MANILA, Philippines - Fortunately, we don’t need to be reminded about getting fit these days. There’s more motivation now when it comes to exercising and hitting the gym. Vanity has probably saved us, coupled with paranoia about diseases. But primarily, more people dream of having nice arms and chiseled abs. And there’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, “hotness” brings in the good vibes and we’ve got TV5 star Carla Humphries and model newbie Deny Barros — Young Star’s “sickest” Body-of-the-Moment recipients — to prove it. It can even fix a broken heart. “When I broke up with my (last) boyfriend, I started spending more time with my friends and realizing that taking care of yourself and looking your best and feeling your best is so important... And really getting fit helped so much,” Carla, who just came out with her first body-licious FHM cover this month, reveals. The newly reinvented actress shows us how fitness evokes change. “Being vain is good,” Deny admits. The rising Brapanese model doesn’t even need to move a finger to catch our attention. Now, they tell us how to bring out that inner hotness!
Deny Barros, 23
Model
How to’s for a hot body: I always go for a 30 to 45-minute run every morning. I do chest and biceps on one day and on the next day I do shoulders and legs, and on another day I do back and triceps training. I work out Mondays to Saturdays. I rest on Sundays. If you take out the time I run, it’s about one-and-a-half hours of training. It’s called ABC training, working out in bi-sets. I do two exercises before resting for 30 seconds. Three reps each bi-set. For the abs, I do it every other day. I started this when I started modeling at 18. Now, I’m also playing indoor football every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at Club 650 in Libis.
Problem areas: I’m now trying to get bigger chest. It’s like the most important part. They always look for a big chest and ripped abs.
Body heat and what you eat: Before going to the gym, I always take a glass of green tea or coffee without sugar, two bananas and two slices of wheat bread. The diet is the most important thing. To get a nice body, you need low carbs. But low carbs doesn’t mean no carbs (laughs). You need carbs to get energy. More protein to recover the muscles. And nuts. Now, I usually eat brown rice, chicken and beef. I love Brazilian barbecue.
Rules of attraction: Actually, I have no style. I could say that I’m really shy. For me, it’s hard that I wait for the girl to come. I don’t really like parties. I’m usually just on the side. Yeah, I like clothes. Not too many things. Not to high-fashion. Just not so bad.
No vain, no gain: I’m pretty much vain about my hair and face. I put cream on my hair once in a while to make it shinier and softer. I also use facial scrub. Being vain is good, especially when your work needs you to be. You got to make yourself look better.
Break-up breakthrough: I’ve never experienced any break up. I’ve been with my girlfriend for six years now. So, I have no idea. And I don’t want to find out (laughs).
Carla Humphries, 22
Actress
How to’s for a hot body: I do cardio for 30 to 40 minutes, every other day. I do a little weights. And then, when I feel like I’ve done so much weighs, I do yoga to stretch it up. I’m not at the peek of my body but I’m getting there. It takes a long time to get to your goal. But you’ll feel like you’re in euphoria when you get to that point when you worked so hard for your body...I do this exercise. It’s like plyo. It’s a routine of several exercises. It’s in a circle and you have to finish it in a span of 30 minutes so you do the circle three times. There’s music and then it stops. Then, you shift to the next exercise. It’s a mixture of cardio and muscle build up.
Problem areas: Like a lot of girls out there, I have trouble with my abdominal area. It’s the hardest and (takes) the longest (workout). Until now, it’s not where I want it to be, like I want Jessica Alba’s-abs-kind-of-thing. But I’m getting there. The weird thing is when you do abs sometimes and you still feel bloated. But after a week, that’s when you see (the change).
Body heat and what you eat: It was hard for me to train because I love sweets. I eat my main course to get to the sweets. But then, when I started getting fitter, I didn’t crave as much for the food that I was craving for.
Rules of attraction: If you asked me this last year, I’d say you’re asking the wrong person. But right now, I think I know. I just discovered that the best way to attract people in general is just being open to meeting new people and just talking about things that interest you and you’re passionate about; being confident and smiling and laughing a lot. When a person sees that you’re such fun to speak to, people will really be drawn to you.
No vain, no gain: My favorite vanity practice is being happy, spending time with friends; and just always smiling helps a lot. Do you know that when you put a good scent on, it changes your aura? So, when I put coconut on, I feel beachy. And when I put DKNY’s Be Delicious! on, I feel so fresh...My big thing is taking care of the skin...I try to put sunblock every day and moisturizer. And I love to get my nails done.
Break-up breakthrough: I’ve been single for over two years. I was going through a lot of changes in my life that I didn’t really know how to deal with and my mind was all over the place. What I figured out is that when you jog, when you get fit and take care of yourself physically and internally, it clears out your mind. When you’re so busy and stressed, you end up sluggish and just in bed because you’re just mentally tired. When you make the steps to get out of bed and not fill your body with junkfood, you get a clearer mindset and more positive outlook in life. You just feel you can do anything.
Work of heart: When you learn how to love yourself and take care of yourself on your own, that’s the time when it’s easier for someone to find you and fall in love with you. Sometimes you have to realize what you want and what you want to do. If you’re always thinking about being in a relationship, you forget what your goals are for yourself. I think it’s very healthy for you to spend time with yourself.