Denzel Washington, 69, knows he’s not getting any younger, so he’s choosing to prioritize his health.
In an interview with Esquire, the actor — who turns 70 next month — spoke about aging and the steps he’s taken to change his lifestyle for the better.
For one, he’s approaching a decade of sobriety after having an unhealthy relationship with alcohol.
“I’ve done a lot of damage to the body. We’ll see. I’ve been clean. Be 10 years this December. I stopped at 60 and I haven’t had a thimble’s worth since,” Washington told Esquire.
Wine had been his vice, partially because he had a 10,000-bottle wine cellar added to his house during construction in 1999, he said.
“I never got strung out on heroin. Never got strung out on coke. Never got strung out on hard drugs. I shot dope just like they shot dope, but I never got strung out. And I never got strung out on liquor. I had this ideal idea of wine tastings and all that — which is what it was at first,” Washington said. “And 15 years into it: Send me two bottles, and make it good stuff, but just two. And I’d drink them both over the course of the day.”
However, he never drank when he was working, he said.
Washington eventually kicked the habit once he realized that it was getting out of hand because he would wake up disoriented, “not knowing what happened.”
Apart from giving up alcohol, the “Equalizer” actor is focusing on getting fit and building strength.
His friend, Lenny Kravitz, introduced him to a fitness trainer whom Washington has been working with since February last year.
“He makes the meals for me and we’re training, and I’m now 190-something pounds on my way to 185,” Washington said. “I was looking at pictures of myself and Pauletta at the Academy Awards for ‘Macbeth,’ and I’m just looking fat, with this dyed hair, and I said, Those days are over, man. I feel like I’m getting strong. Strong is important.”
Part of his desire to adopt a healthier lifestyle is because he wants to live better in his golden years, he said.
“Things are opening up for me now — like being 70. It’s real. And it’s okay. This is the last chapter — if I get another 30, what do I want to do? My mother made it to 97,” Washington said.
In the US, the average life expectancy for males is 74.8 years and 80.2 years for females, per the CDC.
While immortality is still science fiction, there’s been a growing interest in longevity and the idea of reversing one’s “biological age.” Antiaging trends such as IV treatments and red-light therapy are also gaining popularity.
Earlier this year, Alyson van Raalte, a demographer who researches why some people live longer than others, told Business Insider that the length of a person’s life is mostly determined by their genes, life circumstances, and things we can’t predict.
However, she said that adopting simple habits — including not smoking, exercising regularly, and having a strong social network — can lead to a longer life.
A representative for Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by Business Insider outside regular hours.
The post Denzel Washington, 69, says he’s staying sober and working out more now that he’s getting older appeared first on Business Insider.
