Jon Pardi retains delivering knockout performances with out ever throwing a punch.
The nation music powerhouse isn’t any fighter, however hitting each word for 20-plus songs in entrance of sold-out audiences who’re singing proper alongside has earned the singer the fitting so as to add a bit of championship fashion swagger to his step.
Staying stage-ready takes greater than a gifted set of pipes and the power to jot down No. 1 hits—because the multi-platinum-selling artist is proving. Approaching his coaching with UFC-level ferocity has been key to Pardi’s onstage success as he nears 40. He hardly ever takes a coaching day without work, irrespective of the place he’s performing. Whether or not pushing via a grueling HIIT session along with his coach at house or discovering a fitness center when the Honkytonk Hollywood Tour stops in locations like Prescott Valley, AZ, staying match is non-negotiable—particularly when his followers are all prepped for one more spherical of “Pardi time.”
“When individuals are at your fingertips and we’re all there collectively having a good time, it’s one thing particular,” he explains. “You may’t get that within the fitness center, brother.”
At present, Jon Pardi’s health routine facilities on weights and conditioning, although he nonetheless hopes so as to add boxing sooner or later. “My purpose is to no less than match bounce rope into the exercises,” he says. On his newest tour, he stepped into the position of athlete, teaming up with MMA star Michael Chandler for a Rocky-style motivational promo to spice up his Honkytonk Hollywood tour. “He’s the fittest man I’ve ever met on this planet,” Pardi says. “That man works out laborious.”
Whereas Pardi might not match Chandler’s vitality within the Octagon, staying in form has helped him preserve a demanding schedule. Lately, he headlined exhibits in Australia earlier than hitting America’s roads in help of his newest 18-track album, Honkytonk Hollywood. Followers nonetheless flock to classics like 2015’s “Head Over Boots,” which is nearing half a billion streams, whereas eagerly embracing new hits like “Friday Night time Heartbreaker,” already creating buzz on Spotify and SiriusXM.
His latest album represents a big workload, although Pardi jokes that 18 songs is a light-weight load in comparison with some nation music friends. “Morgan Wallen and Zach Bryan don’t assist,” he laughs. “They’re releasing like 37 songs a report, which I believe is loopy. For me, 18 is nice.”
Trying good is vital to Pardi as he approaches 40. At this level, it’s not about making the duvet of a health journal, as a substitute leaving a couple of buttons undone on his signature Wrangler shirt is the purpose now. “I’ve to look good in garments,” he says. “I don’t need to take my shirt off if I don’t wish to. However whenever you’re touring, you’ve obtained to look good fitted.”
One other key to creating 2025 an distinctive 12 months has been his choice to surrender alcohol. The additional relaxation he now prioritizes previous to and after showtime has change into a well being and longevity sport changer.
“The bus is one of the best place,” he says. “You simply go there, sit back, grasp with the band. When the engine goes on, you go to mattress to the sounds of the standard freeway.”
By no means an Excuse to Skip a Exercise
Whether or not the band is rolling into Pittsburgh or Idaho Falls, each tour cease has its personal distinctive really feel. However over 20 years, Jon Pardi has noticed a few cross-country constants. “I swear each small city has a Planet Health and a Greenback Basic,” he jokes. For an artist boasting 11 million month-to-month listeners worldwide, a $25-a-month Planet Health Black Card could be his smartest funding, particularly when he must get a exercise in a brand new city. “They’re all over the place, and I no less than know what I’ve obtained wherever I’m going,” he says. “There are some crappy gyms on the market, although.”
At Planet Health, there’s no skipping leg day for Pardi. However as a backup, he retains a compact house fitness center proper on the bus—decked out with dumbbells, kettlebells, slam balls, and his must-have ab wheel. “That’s a should,” he admits. “It’s an amazing upper-body exercise for me.”
Sustaining power and mobility whereas touring means adapting exercises to suit street life with out sacrificing depth. Pardi usually leans into body weight workout routines that may be executed wherever, crafting a routine as versatile and efficient as his high-energy exhibits.
“It’s very athletic to carry out,” he says. “I dance and transfer round loads, and also you’re pushing, inhaling. Typically singing seems like being out of breath on a regular basis. A core exercise is so vital for performing. Even yoga is nice.”
