Meet Ngo Okafor: Model, Actor, Boxer, Trainer, & Fitness Star
Model Ngo Ofakor shares his fitness secrets with Yahoo Beauty. (Photo: Ngo Ofakor)
Male model Ngo Okafor isn’t just a pretty face. Beyond his appearance in numerous magazines like Vogue and W, he’s a Golden Gloves boxer. And when he isn’t getting his picture taken or working out, he’s acting on Law & Order: SVU, or alongside Jonah Hill and James Franco in the new flick True Story. He’s also a personal trainer and the creator of RAKA, a cool cardio/boxing-inspired class based on African rhythms and music. He somehow finds time to do all of this—and maintain his impeccable shape. So what’s his secret? Read on to find out.
Yahoo Beauty: What does a week of working out entail for you?
Ngo Okafor: It involves six days of training. I usually do an hour of cardio and an hour of weights later in the day. I split it up.
What kind of cardio do you do?
Some days I run four or five miles. Some days I will do sprint work. I don’t just do one mode of cardio. The day after, I might do spinning or use a rowing machine or an elliptical machine. I try to mix it up.
Model Ngo Ofakor shares his fitness secrets with Yahoo Beauty. (Photo: Men’s Fitness)
Why is working out so important to you?
It fights aging. It keeps you young. It keeps you moving for as long as you can. I’m 40 years old now.
Are there grooming products you use to keep looking young too?
I use the Clarisonic. I use witchhazel. Witchhazel is my go-to.
Tell us about RAKA.
RAKA is a cardio-strength boxing inspired fitness class that I created. I created it because not everyone can afford to do a 1-on-1 session. I figured, why not create something where I can reach the masses? There are a lot of boxing classes out there that are very intimidating, or you just hit a bag. This is a fun class, and it burns a ton of calories.
Model Ngo Ofakor shares his fitness secrets with Yahoo Beauty. (Photo: Ngo Ofakor)
What do you have to eat to stay in fighting shape?
These days, I eat mostly a carb-free diet. Just a lot of protein, a lot of lean meats. I throw in some vegetables. Saturday or Sunday, I do a meal of whatever I want. My cheat is cheesecake. If I could eat cheesecake and stay lean, I would eat it every meal.
What is your advice for men and women looking to get lean and toned for summer?
Be honest with themselves. That’s number one. You can’t overeat. You can’t drink multiple glasses of wine or multiple drinks and expect to get lean. The biggest thing and most important fight is you cannot out-train your diet. A lot of people think if you train hard, you can eat whatever you want. That’s not true. A lot of the people at the gym burn 450-500 calories. You go out and have three drinks – that adds up – without even counting your meal and all the meals you’ve had throughout the day. You have to be conscious if you want to be truly lean.
Model Ngo Ofakor shares his fitness secrets with Yahoo Beauty. (Photo: Ngo Ofakor)
You’re a male model – what has been your favorite photoshoot experience to date, and why?
It was my first big one. It was with David LaChapelle. It was really cool. It was a MAC campaign with Lil’ Kim and Mary J. Blige. When I went into the audition, these guys had tons and tons of work, and I didn’t. I didn’t think I was going to get it, but David saw my picture and my look. It was a great day. Mary J. Blige was cool. Lil’ Kim was cool. It was a long, long day of shooting. That one was the most fun. I did another one with Gisele [Bündchen]. That was cool, too.
What was it like to work with Gisele?
She was really nice. She came in, had a little dog with her. We had bathing suits on and they photoshopped bathing suits off of the guys to make us look as if we were nude. We had to artistically carry her.
Model Ngo Ofakor shares his fitness secrets with Yahoo Beauty. (Photo: Ngo Ofakor)
What is the most extreme beauty or grooming treatment you’ve undergone for work or out of personal interest?
The craziest thing I’ve ever done is cutting water for over 24 hours for shoots where I’m going to be shirtless. No liquids for 24 plus hours.
But you eat?
You can eat, but very little! I do cardio to sweat the day before.
So after the shoot do you go straight for the cheesecake?
I made the mistake of doing that once, and my stomach was [screwed] up for days, just because your stomach is not ready. You’ve got to ease into it. Replace the fluids and then build back up carefully.
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