The Real-Life Diet of Justin Hartley, Who Will Wake Up at 3 A.M. to Work Out

Abbey Stone
·10 min read
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Photograph: Getty Images; Collage: Gabe Conte

On CBS’s hit show Tracker, Justin Hartley’s Colter Shaw was taught to never rely on anyone but himself. After growing up off the grid, the survivalist uses his hunting and tracking skills to find missing persons and collect the reward money offered for their safe return—a job that takes him to a different middle-of-nowhere location each episode, never parking his Airstream long enough to catch feelings for the people he crosses paths with. But even this lone wolf knows, not-so-deep down, that connections are important for a fulfilling life. “You got a lot of good people around you,” Colter tells a now-found teenage boy at the end of episode 1. “Lean on the people you got.”

This is a philosophy Hartley lives by off-set. “We’re pack animals,” he says. “I think a lot of times, people underrate the value of other people and of having people in your life that are of the same mind and sensibilities as you. I think having that can really keep your energy up and keep you mentally healthy.”

High energy is a must for Hartley while he films Tracker, a role that has him running through the woods, jumping off cliffs, and walking around half-naked. In the lead-up to Tracker’s season 1 finale (the show has been renewed for a second season), Hartley caught up with GQ about his wellness essentials, including plenty of protein, lots of shut-eye, and quality time with his family. (Hartley didn’t come out and say he’s a wife guy, but if the wedding band fits…)

For Real-Life Diet, GQ talks to athletes, celebrities, and other high performers about their diet, exercise routines, and pursuit of wellness. Keep in mind that what works for them might not necessarily be healthy for you.

GQ: What time do you set an alarm in the morning? Do you have a morning routine you try to stick to?

Justin Hartley: So it's different every day just because of the job. If I'm not working, I don't set an alarm and I will typically wake up at 7 a.m., sometimes a little earlier. And I find that when I'm on my own time—in other words, when I'm not working and I have the entire day to myself—I wake up with a little more energy. And I think that's probably not that uncommon. I think when you're on someone else's time, when you're working, when you have a schedule, when you have a call time or whatever, you wake up a little more lethargic probably than you would if you had the whole day yourself.

So when I'm working, my wake-up time is constantly different. This morning, I woke up at 4 a.m. A few days ago, I had to wake up at 3:00. It just depends on what my call time is. I like to wake up and grab a green tea, grab a water, go to the gym. I have to wake up pretty early to get that workout in because the last thing I want to do is come home after a long day of work and be like, I got to get this workout in.

And what does that morning workout look like these days?

I'm just constantly changing it up. I do this thing where I will pick something that I really enjoy or I really admire and set a goal. A few years ago, I saw these dudes and women jumping through the ceiling. They were jumping so high. And I thought, wouldn't that be cool to have a really great vertical? How great would it be to train to see how high I could get this thing? So I typically will try to keep my workouts interesting by training for something that—some people might call it bullshit because I'm never going to be a high jumper, obviously—I can work towards.

And I would say a third of my workout consists of stretching. I do resistance stretching for my flexibility. I'm trying to keep as mobile as I possibly can, especially with all of this stuff that I have to do on Tracker. It's a lot of running, it's a lot of jumping, it's a lot of running through the woods. Running through the woods is a little different than running on a street—you don't want to twist your ankles. You want to keep everything nice and solid and supported and all of that.

And are you working with a trainer or self-directing your workouts at this point?

Kind of doing it on my own at this point. I've worked with trainers before and I love working with a trainer. If you can find the right one that knows how to push you, understands you don’t want your workout to be hell. But right now I'm just sort of doing it on my own. I've had so much coaching over the years that I feel like I know what I'm doing at this point. I try to get in and out of there in 45 minutes. I just really put my head down and go nuts.

Do you eat before these morning workouts?

I should. I just don't have time. Sometimes when it's that early in the morning I'll just have, like I said, green tea and water. But I can notice a big difference when I eat before I go to the gym. If I eat and I wait a half an hour and go to the gym, my workouts are usually a lot better.

