Boxer Eleider Alvarez was in his living room in Quebec during the broadcast of his departure from the Colombian version of survivor last week. A significant experience for the former world champion, during which he lost around thirty pounds.
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Alvarez has come a long way in the adventure when only four contestants remained after his departure. He stayed in a remote corner of the Dominican Republic for a total of 50 days.
“It was my dream to take part in this reality TV show. It is very popular in Colombia. “It was a great experience,” says the 39-year-old athlete. However, I don’t think I would return. It was very difficult.
“When I arrived at the adventure, I weighed 94 kg [208 lb]. In the end I weighed only 80 kg [176 lb]. I lost a lot of muscle mass. It was the same weight that I had to respect during my fights.
As we know, Alvarez has attended dozens of boxing training camps throughout his career. It puts Survivor, la isla de los famosos in a class of its own.
“Those are two very different things,” adds Alvarez. With boxing, I knew what to expect from drills or fights. In Survivor, you never know what’s going to happen.
“We only ate coconuts and rice. For me it was uncomplicated and that’s why I lost a lot of weight. In addition to dealing with funny animals in the jungle.
Not a 5 star hotel
Participants live in an environment far removed from a five-star waterfront hotel.
“Since I was born in a coastal village in Colombia [Turbo], I wasn’t too disoriented. “I knew what I had to do to cope with the environment I was in,” says Alvarez.
“We hardly slept at night. We often took naps during the day. The rain also made life difficult for us. It had nothing to do with a boxing training camp where you sleep and eat well.
Contrary to what one might think, his past as an athlete in the various competitions did not favor him.
“Eighty percent of the exams were mental. I don’t count the number of puzzles I had to solve during the show.