By Austin Burton

Photo by: Keith Allison
NBA players are mostly creatures of habit. Whether it’s the superstars or the guys fighting for roster spots, you’re likely to uncover a similar pattern of routines: from workouts to eating and sleeping rituals to post-game relaxation tactics employed on a daily basis.

At 37 years old, Grant Hill has endured injuries that would have ended other men’s careers, and yet he still excels today thanks to discipline with old habits and learning to adapt to new ones as his health becomes increasingly crucial. The 15-year vet, averaging 11.3 points and 5.3 boards as the Suns’ full-time starting SF, takes us through his typical game day routine:

MORNING
I get up at 6:45, eat breakfast at home, take my daughter to school at 7:30, then get to the (Suns) facility early. When I get there I’ll do some corrective exercises, go to the weight room, and get some shots up. Then I head to shootaround, which lasts from 9:45 to 10:45. Then it’s 10 minutes in the cold tub, shower up, go home and eat a light lunch.

I wouldn’t say I always eat the same thing, but it’s pretty consistent. For breakfast I usually eat oatmeal pancakes or oatmeal waffles. The lunch I eat at 12:30, that could be anything. The lunch when I get up from my nap, I’ll usually have fish and sweet potatoes. So two of the three meals, I mostly eat the same thing.

The most important thing is to get my body up and running. The corrective exercises, that’s a program I set up with the team’s strength and conditioning coaches: abdominal work, strengthening my glutes, basically stuff that works on your core. I get those in before every practice and before every game.

NOON
I sleep from 1 p.m. to three. I’ll get up and eat again at 3:45, leave the house and get to the arena at 4:30. Then for the next hour and a half or two hours, it’s just getting myself ready for the game. That’s my routine — I don’t like to deviate from that.

Like you said, athletes are creatures of habit. We like routine. Whether it’s what time you eat or what time you go to sleep, we’ve got to do the same thing. From the time I wake up until the game starts, I do the same thing every day.

It differs a little bit when you’re on the road. If we’re on a back-to-back, we might get up at 11 a.m. and have a breakfast meeting because we normally get in pretty late from the last game. We might watch film during breakfast and have a walk-through. After that most guys go back to their room, lay down and take a nap, then grab something else to eat and check out of the hotel. Sometimes I like to put on my headphones and go for a walk to get my body moving. I listen to all kinds of music — whoever, whenever. On my iPhone I’ve got ’80s pop, I’ve got Motown music, I’ve got hip-hop and R&B. It just depends on what mood I’m in.

NIGHT
When the game is over, the routine is off. Sometimes I’ll go straight home and go to sleep. Sometimes we’ll go out to eat if my wife goes to the game, sometimes I’ll go out to eat with the guys. There’s no rhyme or reason. Me and my wife will be like, “Do we have any food at home?” Then go from there.

The one consistent thing is to eat right. I’ve always been pretty healthy, except for maybe my first couple of years in the League — but the older you get, you pay more attention to what kind of food you put into your body. It’s not really dieting, it’s just how I live. It’s a lifestyle. As an older player I’m very cognizant and very aware of what I put in my body. I know I’m more sensitive to certain things. When I was 21, I could eat fast food and it wouldn’t affect me. Now, I’m pretty sure it would.

It’s not that tough to maintain when you’re on the road. We stay in nice hotels, so they always have healthy options on the room service menu, at least something like salmon with vegetables. If I go out to eat with the guys, we might go to, like, the Hard Rock Cafe, and you can find something healthy on their menu.

I just try to be smart about it, because it’s crucial to your performance and still being able to go at a high level.

By NBA.com
Posted Jan 7 2010 6:47PM

After 15 years in the NBA, Grant Hill just reached a major milestone — he completed his first calendar year without missing a game. Quite a big deal, considering it appeared Hill was on the brink of retirement due to ankle injuries earlier in his career, playing in only 47 out of 264 games during a five-year period.

Perhaps no NBA player understands and appreciates the importance of healthy living and physical fitness than Hill, who went six for six in All-Star appearances with the Pistons and Magic before the injuries struck.

To commemorate NBA FIT Week, Hill, 37 (but who says he feels like 30), spoke with NBA.com’s John Hareas and discussed how his approach to working out, diet and nutrition has evolved over the years and why it’s important to him being an NBA FIT member.

