England and Leicester hero Jamie Vardy reveals the closest he comes to lifting weights is holding a can of Red Bull
Star striker has a very different fitness regime to most other footballers but coaches don't mind if the goals keep on coming
ARSENE WENGER will not need to worry about Jamie Vardy crowding the training ground gym, if he joins the Gunners.
The England and Leicester striker is living up to his image as a Sunday League player by admitting he hates going anywhere near dumbbells or kettlebells.
The modern era sees most players spend afternoons working out, either at their clubs or at their private gyms at home.
But Vardy is completely different, which is probably why he is so popular with the fans.
His odd fitness regime includes chewing tobacco and Red Bull. He was pictured with both as he left England’s Chantilly hotel this week — and he still loves a beer too.
Yet 24 Premier League goals, a winner’s medal with Leicester, an outrageous goal against Germany and the leveller against Wales would suggest he should not change his routine.
After Thursday’s 2-1 win over Wales, Vardy was asked about the last time he lifted a weight.
He replied: “Probably that can of Red Bull the other day!”
Four years ago, while Roy Hodgson’s side were toiling at Euro 2012, Vardy was on holiday celebrating a move to Leicester having played his last game for Fleetwood — a 2-0 defeat to Luton — in the Blue Square Premier Division.
It has been a meteoric rise without need for a pull-up bar.
Vardy has so little body fat it would be unwise for him to lift heavy weights but it is still astonishing that he chooses to shun them altogether.
Asked whether team-mates and coaches have attempted to drag him into the gym, he smiled and said: “Yes, they’ve tried — and not succeeded. No, if I go in the gym it will slow me down. I don’t go in for weights or anything like that.
“Each and every person is different and this is my way.
“I’m sure if someone else tried doing what I do, then it probably wouldn’t work for them.”
Vardy, though, has still worked incredibly hard to transform his life on and off the pitch.
He was convicted of assault in 2007, and had to wear an electronic tag for six months.
Even when he signed for the Foxes, the former smoker was drinking every day and it has been claimed by one of the club’s Thai owners that he turned up drunk for training.
Despite changing his ways, Vardy has lost none of his spiky, yet cheeky, attitude.
Not forgetting, that Vardy, aged 29, is the third oldest in the squad behind Wayne Rooney and James Milner. Equally, there is not another player among the Three Lions who likes the unusual combination of chewing tobacco and Red Bull.
Vardy said: “It’s just something I’ve always done and they’ve been checked with the medical team and there’s nothing wrong with them.
“I wouldn’t call it a diet, the Red Bull was just to wake me up in the morning.
“It’s just standard me, a bit of Red Bull. It’s not a regular thing whereby I have a Red Bull every morning. It’s just something I felt I needed that day.”
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Matt Reeves, the strength and conditioning coach at Leicester, admits Vardy is a one-off.
He revealed: “Jamie isn’t a player who spends hour upon hour in the gym.
“Instead, has developed a very good functional strength, which is a big asset on the football pitch. As you can see from his statistics, Jamie is extremely quick. He does require additional time to recover.
“If he were to find himself out of the team, we would have to ensure we were regularly exposing him to a peak speed stimulus to prepare him for the demands of a game.
“Jamie has a very well defined six pack and this is generally associated with having a body fat percentage which is less than eight per cent.
“His is actually slightly less than six per cent when using calculations from a seven-site skin-fold test and so it is clear that he is not carrying any excess fat or unwanted weight.
“His lean composition will improve speed and jump performance as a result of an improved power-to-weight ratio.
“Given the high physical demands associated with performing at the highest level, it is important that he maintains this physique by making careful food choices appropriate to his repair and refuelling, rather than just limiting his food intake.”
Vardy will decide over the next few weeks whether to accept an offer to join Arsenal, although there is an increasing feeling he is holding out for another mega deal at Leicester.
Asked whether he has been able to forget about the offer, Vardy added: “It’s been easy. I’m here to concentrate and focus on England and that’s all I’m going to be doing.”
Vardy is likely to start against Slovakia on Monday. Another good display will only increase his salary, whatever he decides.
He may not like pumping iron but the hitman is worth his weight in gold.