Body Talk with direk Joey

How did you do it?

If you were used to seeing direk Joey Javier Reyes somewhat, uh, “too healthy” more than two years ago, you would also ask that same question when you see him now looking so fit and, yes, “just healthy.”

So how did Joey do it — that is, slimming down from 260 lbs. to 164 lbs. and trimming his waistline from 39” to 31”? Did he undergo bariatric/gastric bypass, a lipo or some such intrusive procedure?

“None of the above,” smiled Joey who is currently shuttling between two sets, one for Monster Mom (starring Annabelle Rama, husband Eddie Gutierrez and daughter Ruffa Gutierrez) of Regal Films/GMA Films and the other, When Love Begins (with Aga Muhlach and Anne Curtis) of Star Cinema. “I simply went on a rigid diet and worked out religiously — for two years.”

He conceded that maintaining his “new” body is even harder than losing more than 160 pounds.

“Discipline, discipline, discipline,” he said.

Joey is 53 but, according to his doctor, he has the body of a 25-year-old and the sex drive of an 18-year-old. As of his last executive check-up, his blood pressure was found to be normal (120/80) and his blood sugar level is also normal. His cholesterol and triglyceride counts are okay.

Doesn’t he qualify for a “body talk?”

How religiously do you work out?

“Five to six times a week at the gym, two hours per session. I still do it now.”

And your diet?

“It’s a matter of discipline. First, I tried the South Beach Diet for six weeks. I took white rice completely out of my diet. On weekends, I eat brown rice. Red meat? Very minimal.”

What’s for breakfast, for lunch and for supper?

“For breakfast, it’s always oatmeal (Quaker Oats) and coffee. For lunch, salads topped with tuna, plus fruits and peanut butter. For supper, fish or chicken, grilled or steamed but never fried. For snacks, peanuts (not fried). When I want to indulge myself; I eat Chocnut.”

How much water do you take per day?

“Eight bottles because I sweat a lot. My goal is to compete in the Fitness First Marathon. Hahaha!”

What about your soda intake?

“I take only Diet Coke, Coke Zero or Pepsi Max. All sugar-free.”

With your busy schedule, do you get eight hours of sleep per night?

“Six hours are good enough for me. I usually go to bed at 1 a.m. and I wake up at 7 a.m.”

Isn’t it stressful doing two movies at the same time? How do you cope with stress?

“I refuse to be stressed out. If I get sick, the studio/company won’t pay naman for my hospitalization. So I turn the table at sila ang ini-stress ko. Hahahaha!”

How do you relax?

“I listen to music. I read books. My favorite author is Jodi Picoult. I’ve just read her novel The Pact and I’m halfway through with 19 Minutes.”

Do you have a love life?

“Been there, done that. I call myself an ‘Ozone Disco survivor’ because I’ve been ‘burned’ several times. I am not committed at the moment and I don’t think I will ever be for a long time.”

Oh, you’re like Aga and Anne’s characters in When Love Begins — they are into a relationship but they shun commitment.

“It feels good when you are in a commitment but you feel miserable once that commitment goes wrong. With commitment comes responsibility.”

I guess you could identify with the characters of both Aga and Anne.

“Yes. I can also identify with Aga’s relationship with his mom (played by Boots Anson-Roa). My mother is 96, bedridden due to a bad fall. She’s a teleserye addict. She loves me so much and I love her so much. That’s why when we shot the death scene with Aga and Boots, who’s supposed to be a cancer patient, naging emotional ako and I cried. That was the first scene that we shot, last year pa. I told Boots, ‘No iyakan, no hagulgol.’ I told Aga, ‘Try to hold back.’ The scene was very moving. In her deathbed, Boots was telling Aga, ‘I want you to know that kahit nag-aaway tayo, I’m proud of you.’ At that time, Aga’s mom Anita was suffering from cancer (She died late last year. — RFL) I learned later that Aga and his mom had a similar scene in real life. Anita was telling Aga, ‘Thank you. Don’t worry, okay na ako.’ After the shooting, ako ang nag-breakdown. Aga hid in a room. I think he cried.”

You’ve worked with Aga in several movies (including Bakit Labis Kitang Mahal with Lea Salonga; Nag-iisang Bituin with Vilma Santos and Christopher de Leon; Hindi Kita Malilimutan with Carmina Villarroel, Jomari Yllana and Maricel Laxa; Kung Ako Na Lang Sana with Sharon Cuneta; and May Minamahal with Aiko Melendez). You saw how Aga progressed and grew as an actor.

“When we did Bakit Labis Kitang Mahal, our first movie together, Aga was, I think, only 21. We talked about topics about the young. Now in When Love Begins, we talk about his being a father, his children, his resthouse in Batangas. What I admire about Aga is his being protective of his family.

How’s your outlook in life?

“I’ve never been happier. Life into my 50s is wonderful. I don’t worry at all; I never worry. What’s the point? Many rich people worry about making more money. Why, how much money ba do you need to be happy?”

You think you’ll be working until your 80s, 90s?

“I will never retire.”

Name three men you think have nice bodies.

“Marc Nelson. Jon Avila. Brad Pitt.”

And three women...

“Angelina Jolie. Jessica Alba (before she got pregnant). Anne Curtis.”

Using only body language, how would you make a person know that you admire/like him/her?

“I look at him/her straight in the eye.”

Briefly noted

• Congratulations to Sam Concepcion (photo) who recently bagged the 2008 MYX Music Awards’ Favorite New Artist title. The 15-year-old singer is the youngest recipient of the award and a runaway winner garnering a majority of MYX viewers’ votes in the said category. With his current role as DepEd’s spokesperson for the youth, Sam has just finished touring some 40 schools nationwide, inspiring young people to excel in school. Sam’s latest single from his album, I’ll Find Your Heart, is still playing on MYX.

• A staunch supporter of the local entertainment industry, Cong. Irwin Tieng finds time to watch various television shows to have a better glimpse of the plight of Filipinos. Years ago, he was inspired by an episode of the ABS-CBN drama anthology Maalaala Mo Kaya, topbilled by John Prats and Baron Geisler, about sibling love amidst one’s physical disabilities.

That particular episode inspired Cong. Irwin to author HB 3718, which proposes to increase the additional exemption for taxpayers with dependents who are incapable of self-support because of mental or physical defect, or with disability, amending for this purpose Section 35(B) of Republic Act (R.A.) 8424, otherwise known as the National Internal Revenue Code of the Philippines (NIRC).

The new bill sees the need to have a distinction between dependents who are physically and mentally fit, and dependents with disabilities, in terms of taxation, since they have different needs.

• Some 18 new works by prize-winning artist Emmanuel Garibay are gathered in an exhibit titled Puno’t Dulo, opening at Gallery Art Verite on the second level of Serendra at The Fort in Taguig City today. Garibay, one of the recipients of the CCP Thirteen Artists Award in 2000, is well known for his bold images, figurative distortions, colors that are rich and surface textures that seem to cry out. He says the works in Puno’t Dulo can be likened to the cause and effect of certain elements, many of them foreign, to Philippine culture. Exhibit will run until April 25. (For details, Art Verite can be reached at tel. no. 915-1982, 0917-3296273; e-mail [email protected].) 

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