I also cut out sugar, which is very hard, because I love sugar. But being gluten-free really helped me with the discipline. But I did it, so I was, like, You know what? Sugar is the same. And I really felt the difference. Even with fruit. I eat berries, watermelon, and apples, but the rest is a little bit too much sugar, because I feel the effect that it has on my body.
Madonnas been going on at 10 or 11, and Ive heard even midnight on weekends, which means the show can run until 3 a.m. How do you manage to get enough sleep when you're ending so late? Do you shift back your whole sleeping schedule?
This is the hardest part, but it's become easier. It was actually worse during rehearsals, because the time we finished would change a lot, but now it's a little bit more consistent, so I try to keep at least eight hours of sleep a day. I do a lot of activities, I love moving, I love doing a lot of stuff at once. I'm doing a lot of extra things outside of this tour. I utilize the time that I'm not working to have other meetings, close some deals, and the like. So I really need my eight hours. But if I'm not on tour, sometimes with six hours I'm fine.
I work just as hard when I'm not on tour. I'm also a filmmaker and an actor. I can spend, like, 10 hours a day working on a script. I'm always creating.
Do you do anything else to keep your energy levels up throughout the night for this tour?
No, we're already so pumped. I do what I love! I'm onstage with some creative geniuses around me and an amazing crowd, and we're doing an amazing show. That's enough to give me a bunch of energy. I'm actually overflowing. I'm so pumped all the time, every number.
Are you naturally a night owl?
When I first started dancing, I would dance all night every night, and then I would sleep at school. So I find a lot of inspiration at night, but now I know why: it's because nobody's awake, so it feels like the world is yours. I realized that if I wake up very early in the morning, it's the same thing. Because nobody's awake, you have the time for yourself, you have nobody putting you in their agenda to do whatever. Its your own time. So now when I write, I work very early in the morning.
When you get home from such an energy-packed night, whats the first thing you do to get yourself ready for sleep?
I like to unwind. First I order food from whatevers open, and then I take a shower. Most days, I read a book, but sometimes Ill see some friends. I like to socialize, and I think its very important for me to keep a great social life.
What are you reading right now?
I always read three books at the same time. I just finished reading a book called Finished, which basically explains why people don't really finish stuff. They always start something, whether it's a project, a diet, a relationship or whatever, but they never finish. I believe in the theory that perfection is the enemy of execution, because people have the mentality of all or nothing, and if it's not all, they just stop. So sometimes you just have to finish it, even if it's not perfect, even if it's not good. And then you can even come back to it, or it can be just good enough.
Read more here:
Madonnas Secret Weapon: The Real-Life Diet of Loic Mabanza - GQ
