Web Exclusive: It's Called The Music Business with Corpus Christi

I've been working as a fitness professional almost as long as I've been playing guitar, and the flexible nature of the job made it easy for me to devote as much time as I wanted to my band. Ten years ago, I received my professional certification from the NSCA (National Strength And Conditioning Association), and have been working in the field ever since, first as a physical rehab therapist, then eventually moving to personal training. When I'm not touring, I'm in the gym five days a week; when I'm on the road, however, the plan changes a bit.

The main issue that arises when trying to stay fit on the road is, “What do you do?” Everything comes down to what you're trying get out of exercise, and first you have to know where you're starting from.

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

If you're a little soggy around the mid-section and just want to slim down so you can fit into your new skinny Levi's 511s, this will be easy, provided you're not pounding Pop Tarts and Pringles, washed down with day-old 40s. We'll call you lads the Stay Puffs. (Be aware of men in groups of four, wearing tan jumpsuits and carrying unlicensed nuclear accelerators on their backs.)

If you're already bringing a bit of muscle and fitness to the tour and you're looking to maintain or continue to build strength, this will require a bit more from you, but it can be done. You guys, we'll call the Spartans, because you most likely fancy yourselves the “Alpha Male” type, are keen to workout when you're home and have probably seen 300 at least 100 times on the road.

If you're the long, lean and lanky type, you don't really need to do much and chances are you're not too worried about it either. We'll call you the Pretty Boys, because as long as you're sporting the latest American Apparel V-neck and wicked tight jeans with a sassy swoop of hair across your forehead, you're gonna do just fine with the ladies.

PUMPING UP

For the Stay Puffs: Your primary objective to become more active than you are right now. It's intake versus expenditure, meaning that you've got to be burning more calories than you're taking in. Stop drinking so much beer and liquor, stop eating so much junk food and get your butt out of the van and do something! Start out light; ease your way into it. Otherwise, you'll burn yourself out in a day or two and swear that working out on the road can't be done. It's going to take some work. Deal with it.

You'll need to do 30 to 40 minutes of cardiovascular work three to four days a week (your live set does not count). I'm not talking about running up the steps at the Philadelphia Art Museum like Rocky every day, but something that will get your heart rate elevated for the duration of your workout. You want something just difficult enough to know you're working, but are still able to carry on a conversation throughout. Bodyweight exercises such as squats, lunges and push-up are great for this, especially when done one right after another.

Do 15 to 20 repetitions of these in multiple sets, allowing 20 to 30 seconds in between (but no more). It could be more than you can handle off the bat, so supplement with things like light jumping-jacks, light jump rope, quick-paced walking, etc., until you hit your 40-minute mark. Again, ease into it–if you can only last about five minutes doing bodyweight exercises and have to spend 35 minutes walking laps around the parking lot behind the venue, do it. As your fitness increases, so will the amount of things you're able to do.

Once you get to the point where you can handle this work out and you want to keep going, move on to either the Pretty Boy's workout or the Spartan's.

For the Spartans: You're trying to either maintain or build muscle. As I'll address further in a minute, your diet is crucial (as is anyone's). Maintaining and/or building muscle mass is contingent upon sufficiently taxing the muscle and adequate protein consumption. Translation: You have to keep up your protein intake as much as you can and keep lifting like you mean it, which is easier said than done when you're on the road.

If there's one thing touring bands have no shortage of, it's heavy gear, so use this to improvise when you don't have weights around. A trailer with the back door open is as good a place as any to do pull-ups. Step up: Do five to 10 sets of at least 10 reps. Examples: A tube guitar head weighs anywhere from 40 to 60 pounds, so shoulder press it for 10 sets of at least 20 reps. An Ampeg 6×10 or 8×10 cabinet, laid on its side, is a good enough bench; use it to do one-arm rows with said guitar head. Put your feet up on it and do 10 sets of 20 push-ups. Hold that guitar head above your head and do five to 10 sets of walking lunges, 20 steps per set.

It's not hard to find a random concrete block lying around somewhere. Do some one-arm curls for the biceps and some overhead extensions for your triceps. If it's too light, do it in sets of 50 reps. Throw it in the trailer when you're done and you've got another piece of workout equipment. If you find two, then you have dumbbells.

