Chris Jericho has gotten dead serious about keeping his weight exactly where he wants it — so serious that going just one pound over his target can send him straight into another fast.
During Wrestling Observer Radio, Jericho was asked how he’s managed to keep wrestling after 36 years in the business. Jericho said that while he was away from AEW television for a year, he completely tightened up his training by doing eight-minute planks twice a day, getting back into lifting weights and starting long-term fasting sessions that can stretch beyond two days.
“I really started long-term fasting. I saw something that Dana actually did, and I’m not talking 12 hours. I’m talking 48 hours, something like that — 36 to 48, sometimes a little longer, but that’s about right. And really watching my weight. I got back into lifting weights as well. I was doing a lot of biking and kickboxing prior, and I started going back to lifting weights. So those kinds of things helped me get my body back in tune where I wanted it.”
Jericho isn’t playing around with the scale either. He said he keeps himself inside a specific weight range, and even being one pound heavier than he wants can trigger another fast. He also admitted that he’s started enjoying the feeling of going without food.
“I stay within a certain weight, and if I go one pound over, I’ll fast until I go back to where I want to be. I kind of got addicted to the feeling of not eating. I like how it feels. I also like to eat when it’s time, but it’s more of a reward to myself.”
A lot of this goes back to advice Jericho says he once got from Ozzy Osbourne. Ozzy’s message was simple: if you’re going to keep performing when you’re older, fans shouldn’t look at you and wonder what the hell happened.
“Ozzy said something years ago. He said, ‘If you’re still going to be doing this as you get older, you still have a responsibility to your fans to look as close to the younger guy as you can.’ Everyone gets older, but you go to the Stones — Mick Jagger still looks like Mick Jagger. That was kind of always my thing. As long as I can still look like Chris Jericho and work like Chris Jericho.”
Jericho says he’s now locked into that mindset and plans to keep himself there for as long as he continues getting in the ring. At this stage of his career, the goal isn’t pretending he’s still 30 — it’s making damn sure the version of Chris Jericho fans see today still resembles the guy they remember.
What do you make of Jericho fasting for 36 to 48 hours and immediately fasting again if he goes one pound over his target weight? Let us know what you think and leave your feedback below.
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