Gretchen Ho: Woman in action

It took several months before this interview pushed through because Gretchen Ho’s Twitter handle says it all. She is a Woman In Action! She rose into public consciousness for her good looks and volleyball skills, which she tirelessly pursued from high school, college and even professional level. Now, you can catch her on several news programs such as the daily morning show of ABS-CBN.

“Ateneo retained five from the original team, then got five of us rookies. Before, we were not on top of the rankings. We were always at 5th or 6th. When we came in, we were immediately noticed by everyone. Although we ended up at 5th place, we challenged almost all teams to five sets. The next year (2009), we climbed up to 3rd place (highest in Ateneo). I was in 2nd year then. During our last two years, we brought Ateneo to its first-ever back-to-back finals appearance in the UAAP. That was when volleyball boomed. I also became team captain for that team, and I played for Petron for two years (professional volleyball),” she fondly recalled her UAAP debut.

“I was also the Philippine ambassadress for Philippine Superliga. Apart from that, I also played for the Philippine beach volleyball team for one tournament in Thailand. When I came back, I set up Beach Volleyball Republic with my former teammates. Afterwards, I left volleyball because I realized that if I want to be really good in volleyball, I could not do it part-time. I needed to be full-time if I wanted to excel, and this goes for both media and volleyball. Training would take up too much of my time. I also got a shoulder injury from my Ateneo days, so I had to resort to therapy and strengthening,” Gretchen reasoned out.

PHILIPPINE STAR: Can you tell us more about the hashtag you use on Twitter, #WomanInAction?

GRETCHEN HO: That hashtag describes me because I am into sports and fitness. It’s also about empowering women to go out there and pursue their passions and fight for what they believe in. I’m into youth empowerment. I feel like being an enabler is my calling. When I see someone with talent, I help that person discover his or her calling. Third, it is also a call to action for myself. Social media is popular among us. We love posting, but do we actually get things done?

What drew you to volleyball?

I was originally a basketball player. My dad, an MVP and a basketball player himself, would usually take me to UAAP games. As a young girl, my dream was to become a pro basketball player. NBA, not WNBA (laughs). But our school didn’t have a basketball team. Since I really wanted to become an athlete, I decided to shift to volleyball, which was ICA’s only varsity team at the time. I loved volleyball — when I saw my teammates rolling on the floor, spiking hard, and being super bonded, I knew I wanted to become like them. Our coach back then told me that it didn’t matter that I was clueless about volleyball, that what mattered was my willingness to commit to every practice and work hard. Many of my teammates gave up because they couldn’t stay late, but I loved it. At Grade 7, I won a Best Server award. That time, volleyball wasn’t that popular, but I loved it because it was like basketball, but the difference is that you’re fully dependent on teamwork because the discipline requires passing the ball to one another.

How do you train? Is there any special routine that you do?

I have a trainer. That helps a lot because I wake up super early, and therefore I don’t have to worry about what to do. When I am sent to remote coverage, I have to wake up between 12 midnight and 3 a.m. for a show that starts at 5 a.m. Thus, whenever I get home, I try to sleep like an hour. If I’m feeling hyper, I make it a point to run right away. My mentality is that each time there is time to work out, I work out. As long as there’s an open window, I do it. When I’m tired, I try to sleep before going to the gym. We have core day, leg day, arm day two to three times a week. I also do calisthenics, running, and cycling. So it’s a lot of different things. Eventually, I also want to swim. Anything that is cardio.

What is your fitness goal?

I want to be more toned. On TV, you can’t look big. My problem is I started out big in Ateneo. I have muscle and I eat a lot, but when I got out of Ateneo, I got thin. Even if people say I’m super thin, on TV I look bigger. Today, I am a big runner. I run half marathons. One time I ended up 7th place — I always end up placing whenever I train for it. I also placed 3rd in one of my 10k runs. Right now, I also cycle, do calisthenics, gym, and I also plan to pursue Muay Thai. For my work, I climb mountains (climbed Mt. Apo recently). I’ve been playing volleyball for 12 years, so I was longing for a change of scenery. My job exposed me to so many other disciplines. I’m having so much fun. I wanna remain fit, but I wanna do it in a fun way because I am always sleepless and tired from work.”

What kind of diet goes along with your training?

High protein, low carbohydrate, low fat. I like eating chicken breast. On the road, I try to stay healthy. My cheat meal is coffee, also wine. I don’t eat fast food even if I have no choice. I’ve trained my mind to stay away from junk food and softdrinks. One of my problems is that I sometimes forget to eat. In Umagang Kay Ganda, they call me “tikim princess.” I go around different restaurants and try different foods, and that’s my cheat meal. If it’s good, I get to eat an entire dish, but that’s breakfast so it’s not so bad. I also love dessert, such as Bing Su.

What is the best fitness advice that anyone has given you?

The most important thing is to show up at every workout, regardless of what your mood is or what you’re feeling. Showing up gets half the work done. Many times we have a lot of excuses, but I’m lucky that I have extra motivation to keep fit because of my job. I love the pressure.

Why should all people love their shape?

Whatever shape makes you happy is the perfect shape for you. It doesn’t matter if you’re a little bit on the chubby side or model thin. Whatever makes you confident and happier is the perfect shape for you. It’s hard to force it on anyone. Other people are even pretty when they’re on the heavier side. As long as you’re healthy and you work out regularly, that’s the best kind of shape you can have.

How do you apply what you have learned from volleyball in your daily life?

Besides hard work and discipline, learning how to live through victories and failures is something I learned from the sport. One day you can win, one day you can lose — if you get too high or too low, you lose your sense of self. Each victory and each failure is a chance to learn. Volleyball strengthened me. The public pressure is something I can deal with.

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Post me a note at mylene@goldsgym.com.ph or mylenedayrit@gmail.com.