Iza Calzado: A fit and fabulous chick

Marami ang nakakapansin na iba ang glow ni Iza Calzado these days. After her much-publicized break-up with her non-showbiz boyfriend, Iza transformed herself into one fit and fabulous chick. Text by Loretta G. Ramirez. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio Matatawag na sigurong good timing ang pagbabagong naganap kay Iza Calzado sa pagsisimula ng kanyang pinakabagong show, ang All About Eve. A story about women and power, Iza fits her role to a T. Now sporting a new haircut and a leaner, toned body, maraming nagsasabi na ibang-iba na si Iza ngayon. Ano nga ba ang sikreto ng magandang actress? Sa isang exclusive pocket press conference, inamin ni Iza na she is has taken up running and is watching her diet closely, pero nilinaw niya na hindi ang kanyang break-up ang nagtulak sa kanya na tumakbo at magpapayat. “Hindi ‘yun iyon. Ang motivation ko, 'I'm an athlete. I'm an athlete,'" kuwento ni Iza. "'Yun talaga yung motivation ko. A few years back kasi, I read an article about 'yung the Biggest Losers in America. What they did is have them undergo triathlon training so 'yun 'yung workout program nila. Sabi ko, gawin ko kaya 'yan, tapos ang tagal. Alam mo ,'yung most things iniisip mo pero hindi mo ginagawa. So last year sabi ko, sige gagawin ko, tatakbo ako. “I never did anything about it. Karylle was running. Once in a while she would tell me that her friend is one of the Mt. Everest girls. Sabi ko, 'Maybe I'll run with you, maybe I'll run back and forth, tapos nag-stop ko. I started running sa Batanes pa lang, when I was there. Then I stopped, then this year [in] January since I have friends that run in Ultra, I said, ‘You know what? I'll do it, I'll start now,'cause it's now or never.’” Hindi pa dun huminto ang kuwento ni Iza. She described to us her first run. It was not an easy journey to attain her currently trim and fab figure: “My first run was at 5:30 in the morning in Ultra,and I couldn't get out of bed. Parang dapat naman sana gabi na lang ako nag-start, but I don't do that all the time. Mga one hour or one hour and a half, matagal na at saka 'yung one hour and a half may mga breaks 'yun. Tapos sabi ko noon, okay dapat kailangan may goal. Tapos sabi nila—magaling din yung mga friends ko—‘yung support group ko kumbaga sa running. 'Cause I have a coach [and] sabi nila, "Okay, Drew (Arellano) has a fun run. Make that your goal." In two weeks, may fun run, sabi ko okay. Sabi nila, okay lang 'yun, fun run nga eh, basta nakangiti ka, no pressure. Ganun, ‘di ba? Tapos nagbibiruan pa kami, kailangan kapag finish line mo nakangiti ka, ganyan. Sabi ko, sige. So ayun, nangyari 'yung fun run. Eh medyo maganda 'yung record ko so parang mas ginanahan ako, so ayun takbo ulit nang takbo.” Although inamin niyang hindi naging madali magsimula, sinabi niya na it was all worth it, lalo na ngayong kapansin-pansin talaga ang magandang pagbabago sa kanya. Catch Iza on weeknights sa All About Eve! And as for those who would like to be fit and fab like her, ito lang ang nasabi ni Iza: “Set your limitations, so you have to know that you can break these barriers or these walls that you set around you or your mind. Ito 'yung mga lessons at mga insights ko lately that comes with the running and all these things, even with the cutting of hair ‘cause I was so 'I don’t want to cut my hair! Buhok ko yan, eh.' I wanted to color it, so now I’m enjoying it. 'Yung parang 'Uy, puwede pala!'” Talk about this topic sa iGMA forum. Puwede mo ring i-text si Iza to know more about her new fit and fab lifestyle through her Fanatxt service! Just text IZA and send to 4627. (Each Fanatxt message costs P2.50 for GLOBE, SMART and TALK N TEXT, while it costs P2.00 for SUN subscribers). (This service is available only in the Philippines.)