DEF LEPPARD Guitarist PHIL COLLEN: 'The Weight That I'm Benching Is Ridiculous'

July 23, 2013

Bryan Reesman of GRAMMY.com recently conducted an interview with DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

GRAMMY.com: While you're known for your healthy eating habits, people can fall off the wagon. Is there ever a time when you pig out?

Collen: Absolutely. [I] do it with really simple stuff like chips. Being a vegan, [I] can still really pig out. Purely Decadent has this [dairy-free] coconut ice cream, and that always does the trick.

GRAMMY.com: One of DEF LEPPARD's biggest hits is "Pour Some Sugar On Me". How do you incorporate sugar into your diet?

Collen: I try not to, actually. I came off of one tour — and I wasn't doing this on purpose — and I stopped eating anything that had sugar in it, except for stuff like apples and oranges that I got out of my own garden and squeezed. I lost 6 pounds in a week, and I wasn't actually trying to lose weight.

GRAMMY.com: How much are you benching these days?

Collen: The weight that I'm benching is ridiculous. When we were in Vegas [for our residency], I benched 380 pounds, and I only weigh 155. I could never do that before. I couldn't even dream of it. I think if you're consistent, that's the thing. You have to have a balanced diet and keep the well clean. You'd be amazed what you can do as you get older. It blows me away. I never thought I'd be able to do this stuff at this age.

GRAMMY.com: One problem nonvegetarians have in considering eating healthier is the cost. For example, some people have jokingly called Whole Foods Market "Whole Paycheck."

Collen: I agree. I feel a bit stiff when I go in there because you can get gouged for sure. For the ones around [Laguna Hills, California], it's all Priuses and Mercedes in the parking lot. There's a place that we go to called Growers Direct, and it's got all these organic vegetables and is cheaper than anywhere else around. We hit that all the time.

Read the entire interview at GRAMMY.com.

Photo credit: Helen Collen

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