Despite her high metabolism, local actress Tay Ying managed to gain 10kg in two months for a drama role. 

She did that by eating four meals a day, doing strength training to bulk up, drinking protein shakes as well as stopping all cardio workouts.

In an interview with AsiaOne yesterday (April 18), the 28-year-old, who's taking on a plus-sized role in the upcoming series The Blockbusters, also told us that she didn't have any negative feelings about the changes in her body.

"I didn't really feel insecure," she shared, crediting her "very strong support system" for her emotional stability.

She added: "I didn't feel a change in how the people around me treated me. In fact, they showed a lot of love and support."

For her efforts, Tay Ying soon noticed that her stamina dropped from reducing her cardio workouts and she could no longer fit in her clothes.

"When I put on my old clothes, I found that I couldn't zip them up. So that's when I realised, 'Oh, my body is really changing'. I never used to have this problem. It felt a bit strange and complicated," she shared.

While it may be easier for others to gain, rather than lose weight, the opposite is true for Tay Ying. Prior to preparing for the drama, she never monitored what she ate.

And now that she's reached her goal, her current challenge — at least till filming wraps end June — is to maintain the weight gained.

"Now I need to watch what I'm doing, what I'm eating, how much I'm eating and make sure I reach the necessary calorie intake. I also need to make sure that I'm not doing too much cardio or sweating," she told us.

We asked how her family and boyfriend Wu Sihan felt about her decision to put on weight for the drama, and Tay Ying admitted that they were worried at first due to the short timeline and her body structure.

"They asked me, 'Are you sure? This is not going to be easy,' and then I was like, 'Yes, okay. Let's just try.' After that they were supportive," she recalled, adding that Sihan, who's a chef, eats with her.

"He claims that he's getting fatter because of me because he has to eat with me, and I eat four meals a day."

'Your personality and values are way more important than your appearance'

In The Blockbusters, Tay Ying plays Kira, a member of a plus-sized dance girl group named Team BB.

The 16-episode series follows her and the other members Bree (played by Xixi Lim), Nana (Kayly) and Izzy (Meeki) as they go through the ups and downs of being in the limelight.

Tay Ying told us the reason she took up this role: "I realised that many women struggle with their body image and that makes me very upset. Everyone knows me as being lean and rather fit and of a smaller build. I went through this change to kind of prove the point that at the end of the day, I'm still me, that's more important."

"It's not about what size you are. Everyone should be respected at any size, whether you're tall, short, skinny, or on the bigger side… your personality and values are way more important than your appearance."

She added that girls in dance groups such as the ones in the K-pop industry are typically skinnier, while Team BB represents "different sizes of plus-sized" women.

Tay Ying emphasised: "We're here to show that you don't have to be a specific size to chase our dreams."

The Blockbusters, which also stars James Seah, Jeffrey Xu, Priscelia Chan and others, premieres November this year on Channel 8. It will air at 9pm on weekdays and will be available on demand for free on meWatch.

syarifahsn@asiaone.com

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