NBA.com: You just completed your first year without missing a game in the NBA. How much has your approach to physical fitness played a role in being more durable as you’ve gotten older?

Grant Hill: I think it’s played an important role. For me, it’s been an ongoing discovery learning about your body and what it takes to stay healthy and certainly that was tested during some of those challenging years when I was hurt.

Instead of feeling sorry for myself at that time — I’m a seeker by nature — I really used it as an opportunity to learn more about the body, more about nutrition, more about health overall in general, not just in regards to getting back and playing on the court but having an active, healthy lifestyle as I get older in life.

NBA.com: What did you learn during this time?

Grant Hill: Learning to listen to your body. Your body talks to you and you have to learn how to listen to it. When you’re young and your ego is involved, you think you can overcome or override anything.

Also, understanding diet and nutrition and the role it plays and constantly trying figure out what’s best and what works for me. I think diet plays an important role. Managing your body, little tricks, such as using ice, massage theraphy, sleep, stretching, how you work out — all of these things, you become smarter and you figure out sort of what works and what doesn’t work.

I’m constantly trying to learn as much as I can. I don’t feel like I know it all but I certainly have learned a great deal over the last five or six years.

NBA.com: How has your diet and food choices evolved over the years?

Grant Hill: I think early on you learn the importance of cutting out fast food. As you get older, you stay away from sugar and a lot of the sugary drinks and drink nothing but water. Eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, fish, occasionally chicken.

I think the thing for me is that it’s not so much what works for everybody but what works for me. I think certainly there are some things that are consistent. I think a lot of the bad foods, the heavy foods, the fried foods, I think those are things everyone can learn from, stay away from or at least in moderation.

I don’t pretend to know the answers necessarily or pretend to have the perfect diet but I know certain foods that are good for you or are healthy don’t necessarily work well with me. I don’t feel as good when I eat those foods. Everybody is different. Everybody reacts differently to different foods.

NBA.com: How different is your offseason now than earlier in your career?

Grant Hill: When I first came in, the offseason was an opportunity to play a lot. I played a lot of basketball. I played year-round, whether it was pick-up games or playing with some of my teammates in the NBA. Whatever the case may be, I was always on the court.

Then I spent many years in the offseason doing rehab and trying to get back out onto the court, recovering from injuries, surgeries and things of that nature. Now, I’m at the point where I’m healthy, which in the last few years has been kind of uncharted waters.

What I’ve found is that cross training is a neat way to stay in shape, staying away from the physical and mental grind of playing basketball every day. What that consists of — and I try to do a lot of recreational activities outdoors — kayaking, standup paddle surfing, tennis, cycling — fun, outdoor activities that you can’t do during the season.

Living in Florida in the offseason exposes you to the sun, which I think is good. Things that I’m getting a workout in but it doesn’t feel like I’m working. It feels like I’m going out and having a good time.

Sometimes, you can just go out for a nice five-mile walk, going out for a walk with my wife. I think the important thing is to try to get the body moving every day. Obviously, I will lift weights and I will use the elliptical machine. If I don’t have access to weights or if I’m in a hotel room, I’ll do push ups, sit ups. The main thing is really trying to get a sweat every day, get the body moving.

The body is meant to be moved. If you don’t move it, you certainly lose it. I know it’s a bad cliché but it really hit home for me when all of those years I’m in a cast and the muscles in the cast around the ankle atrophy and that’s because they’re not being used. Seeing the visual of that really reinforced the importance of getting a sweat every day, getting out and moving and getting some exercise. You don’t always have access to a bike or a health club, but as long as you have a little bit of room, you can get a work out right in your hotel room or right on your living room floor and that’s what I try to do.

NBA.com: Is working out year-round a motivating factor to end your career on your terms opposed to an injury?

Grant Hill: It doesn’t drive me necessarily. Freak things can happen and obviously I’ve been through a lot and I don’t want to go out that way. I would like to be able to say you know I’ve had enough, it’s time to move on. I do understand that as you get older, it’s more important how you train. You can’t not do anything for two months and then expect to pick it back up and be able to play or work out at an intense level and not risk a chance of getting hurt. You really have to be smart. You don’t necessarily have to work long but you have to work smart at what you do. My motivation is, I want to be healthy. I want to fit in my clothes when I’m 50 (laughs). I figure by then whatever’s in fashion now will be back in fashion at that time.

