You will be amazed at the results Joseph BaenaOpened up about competition Dancing With the StarsHis bodybuilding workouts are compared to his rehearsals. He describes how his physique has changed during rehearsals.
“I feel like I’m getting a little leaner,” the 25-year-old son of Arnold SchwarzeneggerOnly spoken Us WeeklyFollowing his performance with Pro Daniella KaragachThe Monday, October 10 episode. “I’m losing weight, for sure. It’s definitely a change of pace. … The body’s changing a little bit.”
Baena explained that dancing requires “a lot more cardio” than he expected. “It’s a lot more core [work],” he added. “[Daniella’s]Kicking my butt around the ballroom. … [I’m] drenched in sweat basically every night because of these workouts.”
Joseph Baena. Kathy Hutchins/Shutterstock
The fitness model joked that it was “a blessing in disguise” that Karagach, 29, had to sit out for the previous two weeks of the competition after testing positive for COVID-19. Baena teamed with a troupe member Alexis Warr in Karagach’s absence — and he thinks his partner’s rest paid off.
“We have been beating each other up [with these flips],” he teased on Monday. “I have bruises under the sparkles here. … I have scrapes, I have marks. But the regimen of exercising [is] completely different.”
The dynamic duo performed a Charleston to “A Star Is Born” from HerculesIn honor of Disney+ Night, Baena received a 28 rating from the judges. In rehearsal footage, Baena opened up about feeling “very insecure” about his body while growing up because he “was overweight,” comparing his own fitness journey to what Hercules goes through in the animated film.
Carrie Ann Inaba was quick to praise the real estate agent’s vulnerability — and muscles — as the dance concluded. “Put your shirt back on because it was distracting,” she teased, while fellow judge Bruno Tonioli raved over Baena’s “pecs appeal.”
Monday night’s performance held another special meaning for Baena, whose Hercules tribute doubled as a shout-out to his famous father, 75, who played the same character in 1970’s Hercules, New York. When asked how it felt to be compared to Schwarzenegger, the California native said he doesn’t let the pressure get to him.
“He’s so happy, he’s so proud [of me],” Baena told Useand other reporters. “I love my father. He’s the smartest, best man I can think of. So, you know, to be compared to him — to be in the same character, Hercules — it’s amazing. It’s awesome. And, you know, who doesn’t want to be like their father, right? It’s great.”
Schwarzenegger shares Baena and a former housekeeper Mildred Baena. The TerminatorActor is also father to Katherine (32), Christina (31), Patrick (29), and Christopher (25). He shares his ex-wife Maria Shriver.
Dancing With the StarsAirs Mondays at 8 p.m. on Disney+ ET.
Christina Garibaldi reports
