Jeff Bezos has pioneered the ‘Burly Billionaire‘ movement, but how exactly did he go from dweeb to dench? Well, he’s finally dropped his impressive fitness regimen…
For as long as this writer can remember, the silver screen has been adorned by blokes with bulging biceps, pulsing pecs, and devilish delts. From Zac Efron’s wrestle-ready bulk, Tom Hardy’s Bane biceps, and Ryan Reynolds getting ripped, we’ve always been across movie star muscle-ups here at DMARGE.
In recent years, we’ve seen billionaires hop on this muscle-heavy trend and — after emerging as a discount Vin Diesel back in 2017 — the secrets behind the massive glow-up of Amazon founder Jeff have finally been revealed.
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Bezos’ fiancé Lauren Sanchez attested to Bezos’ “monstrous” new levels of fitness ina recent interview with Vogue:
“He’s on a whole different level than I am. He is a monster in the gym.”
Lauren Sanchez
Bezos’s routine — crafted under the watchful eye of trainer to the stars Wes Okerson, known for training Tom Cruise — includes a mixture of weightlifting, rowing, kayaking, hill running, and paddleboarding. Complementing his exercise regime is a Mediterranean-style diet, rich in fish, plants, healthy fats and…. octopus.
A healthier lifestyle is crucial as men enter midlife. Fitness expert Matt Roberts highlights the risks associated with this tender stage in life, including plaque buildup in the arteries, rapidly rising cholesterol levels, and natural declines in testosterone.
These changes often lead to muscle mass reduction, mood dips, and brain fog. However, Roberts emphasizes that this kind of decline doesn’t have to be inevitable:
“I’m 50 and my body fat percentage and dimensions are the same as when I was 20.”
Matt Roberts
Roberts recommends weightlifting two to three times a week to boost testosterone, improve muscle mass, and reduce fat. A study in the British Medical Journal supports this, suggesting that weightlifting for 30-60 minutes a week can massively reduce the risk of heart disease by 10-20%.
On top of this, incorporating low-level cardio like brisk walking or slow jogging for 40 minutes, 3-4 times a week, can burn fat and reduce arterial plaque at a rapid rate. This type of “Zone 2” exercise, which keeps you at about 60-70% of your maximum heart rate, also utilizes fat as the main energy source, preventing injury.
Beware, however: there is such a thing as too much weightlifting. A study from the March to April 2023 edition of Missouri Medicine, included a systematic review and meta-analysis which showed that, as you might expect, regular, moderate-intensity weightlifting — around 30-60 minutes per week — is very good for the body, producing significant risk reductions for mortality across the spectrum.
However — and this is where things get tricky for the most committed lifters — more than 130 minutes per week, a mere two hours, could actually be doing you more harm than good, bringing your life expectancy back to the same levels as if you’d been adopting a sedentary lifestyle the entire time.
So tread carefully, but get those wights up… your life might just depend on it.