{"id":691869,"date":"2026-07-14T21:50:15","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T21:50:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/691869\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T21:50:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T21:50:15","slug":"how-diplo-uses-fitness-to-stay-sharp-at-47","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/691869\/","title":{"rendered":"How Diplo Uses Fitness to Stay Sharp at 47"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Estimated5 min read<\/p>\n

DIPLO, THE GRAMMY Award\u2013winning DJ and producer, lives in a $13 million Malibu home that once belonged to Kid Rock. The property is expansive\u2014lush and green, with wild parrots in the trees\u2014though the natural setting belies a home gym heavy on tech. Diplo has all of the toys you\u2019d expect (cold plunge, sauna, hyperbaric chamber) and some you wouldn\u2019t. He recently had the engineers at Hypoxico build an altitude chamber large enough to fit his Peloton, so he can simulate riding at 10,000 feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople think I\u2019m just, like, a drug addict or something because I\u2019m a DJ,\u201d says Diplo<\/a>, who goes by Wes offstage. The guy barely drinks, pointing out the obvious: Playing a set in Vegas at 3 in the morning is still a job, one he\u2019s paid hundreds of thousands of dollars per night to do with big-beat energy. \u201cCan you go into your office and rip a bottle of tequila?\u201d<\/p>\n

One can be forgiven for making assumptions. This is, after all, the dude who famously ran the Los Angeles Marathon high on LSD in 2023 (in under four hours, no less). But point taken. When you\u2019re on the road for 200 days a year\u2014and producing for Beyonc\u00e9, Bieber, and BTS\u2014you\u2019ve gotta nurture your body and mind. Especially when you\u2019re 47. There\u2019s a mythology around touring artists\u2014the groupies, the parties, the drugs\u2014but Diplo is part of a generation of musicians intent on changing that narrative by approaching health and fitness like an elite athlete.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was younger, I wanted to be massive. I\u2019m not trying to be ripped now,\u201d he says, adding that his workouts these days have a single goal: to keep him from \u201cever getting hurt.\u201d For the record, Diplo is in enviable shape. We took a boutique fitness class together in Malibu\u2014a combo of yoga and boxing\u2014and he tore his shirt off, revealing a tight core and the kind of yoked biceps you don\u2019t get from spinning records. As a kid in Florida, he wrestled in middle school and ran in a trash bag to make weight. His daily routine has evolved since, now including a mix of running, yoga, swimming, and sauna, with a focus on functional training. \u201cSmall movements,\u201d he says, \u201cgetting my hamstrings open, a little bit of chest and bodyweight, but it\u2019s mostly animal-style calisthenics.\u201d Whatever he\u2019s doing, he says, he wants it to be \u201ceffective for my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AClayton Cotterell<\/p>\n

Diplo running near his home in Malibu, California. on June 9, 2026.<\/p>\n

When I ask about his sleep habits, he actually shakes his head, saying, \u201cI don\u2019t even want to talk about it.\u201d Sometimes he gets just four hours on the road, and that\u2019s not a brag. He has a partnership with the fitness wearable Whoop, and after its team looked at his sleep data, \u201cthey were like, \u2018Are you dying?\u2019 \u201d Everyone is on him about it, including the longevity enthusiast Bryan Johnson, a friend who regularly sends Diplo \u201c40-minute\u201d voice notes advocating two things: drinking olive oil that\u2019s high in polyphenols and sleeping more.<\/p>\n

\"2026Kevin Mazur\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Major muscle: Diplo spinning at Coachella, April 12, 2026.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s working on it (and has the cold-pressed olive oil on the counter to prove it). But his life entails some unique challenges. DJ sets require standing for hours on end, and according to his frequent trainer Stephen Cheuk, founder of a New York\u2013based studio called S10<\/a>, their workouts are designed to boost Diplo\u2019s mitochondrial capacity\u2014his energy production, basically. They involve a lot of zone 2 cardio (an intensity at which you can hold a conversation), which, when done in an altitude chamber with less oxygen, trains your body to use energy resources more efficiently. His workouts are also highly intentional, which might mean boxing one day and big-toe stretches (to combat plantar fasciitis) another. Cheuk praises Diplo\u2019s consistency: He\u2019s the rare client who might do a 20-minute yoga session on the plane and then go from the airport to the gym.<\/p>\n