As you get older the one thing that you have to fight is gaining weight and certainly weight gain has a lot to do with a lot of the diseases that are out there. How you eat, how you move and exercise, your attitude toward life, how you train, how you get your rest — all of these things are factors, I think, in how you age. Not that I’m vain or anything like that but hey, I’m an athlete, something that’s been great to me my whole life. Up until now, I’ve benefitted greatly having a father as a professional athlete — being one myself — and I would like to continue to be active as I get older in life.

If there is one thing I’ve learned throughout the ordeal of my injuries was how to take care of myself and how to hopefully prepare myself as I get older.

Look, retirement is going to happen. Injuries — you can do everything right and something freakish can happen. I certainly lived that, actually my colleagues have told me that as well, but the main thing is that it’s not a sprint but a marathon and life is a marathon and hopefully I can be as active as I can and be healthy as I get older in life.

NBA.com: Why is it important to you to join the NBA FIT cause?

Grant Hill: I think anything that spreads the message — I like to say that the NBA is one of the biggest PR firms in the world and the fact that they are putting their name, their brand behind the idea of staying in shape and being fit is important.

Look at the issue in our country with healthcare — certainly that’s been very polarizing. Even childhood obesity — you look at a lot of the problems in our country as it regards to health, wellness and fitness and certainly getting out, eating right, staying in shape, being fit, studies have shown reduced the chances of all different types of diseases and so forth.

So, if we can get young people, older people to get out and do that, then that’s great. The fact that the NBA’s doing it, I’m so excited to be a part of it and hopefully with more and more interviews, we can continue to spread the message.

Grant was drafted 3rd overall in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons. He entered the league to high expectations, where many expected him to be the future face of the league in a time when Michael Jordan was retired. In his first season, he averaged 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.77 steals per game, and became the first Pistons rookie since Isiah Thomas in 1981–82 to score 1000 points. Hill ended up sharing NBA Rookie of the Year Award honors with Jason Kidd of the Dallas Mavericks, becoming the first Piston since Dave Bing in 1966–67 to win the award. After signing a lucrative free agent contract with the Orlando Magic, Grant was hampered by career-threatening injuries. Overcoming adversity, Grant worked his way back through strenuous workouts and rehabilitation. In 2007, Hill signed a free-agent contract with the Suns. Since being with the Suns, Grant career has been turned back around. In the 2008–2009 season, Hill appeared in all 82 games for the first time in his career, and averaged 12.0 ppg, 4.90 rpg, and 2.3 apg, scoring 27 points and 10 rebounds in the Phoenix Suns season finale.

Off the court, Grant’s life is equally interesting. He is the son of former Dallas Cowboy Calvin Hill, a 3-Time All-Pro running back and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1969. His mother, Janet, was a Wellesley College graduate who shared a suite with Hillary Rodham when both were freshmen there. Grant Hill has been married to R&B singer Tamia since July 1999. They have 2 children: Myla Grace, 5, and Lael Rose, born August 9. Along with being a 7-time All-Star and a 5-time All-NBA selection, Grant is also known for being active off the court. He won the NBA Sportsmanship Award in 2005 and 2008. Hill also has a great love for the arts. He owns a substantial collection of African-American art, centering on the work of Romare Bearden and Elizabeth Catlett. A selection of 46 works from the collection was featured in a touring exhibition at a number of American museums from 2003 to 2006.

Living a healthy lifestyle is important to Grant as well. Recently, Grant sat down with NBAFIT.com for a Q&A to discuss fitness, nutrition and tips on living a healthy and active lifestyle and how fitness and nutrition has played a major part in his career.

Below Is Questions & Answers

The NBA is known for its tough 82 game schedule. With all that goes into completing an NBA season, how important is it for you to remain active during your downtime during the season and during the off-season?
It’s very important to stay active and busy in the off season to stay in shape. As soon as the season ends, I try to participate in sports and activities that I don’t normally get a chance to do during the season. I do everything from playing tennis to cycling, paddle surfing, swimming, chasing around my 7-year old and two-year old daughters. I find those recreational activities to be fun, I like being outdoors and it’s a way of working out and getting your body right as you prepare for the upcoming season. As the summer rolls into late July and August, I start to get back on the courts and play basketball, but there never is a downtime. I’m always doing something; the body was made to be active. The reasons I do it are to stay in shape, it feels good, and its fun and I enjoy it.

