The Reach Out: Peter King
The NBC Sports Football Morning in America columnist, podcast host, and author talks about virtual training, planks, half-marathons, and what motivates him to exercise.
Peter King has been writing about the NFL for 39 seasons and currently writes Football Morning in America, a Monday morning NFL column, for NBCSports.com.
On The Peter King podcast, King speaks with NFL insiders, commentators, players, and coaches, about wins/losses, trades, signings, firings, training camp, television deals, lawsuits, and the draft.
As a contributor to NBC’s Football Night in America, King was an NFL Insider for this year’s Pregame Show. For NBC Sports Digital, King reports on regular season games, conference championships, the Super Bowl, the NFL Scouting Combine, the start of free agency, and the NFL draft.
King previously served as halftime correspondent for ABC’s Monday Night Football and managing editor and reporter for HBO’s Inside the NFL.
Over his 29 years with Sports Illustrated, King wrote the Monday Morning Quarterback and Inside the NFL columns. He has been a voting member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame since 1992, and has written five books about the NFL.
I spoke with Peter King about how and why he makes regular exercise a part of his life.
Is being active a priority for you?
It is. I work out three times a week. We have a nice gym in my apartment building in Brooklyn. On two of those days, I exercise with a trainer. When the pandemic started, we switched to virtual sessions. So I will put in my air pods, prop up my iPhone against a water bottle, and she trains me over the phone. We plan to resume in-person sessions this summer.
What does your exercise routine look like?
My trainer varies my workouts a lot. I’m 64, and it’s important for people my age to work on balance. So she’ll have me do exercises standing on one leg, as well as functional strength training. I use the rowing machine a lot, and to get my heart rate up, I’ll use the Elliptical. I haven't been running as much lately because of a pulled muscle in my foot, so I’ll do an elevated treadmill walk at a 4.0 pace.
Other than having a virtual trainer, how else did the pandemic change your routine?
Thankfully, the gym in my building remained open — we just had to wear a mask. That was an interesting experience. I probably worked out with a mask on for over a year. It can be hard, but you can get used to anything if you need to. It’s not like I’m running a marathon and exerting myself particularly heavily. I will still put on a mask if the gym is crowded, but I'm not really bothered by it anymore.
Do you stick with your routine when you’re traveling?
I make exercise a priority when I’m home, but on the road — even though I know I should — I don’t. When I’m covering training camps for NBC Sports, I’m usually in a new city every day. We arrive late and leave early, so I find it hard to find the time. If I'm going to be away somewhere for several days, I will always use the hotel gym.
A few years ago, one of the videographers on our road trip was a 28 year-old former college lacrosse player. We had a plank contest one day in the hotel gym. She beat me. The last thing she would ever want is to lose a plank contest to a 62 year-old man.
What is your motivation for working out?
Well, there are four males in my immediate family — my father, my two brothers, and myself. My brother Bob, the fittest person in our family, died of a heart attack while riding a bike. He died on Father's Day, 2010, at age 55. That was a pretty sobering experience.
My other brother died of liver disease at age 64, and my dad was a heavy smoker who died of lung cancer at 63. So I'm probably driven mostly by the fact that I don't want to retire and then die 10 minutes later. That's probably the biggest motivation I have.
Do you wear a fitness monitor?
My trainer thinks the Whoop is the best device for measuring everything, right down to the quality of your sleep. I've gotten so used to it that whenever I take the dog for a 40 minute walk now, I challenge myself to get my heart rate up into the 130’s. It’s also taught me more about the importance of recovery, and that if I haven't slept well, the Whoop is going to let me know. I like having that reminder.
What do you listen to (or watch) while exercising?
I'd say 75% of the time, I'm not listening to anything while working out. We're so bombarded with all kinds of media that I like to have some time where I can just think.
There are times when I will listen to a podcast if I want to learn more about a topic. Last week, I listened to Field Yates, Mel Kiper, and Todd McShay’s mock draft because I like to hear smart people talk about prospects and the college players that I'm going to be writing about. But most often, I don’t listen to anything — I just focus on the workout.
Is there any exercise that you want to try, or would like to get back into?
I ran two half-marathons about ten years ago — one in New Hampshire and one on Long Island. I really enjoyed the training and racing aspects. Not because I was trying to compete with anyone, but because when you run alongside a large group of people, you almost feel like the other runners are carrying you along.
I also loved how a long run made me feel. Yes, you feel tired at the end, but also very energized. Whenever I run the Central Park loop (10K), I’m surrounded by runners from all over the world, so it’s like a community and that’s a great feeling.
Peter King is a morning person! He likes to exercise in the morning and — as his loyal readers know — his Football Morning in America column is posted in the morning. And, of course, marathons always start in the morning.😄
Thank you, @peter_king
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