Denzel Washington hired a trainer after 'looking fat' in photos

Denzel Washington hired a personal trainer after deciding he looked "fat" in photos.

As part of an essay for the Winter 2024 issue of Esquire magazine, the Oscar-winning actor recalled how he decided to improve his fitness after seeing himself in photos at the 2022 Academy Awards.

"I was looking at pictures of myself and (wife) Pauletta at the Academy Awards for (The Tragedy of) 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,'" he wrote in the piece.

Denzel also revealed that one of the people who helped with his health journey was famously buff rockstar, Lenny Kravitz.

"I'm doing the best I can. And not only alcohol - forget all that. Strength. About two years ago my good friend, my little brother, Lenny Kravitz, said, 'D, I wanna hook you up with a trainer.' And he did, and he's another man of God. I started with him February of last year," the 69-year-old continued.

Denzel noted that the trainer makes meal plans for him, and since working together, he is inching closer to his goal weight of 185 pounds (84 kilograms).

Elsewhere in the article, the Training Day star discussed how giving up alcohol a decade ago has had an impact on the way he thinks about longevity.

"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. 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," he added.

Denzel is currently promoting the historical epic Gladiator II.