*HOW THEY STAY YOUNG: SYLVESTER STALLONE*
Taken from Longevity magazine, 1991.
He's made his Hollywood fame and fortune by playing the average-guy-against-the-establishment in the Rocky and
Rambo movies. Here, in an exclusive interview with LONGEVITY, 
Sylvester Stallone, 45, star of the film Stop Or My Mom Will Shoot, takes
on the FDA - and it's hardline stance on anti-aging drugs and vitamins - and reveals how he intends to fight the aging process.
Q: We know you're a believer in nutritional supplements, how many do you take a day?
A: I take about 65. I get them from German, New Zealand, and Romania because they are unavailable here. They are not your normal A, B's, and C,
but things like the antioxidants L-cysteine and beta-carotene in a much more potent dose than anything we have here, and a wheat-germ derivative
that retains oxygen. I also take Gerovital H-3, which is used as an anti-aging drug. I inject myself in the butt three days a week for three weeks
twice a year. It's like taking a super vitamin B-12 shot.
Q: Do you think these products should be available here?
A: Yes. The FDA is a little behind the times. They don't move as fast as they should. There are remedies for cancer, that the FDA has not
sanctioned - people have to go to other countries. It's the same with the vitamins.
Q: Do you work closely with a nutritionist or doctor to monitor your health?
A: No, I monitor it myself. I have blood tests done every four months. At my last check my blood pressure was 122 over 70, my triglycerides
were a ridiculously low 45, and my cholesterol was 135.
Q: Do you follow a special diet regimen too?
A: I eat three egg whites and a half yolk for breakfast, along with Irish oatmeal, toast and fresh papaya. I eat red meat once a week. And
I eat chicken and fish, though I gave up shellfish about a year ago because of water pollution, and that was tough because I love shrimp and
clams. I eat lots of fruits and vegetables. I even developed a special low-fat, high energy spaghetti and pizza, which I thought about marketing,
but I don't want to commercialize myself. No Sly Stallone fast food-chains here.
Q: As a kid, did you ever think you'd grow up to become a symbol of fitness?
A: No. I was a shy and skinny kid - a loner with a speech impediment. The other kids knew how scrawny I was and used to beat me up. But when I was
13 and saw Steve Reeves play Hercules, and I decided I wanted to look like that. I wanted to pump up my body and keep the bullies away.
Q: When did you learn what a good body was?
A: When I saw the Tarzan movie Grey Stroke, in 1984. I thought, That's what a perfect body looks like. I wanted to look like Tarzan - sleek,
tight, almost catlike. I wanted to forget the bulk and go for well-developed muscles. I began a hardcore weight-lifting program, working out
twice a day. When I made Rocky, I increased my exercise. But when I did Rambo III, I didn't like the way I looked anymore, so I decided to
reshape myself. I went down to 158 pounds. I put on weight slowly and got sinewy, hard-cut muscles. I wound up weighing about 220. But it
was all muscle - my body fat was down to 2.8 percent. Now my fat count is 6.8. I'm 5'10" and weight 177 pounds. I'm pleased with my body now.
Q: So did you ever use steroids to build yourself up?
A: In 1987, when I was making Rambo III, I used to take an amino acid that's nearly as strong as steroids. It's about 15 times more powerful than
the typical amino acid, but give none of the raw rage - the anger - that comes with steroids. All steroids do is make you a cumbersome, apelike goon.
Q: Do you think you have the best body in Hollywood?
A: Pretty close.
Q: Better than Arnold Shwarzenegger's?
A: His is more powerful. But my body's more agile.
Q: Other than working out, how do you fight stress?
A: I paint. It opens my soul - and calms, especially abstract painting. It frees me. I used to play polo, but it created a lot of stress worrying about
the horses and players. So I switched to golf. I just go out there and commune with the earth. I also exercise three days on - one day off - I lift weights,
do aerobics, things to keep me flexible and anxiety free.
Q: What about relationships - how important are they to longevity?
A: Loneliness kills. It's an invisible bullet. You live as long as you have something to love. [Stallone has been seeing 23 year-old model Jennifer Flavin
for several years, so that takes care of the loneliness department.]
Q: Are you afraid of aging?
A: I'm starting to think about mortality. I can't live forever, and that really scares the shit out of me. But my family lives long. So there's a good
possibility I can hit 100, but I've got to move out of Los Angeles. The air quality is deadly. I just bought a ranch in Telluride, Colorado...maybe I'll go there.
-Alan W. Petrucelli
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