At the age of 76, Arnold Schwarzenegger may not be able to reprise the role of Hercules, but the seven-time Mr. Olympia still epitomizes excellence and dedication. During Arnold’s recent appearance on the New Heights podcast, with the chance of getting tips straight from the horse’s mouth, Jason Kelce asked the Terminator actor how he could reduce a substantial amount of weight without losing muscle mass, now that he has officially hung up his cleats.
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Very eager to help, Schwarzenegger urged the former Eagles center to focus on reducing body fat before moving on to gaining muscle mass with proper exercise and weights. While playing in the NFL involved heavy lifting, the former bodybuilder stressed that the elder Kelce didn’t have to exert too much pressure anymore and hence could stay away from such curriculums. Instead, repeating and achieving perfection in a particular exercise should be the key priority now.
“The most important thing is that you slowly kind of decrease the body fat and increase the body muscles,” Schwarzenegger said. “Yes, you, of course, want to reduce the weight. But you want to slowly decrease the fat and increase the muscle mass. You don’t have to lift heavy because, at a certain age, you start getting into this wear and tear of the joints. I rather see you doing 12-15 reps an exercise and doing it as strict as possible and do many, many reps and sets and do it in the right way.”
The former California governor also emphasized the importance of nutrition as part of the process because what works for one doesn’t necessarily work for another.
Training for football and conditioning your body according to the game’s demands often requires incorporating weightlifting, particularly for positions that involve heavy blocking and tackling, like Offensive Linemen (O-Linemen) and Defensive Linemen (D-Linemen). Even Rushers need a lot of strength to withstand lots of hits. This aspect of football resembles bodybuilding and powerlifting as it emphasizes building muscle mass and strength.
Keeping that aside, Arnold also talked about his first taste of American football, something that was foreign to him coming from Austria. It took him years to finally understand the nuances and complexities of the gridiron.
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s First Impressions of American Football
Schwarzenegger has been a big part of Hollywood culture for so long and even ran a state that we sometimes forget he came from Austria, where there is no concept of the gridiron and the game of football is actually soccer. So the concept of American football was quite alien to him and he initially had a hard time understanding it.
Like many, Arnold tried his best to invest himself in the NFL on Sundays but had a hard time comprehending the rules. While he made an effort to enjoy the game when his friends explained the rules to him, it wasn’t until his kids started playing the game that he finally took an interest. After a lot of effort on his part, he fell in love with the game and is often glued to the screen on Sundays.
“I tried to watch it because of my friends,” Schwarzenegger said. “On Sundays, I would be hanging out and they would say let’s watch football, but of course, I couldn’t understand it. When they started explaining to me some of the rules, then it started making sense. But when it really made sense was when I had kids and my sons were heavily in football. They explained it to me step by step. So then I learned the game, I learned the rules, and this is what really happened the last few years.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger continues to be the epitome of fitness and dedication, even at this age, and he continues to work and improve himself as an actor. His new book ‘Be Useful’, teaches us how to live a meaningful life, emphasizing that legends are not born; they are built.