Yoga has taken a backseat recently as a consequence of restricted free time and fatherhood duties. When he’s at house, Pardi works with a private coach specializing in elementary strikes like squats, lunges, push-ups, and pull-ups. At 6’4” and coping with some lingering again ache, he’s given up heavy again squats however at all times finds methods to work his decrease physique laborious. “I don’t have to be placing up 400 kilos on the squat rack—however you’ve set to work your legs out.”
Although he enjoys boxing, alternatives to apply are uncommon. Sooner or later, he hopes to search out the nerve so as to add bounce roping to his routine. “That’s an effective way to usher in cardio when you’re resting,” he says. “Individuals neglect in regards to the bounce rope and all these old-school exercises. These old-school dudes had been powerful for a purpose.”
Jon Pardi Channeled His Inside Michael Chandler
Headlining a live performance is an adrenaline rush from intro to encore, and Jon Pardi clearly relishes each second on his 32-city Honkytonk Hollywood Tour. You gained’t catch him taking a break throughout his intensive setlist—that might be a disservice to the legions of followers who helped him climb to the highest of the charts with platinum hits like “California Dawn” and “Dust on My Boots.” That’s why staying energized is essential.
“You get in there, seize some Purple Bull, go get some vitality,” he says. “You hit a excessive you possibly can’t get wherever else. Your adrenaline kicks in, endorphins flood you, and also you’re giving it your all.”
Pardi’s two-plus-hour exhibits transcend music, dancing, and fan interplay—there’s fireworks and pyrotechnics, too. To advertise the tour over the winter, Pardi teamed up with UFC star and fellow Nashville native Michael Chandler to mix the theatrics of pyrotechnics with the depth of an MMA exercise. The outcomes had been hilariously spectacular.
“I had an concept to do understanding with pyro,” he explains. “Like, we’d do some curls, hit the bench, squat, then growth! Some pyro. Then it became getting Michael Chandler as my coach. He’s in your face and shirtless. The distinction between me, the band, and Michael is means totally different when he’s obtained his shirt off.”
Decked out in an old-school grey sweatsuit, Pardi powered via the simulated exercise. “It actually gave it that comedy really feel. Then all of us obtained skilled up and ended it with some pyro.”
Whereas the video provided an entertaining glimpse into Pardi’s coaching routine, his interplay with Chandler created memorable moments. “Michael couldn’t have been a greater sport—actually getting it and simply having enjoyable. It turned out nice.”
Sleep for Most Efficiency
At present’s tour bus could also be a fancier improve from the outdated van Jon Pardi and his bandmates relied on earlier than his first studio album, Write You A Tune, dropped in 2014. The grind of making new music and performing night time after night time, nonetheless, by no means will get simpler. It could be much more taxing on a physique that’s pushing 40, however Pardi is nowhere close to the tip of the street. In reality, embracing the wrestle is a musician’s badge of honor.
“I’m used to it now,” he admits. “It wears on you, however what are you gonna do, complain? No—you get again on the bus, get again on stage, and also you do it.”
Health wasn’t at all times a precedence for Pardi. He admits that throughout the early years, he hardly ever set foot in a fitness center. However a profitable profession, together with a spouse and two younger daughters, reshaped his well being priorities. “Health and well being within the van days had been in a bottle of Jack Daniels—that was your go energy,” he laughs. “Again then you definately didn’t have to work out. You might eat no matter you wished. However taking part in exhibits did burn energy. Trying again, you’re a distinct animal in your 20s than you are actually.”
Since quitting consuming in 2023, Pardi has loved the psychological readability it brings to his performances, songwriting, and coaching—although he admits he misses the enjoyable instances a bit. “There’ve been so many nice hangover songwriting days, , however there’s positively clearness now.”
Now, for Pardi, relaxation and quiet time have change into his wholesome addictions on the street. He’s observed how a lot of a distinction a sober, well-rested model of himself makes onstage—particularly throughout grueling back-to-back exhibits like these on his Australian tour.
“By the tip of the third present, you get a bit of squeaky,” he says. “You’re giving all the things you’ve obtained for the final tune. You’re making an attempt to remain centered, push via, sweating buckets, but it surely’s the group lifting you up.”
Earlier than showtime, after finalizing setlist technique with the band, Pardi heads again to the bus to unwind. He is aware of sleep and recuperation are important to delivering the high-energy performances followers count on night time after night time. “I’d say no less than three hours earlier than the present, simply be quiet. That’s what each vocal physician would advocate.”
