social media followers that she has been on a “longevity journey” for the last few years after gaining weight due to being in perimenopause.
She documents her exercises and experiences on Instagram and posts videos of herself working out in extreme conditions and shows off her new body in swimsuits.
Melissa explained to People magazine: “I actually feel stronger and better than I have in a really long time. I lost about 18 pounds last year.”
Ahead of her half-century birthday on 18 April, she revealed that her secret to staying in shape was “cutting sugars and cutting alcohol” and shared that she hadn’t touched alcohol in over a year.
While she blows out the candles on her cake, we’re taking a look back at Melissa’s transformative journey…
© InstagramSabrina The Teenage Witch
From 1996 until 2003, Melissa starred as the title character in the popular sitcom, which ran for seven seasons.
She quickly became one of children’s TV’s biggest icons and was massively popular with young women across the globe.
Looking back on her time playing the witch, she posted a photo of herself to her Instagram with a caption, noting: “Flashback to way back when my hormones were crazy… and thanks to perimenopause, they’re crazy once again! As a busy mom juggling work, family, and everything in between, I didn’t have time to just ‘wait it out’.” She added a reference to the health service she used to combat her hormonal changes.
© InstagramTime for a change
Melissa is married to her husband, Mark Wilkerson, and the couple share three sons, Mason, 20, Braydon, 17, and Tucker, 13.
She revealed she had gained weight when she entered perimenopause and admitted she felt she would never be able to loose it.
During her chat with People, she said: “I just wanted to feel better. It had nothing to do with losing weight. I really didn’t think I could lose weight anymore, being in midlife and perimenopause and all those things, I was like, ‘Can I really lose weight? I don’t think I can.'”
© InstagramDiet and exercise
The star began working out and documenting her visits to the gym online, sharing insights into her high-intensity classes, using the SkiErg and flipping tyres across the studio floor.
She posted photos from her sessions at Body Fit Training and showed her followers how she squeezed in quick workouts with dumbbells in her dressing room.
Melissa starts her day with a protein shake and focuses on lean meats and veggies for her mealtimes.
“I’ll do hot tea, cold tea, green tea, peppermint tea, any kind of tea,” she told People and explained why she cut alcohol out of her life, revealing she didn’t “even enjoy drinking”.
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