How do you approach nutrition? Do you follow any sort of specific kind of diet?

No, I don't necessarily. I try to just pay attention to how I feel. I know that my body responds well to certain foods. I know my body doesn't respond well to certain foods. And I also am aware of the fact that things change as you age. When I was in my teens, I would eat a lot of candy. I never even thought about it. I just thought it tasted good. I still love candy, but now that I'm the ripe old age of 24—I'm just kidding—I can't eat as much candy, and I've sort of developed a distaste for it.

I try to keep it kind of consistent as far as protein is concerned. I try to max out on protein because I don't get a lot of time to eat during the day. I'm constantly snacking, but trying to do healthy snacking. And I try to be good with my vitamins. It's tough when you have a busy schedule, but if you're aware of how important it is, and if I just look back and I go, okay, this week I was really good with my diet and my vitamins, I felt better. And this week I wasn't so good: I didn't get as much sleep, I probably didn't feel as good. So if you want to feel good, you got to pay attention to that stuff.

For sure. Your role on Tracker seems incredibly physically demanding. What's it like filming and how do you keep your stamina up?

The show is really exciting, so that keeps me going. I read these scripts and I'm like, Oh shit, look at this—I'm jumping out of a plane this time! It's like a carnival ride every time you come to work.

And then it's a matter of trying to get as much sleep as I can—and quality sleep, not just the right amount of hours, but quiet time where you're in a comfortable bed. I have a really bad habit of watching TV when I sleep—I fall asleep to it. But I'm not sure it helps me while I'm asleep. I fall asleep really fast: I don't owe anybody any money and I don't lie to people. I don't have any secrets. So when I lie down, I'm not kidding you, 20 seconds I'm out. But when the TV's on, if I'm watching Die Hard or something, I wake up and I'm stressed out.

It’s also really energizing for me to be around people. During the pandemic, I fell in love with my current wife and it was really wonderful, but I realized during that time that we’re really pack animals and we feel it when we’re not around other people. So when I’m at work on set with 150 other people and we all have a common goal, that can also energize you. So I think a lot of times people underrate the value of other people, other quality people in your life that have the same sort of sensibilities as you do.

Do you do anything for recovery to counteract all that physically demanding work?

Anti-inflammatory treatments make my body feel reinvigorated. I do cryotherapy, and I’ve tried the cold plunge thing. And after working out, especially after a leg day, the Normatec leg compression boots feel tremendous. It's the most amazing thing: You finish your workout, you sit down on the couch, put these sleeves on your legs, zip them up, plug them in, and watch TV for 20 minutes while they move the blood around your legs.

Outside of food and exercise, what’s important to you for feeling good and staying well?

I try to read as much as I can—and not just the Tracker script, which takes up a lot of my time! I try to read other people's opinions about things. I try to keep an open mind. Last year, my wife and I traveled from LA all the way to Savannah, Georgia, which is on the other side of the country, obviously. We took several days to do the trip, and it was wonderful. We had the best conversations ever. We made a bunch of stops throughout the country, and it just makes you realize how big this country is and how someone who lives in one part of the country can care about things that you never even considered. I try to stay inspired by other people.

Has your approach to wellness and your wellness philosophy changed as you've gotten older?

When you're successful enough, it's easy to say what I'm about to say. And when you're chasing it, it's really hard to say this: but just to lighten up, laugh. You can never laugh enough. I mean, I can't think of a time where I'd be like, that's too much laughter.

I think people in their youth—or at least in my generation—are a little more, “I need to get this done now. I'm going to chase this dream and I'm not going to stop till I get it.” And I think how I've evolved over the years is that I believe you just do your absolute best. You give it your best shot, and you just let the chips fall where they may. Most of the time you're probably not going to get exactly what you want, but a hundred percent of the time, if you do that, you will be able to sleep like a baby at night knowing that you gave your best effort.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Originally Appeared on GQ

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