What you put into you body is very important to your overall performance. What foods or beverages do you incorporate into your daily routine that helps you perform at your maximum level?
I drink a lot of water and I think that a lot of people miss out on drinking enough daily. It’s important to stay hydrated. For me it’s been a staple of my diet for a very long time. I try to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables and some sort of protein like fish and chicken. You can eat healthy at your meals, but your snacks can get you in trouble. I have incorporated a lot of nuts, goji berries, and just healthy snack items. I try to eat organic, but that’s not always possible and much easier when I go home than when I’m on the road. I eat a lot, but the key is to make healthy decisions. You want to say no to something that’s unhealthy. I was just in Philadelphia, and a lot of the guys wanted to eat Philly cheese steaks, but I know if I eat it, I’m going to feel horrible. I am pretty disciplined what I eat, not everybody has to be that hard core, if you eat healthy the majority of the time, I think you’re on the right track.

NBA players are some of the best conditioned athletes in the world. Other than playig basketball, what would you say are some of the benefits of being and eating healthy?
I think other than playing basketball, in general you feel good when you work out. When you work out and eat right, your body is feeling better. If I go a day or two without working out or if I have too much birthday cake or put something in my body that’s not the best for me, I feel it. I like to feel good; I like the release of the endorphins that naturally occurs when you work out. I like the feeling of my body not being sore and tired. I like waking up early in the morning and having the energy to start the day. It’s pretty simple I enjoy how I feel when I eat right and work out.

Many people around the world do not eat healthy and that goes for athletes as well. How have you changed your diet since becoming an NBA player?
I was one of the people who did not eat healthy first coming into the NBA. I ate a lot of fast food, but everything I eat now, I pretty much did not eat then. It’s been a learned process, but my dad (NFL legend Calvin Hill) was always particular about what he ate and exercised. I certainly have picked his brain and people in my life over the last 16 years of my playing career have influenced me to eat right. At first it was all about becoming more efficient on the court then it was about learning about nutrition and diet. Finally it was about an overall healthy lifestyle. I want to be active when I’m 50 or 60 years old and play with my kids and grandchildren. It didn’t affect you before to have 3 Philly cheese steaks like it would now so I’m glad I’ve learned and spoken with a variety of people and tried different things. My teammate Steve Nash is very particular as well about what he eats so we bounce things off each other. What works for him works for me sometimes, and sometimes it doesn’t. It’s process of elimination and what works for you. Generally, the thing that’s similar between the two of us is that we’re both conscious of what we put into our bodies.

The NBA game is fast paced and physical. As an NBA player how important is it to develop a strong core since running, jumping, physical play, endurance and athleticism are key to having success?
My 20-year high school reunion is this year, and when I think back to high school, the workouts are somewhat archaic. They didn’t focus in on the core, and certainly a lot has changed since that period of time. Now, we understand just how important the core is. You don’t have to go to a health club and bench 300 pounds; it’s about having functional strength. In terms of basketball, there is a lot of running, jumping, cutting, and a lot of very intricate movements. It’s imperative that you work on core. The core is what holds you together, the core is what enables you to land and to jump, and it’s your power base. That’s something I spend a lot of time on every day. Every NBA strength coach now understands and realizes the importance of core work across the NBA.

As an NBA player how important is sleep to your overall performance?
Sleep is very important! The older you get it’s harder. When you’re getting the right amount of rest, your body heals and recovers. It’s tough because of our schedule and late nights. In essence, we’re really nocturnal. We perform at night; sometimes travel at night after games. You arrive at home; you arrive at hotels at 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning. You certainly learn how to nap and get your rest. It’s important and you have to get rest in general, not just as an athlete. So many people are sleep deprived. Whether you’re running down the court playing with the world’s best athletes in the NBA or you’re in corporate America, you have a family and kids at home, if you’re not getting the right amount of rest, it will affect everything you do. A lot of people talk about diet and exercise but somehow, some way sleep gets lost. I think sleep is just as important as those two.

