The Reach Out: Anthony Scaramucci
The founder of Skybridge Capital and host of the Mooch FM podcast is into fitness "big time" and eager to play pickleball (he also really loves pasta).
Anthony Scaramucci is the founder and co-manager of SkyBridge Capital and the founder of the SALT conference.
Scaramucci hosts the weekly Mooch FM podcast, where he discusses current issues with media, business, and political personalities.
He served as Donald Trump’s Communications Director for 11 days before, as he says, “being unceremoniously sacked.” He has since become an outspoken critic of Donald Trump.
The author of five books, Scaramucci has appeared on Real Time With Bill Maher and is a frequent guest on CNBC.
I spoke with Anthony Scaramucci about keeping active and fit.
Is regular exercise an important part of your life?
I’m two years from turning 60, so I have to stay active. My body is either going to wear out from a lack of use, or stay fresh and young — those are the two choices. I choose to go to the gym — five to six times a week — so I’m into fitness, big time.
My personal trainer, Ray Salomone, was a field artillery soldier who trained Army Rangers. During the pandemic, our workouts have been over FaceTime, every morning from 6:15 to 7:15am.
At my age, my goal is to retain muscle mass and stay trim enough to look okay in a suit and on television. Given how much I like eating pasta, I think I’m in deceptively good shape.
What is your primary motivation for working out?
You want the truth from your interviewees, right? I would say that I am way more vain than I am health conscious. How shallow is that? It’s mainly that I do not want a double chin on television.
Do you have a set workout routine?
I actually have three different types of workouts. They all start with a brisk walk on the treadmill for three minutes, followed by stretching and foam rolling of my hips, back, and IT bands. I probably spend 10 to 20% of my workouts on strength and flexibility, which is particularly important for somebody my age.
Then, depending on the day, I’ll move to an upper or lower body workout, some weight related, some body-weight related.
I take the foam roller, my step, and a bottle of water, and do high kicks (leg up and over the bottle of water). Why am I doing that? Because when you get to be my age, if your hips tighten up, it affects everything from your knees to your back, so the high kicks help to keep my hips loose.
Then I'll use the bench and dumbbells and do a rotation of chest press and single arm, back rows. I’ll use the TRX — which is suspended from the ceiling — to do chest and back exercises — and when you do this while standing on a BOSU, you can get that Mission Impossible, Tom Cruise vertical position.
I’ll also use my Cybex universal gym for exercises like pulls, pull-downs, triceps work, and chin-ups.
I try to intersperse 150 push-ups throughout each workout, and I do ab work on the mat — leg wide-outs, criss-cross legs, leg circles, and leg lifts.
It sounds like you use a wide variety of gym equipment.
I do. I had left knee surgery, so I don’t do a lot of high impact running, but I will do a three mile run on a WoodWay. Or I’ll use the elliptical, the Cybex Arc Trainer, or the VersaClimber.
I also have a new piece of equipment called a Rogue Skierg, which is basically like a vertical rowing machine. So instead of the kind of rowing machine where you’re sitting and pulling horizontally, on the Skierg, you’re pulling down vertically. This machine is great for both strength and cardio.
If I have time later in the day, I’ll do more cardio while watching TV on the Elliptical.
What are you watching on TV while doing cardio?
In the morning, I’ll probably watch CNBC. On the weekends, or during the football or baseball season, I'll watch a game. In the summer, it's definitely baseball. Otherwise, I’ll watch a show like Game of Thrones or Sopranos for a half hour while I'm doing my cardio.
Other than switching to FaceTime workouts with your trainer, how else have your fitness habits changed during pandemic times?
I’m actually working out more, but unfortunately I'm probably eating a little bit more. I want to be candid with you — I’m probably seven pounds heavier than I was pre-COVID. Some of that is probably stress eating, although I didn’t put on as much weight as I did when I was a freshman in college. But the first six months of running a business from my home during the pandemic were very stressful for me. I’m an Italian kid from a blue collar, Long Island family, so when I panic, I eat more.
Do you use a fitness app to count your steps?
My attitude is that since I’m getting an hour of pretty robust exercise in the gym every day, I'm confident that I'm getting a good caloric burn, while also retaining muscle mass. So I'm not obsessive enough to be that mindful of my steps.
However, I am a big believer in standing while I work. I don't have an elevated desk, but if I'm on the phone like I am right now, I'm usually standing and talking.
Is there a sport or a fitness trend that you think you’d like to try?
That’s a really good question. I’m in the process of building a house, and I’m putting a pickleball court in the backyard. I've never played pickleball before, but my older sons play, so I want to be on that pickleball court. That's the new trend that I'd really like to try.
In a few months, I will check in with Anthony Scaramucci to find out how he fared on the pickleball court and how those high kicks are going.😀
Thank you, @Scaramucci
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