Health Scan

Hector Ó hEochagáin

Do you think you have a healthy lifestyle?

Yes. I get up at 5.30am and start the day with a bowl of porridge. At 9am I have scrambled eggs. I finish work around lunchtime and go to the gym. At dinner, I try to cook some decent food for the kids so it’s a fairly good routine.

How often do you exercise?

I go to a gym three or four days a week – I do weights, strength and a lot of aerobic work. I also play squash. I’ve always kept fit and I’m not a smoker.

Do you get your five a day?

Yes. I try to get some blueberries on my porridge. I go through phases of eating bananas after I train. I drink a lot of water and I get organic vegetables from a farm near my house. I love turnip; it’s a very underrated vegetable.

Do you worry?

Everybody worries a little bit, but I’m fairly good at trying to keep the best side out. It’s my job on the radio to keep the country positive. There is no point in worrying about stuff, that’s my character – keeping fit and having my family around me, that’s the main thing. I’m very lucky that I enjoy doing my work. All that keeps away the stress.

What do you do to relax?

I like lying on the couch. I’ve a fairly big TV and I’ve a high definition Sky Sports box. I’ve been known to do 14 hours on a Saturday between racing and soccer. If I get a good run at it, I will do the full day on the couch. That’s how I relax.

What’s your unhealthiest habit?

I enjoy a good snack box from time to time – Ezio’s chipper in Navan is probably the best. For the first time the other day in about six months we went into McDonagh’s in Galway and I got curry sauce, the garlic sauce, coleslaw and my chips were swimming in vinegar. The cod was beautiful. I enjoy the odd glass of Blue Nun or a bottle of Mateus, the old school wines that made us who we are.

Hector Goes, a new four-part TV series is broadcast on Monday nights on RTÉ One after the News.