Jason Tressler – Male Fitness Model Interview and Photos

Jason Tressler – Male Fitness Model Statistics

• Name: Jason Tressler
• Height: 6’2″
• Weight: 198-210 pounds
• Date of Birth: 4/2/1979
• Hair Color: Dirty Blonde
• Eye Color: Blue
• Location: Indianapolis, Indiana

Jason Tressler – Male Fitness Model Interview

How did you get started in the fitness field?
I have always been active, played baseball and basketball in high school. I love the gym and the pump I get!

What is the #1 thing you like best about being into fitness?
Feeling better than ever every day! You feel and look better when you are active and healthy! I feel better now than when I was a teenager!

What has been your biggest accomplishment in the fitness field?
Helping others see the light and getting them to grasp on to a healthy lifestyle. I also love to help people do body transformations that will hopefully last a lifetime and can be passed on to the clients and their loved ones.

What is the best way to get started in the fitness modeling industry? Should I just contact the photographers directly or should I use an agency?
This is a tough question since I actually have no experience yet as a professional fitness model.

Please describe a typical day for you. What is your daily routine like?
I am a firm believer (time permitting) in 1 to 2 body parts a day, with intervals of cardio either before, during or after. Like 20-30 minutes. I like super sets of 2 body parts, then 10-15 minutes of the bike, 10-15 of fireman sprints, followed with 10-15 minutes of speed jump roping. Then 10-15 minutes of various and continuous abdominal work.

I don’t have that much time during the day to workout, so I really want to burn major calories in a short amount of time. What is the #1 “bang for the buck” cardio exercise I should do to burn serious calories?
That’s easy, a nonstop circuit hitting every muscle group. The only rest you take is active rest RUNNING to your next station. So for example, do the following for 1 minute continuous, take a weight that is about 30% to 50% of your 1RM.

1. Incline fly
2. Squat
3. Curls
4. Deadlifts
5. 4 minutes of up hill sprints
6. Tricep pull downs
7. Ab workout
8. Should press
9. Up right row
10. Bike for 3 minutes

Finish with 3 minutes of a continuous abdominal workout. This should take 20 minutes or less to complete. I would do it at least twice.

How much weight (pounds) should I focus on losing every week? What is a safe amount to make sure I keep it off?
That all depends on the person and their current BMI, body fat percentage, overall weight, etc. I would focus on how I look and feel and not the weight! Take progress photos and be strict with your diet and you will see results!

What type of food or supplements should I take before and after my workouts to help me see results in gaining lean muscle and losing fat?
It’s essential to take protein before and after working out. It’s all about what works for you. Some people like a shake before working out, some want an empty stomach, etc. I personally need a little food in my stomach to lift heavy and hard! I can do cardio on the empty stomach but my strength is comprised with no food. So, try to find your happy medium. But if you can’t eat, then drink a protein shake or you will hurt yourself in the long run.

How do you deal with cravings for junk foods, sweets and salty food? I can stay on a diet for maybe a few weeks but I eventually get really bad cravings and binge on snacks and fast foods.
Fruit! Buy good berries and fresh organic apples and strawberries! Or make a fruit smoothie with peanut butter! I cheat on some meals because I don’t have a contract or photo shoot to be chiseled for.

I’m trying to create a healthy shopping list to stick with. What are some of the main foods I should include to maintain a lean and muscular physique?
Nuts! Get a ton of different kinds of them. Mixed nuts are convenient but seem to always lack the most essential one, which is pistachios. Eating nuts is an easy way to curb yourself between meals.

I’m about 35 pounds overweight. I have never started an exercise program and really don’t know where to start. What tips can you give me to get started on the right track?
I would start in the kitchen. Watch what you are eating and start on a very basic workout program, such as walking vigorously and then some light weight training, followed with more intensity as your body allows.

I tend to eat out most of the time and really don’t know what healthy foods to order from the menu. What tips do you recommend for eating out at restaurants to make sure my diet will not suffer?
“Eat This Not That” has a few books specifically for these folks who are unsure of what to get. For health nuts, this is instinctual but we all have to learn the basics. Stay away from fried stuff, gravies, heavy sauces, heavy cheese, grease, and off course use portion control.

What exercises do you recommend for getting a bigger, rounder and fuller butt?
Squats! Many women slave away for hours on the treadmill or doing mindless cardio. When actually they should be down doing TONS of squats, lunges and deadlifts with different varieties to hit all the areas.

What is the most challenging thing you deal with about consistently staying in top shape?
Dieting, since it’s hard to eat clean all the time. I try to stay lean year round so when the fall comes, it gets tough with all the junk food and meals that come along with the season. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s.

Please describe your normal diet. What do you eat in a typical day to stay in shape?

• Pre-Breakfast: Protein shake, bowl of cereal.
• Breakfast: 4-5 eggs, various fruit, coffee, 2 chicken links, 1-2 pieces of toast, sometimes a glass of juice.
• Mid-Morning Snack: Protein shake, nuts, fruit, granola.
• Lunch: Large chicken breast, broccoli, carrots, veggie chips. Amino drink.
• Mid-Afternoon Snack: Nuts, raisins, maybe a cookie or cheddar bunnies!
• Dinner: Veggie chicken pasta or steak with veggies and a potato or brown rice.

