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4X IPL Pro Champ Robert Tenerowicz Is 60-years-young!

“…the most compelling reason for me to compete is inspiring others to train hard and eat right as they see the results I’ve been able to achieve into my 60s.”

BEN YOSEF: First off, congratulations on all of your success within the IPL! You have been a part of the league for several years now, sharking your way up to the top! What has your competition experience been like up to this point?
ROBERT TENEROWICZ: Without exception, my experience has been fantastic! The IPL staff, the athletes, the judges, and the venues have all been great. Regardless of how one places in the competition, everyone involved knows that each athlete is a winner just for showing up to compete…and you really can feel that.
BEN: I am really happy to hear that you are enjoying your IPL experience! And great perspective on all this! It is very cool that you are hitting the stage and competing at 60! What compels you to compete?
ROBERT: Several things. I am competitive by nature, so I have a strong will to win. That can mean winning at the gym each day by working harder than anyone else, or it can mean winning at competitions, which includes winning against myself by improving at each subsequent competition. However, the most compelling reason for me to compete is inspiring others to train hard and eat right as they see the results I’ve been able to achieve into my 60s.
BEN: Love that. And you have definitely improved with each IPL outing. That’s exciting! How is it that you keep getting better? What’s the “secret”?

"Getting the right balance of carbs, proteins, fats and water to look both full and lean has really been a learning experience for me..."

ROBERT: I think it’s really just learning from each competition and incorporating those learnings into prep for the next one. For my last few competitions, it has been related t0 my diet the week leading up to show day. Getting the right balance of carbs, proteins, fats and water to look both full and lean has really been a learning experience for me. I felt that I was much improved this time at APEX. It’s not always diet though. At APEX, after the competition, I received some really good posing advice from judges Marc Monaco and Rob Meindl, which I REALLY appreciated. I’ll be incorporating that advice into my posing practice leading up to my next competition.
BEN: Awesome. Have there been changes with your workouts compared to say 20-30 years ago?
ROBERT: Yes! 20-30 years ago conventional wisdom said high weight, low reps (4-8). Over the past 10 years or so, I’ve adopted a workout that uses less weight and much higher reps (10-25). Making sure to control the weight through the entire rep, and pushing to failure. From the studies I’ve read, as long as you push to failure, you can still gain muscle mass doing higher reps. I think this can work for everyone, but in particular for those of us later in life to help reduce injuries. I also used to run a lot, but I now I do more walking up hill and more stair climbing.
BEN: Where do you see yourself with the health, fitness and competition, say within the next 5 to 10 years?
ROBERT: I retired last year from a 37-year career in biotechnology, so I have even more time now to devote to my passion of health and fitness. I earned my personal trainer certification last year, my wife and I just took over a yoga studio, I’m exploring the potential for gym ownership, and I intend to continue competing for as long as I am physically able. Health and fitness has always been, and will continue to be, a priority for me.

"...I intend to continue competing for as long as I am physically able. Health and fitness has always been, and will continue to be, a priority for me."

BEN: Oh, wow, that’s fantastic! Congratulations on your retirement and career! And kudos to you for pursuing these passions within health and fitness! Congratulations on your new ventures as well! I’m excited to see what comes of them!
     Ever since I was a teenager, I have had a passion for health, fitness, longevity and physique development. I have always looked towards older men to see what they were doing in these areas and how they were prolonging life. I’ve always known that true, natural, health and fitness was the “Fountain of Youth” and this has compelled me to learn more about what people, especially men do to keep themselves in top shape. Now I am one of those older men! [laughs] You have a few years on me, although I am catching up! [laughs] What tips can you offer to the young guns out there, as well as older men, with regards to longevity in health and fitness?
ROB: For people young and old, I like to say, live GIANT! G – Go. Go to the gym. Make time to get there regularly. I – Intensity. Once at the gym, keep the intensity level up and put in the work. A – Accomplishments. Set near-term and long-term goals and celebrate your accomplishments when you attain them. N – Nutrition. Read food labels and educate yourself on what you’re putting into your body and make sure you’re getting enough protein, while not overdoing it on carbs and fat. T – Technique. When you’re doing an exercise, make sure you’re are doing it correctly, controlling the weight through the entire rep to maximize the benefit of the exercise to the muscles. Follow me at @tenerowiczfitness on IG if you want to learn more.

"I also want to encourage anyone thinking about competing to just DO IT! It’ll be very rewarding and you’ll be surrounded by a great and very supportive group of people."

BEN: Boom! Love the acronym! Did you make that one up? Will you ever train or coach athletes in competition?
ROB: I did, and yes, I would love to do that! I’ve been trying to get people at the gym where I workout motivated to compete.
BEN: AWESOME! Keep working on it! And let’s try and get some more men into this league! Robert, it’s been awesome learning more about you and once again thank you for being a part of this league and community! I appreciate you! As of now you are registered to compete at the West Coast Championship in September. I have no doubt that you will be once again at your best! What can we expect from you in Cali? And any final thoughts for ATHLETIC Magazine?
ROB: ’m really looking forward to the show! It’s the closest competition to where I live, so it feels a little bit like “home”. I’m looking forward to employing my learnings from APEX in my posing and once again learning even more to take into subsequent competitions!
     I also want to encourage anyone thinking about competing to just DO IT! It’ll be very rewarding and you’ll be surrounded by a great and very supportive group of people. Thanks, Ben! I really appreciate all that you’ve done for me and the rest of the IPL family of athletes! ATHLETIC

About the interviewer:

Picture of Ben Yosef

Ben Yosef

Ben is the Publisher of ATHLETIC Magazine and the President & Founder of the International Physique League.

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