For you Spartan folks, I like a simple three-day split: Each day, take three exercises per body group and do five sets of 10 to 20 reps, depending on the amount of weight available (i.e., five sets of push-ups, five sets of pull-ups, five sets of chest flys with aforementioned concrete blocks, etc.). On Day one, tackle chest and back; Day two, legs (do not neglect legs. If you don't have strong legs, you don't have anything!); Day three, shoulders and arms. Then take one or two days off and start it all over again. Lift as much as you can and with whatever you have to to tax yourself and get a good pump in your muscles.

For the Pretty Boys: You just need to keep yourselves healthy so your bodies can handle the stresses of touring. Conveniently, you have the least amount of physical requirement offstage, which is great because you go nuts and put on really great shows. Most of the Pretty Boys I've talked to merely want to stay toned and have enough energy to perform every night. Provided this is your goal, you require little to no work-out accessories and the least amount of time spent exercising. All of your resistance exercises can be done with bodyweight, light dumbbells and/or exercise bands.

Your workouts should be total body workouts (not split up like the aforementioned Spartans), last about 30 minutes and be comprised of one to three exercises per body group (i.e., chest/back, push-ups/pull-ups). Bodyweight exercises will provide the greatest amount of resistance and will require the least amount of repetitions (10 to 15). Anything done with dumbbells or resistance bands, like bicep curls for instance, will require higher reps (20 to 30). Between each of your sets of resistance exercises you should do 30 seconds of a cardiovascular exercise like jumping jacks. (Note: Those resistance bands leave a vicious welt when used on fellow band members. I'm just sayin'.)

BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS

Food is the most important factor and, unfortunately, the hardest to regulate on the road. Diet constitutes 70 percent of an exercise plan's effectiveness in terms of both importance and result; if you eat like crap, you'll feel like crap and look like crap. A poor diet will have a direct impact on your mood as well. Eating like a 9-year-old on a sugar binge could drop you face-first into a crappy mood, which will affect the rest of your band. A poor diet, added to the stresses of touring full time, mule-kicks your immune system in the teeth. Sparse budgets, non-existent per diems and catering consisting of greasy pizza and warm two-liters of pop do nothing to help the situation, either.

The best way to avoid these pitfalls is to plan ahead. Save money between tours and buy some quality groceries before you leave town. If you pile into your van with Pop-Tarts, two bags of Entenmann's crullers, a bag of Twizzlers and a pack of Mountain Dew, that's a problem. Stop buying all that crap! Get healthy food that will keep: tuna, salmon, trail mix (sans M&Ms), some microwavable noodles, apples, etc. Obviously the longer the tour, the harder it is to buy enough food ahead of time, so plan your grocery purchases out a little differently. Bring water instead of pop, or have Vitamin Water if you absolutely must have flavor. We all know the unspoken “one jar minimum of peanut butter in the van” rule when you're on the road, so switch to whole grain or oat bread for easy PB sandwiches. Take some vitamins, too, and I mean real vitamins (Nature's Sunshine, Garden Of Life, etc.).

Unless you've made it to the top, fast food on tour is impossible to avoid entirely, so when you're picking a restaurant, think about what they have on their menu. Subway is hands-down the easiest place (and also relatively within a band's budget) to find the cleanest food, nutritionally speaking.

Finally, eat greens as often as they are available; remember that liquor is death to your immune system; and don't think that just because something says “low fat” or “low carb” that it is in any way an indication of redeeming nutritional value. On the nights you're lucky enough to have good catering, take all the fresh vegetables and fruit you can fit in your cooler. A simple application of forethought concerning what food we cram in our mouths can go a long way; because your mom was right: You are, indeed, what you eat.

Remember: There are thousands of ways to skin this cat, and a lot of them work. A different trainer could tell you something completely different, and your results could be exactly the same. Your health is just like your band-you'll get out of it what you put into it.

