#ATHOMEWITHTHEMAN: ANDREW GEORGIADES
Being that you are a full-time model, how are you adjusting to this change in scenery & pace of living life?
At first, it was saddening to see everything around me get cancelled, opportunities I’d felt I’d worked hard towards being ‘postponed indefinitely’, and I think being self-employed, and in the creative industry when you finally hit your stride and find your momentum, you don’t really want to slow down or stop for anything! So for me things I was very much looking for the next opportunity, reaching the next level, and bettering myself.
Thankfully I didn’t linger too long in the change of scenery and pace, I embraced it and I found meaning in it. Not to sound too spiritual but I think being forced to slow down and look inwards is something we rarely give ourselves the luxury or opportunity of doing. And here we were, being forced to do just that. To be completely honest, I’ve always loved my own company, I’ve always loved the solitude of my room, and I’ve always been able to keep busy with personal projects or hobbies. So whilst the outside world perceives me as this super sociable, non-stop person, I can just as easily flip to the other end of the spectrum and allow myself to sink into that. I also spent a lot of time with my brothers, who for the first time in 10 years were all under the same roof which was great, I don’t know when I’ll get that opportunity again.
Whilst we were in the thick of lockdown, what did your day to day goings-on look like?
In the beginning, I really gave myself to indulgence. I slept in and I ate whatever I wanted. After I got that out of my system, I started creating a routine -
7 am - wake up and reply to messages, DM’s, Emails in bed
8/9 am - work out outside, go for a run
10 am onwards, a combination of fuelling my creativity in some way or form. Be it picking up unfinished photo series and re-editing them, online acting classes, reading, curating proposals to brands. Etc.
6 pm - my family and I took turns in cooking great meals and spent time together. We’re all into our films so would end up diving into a lot of art-house, indie or foreign cinema. So whilst enjoyable, I also felt like I took something away from each viewing.
How did this experience affect your sanity?
I honestly have to say I never once felt my sanity slipping away from me. I had a few family related health issues which was a dark time but turn out ok thank God, and my MacBook broke which was a emotional. But the lockdown experience itself, found myself keeping very busy.
Many individuals were indulging in food, gaming and pretty much just relaxing, were you able to do the same?
Yes, I think lockdown was about balance and self-preservation. The pressures of doing too much could sometimes backfire. For me it was just about finding balance, Call of Duty Warzone was a godsend at times though, there was definitely a period where I found myself online with my friends every night. And the House Party app had a brief but worthwhile spike.
How did your body cope with the slowing down in pace? Did you find yourself feeling more lethargic?
YES. I like to wake up early and get exercise out the way, by the time 2/3 pm came along I felt like I needed a nap. (Pre lockdown I was never a nap person) but I would often give in to that feeling and trust my body. I actually lost a lot of muscle mass early on.
Let’s talk body image, having the gyms closed seemed to be a nuisance to many. I can imagine this must have impacted you greatly, especially as your whole being is attributed to your job, right?
Totally, as I said above, I lost a lot of muscle mass. I’m naturally very slim with high metabolism so work hard to maintain muscle mass by pushing heavy in the gym. Not having that, and taking up running for the first time in my life had me losing a lot of weight. There reached a point (late April) where I managed to get hold of some home weights, and also had access to a close friends outdoor gym, which I could only attend at 8 am. This was when my routine really found it’s stride as it meant I could never slack on waking up late.
Have you had to think about how and when you’d have to “snap back” into your ideal state of being healthy again? If so, what is your regime to shredding body fat?
Once I got my diet back in order (cut out chocolate and bread/carbs temporarily) and focused on running after heavy weight training, I started to shred the weight that had built up around my abs.
What consists of your home workout circuit?
I would run to my grandparents’ house and back (around 6km) and then I would do EMOM outside. Honestly, though it wasn’t until I had access to my friends’ outdoor gym that I felt like I could get back into the adequate shape that I wanted, he had a pull-up bar, bench, dumbbells, kettlebells and weights. So I was very fortunate to have that.
How do you fuel yourself pre and post-workout?
Pre-workout just morning cereal and a banana. Post-workout I would have a shake and yoghurt, followed by a protein-heavy lunch at 1 pm.
How have you kept up with your grooming whilst hairdressers has been closed?
Let my hair and beard grow for three weeks lol. Then I realised I needed to start keeping my beard in check as it directly impacted my productivity, so I would regularly trim and maintain my beard until eventually, I could get a haircut (I had a close friend who would give me a trim in my garden)
Are you accustomed to trimming your own hair?
No, and I never will be.
When we mention grooming, what comes to mind for you?
Skincare mainly, cleansing, toning and moisturising morning and night, and maintaining my stubble with a trimmer or a clean shave. I never put product in my hair during lockdown unless I was shooting from home or producing content for social media.
It appears as what was once called being “metrosexual” is now just a norm and is now branded as self-care. With this being said, what does your self-care routine include?
Definitely skincare, I work with a number of skincare brands. Tom Ford Beauty, Keihls, Decorte. Mr Porter have also introduced me to a number of great products from Dr Barbara Sturm, Dr Sebagh, Dr Dennis Gross and Grown Alchemist. So I play around with all of these, but essentially stick to cleanser, toner and moisturiser, with whatever serum I’m feeling at the time. Shaving and trimming my facial hair. Clean shaving my chest, (not that I get much growing there). Outside of the obvious like brushing teeth and showering, the rest I guess is in diet. I drink a lot of water, I eat fairly healthy, almond or oat milks instead of cows milk etc.
How do you prep for modelling jobs?
I always shower that morning, eat breakfast at home, I’ll only workout prior to a job if I have the time. I like to go in with my hair already done, and beard already trimmed. Too many times I’ve gone in with neither and they’ve said they’re happy with how it looks and I won’t feel groomed.
For those that do not know, what happens in the lead up to getting booked and thereafter?
Honestly it’s changed a lot, in the last year, in the last two years, in the last five years. Most of my bookings now are direct, I rarely cast. When I started modelling I was going to sometime 5/6 castings a day. For the most part now I try to be very proactive, engaging as much as possible with brands that I want to work with, and taking things to them rather than just waiting for them to discover me. That combined with your agents doing their job I think is a good recipe for success.
Lastly, which job has the most sentimental value for you?
Hard to say, I loved working with Calvin Klein as I wrote a treatment for them which had to get approved by their NY offices. I arranged the photographer, the studio, I self styled and produced, and I edited the images. And I think that was the first time I’d given freedom of artistry on that scale with a brand that prominent. Since then I have a nice partnership with Mr Porter, which is blossoming into something which I think will be great collaboratively, moving forward.
