Raymond Keane, artistic director of the physical theatre company, Barabbas, tells Patricia Weston about his bad eating habits
Do you exercise?
I cycle about 5km to and from work everyday.
Would you consider yourself fit?
Somewhat but I'm very good at acting fit. It's my job after all.
Is your job active or sedentary?
As a performance artist it can be both but mostly active and that's where I am most happy.
Do you worry about your appearance?
I suppose I do. I've always been incredibly skinny and no matter how much I eat or abuse my body it never changes. I'm the same weight now as I was when I was 14 years old when I rode in my first point-to-point horse race.
Is there anything about your body you'd like to change?
My Adam's apple, it's very pronounced and sometimes I think I look like a chicken. I'd also like the other half of my little finger I lost in a car accident when I was five. And my teeth, I'd love to have healthy white teeth. I suppose if I stopped smoking it might help.
Do you eat a balanced diet?
Embarrassingly no. I eat almost everything that most people believe to be bad for them, and lots of it, and at incredibly irregular intervals.
What would you eat in a typical day?
I don't seem to have typical days. Some days I'll eat breakfast, some days not. Mind you, I nearly always have a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, strong coffee and a fag. I'm usually starving by lunchtime and I can eat for lunch what most people would consider dinner and then I'll have dinner again when I go home in the evenings.
Ever tried any faddy diets?
No. I think if I lost any more weight I might fade away and become invisible. I did try a skin and hair diet some years back. I think I should qualify that it was for skin and hair as opposed to eating skin and hair! I used to be a hairdresser in a former life and was very interested in the natural approach to happy hair. It actually worked really well. It was lots of greens and seaweeds and a particular combination of sesame, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. It sounds awful but it was really delicious.
What stresses you?
Sitting in traffic which is also a reason why I cycle.
What's your attitude to exercise?
We're in serious trouble if we don't or, at least, less able and happy people.
Tanks a lot! is opening in the Project Arts Centre on June 2nd.
Patricia Weston recommends:
If you're thin and would like to add a few more pounds to your weight and build more muscle mass, here are a few tips:
Eat more protein. Eat more lean meat such as chicken, peanut butter and pulses and fewer carbohydrates such as bread, pasta and potatoes. Protein is needed to build new muscle.
Eat more and often and make your breakfast the biggest meal of the day.
When you weight train, lift heavier weights and do less repetitions to build muscle mass.
Keep your workouts short and intense.
Drink lots of water to help your body synthesize protein.
pweston@eircom.net
Patricia Weston is an NCEHS fitness instructor, personal trainer and Pilates teacher.