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“Staying in shape while on tour can be a tricky thing. You kind of have the same schedule every day, but at the same time you're in a new place every day, too, so everything changes, and you really don't. It's also a lot easier to do things when you are in the States and on a bus, as opposed to international touring. Playing in Underoath is generally a good 45-to-60-minute aerobic workout daily, which helps out a lot. Other than that, I've gone jogging on tours, jumped rope and done pushup and sit-up routines that have worked well. I've never really done many weights and things, though I know a lot of bands that do. If you're just trying to stay in shape and not get 'huge and ripped' on tour, then just doing 30 minutes to one hour of cardio a day, playing a show and not eating crappy food all the time is all you really need. Everything in moderation is the best way to go in my opinion.”

GRANT BRANDELL
Underoath

“While on the road, the band make a point of taking time to exercise and diet to stay in shape. For example, I am the proud owner of the Perfect Pushup (pushup station), which I bring on the road, and they do their job. Our guitarist Nick [Miller] brings his 15-pound weights and our drummer Cory [LaQuay] brings the Iron Gym (pull-up bar). The great thing about that is we can trade off on equipment and create a full-body regimen. Having other members who are motivated to keep in shape is definitely a plus, because it also motivates you into getting up and moving. I've noticed lately that it is harder to work out on tour when you are crammed in a van all day with seven other dudes and getting to a hotel/place to stay at 3 a.m. after playing a show. However, playing an energetic/hot show is also good exercise and moving all your heavy gear is a workout, too. So you can't be too hard on yourself if there isn't time every day.

Exercise is one thing, but eating well is also an important factor. Avoiding fast food on the road is really hard for all of us. To combat this, we try and eat at least one healthy meal a day, usually in the morning/noon time, because once we get to the venue, we're kinda stuck eating what's close by (sometimes you get lucky). By the time you leave the show, everything healthy is closed, so you are stuck eating fast food or gas-station food. If you have to eat fast food, usually every place will have some sort of 'healthy choice' or something that isn't as bad as everything else, so you just have to eat smart and work with what they have to offer, and try to make space in your daily routine for any type of exercise.”

KYLE SIMMONS
A Skylit Drive

“Touring has always been a great opportunity to explore local cuisine, usually in areas that you'd never intentionally visit. The upside is obviously finding delicious treats like found-pound nachos, pizza buffets and local bakeries. The downside is that you get fat as fuck and feel like shit. The older I get, the more health-conscious I become. The easiest way I've found to stay in shape on tour is P90X, a DVD workout program that takes about an hour a day for six days a week. All you need is a pull-up bar and a few dumbbells. Sunday, also known as 'Sunday Funday,' is my day off from working out and dieting. I like to find out if there are any local favorite restaurants that offer 'America's largest [insert food here].' It's a reward for all the hard work I've done during the week. One Sunday Funday, I ate 34 slices of pizza, a 15-patty cheeseburger and a plate of chicken wings, all followed by a milkshake and a box of Oreos.”

JOSH JAMES
Evergreen Terrace

“I bring a 24-inch BMX Redline Cruiser with me and ride every day. We also get into a gym two or three times a week to continue the routine I do at home. Every night before I play, I do a resistance band workout, which lasts about 20 minutes, but I'm convinced it aids in conditioning my body into relaxing enough to get onstage with maximum power and endurance. I try to eat the best I can, but it's tough. I'm vegetarian, so I stock up at Whole Foods or local co-ops with veggie stuff to last a week or so. It can totally be done… It just takes being proactive and doing your best to stay away from the late-night pizza and mass-consumed beer.”

DEREK KERSWILL
Unearth

“One way I keep in shape on the road is by giving my all during our 45-minute set every night. All the sweating, jumping and singing does wonders for my cardiovascular system. To attain meathead status, I knock out 200 Perfect Pushups a day, and follow the rigors of the P90X workout system. Avoiding beer and all the rest of the garbage on the rider is key, as well.”

DAVE MELILLO
Cute Is What We Aim For

“I stopped eating meat and went vegetarian. If it's between fast food or gas station fruit, I'll choose fruit. I like to do 100 crunches and 20 pushups to wake myself up every morning. I work my arms with free weights when I get bored at venues, as well. Drinking water constantly keeps my energy up and is a good appetite suppressant. I try to keep partying to a minimum, but there's only so much you can do.” [Will lost 100 pounds on tour! -health ed.]

