Like mother, like daughter
I have known Andreea for 15 years, and Alexia since she was in her mother’s tummy. I still remember that day when the little girl, dressed in red like her mother, was introduced to the audience of millions of people, on December 1, 2000. A few weeks ago, Alexia received her identity card. Their first ever sport photo shoot showed me that energy, good mood and naturalness are a family inheritance. One that is contagious.
CSID: How did you feel together at the first photo shoot? Who was the star?
Andreea: Alexia. She is the new star in our family, which brings me a lot of joy. And because we’re talking about sports, we can say that I’ve handed the baton.
CSID: Andreea, you are an energetic person, doing sports since you were little. Do you encourage your children, to follow your example regarding sports?
Alexia: We have done all kind of sports since we were little. Some, we have done to a competitive level.
Andreea: I think that if you teach them different sports when they are very young, they do not know what to choose. I do not think a 3-year-old says that he wants to go to a particular sport, or maybe very rarely. If you take them from being very young, not necessarily against their will, but without them realizing that they have to do that, then they get used to it and they will want to carry on doing something. For example, Alexia was the one who decided to go to ballroom dancing. I took her to swimming lessons, before that she did ballet, rhythmic gymnastics. Both, her teacher and I, considered that she did not have the right physical constitution for rhythmic gymnastics. The teacher told me that if she wanted to do sports at a competitive level, she should head for tennis or swimming. I took her to swimming. She did it for years. She participated in competitions, she was very good. After that, she came and told me, probably influenced by the TV show “Dancing for you”, that she really wanted to dance. It came from her, and she didn’t give up until I spoke with somebody and she went to dance. That worked out very well, because she did it for 5 years and she had very good results. I think that dance it’s a really nice form of sport for girls, because it develops their bodies completely different from swimming. I think she stopped swimming exactly in the right moment.
CSID: Alexia, how did you cope with dancing? I guess it was not easy!
Alexia: No, it wasn’t. We had to go every day, sometimes for 4 hours, but I got used to it.
CSID: Talking about kid’s daily activities program.. Isn’t it a little overloaded?
Andreea: Yes, she’s very busy. Alexia starts at 8.30 and ends sometimes at 4.30, other times at 5.30, so sometimes it’s longer than a man’s work schedule. This is just school. And after 5.30 o’clock, she has to do her homework, rest for a little bit and then have other activities. I mean, it’s a lot.
Due to the busy schedule, she could not go to the dance classes anymore. She started taking some hip hop classes so she can stay close to dance and music. With the hip hop it is a little bit easier if you miss the class because the team can carry on without you. Whereas, if you were unable to attend the dance lesson, it was also detrimental to the dance partner. This year she would like to take tennis lessons too. We have to think of something better suited to her school program.
CSID: Did your dance classes energize you after a tiring school day?
Alexia: At first, yes. At the end, I was very tired. Also I had friends there.
Andreea: There is social atmosphere, besides doing sports.
Alexia: Now I like more hip hop, it is newer music and I go with my friends.
CSID: You’re still doing Pilates. Have you been tempted to do anything else?
Andreea: No, because I like it very much. It seemed to me that it fits my body with what I want from myself. I think it’s good for my age because I cannot figure out if I could do a lot of cardio. I prefer to do cardio from time to time and to do Pilates as a base sport. Honestly, if I do not go for a day or two, I feel guilty and cannot figure out whether it’s a physical or mental thing after all. Being how I am, it’s like a project for me: it bothers me that I did not do my job. In addition, I’m a normal woman, I’m a little careful, but I do not have a non-stop diet, therefore I cannot let go of the sport because you’ll see right away. I like very much the girls there. There are a lot of nice people and Alexia says, it matters a lot who you go with when you do sports. Even if you do it yourself, it’s important to have someone who you like, a coach who is good and with whom you have compatibility. If I found these elements, I do not see why I would give up.
CSID: Talking about diets, is your grandmother still cooking for you?
Andreea: Unfortunately, she doesn’t cook for us anymore, because she has some health problems and she has “abandoned” us from this point of view. As a result, we no longer eat home cooking.
Alexia: We eat at school.
Andreea: They eat at school and we eat in the city.
CSID: Alexia, have you started watching what you eat, do you weigh yourself, what about your friends? Or not yet?
Alexia: Sometimes we say: that’s it, we no longer eat. But the next day, if there is something tasty, we eat it.
Andreea: In their group, none of them are fat. They are within normal limits. Maybe because they have a lot of activities. If you eat normally, but move and do not just sit in front of your computer, I think it’s not hard to lose weight.
CSID: Alexia, do you like sweets?
Alexia: I am a very greedy. So I have to do sports, otherwise I would get fat 🙂
CSID: But, haven’t you started to weigh yourself yet?
Alexia: Sometimes.
CSID: You have a very fit body for your age!
Andreea: Well, she’s been doing sports since she was 4 years old. Since then, she has not stopped. She is been doing various sports for 10 years. Now she has a bit of a break and she is reflecting on her options, to make sure she progresses.
CSID: Doesn’t Pilates tempt you?
Alexia: I took one class and I was thinking of joining sessions with mum.
Andreea: She said that from outside, it looked very easy. And the next day she wasn’t able to move. Do you remember? 🙂
Alexia: Yes.
Andreea: When she came for the Pilates class, she was going to dance every day; she had a lot of workouts.
CSID: Would you like a modeling career?
Alexia: I do not know, I did it once, and I found it very hard. It seems to me that you have to have the chance to become famous.
Andreea: There are many photo models and a very few that everyone knows. If you do not get to be one of the few…
CSID: So everything or nothing.
Andreea: Exactly. We laugh all the time because I have many friends who tell me that she looks like Andreea Diaconu. And I was telling her that I met Andreea Diaconu exactly when she was Alexia’s age. She was 14 and I never imagined that she will be so well known and so good at what she is doing. I’m so happy for her!
CSID: Talking about consistency and discipline, let’s talk a little about the breast cancer prevention campaign you’ve been involved in for years. Alexia is already growing up. Does she help you in the campaign?
Alexia: Yes, I’m helping her, but I’m afraid of blood tests. 🙂
Andreea: She helps me in any campaign, but she is afraid of blood tests and of doctors. Now it’s better, but when she was little she was really scared. At age 6, when we were in a vacation in Turkey, she had an accident. She fell at a pool and hurt her chin. It had to be sewn and I think she has suffered a shock. Everything was fine then, she did well, but after that she developed a phobia over doctors and hospitals, and we are slowly trying to treat it.
CSID: What have you noticed since you are the image of the breast cancer campaign?
Andreea: I think it’s a long-term battle, but, looking at numbers, we can see that there are more women going for regular checkups, which means that all the campaigns have had an effect. Even the fact that once a year, on October 1, we have an event and the world sees it and hears it once again, it is very useful because we draw the attention to women that they should go each year for a checkup. Besides, the fact that the “mamovans” , the mobile analysis and control units that go through the villages and the disadvantaged areas, where people cannot reach the doctor, have no money, or have no knowledge, cannot be but helpful. Not to mention that the tests are free and this is quite important to the locals. If we can save somebody and bring himher to a doctor, I feel happy!
CSID: Alexia, how did you get involved in these campaigns?
Alexia: I went once to one of the campaigns where I shared raffle tickets and I danced with some of my friends in a flashmob, at ASE. I like to help people and I am for human rights.
CSID: So, which profession would tempt you?
Alexia: Either an attorney, or a doctor or maybe in television. I like to talk to people and to debate.
SOURCE: What Happens, Doctor? / OCTOBER 2014
Interview: Beatrice Osana