HEAVENS, GATES
HE SHOT TO FAME ON POP IDOL AND HAS SINCE CARVED OUT A CAREER ON STAGE — AND AN IMPRESSIVE PHYSIQUE. GARETH GATES TELLS US ABOUT STAMMERING, COCONUT TEA AND HIS LOVE OF DRAG
WORDS: ADAM DUXBURY
Gareth wears tights, by adidas
PHOTOGRAPHY: MARKUS BIDAUX
When did you first become interested in fitness?
I’ve been going to the gym for a while now, probably five years, but I never took it too seriously until about a year ago. I was appearing in Footloose in front of a thousand people every night and halfway through the show I Need a Hero comes on. I’m wearing a pair of dungarees which are ripped off me to reveal a pair of gold hot pants underneath. That’s enough to scare anyone to the gym.
So, what’s a typical day in your fitness routine like?
I try to go to the gym every day. With Footloose, most days it’s just the one show but I’ll be in a different town or city every week. So, I do two things every day: I go to the gym and I manage my business. I often have a day off on a Sunday so I spend that with family. But the rest of the time it’s working out and that’ll usually be just lifting weights. I’ve got quite a fast metabolism, so I don’t need to do much cardio but I might do the occasional run. The show itself is quite energetic — that’s my cardio really.