Retired Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez is adamant about protecting his personal time. In a world where pretty much everybody is just an Internet connection away from getting a hold of you, the World Series champion turned entrepreneur, Shark Tank guest judge, and NBA part-owner still manages to build moments throughout the day where he’s completely unreachable. An important one is his morning workout: Even though he’s not crushing home runs at Yankee Stadium anymore, A-Rod is still feeling the benefits of having a steady routine in a different field.
Rodriguez spoke to GQ about his weekly training regimen, cutting down on steak dinners, and the ridiculous way he eats sunflower seeds.
For Real-Life Diet, GQ talks to athletes, celebrities, and other high performers about their diet, exercise routines, and pursuit of wellness. Keep in mind that what works for them might not necessarily be healthy for you.
GQ: You were recently diagnosed with early stages of gum disease, which is why we're talking today. [Rodriguez partnered with drug maker OraPharma to raise awareness about the condition.] What are some things you learned about this condition from personally going through it?
Alex Rodriguez: The first thing was that it was more prevalent than you think. Over 65 million Americans also have it and it’s mostly in Black and brown communities—Latino communities like mine. The good news is that the earlier and more proactive you can be, there are good remedies to it. The fastest you can get to your dentist and see if you have this, the better.
Are there specific things people should consider in an oral healthcare routine?
It might be a better question for a dentist! But for me it’s brushing a couple times a day and dental floss. But I think everyone’s a little different and going to a local dentist would be the best thing.
How much of a priority is your workout routine nowadays?
It’s become more of a priority over the last year. I incorporated a new system, which is essentially slowing down to speed up. So my team knows that they have me from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., but 8 a.m. to noon is my time. I use it to lift, do cardio like spin, yoga—you name it. If I’m not working out, I’ll use that time to do recovery like being in the sauna or meditating.
12 p.m to 6 p.m. is when I'm strictly in the office. After that I’m at home with my girls and family. That routine has worked well for me because it allows me to prioritize my health before work and just be proactive to make sure everyone knows my schedule.
Were you this rigorous with your time when you were playing baseball?
I think I was more strict because I didn’t have to be in an office. I was at Yankee Stadium basically all day.
Yankee Stadium was your office.
Yes it was, but I think making working out a priority is even more important now. Because when you’re a Yankee, part of your responsibility is to be in shape and be ready to play every day. Today, it’s a lot easier to slide and do less and less for my body. We live in a world where everybody has so much access to you through social media, emails, or whatever. If you don’t make it a priority to sleep, stay hydrated, have good nutrition, or exercise, your health can slide on you.
Even though it’s technically not your professional responsibility anymore, has keeping in shape helped you in your career?
The greatest investment you can make is in yourself—self care. If you’re in good shape mentally and physically, not only are you going to be better in business, but other things like being a parent or at your job. It’s because you’ll have more energy, you’re more present, and you’ll have more endurance.
All of these things translate to business as well, not just when you’re going out and trying to hit home runs. I’ve always found in some of these long and dragged out negotiations, the one who’s mentally and physically fittest is the one who wins out.
So how do you do it? Take me through a typical morning in the gym.
I usually like to get a good 30-45 minutes of cardio first. I just put on a podcast and get a good sweat in. After that I’ll probably do 30 minutes of weight lifting. I’ve found that as you get older, it’s important to move some metal around because muscle atrophy sets in. Those are my two go tos.
What do your recovery days look like?
I try to do sauna at least three or four days a week for about 15 to 20 minutes at a time. Nothing too crazy, but the important thing is that I’m consistent with everything.
I also try to always eat a balanced meal and try to control my mouth after 8 p.m. at night, which is always a challenge for me.
Do you practice intermittent fasting?
A little bit. I’m not super religious about it, but it’s good because it gives you a chance to digest. It’s more about the insides and fasting gives you an opportunity to digest better and also think clearer. Sometimes I just find myself eating just to eat, even when I’m not that hungry. So having set time to not eat helps me be aware of that a little bit.
What’s a typical day like in your diet?
It’s usually egg whites and oatmeal in the morning. I may even have a protein shake. Then I’ll have lunch around 1 or 2 p.m. It’s usually a chicken or a fish with brown rice. There might be some sort of snack in the late afternoon, but then I’ll have dinner with my girls around 7:30 p.m.
