Ded’s Matt Reinhard’s Secrets to Working Out on the Road
You're a musician who takes pride in staying fit. You have the discipline to make the time to practice your instrument, rehearse with your band, do all the other stuff that comes with being in a band, and get to the gym and maintain a relatively healthy diet. It's not easy, but you make it work.
All of that discipline can go out the window, though, when you hit the road, particularly if you're in a band that isn't at the superstar level, with personal trainers and cooks in your entourage. And most musicians aren't at that level. So how do you stay in shape?
Ded drummer Matt Reinhard has put some thought into that. He stays in shape thanks to a combination of pretty intense discipline and a sense of ingenuity. Sometimes, you just have to make up your own workout.
"More times than not you will find yourself on tour with no gym in sight," he tells Loudwire. "But luckily for us, the theaters we played have plenty of stairs leading up to the balcony sections. We saw lots of stairs on this last tour with In This Moment, P.O.D. and New Years Day. Even if I'm tired, I tell myself, 'Cut the shit,' and climb those stairs as part of my workout. I count my steps: one thousand steps should be a really good workout. Do two thousand steps, and you're killing it!"
He even keeps a regimented diet, with a rather rock and roll reward for getting through his makeshift routines: "My pre-workout meal is six eggs, arugula, tomato, onion, cucumber, mushroom, peppers, and turkey. My post-workout meal is a protein shake a Bud Light."
If you're staying in motels, there probably won't be any workout equipment. But once you're touring at a level where you can stay in hotels, they may have small gyms with limited gear. "It is so important to take advantage of hotels when you get them on tour because they can be few and far between. Most mid-level hotels will have a decent gym. When we are fortunate enough to get them, I focus on chest, arms, and back. Flat bench press is key: unfortunately, most hotel gyms will only go up to 50 pound dumbbells. We get creative with free weights and push-ups, working them together. My hotel pre-workout meal is usually the free continental breakfast, yogurt with granola, banana, eggs, sausage, and spinach. You can get these for free from the hotel lobby, which also helps the tour budget!"
You have to be flexible in regards to what time of day you get your exercise in. "My favorite work out can happen anywhere, at any time. It might be when we pull into a truck stop, or when we reach the venue and have time to kill. I grab the football and run some routes, or toss the soccer ball out and kick it around. We would run a mile at soccer practice just to warm up back when I was a kid. It's a great source of cardio and you don't even feel like you're working out. You get to feel like a kid again and run around chasing a ball with your best friends. Before you know it you're out of breath and an hour has passed and you've been running your ass off. The point of this work out is to get your heart rate up at least once a day, if not a couple times a day with mixed workouts and to have fun with your bros! When we're at a truck stop the meal is some type of a healthier fast food option: a grilled chicken sandwich with no bun, wrapped in lettuce."
Reinhard and Ded are kicking off another string of tour dates; see the itinerary below.
April 6 – Jerome, ID @ Diamondz Event Center
April 7 – Idaho Falls, ID @ The Gem
In This Moment / The Word Alive / Ded Tour Dates
April 8 - Boise, Idaho @ Revolution Concert House & Event Center
April 10 - Sacramento, Calif. @ Ace of Spades
April 11 - Reno, NV, @ Jub Jub's Thirst Parlor
April 12 - Chico, Calif. @ Senator Theatre
April 13 - Anaheim, Calif. @ House of Blues Anaheim
April 14 - San Diego, Calif. @ House of Blues San Diego
April 16 - Phoenix, Ariz. @ The Van Buren
April 17 - Albuquerque, N.M. @ Sunshine Theater
April 18 - Denver, Colo. @ The Fillmore Auditorium
April 20 – The Complex, Salt Lake City, Utah
April 21 – Las Rageous Festival – Downtown Las Vegas Events Center - Las Vegas, NV
April 22 - Tucson, Ariz. @ The Rialto Theatre/Tucson, Arizona
April 24 – Lubbock, TX w/ The Word Alive @ Jake’s
April 25 - Austin, Texas @ Emo's
April 27 - Pharr, Texas @ Bogus Ford Events Center
April 28 - Laredo, Texas @ Laredo Energy Arena
May 12th – Northern Invasion – Somerset, WI
June 8th – Download Festival – Wisbech, (Donington) England
June 12th – Melkweg – Amsterdam, Netherlands
June 14th – With Full Force Festival – Ferropolis, Germany
June 16th – Download Festival – Paris, France
July 13th – Rockfest – Cadott, WI
Matt Reinhard Workout Gallery