What type of exercises do you include in your routine to stay in shape?

• Strength Training Exercises: I prefer body weight exercises and free weights.
• Cardio Exercises: Basketball, jump rope, rowing, cycling, boxing.
• Additional Training: Circuits, HIIT, boot camps, AB blaster.

What are the top 5 tips (specific exercises, diet advice, etc) you recommend for developing toned and defined arms?

1. Count calories and figure out your body, abs are made in the kitchen!
2. Perform various exercises every 4-6 weeks to shock your muscles.
3. Never forget that your toned look is directly affected with what you EAT!
4. Learn to utilize high intensity training, super sets and giant sets. This will get you shredded, but requires a lot of heart and dedication to get true results.
5. Stay positive! You can be your best friend or worst enemy. You should love yourself, so treat your body like its gold. USE IT OR LOSE IT! This is very true.

What are your top 5 tips for losing unwanted body fat?

1. Diet, clean eating.
2. High intensity training.
3. Avoid alcohol, sweets, sugar, grease, etc.
4. WATER, drink LOTS of water!
5. Intensity! If you don’t workout with a TON of intensity then you will not lose the fat. My mantra is “Train insane or remain the same”!

What are your top 5 tips for gaining lean muscle mass?

1. Train heavy with a partner.
2. Avoid high reps, and focus on a 5-8 rep range with heavy weight.
3. Form! Always keep proper form and technique before trying to go really heavy.
4. Intensity again! I believe you have to really want what you are working towards. So you need to unleash your inner beast in the gym. Find a way to tap into that ZONE you need to get big.
5. Variety! Switch your routine up or your muscles will have the last laugh.

What are the top 5 tips you recommend for staying motivated on a fitness plan and truly making a healthy lifestyle change?

1. Long term health benefits.
2. Passing the wisdom along to my loved ones in order to live a healthy and happier life.
3. Take progress photos, try to avoid weighing yourself too often.
4. If this road was easy then everyone would be all buff and cut. The hard work will be and is rewarding. You will see and feel different. People will approach and talk to you differently after you make a lifestyle change.
5. Feeling better! As you get healthier, you feel better and better. As I get older, I feel better than ever! I see others I went to high school with and they look 10 years older than they actually are, and obese.

What is your training routine like? (Please include a few details – training split, sets/reps, exercises, types of cardio, etc.)

• Monday: Legs. I warm up with light weight single leg extensions for 4 sets of 20-30 reps. Then I do front squats for 4 sets (12, 10, 8, 6 reps). Lunges with a barbell for 4 sets of 12 reps. Lunges with dumbbells for 4 sets of 10-16 reps (use a bench to step up and pause). Standing calf raises for 4 sets of 12 reps. Cardio for 15 minutes.
• Tuesday: Biceps and triceps. I do hammer curls, seated incline curls, standing cheat curls, with various grips and widths throughout the exercises. Narrow grip bench for 5 sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 4 reps). Push downs, overhead tricep extensions, dips with body weight for 4 sets of 20 reps. I finish with 15 minutes of a nonstop AB workout.
• Wednesday: Back. Deadlifts for 5 sets. 1st is a warm up set and then follow with 12, 10, 8, 6 reps and go up on weight each set. Narrow grip pullups for 4 sets of 12 reps. Standing upright rows with dumbbells for 4 sets of 10 reps. Lat pull downs for 4 sets of 15 reps. Get a good light weight and do each rep slow and exaggerated to hit all your muscles and switch grips every set. Reverse, under, over, etc. Then I do 4 sets of 12 reps of narrow grip lat pull downs, using multiple grips and widths. I finish with 4 sets of pushups to failure! Then I do 10-15 minutes of nonstop abdominal work.
• Thursday: Chest. Incline bench for 5 sets (1st is warm up) and I go with 12, 10, 8, 4 reps. Try to use more weight on each set. Flat bench for 4 sets (10, 8, 6, 4 reps). Raise your weight on each set. Incline fly’s for 4 sets of 12 reps. Decline flys for 4 sets of 12 reps. Flat bench fly’s for 4 sets of 12 reps. I finish with 30-45 minutes of cardio (mixed up).
• Friday: Shoulders. Standing overhead press for 5 sets (12, 10, 8, 6, 3 reps). Wide grip pull ups for 4 sets of 10 reps. Front raises with dumbbells for 4 sets for 10 reps. Side lateral raises for 4 sets of 10 reps. Bent over rear delt raises for 4 sets of 12 reps. I also do 30-45 minutes of mixed cardio.
• Saturday: Day off (or maybe a little cardio work).
• Sunday: Repeat Monday and start all over!

What are the top 5 tips (specific exercises, diet advice, etc) you recommend for losing fat around the stomach and developing a toned and defined midsection?

1. Boxing, kickboxing.
2. High intensity training.
3. Jumping rope.
4. Eating CLEAN, organics, lots of water.
5. Stay motivated and be intense! Find a way to keep your intensity high whenever you workout. Remember to “Train insane or remain the same”!

What are the top 5 tips (specific exercises, diet advice, etc) you recommend for toning the thighs, hips and butt?

1. Lots of squats!
2. Stairmaster.
3. Jump roping (speed rope, bunny hop jump rope).
4. Deadlifting.
5. Cycling (outdoors preferably).