Buff Geoff cool with posing in the buff

By Oliver M. Pulumbarit

(Jan. 19, PDI-Entertainment)

“Yes, I got a ‘fat memo,’” actor Geoff Eigenmann said, confirming reports that circulated in social networking sites last summer.

“That basically suspended me from working,” the latest Men’s Health cover celeb told the Inquirer at the recent launch of the fitness magazine’s January issue. The former “Rosalinda” leading man revealed that his home network GMA 7 had gently reminded him for a whole year about his considerable weight gain.

Despite being repeatedly asked “to do something about it,” Geoff said, he didn’t feel pressured.

Photo by Pau Guevarra

“When I got that memo, I was actually happy that it finally arrived,” he said. That was the impetus for self-improvement, Geoff explained. “I decided to hit the gym and have been doing it basically every day before I start working [again]. In three months, I lost 40 pounds.”

He started doing the body-weight course “Fight Form,” which combines movements and positions from various martial arts such as wrestling, jiu jitsu and Muay Thai. “You can burn up to 400-800 calories in 30 minutes,” he said.

Two months after the lifting of the suspension, he is appearing in the fantasy series “Adarna.” Geoff hopes to improve his physique further, as he has yet to reach his goal. “I gained a little weight over the holidays. But a few weeks back in the gym and it’ll be gone.”

As for baring all in a movie or a more risqué photo shoot, it wouldn’t be a problem at all. “I’ve never had qualms about taking my clothes off.”

Photo by Oliver Pulumbarit

The other celebrity at the launch, Bianca Gonzalez, is the featured model of the latest issue of Women’s Health, her second time to grace its cover. The “social media darling” and “Umagang Kay Ganda” host, who swims and does Pilates, said that being in the public eye entailed certain “responsibilities.”

“On a superficial level, there is this responsibility to look good. Pinoys are very frank,” she told the Inquirer.

“[They would say], ‘Ang liit mo pala.’ But I’ve always been active. And it helps my overall wellbeing when my body stays that way. I’m happier; I’m feeling less stress,” she said. Bianca added that she and cager boyfriend JC Intal were “thankfully going strong,” and that dating an athlete admittedly added “pressure” to be likewise fit.