Christian Le Blanc is aware he’s lucky to live in sunny Southern California where The Young and the Restless, the show on which he’s played Michael Baldwin for 30 years, is shot. He tells Soap Hub he takes advantage of his geographical location to stay fit in these winter months by working out outside.
Y&R’s Christian Le Blanc Loves L.A.
Le Blanc, who is preparing to play Big Daddy in an Off-Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof later this year and is also an artist, opted to forgo working out in a gym once the pandemic hit. However, he’s still getting plenty of exercise by hitting the beaches in Los Angeles. He explains the benefits of getting out in this week’s installment of Soap Hub’s Wellness Wednesday.
Soap Hub: Where do you work out nowadays?
Christian Le Blanc: I don’t go to the gym. I’ve gone to this guy – Lou – for over 20 years. He is just great. I learned early on [about the importance of working out] when I worked as a kid because I’m a little high-wired. At one of my first jobs, I was told to run around the studio so I’d be calm for my closeups. I couldn’t find that stillness. I realized it was getting dark during the pandemic. Part of it was [not doing] physical activity. I found out Lou was working out [outside]. So, I go out there [to work with him].
Soap Hub: How is it working outside? Benefits?
Christian Le Blanc: It’s funny. All my art, this new exhibit I’m doing online is called ‘Walking During a Time of Play’ in French. It has to be stuff that I’ve seen while I’m walking. So, right next to where I’m doing this outside working out, doing pushups and pullups, there is a duck looking at me. [I thought] ‘What is a duck looking at me?’ It’s an urban farm. A lot of my new art is that kind of thing.
Soap Hub: What other benefits are there about working outside in Southern California?
Christian Le Blanc: I never went to the beach. Like everybody else who lives here, I never went to the beach. Now I do an hour up and down the beach before I work out. You’ll see some sights there. I recently saw Melissa Ordway [Abby] and her husband [Justin Gaston, ex-Chance] out there. We didn’t hug but we took a long-distance picture of each other. I’ll do my French out loud and all my lines [for Y&R]. In Venice, nobody notices you if you’re talking to yourself. I’ve learned my lines for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof marching up and down Venice Beach.
Soap Hub: What do you like about sunny Southern California? The sun and Vitamin D, the ocean breeze…
Christian Le Blanc: All of it. There are blizzards on the east coast…it’s 20 degrees above average in New Orleans [but] with 90% humidity. And I’m here on this beautiful beach [in Los Angeles] with 60-to-70-degree weather.
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Soap Hub: Do you recommend working out outside? Granted not everyone can do that till the spring.
Christian Le Blanc: I think that especially during this time [yes]. I can focus. I can draw and learn these things. I can hyper-focus on my work….I’m isolated here. We all are. You have to change it up. I realized I had to get out. The sun on your skin, the serotonin. It all helps with mental health. It’s all we hear on the news. The next big pandemic is mental health. I went on Maurice Benard’s [Sonny, General Hospital] show [State Of Mind] to hear someone talk out loud about this. You hear everyone talking about it now.
Soap Hub: What’s the one exercise you love to do and the one you hate to do?
Christian Le Blanc: That’s a good one. Lou does some interesting things…it’s all outdoors so you don’t have machines. I think sometimes you don’t want to do anything…I’m like my dad. He was in the gym in his 80s. I like walking on the beach. It lets my mind drift. I have drawn the birds I see on my walk on the beach. When you’re looking at things to draw, you look at things differently….I’ve never done so much walking in my life.
Soap Hub: Working outside helps you with your creativity with your art?
Christian Le Blanc: Yes. I need a theme and I have a show coming up in 2022 either online or at a brick-and-mortar. I came up with stuff I see on my walks. Beautiful roses in Beverly Hills. Ravens in New Orleans and [things along] the beach.
Soap Hub: How are you with sleep?
Christian Le Blanc: Weirdly when the pandemic first hit you had an excuse not to go out and go to work so I slept like a rock. Then anxiety starts creeping in…I decided I needed physical activity. I say call a therapist and get to the gym [when you need to]. They help each other. When you’re out there walking in the sunlight, you get the Vitamin D you need.
The Young and the Restless (YR) airs weekdays on CBS. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s coming up in Genoa City, check out all the latest that’s been posted on Y&R spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.
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