Roger Federer jokes about setting up his gym: "A little bit weird to have it once I was retired"

Roger Federer has joked that he finally managed to set up his own gym at home after his tennis retirement.

Federer walked away from the sport last year, with his final appearance on the tour coming at the Laver Cup in London. In the last match of his professional career, he partnered with Rafael Nadal for a doubles match, and they lost to the American pair of Jack Sock and Frances Tiafoe.

The Swiss maestro is currently in China, where he is being celebrated as the first-ever international 'Icon Athlete' at the Shanghai Masters. On the sidelines of the event, Federer spoke about a host of things — from recalling memorable moments in his career to life after retirement.

Federer joked that while he managed to finish his career without a proper gym at home, had to set up one after he hung up his boots as he needed to stay in shape. The 20-time Grand Slam champion said that the prospect of playing exhibition matches in the future is what keeps him going to the gym three times a week without fail.

"I am trying to go to the gym three times a week, which I can't believe I'm actually doing. I rent space like this at home and put some machines in, and I got it literally the week after the Laver Cup in London. So it was like, after my career, I finally had a gym, a little bit weird, you know, to have it once I was retired," he said. (via ATP)

"Now have to use it, so I do that. I don't, you know, maybe play so much tennis anymore, so have to be a little bit more careful with what I eat and stuff and I still like to play some exos [exhibition matches] down the road. So I want to stay in shape, you know. Try to look good a little bit," he added.

Federer explained that working out and staying active ensures the body doesn't hurt much.

"I just do everything. Cardio, some weight training. Then more core exercises, a lot of that, which is also good for the back. You have to be careful. I think when you move less, the body hurts more. So I think moving a bit is always good. It makes me feel better for sure," he expressed.

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"I follow results almost daily" - Roger Federer on keeping tabs on the sport in retirement

Roger Federer at the 2023 Shanghai Masters.

Despite not competing anymore, Roger Federer has stated that he stays in touch with the happening on the ATP tour. He said that he manages to watch the highlights of matches on the internet, but doesn't get the time to sit through entire matches.

"I follow results almost daily. I like to see what's going on out there. Mostly highlights, I maybe go on YouTube and check four or five minute highlights to get a bit of a feel for the match a bit more. It's hard for me to sit through matches, just because I don't have the time to be honest. With the children and all the stuff that's going on in my life, it's hard to say like, ‘Okay, on that day, I will watch that match’," the 42-year-old said.

"Like the Wimbledon final, I literally only saw a couple games that day because we're running around with the kids and doing stuff. Then at one point I quickly checked in just to say like ‘Okay, I saw the Wimbledon final a little bit.’ Of course I was curious, I was checking the scores from time to time, but for me to sit down is hard. I was happy that the match was as great as it was and I love when great stories come out of the game," he added.