Max Collins
Having her own child only confirmed what Max Collins knew all along—motherhood is tough.
“That’s why I salute all the mothers out there. You always give so much of yourself. But it’s always so fulfilling at the end of the day… You become a better person,” the actress said at her recent launch as the new celebrity endorser of the Japanese beauty brand Aqua Skin.
On top of raising her 1-year-old son, Skye, with her husband, fellow GMA 7 talent Pancho Magno, Max maintains a busy work schedule, going in taping bubbles for acting projects like her ongoing series, “To Have & to Hold,” and fulfilling commitments with her sponsors. While it can be easy to get lost in it all, it’s important, Max said, to allot some time for yourself. After all, as the saying goes, one can’t pour from an empty cup. “The way I’m able to give so much to my family is by taking care of myself, too,” she said.
So no matter how hectic her days get, the 29-year-old actress makes sure to squeeze in a bit of “me time”—even if it only means getting a couple of minutes of exercise in the morning.
“I’m a lot more particular about my schedule now. I make sure I take care of my well-being—physically, emotionally, mentally. All those things are important. My me time entails working out every morning, which helps me get energized for the rest of the day… I meditate and sleep well,” she said.
‘We have to adapt’
Life during the onset of the pandemic was stressful, Max admitted. What helped her cope with the challenges is accepting that the way things are right now will be the way things are for the foreseeable future.
“Keeping a routine keeps me sane. Being cooped up at home was something that I had to get used to. But now I’m OK because I have a routine I stick to. But what really helped me adjust is accepting the fact that we have to adapt. For so long we all kept thinking about when things will be OK soon. But now I have accepted that this is the situation we have to live in now,” she said.
It doesn’t hurt to pamper yourself once in a while. “The more we feel good about ourselves, the more we love ourselves and the better we can take care of our family and kids,” pointed out Max, who keeps her beauty regimen simple. “I take amino collagen supplements and I focus on maintaining a healthy diet. Being healthy is part of looking good.”
Though she prefers natural ways to maintain her looks, Max doesn’t necessarily have anything against cosmetic procedures, like having filler or botox injections. “They can go hand in hand… I’m all for taking natural, healthy steps. But also, technology has become more advanced and there are new ways to help us look good, and I think I would be open to those,” she said.
More than anything, Max’s goal is to just be the “best version of myself.” “This pandemic has made us realize that life is short, so we have to make the most of what we have … now is the time to focus on being the best person for my family and make the most out of life,” she said.