Will Smith, 53, gives a sneak peak at physique five months after revealing his fitness goals

It was early May, Will Smith posted a shirtless photo of himself on Instagram, revealing his middle age dad body, and admitted he’s in the worse shape of his life.

On a mission to lose his COVID-19 quarantine weight and reclaim his chiseled physique of yesteryear, the longtime leading man signed-on to chronicle his journey to health and wellness in the upcoming six-part YouTube series, Best Shape Of My Life.

So here we are in October, more than five months later, and it looks like Smith has made some real progress, from the looks of his muscles showcased in a new video he posted, and then deleted, on Instagram Sunday.

His mission began on May 2 when he got ‘real wit yall – I’m in the worst shape of my life.’ Along with that admission, the Ali actor shared a photo of himself wearing skimpy black shorts and a track suit jacket opened to reveal his newfound flabby belly.

The following day he shed the jacket in another social media post to showcase his extra mid-section baggage.

‘This is the body that carried me through an entire pandemic and countless days of grazing thru the pantry. I love this body, but I wanna FEEL better. No more midnight muffins… this is it! Imma get in the BEST SHAPE OF MY LIFE!!!!!

He then concluded with the announcement that he was ‘teaming up with @YouTube to get my health & wellness back on track. Hope it works!’

In the since-deleted video he shared on Sunday, October 17, the actor gave his 55.5 million Instagram fans and followers a glimpse at him hitting the weights hard in the gym.

‘And to think Sundays used to be for muffins #bestshapeofmylife,’ the Enemy Of The State star joked in the caption, a reference to his ‘no more midnight muffins’ comment he made when he announced the YouTube series.

The show covers the ‘fun, funny, inspirational, wildly adventurous, and deeply entertaining story of Smith challenging himself to improve every aspect of his fitness, according to YouTube.

Not only does the unscripted series follow Smith on his journey to get into the best shape of his life, it also dives deep into his psyche, which can make for good theater.

Just one week after announcing his plan to reclaim his heath and wellbeing in May, Smith took to TikTok and Instagram and shared a video of himself dancing and clapping along to a tune with a twang.  

All the dancing, moving and clapping was also incorporated with a grueling session of weight lifting.

Along with his infectious personality, charisma and acting shops, physical fitness has always been part of Smith’s selling point with audiences after he transitioned from television to film, and went on to star in numerous blockbusters as the A-list leading man, beginning with Bad Bays (1995).

And the actor is no stranger to going through an enduring body transformations while taking on a role.

Just over 20 years ago he went through a huge physical change when he had to bulk up his muscles and weight to play iconic, three-time heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali in the biopic Ali (2001).

Smith also showed off his chiseled abs, and overall ripped body, while doing pull-ups in the post-apocalyptic thriller film, I Am Legend (2007).

Now, fans will get an inside look at his fitness journey.

Variety is reporting that Will Smith’s upcoming series, Best Shape of My Life, will premiere on November 8 on YouTube Originals.