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• Terry Crews is famously strong and fit but that wasn't always the case.
• He got out of shape after retiring from the NFL, gaining 30 pounds.
• Crews told Business Insider how he made rebuilding his fitness easier.

Terry Crews is as well known for his popping pecs and dancing on social media as his acting and presenting work.

But the former American football player hasn't always been happy in his body and mind.

Crews, 55, told Business Insider that when he retired from the NFL in 1997, he found himself struggling with depression and his weight. He ended up gaining 30 pounds.

As an athlete, Crews had been incredibly strong and fit, but felt lost without the structure of an intense training schedule.

Crews did get back into fitness though, and aside from that brief pause, has worked out nearly every day for over 40 years, he said.

The trick is just doing something, however small, and making it a routine, Crews said.

Rebuilding his strength and fitness was daunting

When Crews stopped playing competitive football, he felt lost.

"I wasn't a football player anymore, and this was before I made my transition into acting," Crews said. "So I stopped working out and I got really, really depressed."

It was when Crews' wife pinched some fat on his back — albeit affectionately and lovingly — that the actor realized he didn't feel like himself anymore.

"It hit me. I said, 'I've got to change because this depression is stopping me,'" Crews said. "I knew that fitness was always a part of my life, but I knew I had to get back in shape."

Having lost his previous level of strength and fitness, trying to get it back seemed like a mammoth task. Crews worried he'd hurt himself if he tried doing the workouts he used to do.

So he eased himself in.

Crews began by going to the gym and sitting on a recumbent bike for 10 to 20 minutes, just pedaling while reading a magazine, he said.

That was the beginning of a new habit that saw Crews working out pretty much every day for the rest of his life, he said.

Crews keeps himself accountable by writing an X in his diary on the days he's exercised, even for as little as 10 minutes, and he aims to connect the Xs, he said.

"I never stopped," Crews said. "One thing that I realized is that the habit of working out is more important than the workout."

Start small and be patient when getting fit

Crews advises anyone wanting to work on their fitness to start small. Getting enough sleep has also been instrumental for the actor, who is an ambassador for Natrol melatonin.

If Crews shares fitness content on social media, he is inundated with comments from people wishing for his physique. But Crews points out that he's been working up to his level for decades, after starting on that recumbent bike, he said.

January is when many people resolve to get fitter, and then feel defeated when it's hard.

"People are just now getting into the gym, and they go in and they realize, 'Oh my God, this is too heavy, I'm too tired, I can't do all of these things.' And the thing is, no, you're not supposed to," Crews said.

You should start smaller, he said.

"Don't try to do everything," Crews said. "Start by doing 10 minutes of push-ups and sit-ups next to your bed every morning, but do it every day."

Crews said that sometimes his workouts are long, heavy, and intense, and sometimes short, light, and gentle — the key is he always does something.

"I just don't miss, and the consistency is much more important. So that's the best advice I can give to anybody who wants to do this," he said. "Don't rush it. Take your time and you'll get there."

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Watch: TERRY CREWS: Here's how my NFL career helped and hurt me

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