Quirky world of Orlando Bloom
Brain oil, vegan powder and ‘earning’ his breakfast – how Orlando Bloom’s Zen lifestyle has everyone in a frenzy
THE first thing he does when he wakes up around 6.30 every morning is consult the ring on his finger. Why? Because Orlando Bloom never drifts off without his smart-ring sleep tracker, a nifty little device that measures the quality of his kip and affects his readiness for the day.
Satisfied, he mixes up a little prebrekkie smoothie: some green powders with brain octane oil (to keep cravings at bay, he says, and improve brainpower), collagen powder to keep his hair and nails healthy and some protein for voomah.
Once that’s down the hatch, it’s time to earn the most important meal of the day with a hike. And what a dish it is: porridge with a dash of hazelnut milk, a shake of cinnamon, a dollop of vanilla paste, a sprinkle of goji berries and a blast of protein powder. All in all, Orlando says, it’s the perfect plant-based breakfast.
It also no doubt helps The Lord of the Rings hottie stay in eye-poppingly good shape – those abs and pecs and lats of his are to gasp over.
But it isn’t only Orlando’s eating regime that has made people wonder if he’s trying to out-Gwynnie Gwyneth Paltrow in the wacky wellness routine department.
After polishing his breakfast bowl, the 44-year-old meditates and chants for 20 minutes, reads “a bit of Buddhism”, then types it up and adds it to his Instagram Stories. Although he’s careful not to spend too long on the platform for fear of “being sucked into the black hole of social media”.
Orlando recently shared his lifestyle habits with the British Sunday Times – and while the star himself admits it’s “quite LA”, the rest of the world found it rather bizarre.
“Genuinely thought the interview was a spoof,” one reader remarked.
But ridicule him as much as you want – Orlando is happy as a carrot in organically composted soil. He describes himself as “90% plantbased” and indulges in red meat “only once a month” because of his love and admiration for our four-legged friends.
Fiancée Katy Perry, mother of their seven-month-old daughter Daisy, is on board the Orlando Express too.
She began her transition to veganism last year to satisfy pregnancy cravings – she wanted burgers but found the taste of meat repulsive so she made the switch to plant-based patties.
In January this year Katy (36), who is an investor in the plant-based brand Impossible Foods, announced to her 109 million Twitter followers she was close to ditching animal products for good.
“I’m about 95 percent ready to be 100% vegan,” the American Idol judge tweeted.
IF THERE’S anyone who understands Orlando, it’s Katy. In an interview last year she opened up about what she believes connects them as a couple – and it’s all “quite LA” too. “One of the things that binds us is our desire to be more spiritually evolved and our desire to investigate that realm,” she says.
“We love mysticism, conspiracies, aliens, all that stuff. We love an adventure of the mind.”
The couple started dating in 2016 before going their separate ways the following year. By 2018 they were back together and a year later Orlando popped the question with a daisy-shaped ring.
Katy, who admitted she felt suicidal after their break-up, has described their relationship as challenging but rewarding.
“I’ve gone to therapy, been through the Hoffman Process [a healing retreat], done plant medicine. And I have a partner who is also all about finding a balance – Orlando, who is on a spiritual journey of his own.” To her, he’s like a sage. “When we first met, he said we would pull the poison out of each other. And we really do. It’s exhausting, but we really hold each other accountable. I’ve never had a partner who was willing to go on an emotional and spiritual journey like Orlando.”
Becoming a dad changed Orlando’s life. He reached success early in his career with breakout roles in The Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean, two of the world’s biggest film franchises.
But his pursuit of stardom and success subsided after the birth of his son, Flynn (now 10), whose mom is supermodel Miranda Kerr.
“I have an insatiable appetite and energy. That’s who I am,” he says. “But if somebody says to me now there’s this and this, I’m like, well, how’s that going to stack up and how’s that going to look in my life? I have a family.”
Flynn, Daisy and Katy are the great loves of his life, he says.
“It’s amazing to be a father again,” Orlando said after Daisy’s birth. “There’s less anxiety this time and more presence.”
IN HIS recent interview he makes a vague reference to “a team of people” who presumably keep the house tidy and help change Daisy’s nappies. And clearly someone is helping the home cogs run smoothly because Orlando has quite a lot of time to himself.
Once his morning routine wraps up, he spends the rest of his day carving out “space to dream”.
It’s a sacred part of his day that he uses to dream about roles for himself, minority groups and women and trying to be a voice for everybody. And presumably it helps him in his work too – Orlando has a deal with Amazon Prime Video to develop TV shows and movies for the streamer.
His life of Zen also allows him to devote time to a favourite hobby: Lego building. “I dip in and out while I work. I build mostly cars.”
Cars created, head filled to bursting with ideas, he’ll lift weights for an hour or so “to exhaust me”. Then it’s time to unwind with a quiet meal with Katy prepared by their team of people, before heading for bed by 11pm.
“If I get eight hours’ sleep, I’m happy. Time is so precious. I was always giving my time to other people before, now I have the space to dream.”
‘I HAVE AN INSATIABLE APPETITE AND ENERGY. THAT’S WHO I AM’