In a new episode of Gym & Fridge, boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya welcomes MH into his Los Angeles home and shares what his current nutrition and fitness regiments look like.
Back when he was winning world championship titles—a nice round 10 of them, to be exact—De La Hoya would consume chicken, vegetables and lots of water to ensure he was “light and lean” for a fight. “You don’t want to feel sluggish when you’re up in the ring,” he says. “You want to feel very elusive and fast.”
Now, at 50, he still does his best to eat balanced meals with plenty of protein. He eats the same breakfast every single day: egg whites, sliced tomatoes, soyrizo (a soy alternative to chorizo), corn tortillas, and toast with almond butter. For dinner, De La Hoya loves to grill—”I have to have my steaks”—and use his air fryer for meal prep (chicken with sweet potato and broccoli is a staple).
“My cheat day is not too bad,” he adds, “as long as I can control the portions.”
When it comes to the gym, usually to the Gipsy Kings, De La Hoya’s training routine has also changed, but not as much as you might think. “I do less,” he says, “but I try to be effective. Short and effective.”
These “compact” workouts consist of exercises that help to continue honing De La Hoya’s athleticism, like jump rope, speed bag, running and cycling. “I love running,” he explains. “I can’t run the way I used to, but one of my trainers would make me out on combat boots. Each boot would weigh a pound and a half. And I would just run for six to 12 miles.”
His goal now is to just stay active and motivated for as long as possible. “As much as I work out, whether it’s five minutes or an hour a day, for me it’s all about maintaining that discipline and just feeling young,” he says, crediting his current approach to nutrition and exercise as helping him to achieve that: “The transformation in your mind, body and soul is pretty crazy.”
Philip Ellis is News Editor at Men’s Health, covering fitness, pop culture, sex and relationships, and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV, and he is the author of Love & Other Scams.
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