Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski said that despite the ruling from the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals earlier this week that kept the NFL lockout in effect, there’s no reason to think the team's players currently working out together in Massachusetts are going to stop their informal sessions anytime soon.

“We work out all the time,” Gronkowski said Tuesday night. “We’ve been working out, and we’ve been getting at it, four or five times a week. That’s all. We’re not going to stop. Why would we stop? You take a break once and a while, but four or five times a week, we’re still going at it.”

“Taking care of your body during the lockout is definitely a big thing. You don’t want to come back after the lockout and be 'Joe Sloppy' — that’s the worst thing that can happen for yourself as a person and as an athlete,” said inside linebacker Gary Guyton, who is working out with some friends down South as the lockout continues. “So me right now, I’m just building up my body and doing the best I can — work out, every day if possible. And just keep my body in good shape for whatever comes.”

Gronkowski and Guyton were two of three current Patriots who attended a celebrity poker tournament at Tavern on the Water in Boston Tuesday night, an event that helped raise funds for the Boys and Girls Club. The night at the tables was a chance to get away from the local workouts, intense sessions with a collection of players, including teammate Dane Fletcher. Fletcher said the goal at this point in the spring is to try to replicate where they would be during the offseason programs — in this case, organized team activities.

“You try and match what OTA’s would be like at this point, try and get out there and running on the field and throwing and working drills as well as lifting,” said Fletcher, who lined up at multiple linebacker spots last season. “Just do as much as you can do to be on top and try to stay on top of things.”

“There are definitely people out there grinding. I’m working out a lot, throwing — Fletcher and I, we’re always out there grinding every day about five times a week,” Gronkowski said. “We’re just ready to play some football and hoping there’s a season. I’m ready to play.”

In addition to the Patriots, several teams are holding informal workouts during the lockout, including the Jets, Giants, Saints, Buccaneers, Cowboys and Falcons. When it comes to the Patriots, it was reported by ESPN Boston earlier this month that linebacker Jerod Mayo was leading the workouts, but none of the players could confirm that Tuesday night.

Gronkowski, who is set to enter his second year in the NFL, said the ruling this week that kept the lockout in place until at least June 3 gives the players a better idea as to how to plan the rest of their spring, workout-wise.

"It’s good to know what’s going on, instead of waiting every day: 'Maybe today will be the day the lockout ends?' " he said. "At least we know it’ll be down to June 3, at least, instead of wondering if every day the lockout is going to end — maybe tomorrow, maybe the next day. Now we know it’ll be at least until June 3, so we have to keep working out and keep grinding on our own."

The lockout, which will soon enter its 10th week, is the longest work stoppage in NFL history. When it comes to finding out information about what’s going on, Gronkowski said he’s getting information from multiple sources, including Patriots player representative Matt Light.

“I know some people who don't talk to [Light] at all, and I know some people who talk to him all the time,” Gronkowski said. “I mean, it's all the same information — ESPN or Matt Light or your agent. It is what it is.”

Lockout aside, both Gronkowski and Fletcher are enjoying the fact they are no longer rookies.

“There’s definitely a comfort level now that wasn’t there for me at this time last year,” acknowledged Fletcher, who went from undrafted free agent to special teamer and backup linebacker as a rookie. “But when it comes around to OTA’s, if they start up, and there’s training camp, no matter what, you have to compete. Your job is on the line, every day, regardless.”

“This is my first offseason — it’s definitely way easier now than it was last year,” said Gronkowski, a second-round pick in 2010. “With the lockout thing, it is what it is. You just have to keep training and whatever, and when you get the call, you have to be ready to go back. But definitely, at this point now, I know I’m already way ahead of where I was at this time last year because at this point last year as a rookie, I didn’t know anything coming in.”