Republican Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio says he takes no offense at President Donald Trump's repeated, widely reported comments about his physique — and the 59-year-old lawmaker is doing his part to keep the president's attention. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Husted said he has been working out so as not to disappoint him.

Husted addressed Trump's most recent remarks about his backside. “The president is coming in tomorrow, again, to Ohio,” Husted said. “Third time in less than thirty days. He'll be in Chillicothe. Don't worry, I was in the weight room this morning working out. I don't want to let him down.”

The senator is seeking re-election against Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, with the midterm elections approaching next week. Trump's repeated commentary on Husted's body has drawn controversy and raised questions about the president's campaign rhetoric. Trump's upcoming Chillicothe appearance will bring the president back to Ohio in the final stretch of the race.

Trump first delivered the remarks on Oct. 12, describing Husted as “a great athlete” and citing the senator's collegiate football career as a defensive back. “I don't do this with men very often — I started examining his body because I didn't know he was a great athlete,” Trump told the crowd. “And I looked, and I watched up and down, and I looked at this a--... and I looked at the whole... and then I looked at his hands — look at his hands, he's got these, like, claws... and I got it, you are a great athlete.”

Over the weekend, Trump doubled down. “I've never studied the body of a man before. It's not my thing. Nothing wrong with it — of course,” he told the crowd, before reiterating that he had examined Husted's backside and legs. Trump also boasted about the senator's broad shoulders, claiming that tapping Husted had hurt his own hand. “He's like a piece of steel,” Trump said. “I said, 'This guy's a monster!'”

It is not the first time Husted has responded to the comments with appreciation. “When I woke up the next morning after hearing that, I told my wife, I'm like, 'Hey, I think I got to get down to the gym and keep up my reputation! So, I gotta keep working out,'” he told Fox News' Aishah Hasnie.

Husted has brushed off the remarks as nothing more than admiration. “We're an athletic family. We try to stay in shape,” he said. “I had a great joy of playing college football, and my wife's a marathon runner, and we're just trying to be a healthy family.” The back-and-forth has now played out across multiple appearances and interviews in the race's closing days, and Trump's Chillicothe stop offers the next occasion on which the remarks could surface again.

The report was first published by Alternet.