Jenna Dewan Tatum’s Very Specific Reason for Working With Jennifer Lopez

Jenna Dewan Tatum and her husband, Channing Tatum, are the definition of #CoupleGoals.

Look no further than their steamy performance of “Pony” on Lip Sync Battle. At home with their 3-year-old daughter, Everly, the two also like to get hot and sweaty — by dancing.

“We don’t do dance-offs, but there’s a lot of dancing that happens in our house. There’s a lot of activity with dancing happening 24/7. I have danced since I was 5. Your body is trained in a certain way. It just remembers certain motions and works out a lot easier,” Dewan Tatum tells Yahoo Style.

It’s fitting that she’s the face of Danskin, and in the spring, she’ll serve as the host on Jennifer Lopez’s competition series, World of Dance. Dewan Tatum, 36, started out as a backup dancer for Janet Jackson, worked with Pink and Christina Aguilera, and met her husband on the set of the groovy 2006 hit Step Up.

Dance gear, she says, is a major player in her wardrobe. “I wear the high-waisted black leggings with long sweaters. They’re comfortable and chic. I wear a lot of the long-sleeved leotards. They pair well with nighttime clothes,” says Dewan Tatum, who favors sheer and fitted Zuhair Murad and Marchesa on red carpets.

For her, “a bodysuit is a game-changer. Especially with jeans. It smoothes everything out and creates a much nicer line. You can wear it with a sheer shirt over it. I really like a nice body-conscious outfit. A good tank top. Nice leggings. A good bodysuit. That’s really nice for me. I feel good when I know it fits well.”

Speaking of feeling, and looking, good, Dewan Tatum swears that being active is the best anti-aging medicine. It helps that her daughter goes “nonstop. She’s a very active little girl. And then, there’s 25 years of dancing. There’s a lot of muscle memory. I work out when I can. I like to feel good. I know what looks good on my body.”

She’s also aware of what doesn’t work. “I can’t wear lots of baggier clothes, or shift dresses. I know that. I work with what God gave me,” she says.

Working with Lopez, meanwhile, was its own lesson in loving yourself. Dewan Tatum likens the actress and singer to Benjamin Button, the character played by Brad Pitt who aged in reverse. “I really and truly I did the whole show to learn her secrets to looking that good. I didn’t find out — that’s the biggest bummer. I sat there in awe of her,” says Dewan Tatum.

Of course, growing up in toe shoes has made Dewan Tatum tougher in the footwear department. Where other celebrities complain about wearing stilettos, Dewan Tatum embraces heels.

“My feet are used to being uncomfortable, always. I used to have a bucket of ice for my feet as a dancer. I never choose comfortable shoes,” she says, adding that when it comes to her red-carpet gowns, “I’m always going for a bit more glamour. I want to keep it between chic and edgy. It’s dependent on what I feel good in. I like to go for it.”

Read more from Yahoo Beauty + Style:

• Chrissy Teigen Gets Real About Her Body: ‘My Weight Fluctuates a Lot’

• Lisa Kudrow Embraces Her Age: ‘Older Women Have a Lot to Say’

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