‘Lion King’ actress sheds 55 pounds, gains new lifestyle

Wearing a loose-fitting costume can be a mixed blessing for an actress.

As Rafiki, the wise baboon shaman in "The Lion King," actress Buyi Zama wears a loose-fitting, woodsy, caftanlike costume. On the upside, audiences weren't able to notice as Zama steadily gained weight, eventually topping out at about 210 pounds.

But, on the downside, that same loose-fitting costume kept audiences from admiring Zama's increasingly svelte figure as she worked off the pounds over the past year and a half, dropping to her current weight of about 155 pounds.

It's an impressive transformation for anybody. But, in Zama's case, she did it in full view of the public and while meeting the demands of a hectic eight-show-a-week performance schedule.

Zama, 32, is an outgoing, funny woman with a hearty laugh and a charming -- she's from South Africa -- accent. Since 2002, Zama has played Rafiki in seven productions of "The Lion King," including the national tour. She's a charter cast member of the Las Vegas production, which opened at Mandalay Bay in May 2009.

"I've always been on the bigger side most of my life," Zama recalled during a recent workout at B-Fit Vegas, 7035 W. Sahara Ave. "That's how I saw myself, and that's how everyone saw me, too. So I thought it was always going to be like that."

When Zama joined her first production of "The Lion King," her weight, she said, "still wasn't that bad."

But, in 2007, "I began to pile it on," she continued. "I was just eating anything and everything.

"You know, you read all these magazines and they say ... 'Embrace your big curves,' " Zama added with a laugh. "Yeah, that's what I'm gonna do. I'm embracing. So, I ate."

For most performers, bathroom scale digit creep isn't healthy for a career. But Zama's weight gain didn't affect her role in "The Lion King."

"My role allowed me to be fat," she said, because Rafiki is "an older, wise woman, and my costume is not fitted."

At the end of the South African run of "The Lion King," Zama had an eight-month break at home and took advantage of her stay to reacquaint herself with her favorite South African dishes. Then, Zama said, "my brother's wedding came up, and I had to go shopping and I was surprised that I couldn't get into anything.

"I tried a (size) six and it didn't fit. Two sizes up, no. Three sizes, no. And I was very embarrassed for myself. So I ended up getting a very big size and thinking, 'I have to do something.' "

Reinforcement of that notion came during her flight to Las Vegas for the Mandalay Bay production of the show. For the first time, Zama had to endure the in-flight movie earphone plug digging into her thigh during the entire flight.

Even worse, Zama noticed after arriving here, "I was the biggest one in the company. I'm looking at everyone and I'm thinking, 'I'm fat.' I've never been the biggest one in the company."

Zama also discovered that, while Rafiki is "not a very physically challenging role," she was, for the first time, finding it uncomfortable to climb onto a rock onstage in costume every night.

So, in mid-2009, Zama decided to enlist the help of personal trainer Anthony Vaughan, who has worked with several members of the cast of "The Lion King" here and is the husband of Kissy Simmons, who plays Nala in the Las Vegas production.

"When I first met him, I was scared," Zama recalled. "I was scared to talk to him, and knew he had trained a couple of people, and I'm, like, 'Oh my God, what am I getting myself into?' I told him, 'All I want to be able to do is just run.' "

"Really, all she wanted to do was jog. That was her initial goal," Vaughan said. Then, to Zama: "Did I not laugh at that?

"Little did she know that, eight months later, she'd be sprinting up the hill times 10 repetitions."

Vaughan and Zama enjoy a casual, joking relationship during Zama's workouts. Those workouts are, Vaughan said, tailored to the actress and take into account the physical demands of performing six days a week in a Broadway-level show. The most important aspect of Zama's exercise regimen, he added, is giving her body enough time to recover between workouts so that she's not sore when the curtain rises.

In particular, Vaughan tries to keep workouts away from Saturdays and Sundays, when Zama performs twice each day.

"That's another good thing with him: He understands the show," Zama said. "He's seen the show, like, a thousand times, so he knows what everybody has to do."

Vaughan put Zama on a straightforward regimen of cardiovascular exercises and strength and flexibility routines, and allows her a few minutes of recovery time between each exercise. On this day, the routine includes push-ups, sit-ups, a workout with 6- and 8-pound balls and leg exercises. When the weather improves, the pair will take their workouts outdoors, Zama's preferred exercise locale.

Zama, who is about 5 feet 7 inches tall, has lost about 55 pounds and weighs about 155. She has no particular goal weight, because, she said, "having numbers (in one's head) sometimes can make you crazy."

Her goal is to keep becoming more fit. And now that she is keeping the weight off, Vaughan said, her workouts are more about maintenance. Vaughan begins every workout by asking Zama how she's feeling, whether she's sore and whether she's getting enough sleep. Her answers will help to determine the structure and intensity of that day's workout.

Zama also owes her weight loss to paying more attention to what she eats and choosing better alternatives to not-as-healthy foods.

"I didn't cut out food groups or anything, but I tried to make better choices, like nonfat milk," she said. "And I realized I was drinking a lot of juice, and one day just thought (about) how many oranges I was eating in one glass. That's the biggest change. I just drink water instead of juices.

"Another thing is, I gave myself time to sit down and eat instead of eating on the go, because you're watching TV and you don't realize you've had the whole pot of whatever you've cooked. Then, Anthony would say, 'You just need to realize when the gauge says that you're full and not eat.' That's why I stopped watching TV while I was eating. Now, I know when I'm full and just stop."

In fact, the simple, sensible approach worked faster than Zama thought it would.

By the way: Even though the Rafiki costume Zama wears isn't very form-fitting, she did lose enough weight to call for a new version of it -- one that had to be taken in 6 inches all-around.

Audiences probably won't notice the difference, but Zama will, and she's excited about where her new lifestyle will take her. And, for others embarking on their own weight loss and fitness programs, Zama recommended patience.

"You get to a point where I didn't think I was going to get there," she said. "But, now, I know I can get to so much more."

Where does she still want to go? Zama laughed.

"I want to get ripped," she said.

Contact reporter John Przybys at jprzybys@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0280.