Ai-Ai delas Alas
With their considerably lighter schedules last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ai-Ai delas Alas and Gerald Sibayan were able to dedicate more time to their fitness goals.
For Ai-Ai, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and a strong physique is important, especially considering the 29-year difference between her and her husband: the actress is 56; Gerald, 27. She feels compelled to keep up with him, she admitted.
“Hinahabol ko ’yung edad niya, eh. I have to be strong and fit. The age gap is already wide as it is, so I can’t be not fit,” she told the Inquirer in her recent contract signing for the bihon noodle brand Hobe, which she has been endorsing for six years now.
“Baka maaga ako mamatay!” she quipped, laughing.
Ai-Ai and Gerald, who often post about their home workout sessions, managed to hit their respective target weight last year. In a post on Instagram, she told her followers that she was “happy and thin” at 110 pounds. Gerald, on the other hand, is now down to 170 pounds, after weighing as much as 250 pounds.
“I’m not really on a diet, but I believe my metabolism has really improved from [all the exercises I do in our home gym,” she said. “Gerald now has a neck! And I think he’s planning to compete in a fitness competition.”
But more importantly, the GMA 7 star said, she needs to be in tip-top shape if she ever hopes to have a baby again. “I have to train and strengthen my back, build muscles, so I can carry a baby,” she pointed out.
In her previous interviews, Ai-Ai revealed that she intended to get pregnant in 2020 via in vitro fertilization. There was already an embryo, too. But the plan seems to have been put on hold.
Does she still want to push through with it? “If my doctor allows it, perhaps in 2022? But if not, eh ’di nganga!” jested Ai-Ai, who has been married to Gerald for three years now. “Bahala na si Lord.”
There’s no perfect marriage, Ai-Ai pointed out. But if anything, the pandemic has only made her bond with Gerald even stronger. “There are humps along the way, but we survived,” she said.
Life under quarantine took a lot of adjustment. But there are some advantages, Ai-Ai said. “I’m the jealous type, so I’m happy that Gerald isn’t going out often!” the actress-television host jested. “I’m happy because he’s always there. I’m not stressed. Kaya siguro gumanda ang skin ko!”
With husband Gerald Sibayan
Ai-Ai recently finished a locked-in taping for the upcoming Kapuso drama series, “Owe My Love.” It was tough at first. But as the days wore on, work became more and more enjoyable.
“Not seeing my family for a long time was sad. You couldn’t go outside. We had to stay in our designated areas, but we got used to it. We ate lunch and dinner together like a family. And before we knew it, we were done and having sepanx (separation anxiety),” she related.
The past year has been full of uncertainties. And in moments of doubt, Ai-Ai held on to her faith. “I wasn’t sure what would happen to us if I didn’t have projects. Most of us have that fear. But the important thing is that you realize that … look, we have food to eat and water to drink. We’re alive,” she said.
“I believe in the power of prayers … In situations like these, God is the only one we can turn to,” she added.
Ai-Ai’s dream for 2021 is for everyone to get access to vaccines. “That’s what I’m wishing for, so that we can finally go back to our normal lives,” she said. INQ