In the 1977 film “Pumping Iron,” Arnold Schwarzenegger famously described “the pump” − or when blood flows into your muscles during a workout − as “the greatest feeling.” Akin to sex, even.

Now, at 78, Schwarzenegger says he stands by this description − but he’d like to add some important context.

“There’s a scene in ‘Pumping Iron’ when I talk about the pump and all of this stuff,” he says on a Zoom call, jetlagged after a Vatican climate conference with Pope Leo XIV. “We used sex as kind of a tool to seduce people into the bodybuilding and all of that. But… what I really was saying is that, working out makes you feel so good, not just physically… but psychologically.”

It’s a feeling Schwarzenegger doesn’t take for granted. In 2002, the bodybuilder-turned-actor-turned-governor had his hip replaced. Now, he’s participating in the You’ll Be Back campaign as part of his role as Chief Movement Officer at Zimmer Biomet, raising awareness about joint health and an online tool that connects those with pain to local physicians.

Schwarzenegger’s hip replacement, he says, was scary. Joint issues in general have been tough for him. Still, he doesn’t regret any of the hard training he had to do to become Mr. Olympia seven times. To him, it’s just part and parcel with the road to greatness.

“When you compete, you have no choice,” he says. “It’s like saying to a car racer … ‘The risk is that you get killed.’ How do you avoid that? … If you want to race, if you want to be number one, you got to go and take the risk. Same as with downhill racing, same as with UFC fighting, with boxing, with all of those things. There’s risks involved.”

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s advice to new lifters

Not everyone needs to, nor should be, training to become Mr. Olympia. Those looking to get into the gym for their overall health and wellbeing, Schwarzenegger says, should follow tried-and-true principles: Warm up and increase weight gradually.

“If you want to work out for health and fitness, then I would recommend warmup really well. And then, if something hurts, you stop, don’t get any heavier,” he says. “But, when you compete, you have to throw these kind of principles out. You still to have to warm up, yes. But there are sometimes pains that you just have to say, ‘OK, no pain, no gain. I’ve just got to grind through it.’ And that’s what I did. … I’ve gone through physically a lot of punishment, but I don’t regret it.”

Choosing what sport or activity to train for, he says, is also an important consideration. But, no matter what you choose, odds are resistance training will come in handy for it.

Most of all, he says, keep moving, no matter your age.

“That’s the most important thing: to stay active,” he says. “What makes people sometimes stop from activities is pain, injuries, wear and tear, arthritis, joint problems, joint damage, whatever it may be. … I’ve gone through a lot of this stuff, so I always try to tell people, ‘Don’t ever stop moving because you have pain. Go and get help.’ “

What are Arnold Schwarzenegger’s workouts like now?

Over 30 years after his hip replacement, Schwarzenegger says he thankfully no longer has pain from it. He can’t do heavy squats anymore − a lift he told Men’s Health he could once do with 610 pounds − but he’s still able to get a good workout in. Most of his lifting now, he says, is done with machines, which he can adjust based on his body’s needs.

Throughout all the changes his body’s been through, Schwarzenegger says one thing remains the same: The ability of a workout to change his outlook on life.

“Even today, when I drive down to the gym with the bike, I feel like I’m driving in the black-and-white. When I drive back, I feel like I’m driving in the color movie,” he says. “The way you see the world, it all changes after a workout … Eventually people are going to learn that there’s much more to it than just the looks of the body and the muscles and all that stuff.”

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