The day before Chase Stokes caught up with GQ, he celebrated his 32nd birthday in New York. The native Southerner is hardly old, but he’s spent his brief career in Hollywood playing characters younger by a decade or more. His most well-known, John B. of Outer Banks, a mega-hit Netflix series set in North Carolina, isn’t yet 20. And in the film adaptation of sci-fi young adult novel Uglies, released in September, Stokes pulls off a not-unconvincing 16. Incredibly, Stokes, who we assume ages like everyone else, is Benjamin Button-ing with every part he books. And so, after season four of Outer Banks hit Netflix last week, it’s worth asking exactly how he’s found the fountain of youth.
The key to Stokes’ age-defiance, it turns out, is a combination of factors: a vigilant diet, precise weight training, and a rediscovery of distance running. The latter has led to a partnership with the running brand Brooks to launch its new Glycerin Max running shoe (think: a Hastens mattress for each footfall) and a newfound curiosity about just how far his body can go.
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: So it’s your birthday, and you’re now in earnest into your 30s. What’s changed with your body and your wellness routines since your younger years?
Chase Stokes: I think the biggest difference is my my intake of food—our metabolism starts to slow down. And my workouts. I grew up with an athletic background, so now, not having that athletic consistency in my life, I’ve had to find new ways to keep the fitness routine fun and engaging.
A lot of people, when talking about changing their diets, list things they’ve cut out. What have you cut out, and what have you added in?
I can’t remember who told me, but your taste buds change every seven years, so there were things that I used to not like that I’ve really started to enjoy. I think one of the biggest things was fast food. And chips—I used to eat Doritos like a psycho, and I’ve had to say goodbye to that. My big thing now is more meals in smaller quantities versus three large meals. That seems to be beneficial for my body. I still play a teenager, so that seems to be the thing that helps me monitor my weight.
How does one eat to maintain the body of a teenager, which is a question I’ve never considered before?
[Laughs.] As the years have gone by and the further from the teenage years I’ve gotten, the more confusing it gets. I work out with a dear friend of mine, Alex Fine [who has also trained the cast members of Riverdale, along with Jennifer Aniston and Mark Wahlberg]. He’s worked with a lot of guys who are obviously not teenagers but are playing them. I’ve had the same, consistent plan for the weight-training side of it. And I’ve introduced new, exciting workouts like running, like doing Pilates. I never thought I would jump into something like that. Your body will tell you immediately if it’s working or not.
It’s been about eight months since I started. Especially with my cast-mates, I’ve absolutely opened that door. Like, “You guys have got to try it out.” The times that they have come with me have been my favorite—48 hours later, they’re not even able to sit on a couch. Because it’s no joke. You use smaller muscle systems, and under tension versus traditional weight. You realize quickly the muscle groups you’re not using.
You were a hockey player as a kid. It’s a big man’s sport, and a totally different type of training. How do you feel now as an adult compared to then?
There was a lot of traditional compound lifting. It’s squats, it’s deadlifts, bench press. And I was always a smaller guy on a team of dudes who were in their 20s. But the one thing that has stayed consistent in that space is running. Getting the opportunity to work with Brooks and help them launch the Glycerin Max has been a full-circle moment.
Running is almost antithetical to hockey, where with the latter you’re training short, explosive sprints. How did running fit into that early conditioning?
My father has always been a big runner, so I started doing the turkey trots and 5ks when I was younger. I just fell in love with the disassociation, especially in a place like Charleston where we shoot. I can go out on a run and within 25 minutes, I’m at the beach. Being able to disconnect from your phone for an hour, an hour and a half on a run, it’s something I don’t think I would otherwise do.
Two things: You mean to say that when you run, you’re out for an hour or an hour and a half? And you do that without a phone, without listening to music?
Not directly! From my house to the beach is a 20-minute run, then I get to hang out, and then I can run back, which is another 20 minutes. Am I in a place where I’m running an hour and a half? Absolutely not. But am I somebody who wants to work up to something like that? Yeah. Getting back into long runs, to a place of challenging myself, has been exciting.
How often are you running?
It varies. Right now I’m on a press tour, so I don’t have a lot of “off” time. But I try to do at least three days a week, at least 25 minutes a day, and mix that with some form of weightlifting. When I’m back in Charleston and I have a bit of downtime, that obviously goes up.
Everyone loves running outdoors. Few love the treadmill. When you have to run indoors, what’s your strategy for getting through it?
I got into listening to bloopers from TV shows. The Office bloopers helps me so much.
What’s your wellness routine like when you’re on a shooting schedule?
I’m fortunate that my stunt double grew up boxing, so we’ll do some mitt work during our lunch break. But it’s tough, man. You start the day at 5 a.m. and then you’re not getting off ’til 6, so getting to the gym is a pain. But that’s part of the sacrifice you make. There’s a physicality in the character, the stunts we do, and the action pieces, you have to stay in shape. And so even though you’re tired after working a 12-hour day, you still have to find the time to get it done. I like to try to get in the gym at least three, four times a week when I’m shooting. And weekends are super-important for that. For some people, it’s rest days. But for me that’s when I go and put the headphones in and get after it.
You worked as a bartender for a number of years before Outer Banks. What’s your relationship with alcohol been, and what is it now?
I’ve always had a really healthy relationship with alcohol, growing up in a family with people who have struggled with it. I understand the negative effects on your body. I understand overconsumption. You have those nights when you’re having a good time and wake up hung over. But you do that enough times, and you’re, like, what is my priority? Is it my body or two extra drinks? For me, I can’t afford to have a down day. I can’t afford to skip any time in the gym right now. Even when I was in the bar, it was about the audition season. It was about getting in those rooms. And if I stayed late and had a couple drinks, that could potentially affect my opportunity for doing the thing that I wanted more than being behind a bar.
Over the summer, you and your girlfriend, country musician Kelsea Ballerini, have been living in L.A. while she hosts the Voice. What have you missed most about being in the South?
We’re in Nashville and Charleston the majority of the year, so you can throw a rock and hit a great restaurant. You have a better chance of finding a great restaurant than you do a shitty place.
Any you want to call out?
One of my favorite in Charleston is the Obstinate Daughter. And I love Leon’s. I’m trying to think where else without giving away all my spots. [Laughs.] Le Farfalle is another good one. O-Ku, which is in Nashville and Charleston, they have a really good Asian fusion menu there. And I’ll give you another double-whammy: Hall’s Chophouse.
The fourth season of Outer Banks drops on October 10. So how does it feel to have hit your stride with the show and your character?
It’s been the journey of a lifetime. To start it young and have no clue what’s on the horizon, and to see what it’s turned into over the past five years, has been incredible. Spending time in Charleston has been the most magical experience. It’s taught me so much about myself, so much about my craft, and it’s helped me grow as a young man into adulthood. But with anything in life, you don’t want to overstay your welcome. And so I think going into this fourth season, I hope that we get to continue to tell this story. But I’m hoping that we land the plane—you know, nobody really cares how the plane takes off. That’s my hope: that we stick the landing.
