Christopher Meloni Revealed How He's Stayed Fit For The Last 50 Years, And I'm Amazed How Well He's Stuck To His Routine

Christopher Meloni stands stoically in a doorway in Law & Order: Organized Crime.
(Image credit: Will Hart/NBC)

For years now, Law & Order franchise star Christopher Meloni has been coined a “Zaddy,” and he has certainly been basking in it on the 2025 TV schedule. He knows that he’s a Zaddy and has even been in full Zaddy mode while filming Law & Order: Organized Crime. One of the aspects of being a Zaddy is making sure he is as fit as ever, and after hearing his routine for the last 50 years, I’m amazed that he’s stuck to it.

Meloni is arguably one of the best-looking actors of his age, hence why people think he’s a Zaddy. The actor, 64, spoke to Amy Poehler on her Good Hang podcast when she asked him how he stays so fit as he prepares to star as an NFL coach in an upcoming Hulu drama from This Is Us and Paradise creator Dan Fogelman. He admitted he works out four or five days a week, but that’s not even the craziest part:

Look, I’ve been working out, and I calculated, I think the longest I’ve not worked out is maybe two weeks. And I’ve been doing that for fifty years.

Not surprisingly, Poehler was astounded at the fact that Meloni has worked out so much and hasn’t stopped. Of course, it can be assumed that it’s not the same routine every single day, and he's tried some different workout methods, but it’s still incredible that he’s kept at it for half a century and most of his life. The Parks and Rec star hilariously said it “sounds like a nightmare,” and Meloni couldn’t agree more:

And it was. It is. But now it’s my drug of choice, so it’s all good.

Considering Meloni likely has to do a lot of training and has to stay fit for Law & Order, anyway, it makes sense that he’d have to keep up the routine over the last two decades. But the last five decades is pretty impressive, especially knowing that he’s been doing this since he was a teenager. He doesn’t seem to have plans to slow down any time soon, and even though it’s a nightmare for him, it’s part of who he is, and it would be strange for him to just stop.

I would love to know his workout regimen, even though I have no intention on following in his footsteps because that would certainly be too much for me. But props to him for keeping it going for 50 years, and who knows how much longer. It just shows that when you set your mind to it, anything is possible, no matter how much of a nightmare it may be.

Fans can see what that workout routine has done for Meloni, with all episodes of Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Organized Crime streaming with a Peacock subscription. He will soon be starring in a new football drama at Hulu, and that will probably just ramp up his workout routine, but it will be worth it.

Megan Behnke
Freelance TV News Writer

Passionate writer. Obsessed with anything and everything entertainment, specifically movies and television. Can get easily attached to fictional characters.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.