‘Nanny’s’ Guy Weds Diet to Workouts

Dibs on the TV set Wednesday night. The Nanny--Fran Drescher--and Mr. Sheffield--Charles Shaughnessy--are getting married on “The Nanny” (CBS). We’ve waited nearly six years for this wedding. Come 8 p.m., Poco (the cat) and I will be celebrating the hourlong show in fine viewer fashion: We’ll unplug the phone, call a truce on the remote control, set two pillows and two bowls of popcorn on the floor--and none of that low-fat business, either. This occasion calls for extra butter, which is something Shaughnessy would appreciate.

During our phone interview, he rhapsodized about a favorite snack he grew up with in London. These days a snack is maybe a protein bar. He credits his real-life wife, Susan, for keeping him honest about nutrition these past 15 years.

“She’s fanatical--organic food and healthy eating. You know, a California native,” Shaughnessy explained.

Question: Uh-oh. You’re in for it.

Answer: I’m in for it. I mean, I grew up in a northern European clime where our idea of a snack was a dripping sandwich. Do you know what dripping is?

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Q: Dripping. It’s got to be either natural gravy or fat.

A: It’s just literally fat.

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Q: Yeah, OK, you’re talking about lard or schmaltz.

A: It’s the solid fat, and you take a spoonful of lamb or chicken fat and spread it on a piece of bread, and you put salt on and they’re delicious. And Susan’s eyes roll into the back of her head at the thought of it. But this is what I grew up on, dripping sandwich, you know, and then you cut off into the snow. It’s always wet and cold and gray and miserable, and you stick one of those in your pocket and you’re fine for the rest of the day.

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Q: A hand warmer.

A: Yeah, it’s blubber and we needed that extra blubber. And, also, I was blessed with one of those metabolisms that drives everyone crazy. I could eat whatever and in whatever quantities I wanted. And whenever I eat, I actually get hot. Susan thinks it’s the funniest thing. If I eat a large meal, I actually perspire and I go on perspiring for about three hours afterward.

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Q: You do not.

A: I swear to God. On a cold night, literally, I’d eat a big dinner, and three or four hours later I get into bed and Susan would never be cold. We’d snuggle up and she’d have to push away. But it all changed. Around 40, it all began to change.

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Q: You’re how old now?

A: I’m 43. I just have to watch it now. No more dripping. My daughters help keep my weight off. The little 3-year-old, Madelyn, never stops, and my 8-year-old, Jenny, I coach her soccer team, so that keeps me honest.

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Q: Plus you work out pretty hard, right?

A: Over an hour with this guy, Hamish Wright, in the gym. We run for 10 minutes, pretty fast to get my heart rate up, and then go and do weights and aerobics at the same time. You do a set of weights and then straight into aerobic exercise, then straight back to weights and then aerobics--jumping jacks or running on the spot--and then back into another weights program.

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Q: Hamish is tough.

A: You know, he’s a great guy. Hamish, he’s a Kiwi, a New Zealander. He’s very proud of that. You come out after an hour very tired but really buzzed. So I do that twice a week with Susan, and a couple of days a week we’ll run around the outside of the country club. We’re not members so we run around the outside, making all these golfers feel guilty. They’re sort of leisurely walking around with their golf clubs while we’re puffing and panting around the outside.

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Q: Run through how Susan keeps you honest with your meals.

A: I’ve taken to making porridge again, so my favorite is a bowl of porridge--and I sweeten it with honey as I’m making it--and wheat germ on the top. And then I’ll have toast, a piece of fruit and usually some kind of herbal tea. So that’ll be breakfast. Lunch is usually at work, and we actually have a pretty good craft service.

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Q: I think you’re the first actor to say that. Usually people try to avoid the craft table.

A: Fran has always been very fat-conscious. We have a fat-free zone around our craft services. And it didn’t sacrifice taste: a lot of salad, pasta and chicken breast. And then dinner’s a good meal, whatever it might be. I cook a lot of fish. I love a salmon steak grilled on the barbecue, but then I go and spoil it and put mayonnaise on it. And some new potatoes and salad. That’s an ideal dinner for me.

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Q: And what would you drink?

A: I’d like to drink a glass of wine if possible, if there’s time. Otherwise, juice or a soda with the kids.

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Guest Workout runs Mondays in Health.