In order to reach your maximum performance level for games, what meals do you eat pre-game? Post-game?
It’s easier at home to control what you’re eating. At home I eat an oatmeal batter made into a waffle and use agave nectar as a syrup. Agave is a natural sweetner that doesn’t have the rise in sugar levels that syrup or honey has. I tend to eat that in the morning for breakfast and usually a salad and some sort of fish, a sea bass or salmon. I may have that once or twice before a game, and then usually an hour or two before the game and in the locker room we have a fruit platter or tray of some sort. That’s what works for me. Since I’ve become really particular in the last few years about what I eat, my energy level and my recovery level post-work out are so much better. I try to eat afterwards a salad and try to get some protein in my body, but keeping it simple, staying away from heavy pastas, sauces, butters, all those types of things I feel great. I feel better now than I did 5 years ago. My body feels better as I go through the season. I’m not as tired and sluggish and I sleep better. I’m not sore. A lot of that has to do with what I eat.

It’s harder to nap now. You might have a game in Phoenix late tonight and tomorrow night in Portland, you don’t get to Portland until 4 in the morning and then you have a breakfast meeting at 11am. There have been times I can’t sleep in the morning after that meeting. I am sleep deprived before the game. There are times in the morning when I’ll get up and go for a nice walk before the game. We played a back to back in Washington and then Philly. I woke up in Philadelphia and went on a 20-block walk and went to a bookstore just to get out and get the body moving. It generally helps me feel better later on in the game. Even if I’m not out sweating, I’m getting the body moving. I tend to feel better after that.

Growing up, what kind of exercise activities did you participate in? How often did you go outside?
Growing up exercise and strength training were pretty archaic. I think back to when I was a child and I compare it to my children’s experiences. I had so much more unsupervised playtime with my friends. We would go out at night, and not come back until you heard your mom calling your name. Football, hide and go seek, dodge ball – we had all these different activities we’d do in the street. We were getting a great level of fitness by working out, by being outdoors, by playing. We were developing ourselves as athletes; I think that was a time of innocence. My 7-year-old can’t go anywhere unsupervised. She has a bike, and she can ride it, but it’s hard to go anywhere. Times are a little bit different, and it wasn’t as organized, having individual instruction and if you played outside you were active. That’s the one thing as I look at my life from childhood, through adolescence and now, I’ve always been active. My wife calls me a busy body, I’ve always been active. Even on vacation I don’t want to just sit by the pool, I want to hike or swim in the ocean or scuba dive or try my luck at surfing. I have to stay busy, and I ask myself why, but it’s because I enjoy it and feel good as a result.

As you played basketball in school, what kind of routines did you perform in order to stay in shape?
Basketball wasn’t my first love; it was my first love during basketball season. I was always active; it might be racing somebody during recess or the whole classroom playing soccer, basketball, dodge ball or kickball. I think it helped that I was a gifted athlete so you tend to gravitate toward something you’re good at, but I was always developing myself as an athlete. I never thought or dreamt that I would become a professional athlete, I was just having fun. You know what? I’m still having fun. When I’m done playing basketball and hang it up for good, I think I’ll find a way to have fun with something else.

People who wander through the desert hope to stumble upon an oasis.

Thirty-seven-year-old Grant Hill plays basketball in the Arizona desert and he’s found the fountain of youth.

Hill missed 374 games during his disastrous seven-season tenure with the Orlando Magic, but he has enjoyed a career resurgence with the Phoenix Suns. He played in all of the Suns’ games last season, and he’s played a significant role in his team’s strong start this fall.

“My daughter gave him the name ‘Benjamin Button’ last year,” Phoenix Coach Alvin Gentry said. “He seems to be going the other way.”

Hill looked relaxed in his visit to Orlando last week to face the Magic. Working with Phoenix’s renowned training staff has rejuvenated him. Aside from the specs of white that dot his dark goatee, he more closely resembles the player who started his NBA career in Detroit than the one who hobbled throughout most of his time with the Magic.

“There were times last year where I did things and I’m running down the court [and I say to myself], ‘Man, I haven’t done that since I was in Detroit,’” Hill said.

That has continued this season. Hill is averaging 13.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Best of all, Phoenix has started the season with a 7-1 record that includes an impressive road victory against the Boston Celtics.

Miami’s Dwyane Wade approached Hill during a recent game and asked, “What do you do, man? I want to do what you do when I’m 37.”

