He’s Exercising . . . but a Better Diet Will Just Have to Wait
The ladies may love Malik Yoba as Det. J.C. Williams on Fox’s “New York Undercover,” but no cookie is going to come between this actor and his ice cream (especially Breyer’s Cookies ‘n’ Cream). “Man, I’ll eat it 365 days a year,” Yoba, 29, said.
He is trying to be good, though, hitting the gym Saturdays and Sundays.
“It’s about discipline because who really wants to lift heavy stuff and push it around in a sweaty room with a bunch of other grunting people, you know?”
Question: So when did you get serious about exercising?
Answer: When I did the movie “Cool Runnings” [1993]. Someone said ‘Like, Malik, how soon can you lose 15 pounds?” I said, “As soon as you need me to.”
Q: Were you overweight then?
A: I was 225 pounds and I had some real problems with that. “Damn, I’m just, like, fat and nasty. This is disgusting.” And I wasn’t working out. I kept making excuses. “Oh, I’m going to get to the gym. I’m going to get to the gym,” and I never got there.
Q: But you go now.
A: Well, high blood pressure runs in my family, so I definitely am into working out. Of course, being on television, that helps. Don’t want to be a fat slob.
Q: So what do you do at the gym?
A: I do at least half an hour to 40 minutes of cardio--treadmill, stationary bike. I do a lot of stretches. Crunches. Sometimes the barbells. Also, I have a treadmill at my house, I roller-blade and I ice skate in the winter. The thing I like about working out with my trainer, Kip, is that he pushes me.
Q: You need pushing?
A: Once I stop feeling that burn, then I’m like, “OK, cool.” But he’ll make me do three more or five more, which I appreciate.
Q: By the way, what do you weigh now and how tall are you?
A: I’m about 225, 6 feet 2. I’ve seen my body change. It’s more defined and I’ve definitely gained muscle mass. It’s kind of cool, you know?
Q: You really eat ice cream year-round, cold weather and all?
A: I do not care--weather outside ain’t got nothing to do with what’s going on inside. Over the summer and particularly in the last few months, I was just bingeing off this ice cream. I was feeling like the fattest pig in the world. And then I just said, “You know, this is ridiculous.” So I’ve been off the fat of ice cream.
Q: What’s the rest of your diet like?
A: I try to eat right but with my schedule it’s so hard. I just try to watch what I eat. I don’t eat eggs or ham or bacon. And trainers will tell you to eat five small meals a day, but I haven’t been able to do that. Sometimes I’ll eat just one meal a day.
Q: Were you overweight as a kid?
A: I was never, like, fat. Well, actually that’s not true. Growing up, we had to cook, clean, sew, do the laundry, iron and shop. And since I was punished all the time--I was locked up in the house--I would buy all this junk food. So at 15 I managed to get to 193 pounds.
Q: Is Kip trying to get you to work on your diet?
A: Yeah, but that’s, you know. . . .
Q: On down the line?
A: Yeah.
* Guest Workout runs Wednesdays in Life & Style.