Clayton Paterson’s life changed in an instant. Within two months, the beefy, sexy dad was divorced, retired from his corporate law job, and came out as gay.
At 57 he was reborn.
Eight years later, Paterson is living the gay dream. Happily as a couple, she spends the 4th of July on Fire Island and enjoys an Instagram following that would make any influencer tremble. But that doesn’t mean Peterson is all about aesthetics.
Now 65, the gay fitness model possesses a wealth of knowledge on how to live well and stay sane. Youth may be wasted on the young, but it certainly isn’t wasted on Paterson!
Queerty she recently caught up with the silver fox to chat about her sensible fitness routine, how to get her attention on apps, and the art of aging like fine wine. Here’s what she had to sayโฆ
QUEERTY: You came out at 57, and you say that’s when you started taking your fitness seriously. What was the connection between the two?
Clayton Paterson: Right at the time it was pretty stressful. I got divorced, came out, and retired, all within two months. I think one thing that kept me sane was going to the gym. Then I had a bout of sciatica so I couldn’t do triathlons anymore and I love to compete. So I did some fitness competitions. That’s when I really transformed my body. I’ve always been fit, always slim, but I had a trainer who gave me a routine to follow and a diet. It worked.
It’s a lot of changes in a very short space of time: divorce, retirement, coming out…
It was, and you always keep in mind I’m not sure what your experience was, we’ve all been on this trip we’ve been on. As for me, I had in mind that everything would be fine. I was ready, my kids would be great, my friends would be fine. But you always have that little doubt: how will people react? When I came out, it was only thank goodness. That was a real silver lining.
What’s your fitness routine today?
It’s a little less intense. It’s more bodyweight stuff. I try to do 200 pushups a day, 200 abs. Then I have a whole stretching routine to keep the sciatica at bay. It worked. I haven’t had sciatica in five years which is great. Then some weights. Different days is one day for the chest, then one day for the back, shoulders, arms, legs and buttocks. I’m just trying to keep my boyish figure!
What is the best advice you would give to people, and especially gay men, about aging?
Oh! This is a good question. Diet is important, but I think going to the gym every day is the most important thing we can do. We need to maintain our muscle mass and that helps in everything. Helps with facial features while keeping the weight off. I don’t have that saggy neck. I still have abs, but genetics play a role. I’ve always been pretty skinny, which helped.
But I have three pillars and my kids can recite it: sleep, exercise, and broccoli. I eat broccoli every day. Good nutrition is enough, but don’t overdo it! I eat chocolate, I love honeycombs. Every night I have a bowl of honeycombs before going to bed. I make cookies, then have dessert pretty much every night. But in moderation: no alcohol, obviously no cigarettes, I don’t drink juice or soft drinks. I drink water and milk.
When you talk about it, it sounds like, โHe’s pretty strict. That guy’s kind of out there.” But it’s a very simple thing. Listen, put on a Whitney song and I’ll be the first guy on the dance floor with no shirt on. I don’t need drugs or alcohol to have a great time.
How did you get started in modeling and what do you like most about it?
I had a whole other career. I was an attorney for Johnson & Johnson in New Jersey. And I was about to retire, and I had always thought about modeling, so I gave it a go. I had a photoshoot and they looked at my pictures and said, “Oh, they’re fine, but there are a lot of guys your age, so it’s going to be really hard for you.” Plus, I had a full-time job, so I couldn’t do it then.
But once I retired, it was a couple of years and I thought, ‘I’d like to give it a try.’ So I got in touch with a friend from New Jersey who is a photographer, and he knew an agent in Fort Lauderdale, so he put me in touch. I did the photoshoot, he hired me, I got a great job through him. Then I met other models in the area who had been doing this for a long time, and they found me with other agents, and suddenly everything started working.
I absolutely love it. I enjoy it very much. I’ve done some extraordinary things. I was on the yacht of a Russian oligarchy โ 250 feet โ and filming. I can ride the wave runner and the little motor that takes you underwater. Just a lot of fun: different yachts, casinos, some clothes, not much. Underwear yes, especially on Instagram. I get a lot of free stuff. I took all kinds of proteins and many supplements. I’m a little wary of supplements because I don’t believe in them. But if it’s something like a multivitamin, then yes, I’ll promote it. It was great.
What do you do and [your partner] Does Sheldon like to play together?
They were very different. We have very different interests, but we have a lot of fun when we are together. I’m a great swimmer, doesn’t really like swimming. But he loves water. We love theatre, we love the same movies, we love the same music. We have so much fun together. We actually met in New York about five years ago. It took a couple of years before we got to the point where we really wanted to decide if we were going to be partners and date. But yeah, we’ve been dating for about 2.5 years now. He lives in Phoenix, I live in Fort Lauderdale, so we’re doing a bi-rib thing. But it works. We have just returned from a two week holiday in Croatia. Phenomenal! I hope he is on your wish list!
What’s the craziest thing anyone has ever said in your direct messages?
Oh man! You can imagine what I will get! I expect some guts, some sexy, “Hey Dad”
Well, let me ask this: What’s the best way to get your attention to apps?
It’s interesting. Sometimes someone calls me and I answer, but I don’t answer everyone. When I look at their Instagram and see someone, I don’t mean “healthy” but I see that they have a life together. I love modeling, I love acting, so if it’s someone in that type of area, then I’ll be particularly interested in it. I don’t know if it’s something. We all have our preferences for physical attributes โ good looking and fit younger men will probably catch my eye. But Sheldon is 55 and almost 10 years younger than me. So I consider it a younger man!
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Image Source : www.queerty.com