HEALTH'Knots Landing' Star Donna Mills, 85, Reveals Her Jaw-Dropping Fitness Routine — and One Guilty Pleasure
Donna mills revealed she keeps an active lifestyle even at 85.
Sept. 9 2026, Updated 7:26 a.m. ET
Donna Mills, 85, is proving that age is no barrier to staying in incredible shape, revealing the demanding routine she follows to keep herself fit.
"I do 100 sit-ups a day, 50 leg lifts, lots of stretching. I have a ballet barre in my little gym," Mills told Fox News.
She Combines Ab Work With Cardio
Mills stays active at 85, doing 100 sit-ups and other exercises daily.
Mills' daily routine extends well beyond her 100 sit-ups.
"And [I] ride the bike for about 45 minutes or an hour," said the Emmy-winning actress. "I play tennis five times a week sometimes. And so that's very, very important."
The actress also incorporates stretching and ballet barre exercises into her workouts.
"It's a lot of stuff. You got to work at it," Mills said.
Her approach to fitness goes back decades and began before she became a familiar face on television.
"I started out as a dancer, so a ballerina. I mean, I was on pointe, the whole thing," she said.
Ballet Taught Mills Discipline
Mills revealed that her exercise discipline extends to how she eats.
Mills believes those early years shaped the habits she still follows today.
"So that gave me a discipline that most people don't have because ballet is very hard," the soap opera legend said.
Her approach to food is similarly disciplined.
"I've always been anti-sugar," she said. "I read a book a long time ago called Sugar Blues that really talked about the sugar industry and everything, and I have stayed away from it ever since."
Want OK! each day? Sign up here!
She Has a Weakness
Mills said she's addicted to Doritos, despite her usually strict diet.
The veteran performer's approach to healthy eating does come with one notable exception.
"I'm a Doritos addict," she admitted.
Nacho cheese is her preferred flavor, although Mills knows the chips do not fit neatly into her usual diet.
"I mean, it's not good for you. It's not. You know, I know I shouldn't do it," she said.
"Different sets that I've been on... for some reason, they know — they always got a bag of Doritos in the trailer for me... it's really funny," added the star of Play Misty for Me. "But I've never lost that. I don't eat them as much as I used to. But they're still a treat."
Mills Is Starting a New Chapter at 85
Mills recently joined OnlyF---.
Mills' fitness routine comes as she embraces what she considers a new stage of her life, including her recent launch on OnlyF---.
"They want to know me," she said of her subscribers. "They want to know what I do during the day when I'm home. They want to see my home."
Mills also hopes her willingness to try something new will encourage other women.
"When I kind of looked at it a few years ago and said, 'What do I want to do with this portion of my life, this chapter in my life?' I said, 'I'd like to be an inspiration,'" she said. "I'd like to show people, and particularly women, that it doesn't have to be over. It's just a new chapter. It's not the end... It's just something you can enjoy. You should enjoy. It's part of your life."
Mills rose to fame playing Abby Cunningham on Knots Landing before appearing in General Hospital, Dawn and Doctor Odyssey.