Hill smiled as he recounted the conversation with Wade. All the steps he’s taken to stay healthy are working. Hill started to monitor his diet carefully around 2001 or 2002 so he wouldn’t gain weight as he recovered from surgery on his left ankle.

Magic fans booed him relentlessly during Orlando’s 122-100 victory over Phoenix at Amway Arena. They booed him when his name came up during pregame introductions. They booed him sometimes when Hill merely touched the ball.

Hill said he isn’t bothered when he returns to the Am. He feels better about his game and about his role than he did the last two times he returned to the arena. A few Magic employees stopped by the Phoenix locker room before tipoff to say hello. Hill also maintains a home in Central Florida and stays in touch with some of his former Magic teammates.

“I’m at peace,” Hill said. “I know the team’s gone on and had great success.”

Missing all those games earlier this decade makes him appreciate his recent success even more. Gentry tries to give him time off, but Hill doesn’t want to even miss a minute of practice.

Hill’s current contract will run out after next season, when he’ll be 38.

He says he’d like to play at least through the 2011-12 season.

“We’ll see,” he said. “I’m going to play until they tell you, ‘You can’t play no more.’ Once it’s over, it’s over.”

Right now, Hill feels thankful just to feel young again.

Follow Josh Robbins on Twitter @JoshuaBRobbins. He can be reached at jrobbins@orlandosentinel.com.

For a stretch of about six seasons, it seemed as if injuries would put an early end to Grant Hill’s basketball career. Now, Hill is 37 years old and coming off the only season in his career in which he played in all 82 games.

He spoke with us about taking care of himself, giving his career new life and what he learned from the adversity:

Question: Is it true you’ve adopted Steve Nash’s diet?

Answer: No! He and I have different diets. I don’t know how he gets credit for having a healthy diet. He’s not the only one. I think it’s because Shaq coined it the Nash Diet. But the good thing about Steve, aside from our similar interests off the court, is that we’re both particular about taking care of our body. We run things past one another. I certainly have learned a great deal from him, and hopefully he’s learned from me. One of the common themes is we watch what we eat. Everybody’s body is different, but I don’t eat the way I did when I was younger.

Q: What have you cut out?

A: My first year in the NBA I ate nothing but fast food. There was a street in Michigan near my home that had seven or eight fast-food places. I went eeny-meeny-miney-moe. I got a chef my second year, but I still kept two or three pitchers of Kool-Aid in the refrigerator. And of course we had to have Sprite (which Hill endorsed commercially). And we made lot of cakes. So I would go to bed with a quarter of a cake and a Big Gulp-sized container of Kool-Aid. I’d take that to bed with me.

Q: When did you change?

A: It was gradual. At one point, I cut out all drinks except water. That’s when I started getting away from some of that. I was still eating red meat, less pasta. As I’ve gotten older and become more educated about it, I’ve slowly changed. My wife (Tamia) and I practice a macrobiotic diet. (A macrobiotic diet eliminates processed foods and emphasizes water, vegetables, fruits and organically grown grains, such as brown rice. It typically does not include red meat, dairy or eggs.) It’s hard to eat like that on the road, but you want to try to make healthy decisions. When we get on the plane after the game and the options are turkey with mashed potatoes and yams, or a Cobb salad with chicken, I’ll get the salad. I drink a lot of water. It’s just understanding what you put in your body and how it will affect your energy level.

Q: Is it hard to stick to it?

A: It’s a long season. You go to cities where you have favorite restaurants and you cheat a little bit. I think Jared (Dudley) said I’m maybe 75-25 (percent) whereas Nash is 90-10. If that’s the case, I’m not on the Nash Diet. I’m on the Hill Diet.

Q: Has it helped you on the court?

A: Just getting rest, eating correctly, for me personally, last year especially, allowed me to do some things out there I haven’t done for a long time. There were things I did last year on the court where I said, ‘I haven’t done that in 10 years.’ It might have been a cut, or guarding somebody and being able to anticipate where they’re going and being there. Four or five years ago, I used to say the spirit was willing but the flesh was weak because I’d want to get there I just couldn’t get there. But now I’m getting there.

Q: Are you thinking of playing beyond this contract?

