He's not all talk. Jian Ghomeshi, the voice of the daily arts show Q on CBC Radio, dropped an addiction and picked up the dumbbells this year. The 43-year-old set steady energy as the priority in his health revival. Still, one habit persists: late-night snacking.
My goal
"It's threefold: I want to be healthy and have energy, offset stress and look good."
My workout
"Twice a week I'm with my trainer at GoodLife's Platinum Club, but I work out every day."
Mr. Ghomeshi's trainer, John Barlis, says he completed a six-week hypertrophy phase to get strong and elevate his metabolism. Spurred on by his progress, Mr. Ghomeshi now wants definition, so he's embarking on a three-week lean-out phase: a cardio-resistance circuit, lifting weight for 18 reps with a short rest between sets.
My lifestyle
"I work a 12-hour-day and average five hours of sleep. I'm up at 6:30 in the morning, I do my show, then I'm at the network all day, spending much of the day preparing for next day's show. I don't eat red meat; I haven't eaten mammals in years, so I eat mostly vegetables, and fish.
My motivation
"I was a caffeine addict. I'd do my show and drink a giant, powerful coffee, have another coffee in the afternoon, then do a triple espresso to have energy to go out at night. I was waking up drinking Red Bull, sometimes, to be up for the show.
"I was finding dramatic ups and downs in my energy throughout the day: I'd want to crash in the mid-afternoon; I'd get to a point in the evening I was bleary-eyed; I couldn't speak, but then my energy would come back. My energy was disconcertingly inconsistent. And in broadcasting it gets pretty sedentary.
"I was feeling stress, headaches, pains, discomfort, and I was getting really tired. Friends said to exercise. I really needed an outlet for my energy. It's kind of like the stress of the job, anxiety and fatigue comes out when I'm working out. It's a healthy outlet for me, mentally and physically."
My anthem
"I have a few: Michael Franti and Spearhead's Yell Fire!, Jay-Z's Dirt off Your Shoulder and Empire State of Mind ."
My challenge
"I have a terrible habit I've socialized myself into from years of touring in a band [Moxy Fruvous] and that is eating at 2 in the morning. And it's not often the healthiest things."
The critique
Talk yourself fit
Registered holistic nutritionist Joy McCarthy at 889 Yonge, a yoga and lifestyle spa, says night eating is a hard habit to break, but self-talk is an effective behaviour-changing strategy.
"Jian needs to ask himself, 'Am I really hungry?' Because being mindful of what he's eating and why he's eating will help break the habit."
Snack for stamina
For sustainable energy, he should switch to complex carbs such as brown rice, quinoa and millet, and eat between-meal nibbles to prevent energy dips, keeping stamina high.
"Jian should eat a handful of brainy walnuts and four dried apricots, a half-scoop of chocolate protein powder & almond milk, or vegetable sticks and hummus - all blood-sugar-balancing snacks."