I still like a good steak for dinner, probably too much. I went from steak 3 to 4 days a week to now once a week, so it’s been a big change. I’ve added a lot more fish like salmon and sea bass.
Besides steak, what would you consider a cheat meal or snack nowadays?
Chips. I can go for five years without touching dessert, but I am guilty of having a salty tooth, if that’s even a word. If I can stay away from chips and salsa, I’d be in really good shape.
You went viral a little while ago for showing this kid how you used to eat sunflower seeds in the dugout.
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Well, first: that kid was a wonderful young man who was an entrepreneur. He had great spirit and passion and I just thought I’d have a little fun with him. I love young entrepreneurs like that and if I can support them and shed some light to what they’re doing, it’s good for them.
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Can you walk me through your method of throwing the sunflower seeds at your own face? Seems like a good amount of them didn’t even make it into your mouth.
I think the method was a little bit of a nervous tick for me. Robinson Canó would do it too. He would look at me and I would look at him and we’d both toss a handful of sunflower seeds into our mouth and about 10 percent of them would actually go in and the rest would end up on the floor.
Everyone around me usually was a dipper or chewing tobacco, and I never did any of that. I would just eat sunflower seeds.
You’re also pretty active on social media. Do you follow a social media diet or have times when you’re completely off screens?
I like to go a couple days and not touch social media, which is a nice way to budget my time. Some of the time I’m actually social on social media, and other times I’m working and putting stuff up there that I want to bring light and some energy to, like my partnership with OraPharma. But I try not to think about being online too much.
You had this post with Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves, which you’re a part-owner of. What were some things you talked about while sitting courtside together?
Ant is an incredible young man. He’s only 21 years old and gosh, I look at these young players today and they’re so much smarter and well rounded than we were at that age, or at least that I was at that time.
Everyone saw those pictures and thought that I was mentoring him, but I kind of saw it the other way around. He was also mentoring me by teaching me things about basketball. I’ve learned more by watching two games with him than I’ve learned in my whole life. Things like the little nuances that I don’t even notice.
So I think mentoring is a two-way street and we both have ambitions to win a championship. He, as a player, wants to be in the promised land.
Do you get any workouts in with the team or at the Timberwolves facility?
Oh no, no. Every man has to know his limitations. For me, watching the game is where it starts and where it ends.
Speaking of the NBA and mentorship, you’re in the Shark Tank with Mark Cuban. Have you ever approached him for advice about owning a team or winning an NBA championship?
Yeah, Mark’s a friend. The one thing I’ll say about all of the NBA owners is that they’ve been so gracious with their time and it’s humbling for me.
Most PopularI’m a rookie all over again. I’m a 25 year veteran in baseball and here I am as a young rookie again in those rooms. All 30 owners want to beat each other up on the court. Collectively off the court, we’re very collaborative and share best practices. Every front office wants to help each other out, while competing very hard on the court, we still collaborate off the court very well.
Are there any similarities to how you approached baseball as a pro athlete and how you approach business now?
There’s tremendous overlap—the discipline, the hard work, surrounding yourself with great teammates, being able to share the ball, aligned vision. All of these things I learned from the great George Steinbrenner who was my longtime boss and mentor.
When I think of summarizing both sports and business, it comes down to VCP, which stands for vision, capital, and people. It’s also the name my venture company with Marc Lore.
George Steinbrenner epitomized that. He had a vision of making the Yankees the greatest sports organization in the world. He deployed a tremendous amount of capital and resources to the team to make it happen. We had the best training staff and the best coaches and the best managers, because obviously the hardest part was finding the best people and making them a part of the vision and the culture. That’s what Steinbrenner did and that’s where I learned from.
What’s the best piece of business advice that you’ve gotten? Either from Steinbrenner or any of the other luminaries you’ve come to know or work with?
It’s from Warren Buffet, who’s been a long-time mentor of mine as well. It’s, “Keep things simple. Buy great businesses at a fair price and not a fair business at a great price.”
And my advice would be always surround yourself with the best people, because you’re an average of the five people you surround yourself with.
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