A: You know, when I was young I watched Joe Dumars play when he was 34 and I used to ask him, ‘Man, why are you still playing? When I’m 34, I’m done.’ I think the combination of three things, missing a lot of time, having a real good support group here with this organization and then just taking care of myself have helped. Getting my rest. Not drinking alcohol. Eating correctly. And those years when I was out with an injury, watching my weight. I always thought all of that would pay off on the back end. One thing I’m interested in is athletes who have dominated or continued at a high level late into their 30s and early in their 40s. (Surfer) Laird Hamilton. Chris Chelios in hockey. (Olympic swimmer) Dara Torres. Certainly John Stockton when he played. Lance Armstrong. Genetics play a role, and luck. But the common theme is those people work at it. They make sacrifices in their lifestyle and diet. They do everything legally you can do. And you know what? It almost seems like, every year I feel more in control, more aware and have more of an understanding of what it takes. I feel good. I’m able to keep up. I may miss shots and make turnovers, but I feel like I can still run up and down with these guys. So, we’ll see. It would be nice to have an option this summer, and I’ll take it one year at a time.

Q: When you had your ankle reconstructed and your heel rebuilt, would you have imagined you’d still be out here pushing 40?

A: Honestly, I think I told myself I’ll make up for all of it on the back end. (Laughing) I probably thought the back end would have been over a few years ago! I don’t know if I believed that totally, but sometimes when you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel you need something to keep you going. I would tell myself that, and my dad would tell me he believed it.

Q: Do you have more appreciation and get more enjoyment from these years after what you had to go through?

A: Yeah. I’ve accepted what happened. It certainly wasn’t easy, but I’m not bitter about it. This is such a privilege to do what we do, every day you come out here. I tweaked my ankle the other day and missed the (Portland) game, and I was miserable. You want to be out there every time. You don’t want to miss a game or a practice just because when this over, it’s over. And also, I’m kind of proud I’ve been able to sort of change my game, going from a player who was at a high, high level and counted on to do certain things for his team, and now being able to still do some of those things, but play defense, take charges, do some of the little things. I’ve been able to redefine my game and my role. That’s not always an easy thing to do when you’ve been to the mountain top and you kind of have to humble yourself. I’ve learned more about myself through all the adversity and all the tough times, about my love for the game, perspective about what’s important and just values and lessons that apply to life. Prior to that, things were pretty easy. A lot of success early. All of a sudden, I had to lace on my shoes and go fight. I’m still fighting. ]]> http://granthill.com/hilltop/interviews/qa-with-grant-hill-of-phoenix-suns/feed 2 http://granthill.com/hilltop/health-tips/eat-plenty-of-almonds http://granthill.com/hilltop/health-tips/eat-plenty-of-almonds#comments Tue, 20 Oct 2009 18:03:40 +0000 frank@risecreativegroup.com http://granthill.com/hilltop/?p=60 Next time your in the mood for a healthy snack, grab a handful of almonds. It is well known that one of the best ways to maintain a healthy weight is to eat plenty of almonds. This super-food has the ability to give the body a great sense of satisfaction from hunger.

Still, that sums up the competitive spirit of the 16-year veteran, a spirit that is by no means tamed, even in intra-squad scrimmages.

“With the season around the corner, it’s important to play all out,” Hill explained.”You want to show up and work hard. And that’s what we’ve done. Coach (Alvin) Gentry has acknowledged that and said guys have worked hard and haven’t complained about it. We’ve come out and handled business. We’re trying to improve on some things, but so far the effort has been great. That’s the important thing. As long as you have great effort, you can always get better and camp will be productive. You want to get off on the right note.”

That sentiment is shared by teammate Steve Nash, who has certainly appreciated the Duke alum’s contributions to the Suns over the last two years.

“Grant is fantastic,” the point guard said. “He’s such a great professional and a terrific player, but he’s also a smart teammate. He has all the intangibles, let alone his obvious skills. The fact he has overcome so much in his career, he is one of my all-time favorite teammates.”

Hill escaped the injury bug last season, playing in a team-high 82 games, before re-signing with the club over the summer.

“Going through a tough season here last year made me want to stay even more,” Hill said. “We as players bonded. We didn’t get to the playoffs and it certainly wasn’t a Hollywood story at the end, but coming together will hopefully help us this season. For me, this just feels right, and I’m glad I did come back.”

As for the rest of the team trying to match Hill’s level of intensity this early in the preseason, it’s a safe bet that will occur sooner rather than later.