WILL SWAN
Dance Gavin Dance

“Playing live every night keeps us in shape-our live show is pretty high energy, and combine that with 400 watts of stage lighting and a packed room, and you've got a workout that would make Richard Simmons proud. And we need that nightly exercise regimen, because we are normally eating a steady diet of Chinese buffet and cheesy, double-beef burritos.”

JOE MACH
Hotspur

“Staying fit on the road is not the easiest thing to do. One of the main things we try to do is to stay away from the greasy fast foods. This might be the hardest thing of all since we are always on the move, and there is a McDonald's or Burger King in every direction. One of the alternatives that we use is trying to find a Subway, which is not a full-blown fast food stop. Also, cutting out soda from your diet on the road will make a hell of a difference. On our down time, I try to do some sit ups, pushups or even kick around a soccer ball. We are sitting in the van for a big portion of the day, so it's important to try to find some time for some physical activities. Your body will thank you when you get home.”

MIKE FLEISCHMANN
Nightmare Of You

“For me, [staying fit on the road] is all about apples, pumping aluminum, ultra-light cigarettes and jumping jacks.”

MICK COOGAN
The Dance Party

“Our live show is very demanding physically, so staying fit on the road is not a problem. You see some bands wearing shorts and jerseys to stay cool on stage, but we wear our usual street clothing and welcome the heat. Keeping the energy up and getting sweaty on stage is the most fun and natural way for us to stay active. When traveling we're always on the lookout for health food shops; and we combat the heavy drinking with tons of water, fruits and vegetables.”

RYAN SIEGEL
The Urgency

“I honestly go back and forth between working out hardcore, doing weights and cardio, and then going back to doing nothing at all. We bought a Bowflex, which was convenient. However, when we were touring clubs and not arenas, I would find it hard to have a time and a place to use it. Also, we occasionally have late nights when friends are at the show and they stay to hang out with us afterward. On those nights, working out is the last thing on my mind.”

HUGO FERREIRA
Tantric

“It's pretty hard staying fit on tour, because you get hungry so much, and nutritional food is hard to come by or too expensive. A couple of us work out at home, so we usually stock up on tuna packets and canned chicken (bring hot sauce so it doesn't taste as bad). We drink lots of water and V8 drinks-never sodas or anything with lots of sugar. When we stop at gas stations, we don't get candy bars; instead we get some sort of nut (peanuts, almonds, cashews, etc.). We will sometimes lift some weights when we get the chance, or do some sort of exercise, but most of the time we are dead tired. Usually though, when the venue or someone provides free food, we can't say no. This food is usually never nutritional, which is another reason why it's hard to stay healthy on the road.”

RYAN BROGAN
PMtoday

“When we go out on the road, staying fit is definitely on all of our minds. We find the best way to do that is to first stay away from fast food. Yes, it's cheap and we are all poor, but it's the No. 1 contributor to being out of shape. We visit Subway a lot. With that being done and working out a little every day sometime before the show and loading in and out, it's not that hard to stay in shape.”

JACK BURNS
Oceana

“I use an Ab Roller, the portable Iron Gym doorway pull-up bar and I try to eat well whenever I can. Also, jumping rope is great for lung capacity and singing. I also do badass yo-yo tricks.”

TILIAN PEARSON
Tides Of Man

“I try my best to stay fit while touring, but it's definitely hard. On tour, you're exposed to so much junk food, because it's cheap and quick when you're on the go. I boycott pretty much all fast food (with the exception of Taco Bell, but hey, even there I stick to the Fresco Menu.) I'm a vegetarian and a really picky eater, so I eat a ton of fruits and veggies and buy a lot of organic foods from grocery stores. Exercising whenever you have downtime is also key. I really enjoy running, so whenever we have off-days or extended periods of down time, I like to try to get in a few miles. My mom is a health and physical-fitness freak (and raised me to be the same way), and I used to play a lot of sports, so she keeps me in check and makes sure I'm at least trying to stay fit on the road. It pays off in the end and keeps me in better shape when I'm running around onstage.”

BRIAN DALES
The Summer Set

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