For Diplo, that commitment\u2014drilled into him by his father, a military vet\u2014is about much more than his physical health. \u201cIt\u2019s my mental state,\u201d the DJ says. From a young age, Diplo has dealt with ADHD. It remains an almost comical challenge. While we talk, at various points he\u2019s distracted by an errant squirrel, his cell phone, and a neon green didgeridoo he\u2019s just 3D-printed, putting his lips to it to prove it works. Earlier this year, he flew to Uganda between Coachella weekends for an off-the-grid adventure, but also because he couldn\u2019t sit still.<\/p>\n

\"AClayton Cotterell<\/p>\n

Diplo\u2019s training is a mash-up of lifting, calisthenics, yoga, and running.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Clayton Cotterell<\/p>\n

He\u2019s wildly competitive, telling me he goes into group yoga classes with the intention of \u201cwinning,\u201d whatever that means. But working out also helps to quiet his mind so he can be the best version of himself. What we\u2019re circling is one big idea: sweating as a form of meditation. What really gets him going is running, a decidedly analog sport. He often runs while touring, he says, telling me about running the beach in Copacabana or some New Zealand trails through Middle-earth.<\/p>\n

Perhaps surprisingly, Diplo doesn\u2019t listen to music while he jogs, choosing instead to be alone with his thoughts\u2014sometimes working through to-do lists, other times contemplating his goals (which include doing a triathlon and possibly running another marathon). In 2024, he started Diplo\u2019s Run Club<\/a>, a 5K that\u2019s grown to include races in nine U.S. cities (with major corporate sponsors and international invitations pending). He\u2019s quickly become one of the most powerful evangelists for the sport.<\/p>\n

\"ManClayton Cotterell<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat matters most is my health, my well-being. I want to be here for as long as possible, making music for as long as possible,\u201d says Diplo.<\/p>\n

Diplo runs in most of the club\u2019s events and also DJs at the finish line\u2014a pop-up day club that thrives on camaraderie and community. When asked what running means to him, this self-described poor kid from Florida praises its low-bordering-on-no barrier to entry. \u201cIt\u2019s the most democratic sport you can do,\u201d he says. \u201cYou don\u2019t need anything but shoes. You can do it anywhere you are.\u201d Plus, it helps him combat jet lag, which is a bonus when he\u2019s often in multiple time zones in a single week.<\/p>\n

For Diplo, a father of three, staying in peak shape is increasingly personal. He lost his sister, Amy, in 2023 to some combination of obesity and diabetes, he says, explaining a shift in his intentions of late. Ten years ago, his life was all about going on the road and making money. Now, he says, \u201cwhat matters most is my health, my well-being. I want to be here for as long as possible, making music for as long as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AClayton Cotterell<\/p>\n

Mobility work helps Diplo crush 5Ks, carve waves, and slay long DJ sets.<\/p>\n

Diplo is home in Malibu maybe eight days a month. When he\u2019s in town, he likes to surf at Point Dume, comparing the chilly ocean water to a cold plunge (if you don\u2019t wear a wet suit). Surfing is a full-body workout, he points out, saying he sometimes has to paddle a quarter mile back after catching a wave. But the benefits are maybe more intangible.<\/p>\n

Recently, he says, \u201cI was out there. You\u2019ve got nothing going on. All you got is the horizon. Somebody behind you is going to talk to you about crypto\u2014because it\u2019s Malibu. I\u2019m just like, Shut the fuck up. Then you paddle away and you stay on the sunset. Surfing is technical. But looking at waves? All that shit is supernatural.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Clayton Cotterell<\/p>\n

Photographs: Clayton Cotterell
Grooming: Jenna Nelson using La Prairie skincare for The Wall Group
Creative Director: Jamie Prokell
Visual Director: Sally Berman<\/p>\n

A version of this story appears in the Summer 2026 issue of Men\u2019s Health.<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Mickey Rapkin is a journalist and screenwriter whose first book, Pitch Perfect, inspired the film series. Previously a senior editor at GQ, he has written for The New York Times, WSJ, and National Geographic. He lives in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n