“Alvin and the rest of the coaching staff,” he continued, “they have a good feel for what we need, knowing when to let up a little bit. It’s a fine line. You want to get things done and accomplish as much as you can. You don’t want to kill people out here. It’s hard to be subjective since I’m one of those running around here, but I like the three days of two-a-days. Preseason is next week, so we’ll have to see when we throw it up for real.

“Our offseason is officially over. 2009-10 has started.”

Phoenix took to the University of San Diego’s Jenny Craig Pavilion for two practices Tuesday, which featured a little bit of everything, including plenty of running, shooting, instruction, weightlifting, stretching, drills and even a little five-on-five action.

“It’s practice, back to the hotel and practice,” said Suns President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Steve Kerr.” It’s a beautiful setting, but it is training camp. It’s work. Training camp used to be even tougher. It’s still tough for the players. The first few days, your body has to adjust. Even though they’ve been training the last couple of months, it’s not the same. Your body goes through shock, but it responds. The guys will be fine.”

Running his first Suns training camp as head coach, Alvin Gentry is grateful to have returning veterans like Steve Nash, Grant Hill and Amar’e Stoudemire to help him and his coaching staff show the younger players and offseason acquisitions the proverbial ropes.

“They know we have a purpose to work hard,” Gentry said. “Steve, Grant and Amar’e have played this way four out of the last five years. Some of the things we’ve put back in the offense will just come naturally to them. I don’t see it as a learning curve. Just getting into basketball shape will take care of it.”

League rules mandate only one contact session per day, so while the morning session was comprised mostly of instructional drills, the evening became a bit more heated, competitively, of course.

“The morning, there is no contact,” Gentry continued, “so we do a lot of teaching and covering the basics. At night, we’ll come back and ‘put on the pads,’ as they say. We only have a few days to get ready to play a basketball game.”

With an intra-squad scrimmage slated for Saturday afternoon at the facility, not to mention exhibition games vs. Partizan Belgrade, Golden State and Oklahoma City over the next two weeks, the Suns are looking forward to a productive, yet low-key camp.

Nash believes it’s a benefit heading into 2009-10 without the distractions that hovered over last season’s squad, namely “two coaching changes, a blockbuster trade and losing a teammate to injury.”

“Hopefully we can have a great training camp and continuity from there on out,” the point guard said. “We’ll be a much better team this year.

“San Diego is great for us. We’re pretty lucky guys to get to come to a great city and a beautiful part of the world. This is a great facility, too, so it should be a spectacular training camp for us.”

Hill added, “It is camp. It’s tough, but you count the days, count the practices and just try to get to Sunday. At the same time, you try and get a lot accomplished in a short period of time. Today was pretty productive. We have two-a-days, and less than a week from today, we’re playing our first preseason game so we need to make the most of our time. We go over a lot of things. The pace will be fast. Thankfully, a lot of guys have played for Alvin. The other guys will have to learn on the run, but we’re not here to hang out, have fun and enjoy the weather. We’re here to get something done, and today was a good first day.”

The story of the 1939 Harlem Rens, an all-black New York basketball team who captured the sport’s first-ever championship, Abdul-Jabbar also traces the coinciding rise of Harlem, NY, as a cultural mecca – from athletes, musicians and thinkers whose courage foreshadowed the civil rights movement.

Celebrity and athlete interviews for the documentary include Bill Russell, Clyde Drexler, Jerry West, Julius Erving, Samuel L. Jackson and most recently Suns assistant coach Bill Cartwright and seven-time All-Star Grant Hill. On Friday, the Phoenix duo filmed their thoughts on the impact of the Rens, as well as the importance of sharing little-known stories of such important historical and cultural value.

“The Harlem Rens’ story has to be right up there with Jesse Owens, Jack Johnson, Arthur Ashe and Paul Robeson,” Hill said during the shoot. “The only difference is that (the Rens’) story hasn’t been told. Jesse Owens and what he did during the Germany Olympics, that story’s been told. We know the importance of it. We know what sacrifices Jackie Robinson endured and about his courage. We don’t neccesarily know the story behind the Harlem Rens. We don’t know about all the other stories out there of what people have gone through that were significant and just as important as what others have done. We need these stories to be told.”

The documentary is expected to debut on ESPN in 2010.