Zac Efron admits he has regrets about his Baywatch body

Nineties lifeguard drama Baywatch is still remembered the world over for its cast of very fit characters and their habit of running along the beach in slow motion — and the 2017 movie version followed in its footsteps.

But actor Zac Efron, who played Olympian Matt Brody in the movie, has revealed that he never wants his body to look like it did in that film again.

Speaking during an appearance on an episode of YouTube series 'Hot Ones', the actor said that he dropped to only five percent body fat while working on the film after eating only 'organic protein and leafy greens' and maintaining a strict workout regime for months.

But he now thinks that looking as ripped as he did then is "just not real" and "stupid", saying he wouldn't want to be under that pressure again.

"I realised, when I was done with that movie, that I don't ever want to be in that good of shape again," he said. "It was so hard. You're working with almost no wiggle room. You've got things like water under your skin that you're worrying about, making your six-pack into a four-pack, shit like that.

"It's just stupid. It's just not real. I'm happy that it worked, I'm happy that it got me through it."

Related: Dwayne Johnson takes "full responsibility" for bad Baywatch film as he accepts Golden Raspberry

And Efron, who has also had big roles in Bad Neighbours, Hairspray, The Greatest Showman and of course the High School Musical series, had an important message for those watching.

"Take care of your heart, take care of your brain, you're good."

Efron recovered from a health scare in December after he fell ill with a 'form of ­typhoid or similar bacterial ­infection' while filming a documentary called Killing Zac Efron.

"Very thankful to everyone who has reached out," he said after recovering. "I did get sick in Papua New Guinea but I bounced back quick and finished an amazing 3 weeks in P.N.G. I'm home for the holidays with my friends and family. Thanks for all the love and concern, see you in 2020!"

Killing Zac Efron will follow the actor as he heads on a jungle expedition on a remote island, going off-grid for 21 days.

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Susannah Alexander

Reporter & Sub-Editor, Digital Spy Susannah is a freelance writer and sub-editor, specialising in the entertainment industry. She graduated in 2014, with a BA in English and American Literature and Creative Writing, and an MA in Creative Producing.  She’s been writing for Digital Spy ever since, after first getting involved through work experience, and has written hundreds of stories for the site on a range of topics, from The Sims to Doctor Who.  Susannah has also written for Reveal Magazine.  Her special interests are soaps (her Mastermind subject would be 2000s Coronation Street), Marvel and Star Wars. She can also quote far too many lines from Friends and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.