For Sid Seymour, the key to good fitness is consistency. He’s been a regular at the gym for the past 25 years, leaving the office to hit the treadmill and weights for a 90-minute workout four days a week.
“Over the years, I’ve just tried to be consistent and make it a priority to get into the gym,” Seymour says.
Even as a child, exercise was a regular part of Seymour’s life. Growing up in Vicksburg, Miss., he played “everything,” including football, basketball and baseball. He also ran track. As an adult, he took up golf and tennis but chronic knee problems have plagued him for years and limited his abilities.
Which is why he is so zealous about working out at the gym and doing low-impact aerobic exercises. He goes to the Paula G. Manship YMCA and spends the first half of his workout on the treadmill or stationary bike. He then does a full-body workout with weights. He has never had a personal trainer and prefers to make up his own routines.
“I do a little bit of everything—abs, chest, shoulders and legs,” he says.
For Seymour, who turned 58 on Christmas, the benefits of staying in peak shape are obvious. He looks good, feels great and has lots of energy, which comes in handy when he’s trying to keep up with his five young grandsons.
He also has a drive that translates into higher productivity at the workplace—the Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions, where he is chief examiner.
“Obviously, if you’re driven to make yourself work out you’re also driven at work,” says Seymour, who concedes he has a reputation for driving himself and others. “I keep pushing as far as I can, making sure we do what we need to do.”
These days, there’s plenty to do in Seymour’s office, which is in charge of regulating and supervising all the state-chartered financial institutions. Those are the smaller banks, as well as thrifts and credit unions. His agency has 120 employees and six field offices throughout the state.
But Seymour doesn’t ask more of those who work under him than he does of himself.
“I believe that everyone should strive to do their best,” he says. “That’s how I conduct my workouts, and how I run my office.”
