John Cena doesn’t seem like the type of person who would shy away from a challenge. After all, throughout his career, he’s taken on plenty of physically demanding roles. But it sounds like he may have taken on more than he bargained for with legendary martial arts star Jackie Chan. Because the workout that he put him through while they were filming a movie together led to a shocking and unexpected weight change for the Peacemaker star.
There’s no denying that John Cena is ripped. Though he’s left his days as a professional wrestler behind, he has no qualms about showing off his strength on screen. But he told GQ that the way he works out has changed recently, and admitted he got off to a bit of a rocky start with one of his new exercise methods:
I say yoga because that’s the closest, but it’s like a stretch routine. I did a movie with Jackie Chan about three to four years ago and they could care less about how strong I was. They just wanted me to kick over my head, which was impossible. I went over there to train with him for about three months and they stretched me like taffy. I immediately lost 20 pounds, which was very difficult for me. I even fell into a weird depression because it was like I’m losing everything that I worked on for 30 years! But I begin to walk taller, begin to have less pain, I was more flexible, and that experience changed my life in many ways, and it taught me the value of making sure your body moves O.K.
John Cena probably isn’t the first person to find that exercises like yoga can transform the body in ways we don’t expect. While it sounds like it was a struggle for him at first, he pushed through and now seems to have found that his new routine is better for not only his body but his mind, too:
In yoga, the concept is that you need to be present because we’re going to stretch you farther than you think you can go. If you’re afraid, then you’re tense. You need to be relaxed and present. Just those two things; relax a little bit and be present. That’s why I relate it to yoga: It's helped me balance a lot of what life throws at you.
While he’s not the first actor who’s found himself at the mercy of Jackie Chan’s intensive training methods, it sounds like he may have actually adopted it into his daily life. The cool thing about John Cena is that he seems like the kind of person who makes the best of life whenever possible. He sets a good example for others, because he’s not afraid to push himself into unfamiliar territory – whether it’s a new workout, or a new career path, even if it means leaving behind a job he loves.
As for Snafu, the movie he and Jackie Chan made, it sounds like it’s finally coming together after years of development. While there’s no official release date, there’s a good chance it could wind up being one of 2022’s new movie releases. We’ll keep an eye out for updates – and maybe give this whole stretching thing a try, too.
