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March 25, 2008
“You don’t have to go out and become Earl Blumenauer to be fit,” Rep. Zach Wamp (R-Tenn.) said about his marathon-running House colleague from Oregon.
Wamp is one to talk — or run, for that matter. An avid runner, he logs 20 to 30 miles a week — that’s more than 1,000 miles every fiscal year and 20,000 miles since he’s been in Congress.
“But that doesn’t mean that everybody has to become a running machine,” said Congressional Fitness Caucus co-chairman Wamp, who adheres to a “physical, mental and spiritual approach for a balanced life.”
Wamp and several other members and staffers say legislative activity doesn’t have to prevent physical activity. In fact, it can promote it.
To get in voting form, Wamp suggests eating a light lunch and then heading outside for a walk. “There’s not a prettier place, not a more inspirational place, than on the Mall.”
“Or you can take the steps up four flights, twice a day in the Longworth [House Office] Building,” continued Wamp, adding that there are “so many things that you can do to increase movement.”
Republican Rep. Tom Feeney of Florida doesn’t schedule meetings before 10 a.m., aides say, giving him time for a morning run. Rep. Ralph Hall (R-Texas), 84, has been a runner since 1940 and advises his fellow members to “keep your stamina up.”
Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio), another runner, puts her staffers to shame.
“I mean, I’m 25 years old, and she makes me feel like I’m lazy,” said one staffer in Schmidt’s Cincinnati office.
Rep. Timothy V. Johnson (R-Ill.) expands Wamp’s philosophy to include what he calls “incidental exercise.” The congressman is known for walking on his treadmill for at least an hour each morning while working through his office’s media and constituent call lists.
“When we want to review legislation, rather than sit on our rears in our office, we go up to the fourth floor of Longworth and walk around,” Johnson said over the phone while on foot yet again — this time in a shopping mall back in Illinois.
Five years ago, Wamp founded the Fitness Caucus because of the host of health problems associated with obesity among the country’s young people, specifically Type 2 diabetes and hypertension.
“There’s no way the federal government can get our arms around the health care challenges in the future unless Americans live healthier lifestyles,” he said.
Wamp, along with Fitness Caucus co-chairman Rep. Mark Udall (D-Colo.) and Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), recently introduced the Physical Activities Guidelines for Americans Act. The proposed legislation would call on the Department of Health and Human Services to create and promote a physical activities guideline — something like a Fitness Pyramid.
“The wealthiest country in the world should be the healthiest,” said Udall. Wamp added that the goal is to get the next generation to “learn to sweat.”
Staffers are sweating, too, and not just during closed-door meetings.
“Our staff has got to be one of the fittest, if not the fittest, staff on Capitol Hill,” said Johnson.
Tell that to Harkin’s office. Once a year, he holds the Harkin Health Challenge to encourage everyone in his offices — in Washington and back in the home district — to make healthy choices. Staffers can earn an extra day off by eating the daily recommended portion of fruits and vegetables, increasing their steps and drinking water.
“I would like to think that I don’t just talk the talk but I also walk the walk when it comes to maintaining my health, and I want to reward my staff for doing the same,” said Harkin, who even brings nutritionists, physical trainers and stress management professionals to the Hill to help teach healthy living.
Staffer Ken Willis, the 38-year-old communications director for Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.), said life inside the dome doesn’t always fit into a 9-to-5 schedule, making it a challenge to maintain a regular fitness routine.
“It’s the kind of job where you’re working even when you leave the office,” said Willis, who works as a boxing instructor at Results Gym by night. There’s “a pretty tiny window for staying fit.”
“The sheer fact of being mentally exhausted after a full day has to be factored into the picture,” said personal trainer Leah Burke, who also works as a research assistant for Sen. Michael B. Enzi (R-Wyo.). Burke, who competed in track and field at the University of Wyoming and now trains five clients a week, added that working on the Hill offers particular distractions “to even the most dedicated athlete, runner or workout enthusiast.”
Alamhir Gutierrez, a staff assistant for the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, agrees. The 22-year-old, who has been competing in Strong Man competitions since college, can flip a 400-pound tractor tire and pull a 6,500-pound van.
But even he finds it tough to squeeze in some time at the gym. “On the Hill, you might not always work a set number of hours,” said Gutierrez, who has encouraged his colleagues to either make use of the new staffers’ gym or start small.
“As long as you dedicate yourself to working out even a little bit, you will notice results,” said Gutierrez. “You will be amazed as to how much you can transform yourself.”
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