In Hollywood, it seems like actors lose and gain weight for movie roles at an astonishing rate. The Daily Mirror reported that the Grammy Award-winning rapper, 50 Cent has been on a crash diet for his latest role in ‘Things Fall Apart’, where he will play the part of an American football star battling cancer. 50 Cent otherwise known as Curtis Jackson, posted images of himself looking very gaunt on his Twitter page, after spending three hours a day walking on a treadmill and following a liquid diet to lose 60lbs. “I was starving,” he said.
Other actors have followed suit in this quest to take on a role that is opposite to their body type. Christian Bale’s highly publicized weight loss for “The Machinist” has been compared to the likes of Robert DeNiro in “Raging Bull” and Charlize Theron for her lead role in “Monster”. Some other well known actors dropping massive amounts of weight in order to play specific roles are Tom Hanks, who shed 55lb in “Cast Away” and Colin Farrell in the thriller “Triage”.
Although the hip hop icon 50 Cent has stamped his dedication on this film project while also assuring fans that he will gain back his muscular physique, you have to wonder – is it worth it for actors to lose or gain that much weight for a particular role?
They may make it look effortless, but actors losing or gaining weight fast is often a team effort with safety playing a very important factor in the process. The kind of yo-yoing seen with Christian Bale’s physique can have a chain reaction on hormone balance and mental health and consequently, may not be such a healthy option after all. Here are some of the ways that Hollywood actors have gained or lost weight for movie roles.
Personal Trainer
High-priced personal trainers help actors stay in shape for the premieres and the stylists. Some actors spend as many as three hours in the gym per day to lose weight, and it is all done with a licensed trainer at their side. Hollywood’s most famous movie stars have long owed their bodies – and their careers – to a personal trainer. These days, stars will check each other’s bodies and say “who’s your trainer?” in the same way that they check each other’s clothes and ask who their stylist is.
Diets
Some actors follow fad diets that are developed to make them lose weight fast. Actress Beyonce reportedly used The Master Cleanse system to drop 20 pounds for her part in the movie “Dreamgirls”. The Master Cleanse system advises a consumption solely of a lemonade-based mixture to flush out the body. While fad diets may help you lose weight fast, they are definitely not healthy and the weight almost always is gained back.
Personal Chef
Oprah has one, so does Tom Cruise. Because of the need to stay fit and pleasing to the eye, actors often have a personal chef on hand to ready to create food creations that are healthy and nutritious. If the goal is to gain weight and increase muscle, the chef can design a meal plan focused on a high protein diet. If the actor needs to lose weight for a role the meals will often incorporate fish, lean protein, vegetables and fiber.
Supplements
Weight-loss aids, Diet pills, Supplements, they come with several names but the goal is the always the same, to boost your metabolism and help lose or gain weight fast. The appeal of losing weight quickly is hard to pass up, especially in a very competitive and unforgiving film industry like Hollywood. The FDA has banned ephedra, saying “dietary supplements containing ephedra present an unreasonable risk of illness or injury, and should not be consumed.” Ephedra (ma huang) and ephedrine can be dangerous especially when combined in weight-loss products with other stimulants such as caffeine. It is also important to know that ephedra can cause such side effects as irregular heartbeat, insomnia, and elevated blood pressure. As far as weight loss is concerned, don’t be surprised if you regain every pound you lose once you stop taking supplements containing ephedra or other stimulants. Not only are these products dangerous to your health, but can also be highly addicting.
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