★FitStars: Angels & Airwaves Talk Fitness on Tour

The band: Atom Willard, David Kennedy, Tom Delonge and Matt Wachter (left to right).

I remember when my now-hubby, then-boyfriend proposed. It was exciting and thrilling (still is, looking back on it) and, in true FBG-Jenn-music-loving nature, I gravitated towards a song to represent that time in my life. What was that song? “The Adventure,” by the band Angels & Airwaves. The line: “life’s waiting to begin tonight” just really struck a romantic chord with me. Even when I hear the song now, almost four years later, I get butterflies.

So when we got the chance to interview Angels & Airwaves, you can probably imagine me freaking out. The whole band is way talented—lead singer Tom DeLonge is from Blink 182 and the drummer Atom Willard is from The Offspring—and it turns out the band knows a thing or two about fitness. The band finished its third studio album and is now touring.

Guitarist David Kennedy and drummer Atom Willard follow a well rounded and fun workout regimen that includes running, surfing and interval training with disciplined nutrition to maintain fitness while on the road. Atom (man after my heart) has a detailed running regimen plotted out during the tour that will prep him for his summer entry into the Rock ‘n Roll Marathon, and Kennedy, the surfer of the group, does weekly sessions of interval training, plyometrics and core strengthening. Kennedy is also big into motorcycles and even races them.

Read on for Atom’s and David’s tips to staying fit while on the road!

• FBG: Staying fit and a stereotypical band on-the-road lifestyle don’t seem to go together. How do you make it work?
• AW: It’s really all about time management. On the days off, of course there is more opportunity to get the longer runs done, and you don’t have to play a show that night so there isn’t the fear of being out of gas later. On show days, we usually wake up on the bus at the venue, and I’ll do breakfast and then it depends on the weather. If it’s nice, I can get out. If it’s not, you have to get creative, running the stairs or just doing core-strength stuff.



• DK: I make it work by being motivated to be strong and healthy for the shows. There can be a lot of distractions and every day you’re in a different environment, so it’s really easy to just blow it off.
• FBG: Why is staying fit and in shape important to you?
• AW: It started from wanting to be stronger for shows, to be at my best for the full 90 minutes. It’s just snowballed from there.
• DK: By staying fit you feel ready to get out in front of people. We put a lot of energy into our shows. If you just sit around all day you could be at risk for pulling some serious rock muscles!
• FBG: How does your fitness routine on the road differ from what you do when you’re at home?
• AW: At home in Southern California, the only thing determining my workout is me. Should I go cycling today? Running? Sprints? Spinning? The weather has so little to do with it. On the road, there are a hundred different things delegating how long or what workout I get to do.
• DK: Working out on tour for me is a reduced version of what I would put in at home, to complement the show that night as a warm-up and for general maintenance. I’ve done it before where you’ve burned yourself out in a workout then later that night you feel defeated on stage from the first song. The goal is to feel energized and ready to go.
• FBG: Some people find working out and staying healthy while on the road to be challenging. What tips can you give to make it work?
• AW: For me, it’s all about self discipline. If I put it off for even an hour I find that I won’t do as much as I could have, or I won’t do it at all. So the tip would have to be: keep your focus, try and set a time when you NEED to be in the hotel gym—like an appointment—that way you start to see it like, “Shit, I’m late!”
• DK: The best tip I can say to someone that travels in abundance is don’t over-think it—just get started. If you’re concerned about having an hour and a half or the right facility while you’re traveling, you will never get out and do anything because you are programmed to expect too much from yourself. The bare minimum is all you need; the use of your body weight or maybe a pair of running shoes and 20 minutes. You can get a great workout with a few ingredients.
• FBG: What are the physical demands of touring? Any specific exercises that get you ready?
• AW: Nothing too different. The main thing is stretching. Long drives and a different bed every night requires more time keeping everything loose.
• DK: I don’t have specific exercises to get ready for the shows, just workouts that focus more on metabolic conditioning. One day it could be run a 5k for time or 100 push-ups, 200 sit-ups or 300 body-weight squats for time. Get your heart rate up and keep it up. My goals are to end the show with the same energy that I started with.



• FBG: How does staying fit help you keep up with the demands of touring?
• AW: You are just in a better starting place to be in shape. It’s all weird schedules and different food; restrictions on stuff you take for granted.
• DK: The biggest strain of touring is fatigue. You travel every single day, you stay up extremely late, and there are potential distractions around every corner. Training daily keeps your head on straight, strong and focused on the show.
• FBG: Marathon training and motorcycle racing are intense and time consuming. How you fit it in?
• AW: I’m not doing the typical mileage build-up training method [for the marathon], so I’m just doing all I can to keep my pace up over the longer runs and building stamina.
• DK: Staying fit is a big factor in racing motorcycles. It gives you the confidence, the energy and the ability to keep your heart rate down so you know you’ve done the work to maintain the focus it takes to get around at top speeds of 180 mph.
• FBG: Do you listen to music when you work out? Do you listen to your music? What’s on your iPod?
• AW: Always listen to music! I have a wide variety on the “run” lists. From The Bronx to Genesis to the Foo Fighters to Rage Against the Machine to Death Cab….and some AC/DC!
• DK: Music always surrounds me. I really do need it. I definitely listen to our record to motivate myself. Angels and Airwaves is truly designed to push an individual above and beyond what they thought they could achieve.
• FBG: What does a typical day of eating look like? How do you keep your food healthy when on tour?
• AW: Breakfast is muesli, yogurt and a banana. Lunch is usually some lunch meats and a little bread. Dinner is tough since I usually eat after the show, so it’s like midnight…
• DK: Eating can be difficult. Just eat natural, and no matter what stay away from fast food! We hit grocery stores and make sure the bus is stocked with good food so, if nothing else, we can prepare meals on the bus.
• FBG: What’s new for the band? Any good tracks we should add to our workout playlist?
• AW: The new album Love has a few “burners” to get you moving. “Young London” and “Epic Holiday” should push you through the wall.
• DK: New with the band…We have a new record out called Love. It’s free, just download and listen at www.angelsandairwaves.com. We’re currently on our North American headliner tour. We’re also finishing up a feature movie with the same name that we’ll hopefully be able to have out by the end of the year. You can see the trailer at trailers.apple.com.
• FBG: Any other advice for our girl and guy readers?
• AW: New SHOES! I don’t think people change their running shoes often enough.
• DK: I would say, “Living for life today is more important than living life for tomorrow.”

Who would have thought that rock stars could teach us a thing or two about fitness?! I love it when stereotypes are broken (for the healthier!).

Be sure to check out the band’s third studio album, Love, which was released on Valentine’s Day. Sounds like something the romantic in me will definitely need to check out! —Jenn