When Beyond The Gates star, Timon Kyle Durrett, was growing up on the South Side of Chicago, he wasn’t aware of the healthy foundation his parents had instilled in their household. But he appreciates it now. “I can see now the benefits of having been made to live such a healthy life. I would say, ‘Hey, Mommy, I want a snack. The ice cream truck is outside, or my friends are doing a candy run. ‘She would say, ‘Oh, those cucumbers should be ready out there.’ I would have to go and eat cucumbers while my friends are eating Snickers bars or ice cream cones,” Durrett says.
“But when you have that mindset early on, it is far more beneficial later. Some people are just catching on to issues, and you know, it’s a little late in the game,” Durrett continues.
“I’m very fortunate and blessed to have parents who instilled in us healthy living and proper exercise.”
Table of Contents
On Why He’s Co-Hosting the BHM Harlem Week 2025 Summit & Expo
Durrett doesn’t take it for granted that many people didn’t have his upbringing. He wants to make sure that others have the tools they need to care for their bodies. He believes that if we empower others, they can take action.
“There’s a lot of toxicity in the air, and food, and water, sometimes even in the entertainment that we intake. Things that we hear, we see, we eat, and that we put on and in our bodies are toxins,” he explained.
“And having a health summit and showing people what it’s like, if you have dirty carpet, shoes, or a car. It’s going to get dirty every once in a while, but you’ve got to know how to clean it, right? Know how to provide the things to get the bad stuff out and bring the good stuff in. It’s about balance.”
He believes that knowledge is power, but the application of that knowledge is the key. “If you have a flat tire, and you know how to change a flat tire, it doesn’t matter if you know, unless you apply that knowledge to replace or repair that flat tire.”
He gave an example, with health information, it’s not enough to know what to do; it’s also about how to apply it. “I’m sure there’s going to be some information to let people know what to do, or what things are, and how to do them. Or how things are when you are healthy. And that’s what I want people to walk away from this experience with: the knowledge that they need to either begin or continue a life of good health.”
Durrett’s Roots on the South Side of Chicago
“Unless there was school, the routine was get up, take care of your chores, and go outside and play. Get into the earth, the world, and do some things,” Durrett explained.
Durrett, 53, said he was taught early on how to take care of his inner and outer body. His mother was a colon therapist. Healthy food was a mainstay of their house. “A pack of Twinkies would last a month in our house because we weren’t allowed to eat junk food,” he notes.
Of course, like any child, he did from time to time, but not to excess. “My parents taught us, earn your money, said the actor who also starred in Queen Sugar.
We didn’t get an allowance, so we have to cut grass, shovel snow, polish shoes, wash cars, and run to the grocery store for our elderly neighbors. But I had a child’s fair share of junk.”
Preparation to Excel As a Student Athlete and an Actor
Having a foundation of healthy living served Durrett well when it came to developing Durrett’s athletic endeavors. He played basketball for Alcorn State through college.
“Physiologically, you need the right things in your body so it can operate properly. Some of my teammates would eat certain things before a game,” he recalled. “And I’d be over there eating oranges and sipping shots of apple cider vinegar and things like that.”
However, Durrett points out that his healthy lifestyle is crucial in his current role. He plays criminal defense attorney, Bill Hamilton, in CBS’s new smash hit daytime drama Beyond the Gates.
“Having a healthy body helps maintain a healthy mind on daytime television. There’s a lot of mental work. There’s a lot of material that we have to learn and retain and convey to the audiences every day,” Durrett said.
“So, if you’re not healthy, you won’t have the energy, you won’t have the stamina, including your clarity of mind,” he continued. “It won’t be where it should be to perform tasks at hand. So it’s very important to have a healthy body to have a healthy mind.”
The Man Is a True Multi-Hyphenate, An Artist Too
If you haven’t followed Durrett on Instagram, you may want to watch him bring one of his art projects to life. They are spectacular. (Check out one below.) But when I asked him if he considered working on it a form of self-care, I loved what he had to say,
“It is, it is beyond therapeutic for me. It’s my happy place when I get into my zone, as I call it, and I’m struck with inspiration; I go all in.”
“I get so much joy out of creating when I’m in that zone, because that’s when the good stuff, you know, all the good nuggets of creativity come out. And yes, you know, it’s really good. You know, when your mental, emotional, spiritual, and psychological health are all matched, you’re in a very good place,” Durrett said.
If you would like to join us at the BHM Harlem Week 2025 Summit & Expo in person or virtually, you can register here.
