Andre Adeyemi

With a nickname like the “Dark Terminator,” Andre Adeyemi says most people leave him alone at the gym.

“People generally don’t talk me because they say they can tell I’m in the zone,” says the staff assistant to Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.).

{mosads}Adeyemi earned the moniker from his gym-mates by consistently busting his butt six days a week. 

While competing in track for Wabash College made him passionate about running, these days he’s more into weightlifting. Although his two-hour sweat sessions might be a challenge for even the most toned gym rats, Adeyemi says the daily workouts help clear his head.

“My workout is weightlifting-intensive because it seems to get the stress of the day out the most,” Adeyemi says. “It keeps me sane.”

But to Adeyemi it’s about more than just exercise — his diet is equally important to keeping his dreamy physique.

“As my friends say, abs aren’t made in the gym, they’re made in the kitchen, so I have a very strict diet,” he notes, adding that his meals are so consistent that his coworkers tease him for eating the same thing every day.

The Rhode Island native starts the day with an egg white and tuna omelet and two cups of steel-cut oatmeal for breakfast. At lunch he washes down a protein bar, celery and peanut butter and some nuts with one gallon of water. And for dinner he cooks two cups of quinoa and boiled chicken.

Although he cooks for himself, he says he doesn’t enjoy the process.

“I don’t like cooking, that’s why I eat the same things every day,” the Senate staffer said. “It’s about eating right and eating healthy.”

If you can’t find Adeyemi at Vida Fitness, he’s likely hanging out with friends at the Satellite Room in Washington. Adeyemi says it’s his favorite bar because it’s close to the U Street corridor yet off the beaten path enough that it’s not too packed.

— Ramsey Cox